Washington (America). For the US midterm elections, polling stations closed in Indiana, Georgia, Kentucky, South Carolina, Vermont and Virginia today between 4:30 am and 5:30 am Indian time (Tuesday 6 pm to 7 pm US time). With this, the process of counting votes in these important elections has started. These elections will decide who will have political control over Congress. The results of voting for all 435 seats of the House of Representatives, 35 seats of the Senate and 36 governor’s posts are expected by this evening. This will decide whether the Republican Party remains in control of Congress in the last two years of President Donald Trump’s tenure or the Democratic Party wins again in one or both houses.
According to CNN and CBC News reports, the results of the midterm elections are slowly beginning to emerge. Early vote count figures have been released in Kentucky and Indiana, with some polling stations closed. Republican candidate Andy Barr has got an early lead in the Kentucky Senate seat. Of the votes counted so far, Bair has received 7,074 votes (67.6 percent). Democratic nominee Charles Booker came in second with 3,187 votes (30.4 percent), while Kentucky Party nominee Christopher Campbell received 209 votes (2 percent).
Ossoff has the upper hand in the Georgia Senate race, while the race in South Carolina is close. Incumbent Democrat Jon Ossoff is leading in the Senate race in Georgia. He won the election for the first time in 2021. The contest between Republican Senator Darlene Graham and Democrat Annie Andrews in South Carolina is considered to be close and the race for the post of governor in Georgia is also similar. It is estimated that Democratic Senator Mark Warner in Virginia has secured another term in the Senate. Senate seats in Georgia and South Carolina are hotly contested. Similarly, there is a tough competition for the election of Governor in Georgia and two House of Representatives seats in Virginia.
Responding to the close of voting in Kentucky, President Donald Trump wrote on ‘Truth Social’, “Voting is about to end in Kentucky. A big deal!” In another post, Trump criticized Fox News presenter Jessica Tarlov. He made the comments while reacting to the network’s election coverage. He wrote, “I’m watching the pre-election results on Fox News, but Jessica Tarlov’s voice is unbearable. She is an absolute idiot. Her voice alone irritates me. Until she gets off the screen, I will have to go somewhere else.”
Initial results of CNN’s voter poll have shown that there is a lot of dissatisfaction among the people about Washington. Voters have expressed negative opinions about the Congress, the Supreme Court and both major political parties. According to the survey, nearly 7 in 10 voters believe that Congress is not maintaining adequate checks and balances on the presidency. The poll also revealed that people’s opinion towards Republicans is more negative than that of Democrats.
Democrats have a slight edge over Republicans in terms of voter confidence on the issue of the economy. This is a significant change compared to the previous election, because then the Democrats’ position on this issue was weak. However, about 20% (one-fifth) of voters said they did not trust any party in handling the economy.
Meanwhile, Vice President J.D. Vance defended the administration’s visa and employment policies. He said the administration has worked to prevent visa fraud and prevent American workers from being replaced with low-wage foreign workers. “Over the past few years, we have reduced visa fraud and fought back against those who fire American workers and replace them with low-wage foreigners. Because sovereignty means American jobs must go to American people,” Vance said in the X-Post.
This time at least 10 independent candidates are also trying their luck. Currently, there are two independent members in the Senate – Senator Bernie Sanders of Vermont and Senator Angus King of Maine. Both of them work together with the Democrats. The only independent member in the House of Representatives is Kevin Kiley of California. Despite leaving the Republican Party in March, he still works with the Republican Party in the House.