This has been interpreted as a defeat for former President Trump, who planned to announce his presidential candidacy following the election results were known. In addition, the Republican party partly blames him for the loss, and this has divided the party.
For Democrats it is important to maintain control of the Senate because this will give President Biden a certain degree of governance on issues that are within the control of the Senate. However, on those issues that need the vote of the full Congress or the House, it will be difficult to make progress.
The results in the states
At the state level, the choice was broader, as already noted. This covered governors, legislative chambers, a large number of officials, and various referendums.
– 36 of the 50 state governors of the Union were elected; Of these elections, the victory of Ron de Santis in Florida, a fierce opponent of Trump and who is also projected as a presidential candidate for the Republican party, stands out. Several income statements are still pending.
-The legislative chambers of 46 states and a total of 88 chambers were renewed (in Kansas, New Mexico and South Carolina only one of the chambers was elected and Nebraska has a unicameral legislature); Democrats controlled 32, Republicans 55, and the Alaska House was controlled by a multi-party power-sharing agreement.
In these elections thus far, the Democrats have managed to wrest control from the Republican Party in the Michigan House and Senate, the Minnesota Senate, and the Pennsylvania House.
As a result of these changes, Democrats are left with full control of 36 state legislatures and Republicans with 48. Results are missing from Arizona and Alaska.
Composition of state legislatures by party |
||
| Republican Dominion | Democrat Dominance | Shared Domain |
| 1. Alabama
2. Arkansas 3. Florida 4. Georgia 5. Idaho 6. Indiana 7. Iowa 8. Kansas (1) 9. Kentucky 10. Missouri 11. Montana 12. Nebraska (1) 13. New Hampshire 14. North Carolina 15. North Dakota 16. Ohio 17. Oklahoma 18. South Carolina (1) 19. South Dakota 20. Tennessee 21. Texas 22. Utah 23. West Virginia 24. Wisconsin 25. Wyoming |
1. California
2. Colorado 3. Connecticut 4. Delaware 5. Hawaii 6. Illinois 7. Maine 8. Maryland 9. Massachusetts 10.Michigan 11. Minnesota 12. Nevada 13. New Mexico (1) 14. New York 15. Oregon 16. Rhode Island 17. Vermont 18. Washington |
1. Alaska
2. Pennsylvania |
Fuente: Ballotpedia (Adapted by the author)
These elections are important because the chambers have the power to decide on many important issues, such as the right to vote, education, health and, following the Supreme Court ruling in the case of Roe v. Wade, the right to abortion.
Finally, in these elections, state referendums on various issues were also put to the voters’ consideration, among which were: the following stand out:
- Abortion, in addition to playing an important role in elections, was submitted to a referendum in several states. In Michigan, Kentucky, California, and Vermont, voters voted in favor of women’s reproductive rights.
Results are still pending on a Montana proposal that requires health care providers to save any baby born alive, even following attempted abortions, or face fines or jail time.
- States also took the opportunity to take action on voting rights. It is important to remember that this is not contemplated within the Constitution of the United States and that it depends on each State.
Measures to protect early voting were passed in both Connecticut and Michigan, while in Arizona, Nebraska and Ohio the measures were aimed at tightening voting restrictions.
Nebraska has passed a photo ID requirement to vote, Arizona has ID requirements for both in-person and mail-in voting, and Ohio has banned non-citizens from voting in local elections.
- Recreational marijuana use was approved in Maryland and Missouri, and rejected in Arkansas, North Dakota, and South Dakota.
- Referendums were voted in Alabama, Louisiana, Oregon, Tennessee and Vermont to remove slavery in the form of forced labor, which is still used in some prisons across the country, from state law. With the exception of Louisiana, the states voted to remove the measure.
In conclusion, although several results are missing, it is possible to affirm that the big winner of this contest was President Biden, who, despite his low favorability in the polls, managed to contain the expected “red wave”, weakening the aspirations of Donald Trump to prevail in American politics.
The next elections will be decisive not only for the future of the Democratic Party, but also for democracy in the United States, with its consequent effects on international politics.
