MaltaToday in the USA: The midterm elections explained

Americans will be heading to the polls on November 8, and MaltaToday will be there to cover the action as it plays out. 

MaltaToday will be travelling from Arizona to North Carolina to cover this year’s midterm elections, which will see Americans electing members of Congress in the Senate and House of Representatives.

We are already in the States to catch up on the key issues dominating the election, and we will be here until November 10 to cover the election-day action and give a post-election analysis.  

MaltaToday will be speaking with American academics, politicians and voters to get a feel for the factors impacting this election. These range from immigration policy in the southern states, to abortion in a post-‘Roe v Wade’ America. 

Phoenix is the first port of call on our trip. Arizona is a “swing” state, leaning neither towards the Republican or Democratic party. While it voted Republican in almost all presidential elections since 1948, it has more recently contributed to Biden’s presidential victory in 2020. Arizona went on to vote for a Democratic senator in the 2020 election. Incumbent senator Mark Kelly is vying to retain his seat, while Republican Blake Masters and Libertarian Marc Victor have their eyes set on either of the two Arizona Senate seats. There are a further nine seats up for grabs in the House apportioned to Arizona.

After Phoenix, we will move to North Carolina to experience election day fever on the Eastern coast. Like Arizona, North Carolina spent years voting Republican until it became a purple state in 1984. Former president Obama beat John McCain in 2008 by a narrow 14,000 votes, marking the second-closest contest in that year’s presidential election. 

The 2012 election was a similar situation, with Obama losing to Mitt Romney by just 2%. 

There are 13 House seats to be filled in North Carolina, while only one of the state’s two Senate seats are open for election.  

What are the midterm elections?

Midterm elections take place two years into the president’s term. In fact, they are often dubbed a ‘referendum’ on the president’s performance mid-way through their term. But the election outcome isn’t without consequence for the sitting president. 

In the midterm elections, the American public can vote for several local and state officials, including Congressional members. 

The United States Congress is bicameral, composed of a House of Representatives and a Senate. All seats in the House are up for grabs, while one-third of the 100 Senate seats are at stake. 

Congress is America’s main legislative body, while the President serves as the executive branch of government. As things stand, the Democrats hold a majority in Congress, making it easier for President Biden to continue his political agenda and pass the laws needed to do so. 

If the Republican Party secures a majority in Congress in these elections – which is not an unlikely outcome – Biden will have a more difficult time trying to align his agenda with that of a Republican-controlled Congress.

This year’s midterm elections are particularly interesting to look out for given the political backdrop it’s set against. This is the first election since the January 6 Capitol riots and the overruling of Roe v Wade which established abortion as a human right in America. Immigration and border control issues are as dominant as they were when Trump was first elected into office.

Nicole Meilak was invited to the United States on a mid-terms elections tour for journalists by the Embassy of the United States to Malta