Democrat Catherine Cortez Masto retained her Nevada Senate seat by defeating Republican Adam Laxalt.
After winning a pivotal race in the US state of Nevada, Democrats will retain majority control of the country’s Senate.
According to estimates by the US channel CBS, a BBC partner, Senator Catherine Cortez Masto he will retain his seat following beating Republican nominee Adam Laxalt.
This victory for President Joe Biden’s party follows the showing in Arizona in which Democrat Mark Kelly defeated his Republican opponent Blake Masters.
Democrat Mark Kelly, a former astronaut, defeated Republican Blake Masters.
With this result, Democrats will now have 50 seats in the Senate and the Republicans, 49.
It has yet to be known who wins the Georgia seat, where a runoff will be held on December 6, following none of the candidates obtained more than 50% of the vote.
Meanwhile, the Republicans seem to be getting closer to a majority in the House of Representatives.
Who is Catherine Cortez Masto?
Senator Catherine Cortez Masto, 58, is known for her reserved profile at work, something she maintained on the electoral campaign.
Even her supporters admit that some voters don’t know her full name and instead just call her “the senator.”
His father, Manny, was a Nevada politician who made his way working in a parking lot, later becoming a lawyer and later president of the powerful government agency that promotes the state’s largest tourism industry.
The senator lost 16 of Nevada’s 17 counties but dominated Clark County, where more than 70% of the state’s population lives, including the service workers who keep the lights on in Las Vegas.
SHe was outspoken in favor of legalized abortion and gun control.. He voted to convict Trump of inciting an insurrection following the January 6, 2021 attack on the United States Capitol.
Historically, Latinos are a Democratic-leaning bloc and Donald Trump’s immigration platform particularly encouraged them to vote once morest Republicans in that election.
What happened in Arizona?
the democrat Mark Kelly He defeated his Republican opponent Blake Masters on Friday in the fight for a Senate seat for the state of Arizona in the United States midterm elections.
Kelly, a former astronaut whose wife, Gabby Giffords, survived an assassination attempt when she was a US lawmaker, was first elected two years ago to serve out the remainder of the late John McCain’s term in the Senate.
In a statement, Kelly said, “From day one, this campaign has been focused on the many Arizonans – Democrats, Independents and Republicans – who believe in working together to address the important challenges we face.”
“That’s exactly what I’ve done in my first two years in office and what I’ll continue to do while I’m there.”
The result is another blow to Republicans, who had expected a “red wave,” an electoral defeat that would bring a harsh rebuke to President Joe Biden and the Democrats.
Context
Midterm elections are for Congress, which is made up of two parts: the House of Representatives and the Senate.
Congress makes laws at the national level. The House decides which laws are voted on, while the Senate can block or pass them, confirm appointments made by the president, and, on rare occasions, conduct investigations once morest him.
These elections are held every two years, when they fall in the middle of the president’s four-year term.
Each state has two senators, who serve six-year terms. Representatives hold office for two years and represent smaller districts.
All seats in the House of Representatives were up for election in the midterm elections, along with a third of the Senate.
Several major states also held elections to choose their governor and local officials.
AnAnalysis by Anthony Zurcher, BBC North America reporter
The Democrats have managed to retain control of the US Senate. It’s an achievement that will see Joe Biden’s nominees spend two more years packing the federal courts.
Four days following tens of millions of Americans went to the polls, Catherine Cortez Masto’s narrow victory in Nevada on Saturday night drew a decisive result in the political battle.
Now, even if Republicans win the remaining Senate race in Georgia, Vice President Kamala Harris will be able to cast a tie-breaking vote.
The victory is important because now if a Supreme Court seat becomes vacant due to the unexpected retirement or death of a judge, Republicans would not be able to block Biden’s nominee.
The victory in Nevada means that the Georgia Senate runoff on December 6 is no longer a pivotal contest to determine control of the House.
However, Biden said it is “just better” for Democrats to reach 51 seats. The extra cushion certainly makes managing a majority easier and will also help in 2024, when the party will have more seats at risk to defend.
There is still a chance, though not a certainty, that Republicans will control a slim majority in the House of Representatives, which will bring a variety of headaches for the president.
The consequences of this history-defying midterm election result are still unfolding.
The political future of Donald Trump has been damaged, although it remains to be seen how long-lasting the damage will be. Meanwhile, Joe Biden’s position within his party has been strengthened.
The political world in the US is considerably different than it was just a week ago.
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