The situation before Tuesday’s fateful mid-term elections is completely even. One of the most important battles is over power over the legislature, the United States Congress. It consists of two chambers – the Senate and the House of Representatives.
– It’s a dead race in the senate, it can go either way. We are looking very closely at Pennsylvania and a few other states. In the House of Representatives, on the other hand, it will take a lot if the Democrats are to succeed in turning the upper hand that the Republicans have, says SVT’s incoming US correspondent Fouad Yousefi, who monitors the mid-term elections on the ground in the US.
Standing between two odd politicians
The battle for the legislature may be decided in Pennsylvania, and the election is between two oddball politicians. The left-wing Democrat John Fetterman was previously the favorite, but his ability to work is being questioned after he suffered a stroke last fall. On the other side is the well-known TV doctor Mehmet Oz, who has never been involved in politics before, but who has been highlighted by Donald Trump.
– It is completely even between these two candidates, who are so different. You could say that the pattern follows what we are used to along the east coast. Fetterman dominates in the larger cities while Dr. Oz has the upper hand in the countryside, says SVT’s USA correspondent, Stefan Åsberg.
“Had difficulty finding the words”
The Democrats, who must win Pennsylvania if they are to have any chance of keeping the Senate, must get more people to go and vote, according to Åsberg. He emphasizes that it was “painful” to see Fetterman in the debate between the two candidates, which was held just over a week ago.
– He had difficulty finding the words and difficulty answering questions. It remains to be seen whether the voters believe that Fetterman can perform a record-breaking job in the Senate from January next year, says Stefan Åsberg.
If the Republicans take over the Democrats’ fragile majority in both the upper and lower houses, the sitting president risks being domestically tied back for two years.
– He will clearly be a clipped president, although it is not an unusual situation. It affected Donald Trump and it affected Barrack Obama, for example. It will be difficult to push through reforms and laws, which must be approved in both chambers – the Senate and the House of Representatives.