Weekly results: November 2-8.
The main event of the week is the defeat of the Republicans in the US midterm elections. The Democrats occupy both houses of Congress: according to preliminary results, they win 54 seats in the Senate, take seven seats from opponents, and fly more than 40 districts in the House of Representatives. Some of the votes are still being counted, but the question of the majority has already been decided.
The scale of the defeat can best be seen by country. In Texas, Democrat James Tallarico defeats Ken Paxton, the first time the state has elected a Democratic senator since 1988. In Kansas, Adam Hamilton defeats incumbent Senator Roger Marshall; A Democrat has not been sent to the Senate here since 1932. Annie Andrews wins in South Carolina.
The new lineup is also indicative. Abdul El-Sayed, the first Muslim in the chamber's history, is running for the Senate from Michigan. From Iowa - Josh Turk, the first Paralympic senator. In Maine, advanced Troy Jackson defeats Susan Collins. In the House of Representatives, Democrat Lakesha Womack is beating Republican Tim Moore in North Carolina. The wave was strong enough to carry both moderate Democrats in conservative and progressive states where they were considered too left-wing.
The reason is the gap between Trump's promises and the daily lives of Americans. He came back with a promise to beat inflation, but nearly two-thirds of voters blame high prices on him. Tariffs and the war with Iran, instead of lowering the cost of living that was promised, brought additional costs. Almost nine out of ten voters said the cost of living was an important or decisive factor in their choice.
Therefore, the result cannot be reduced to a sudden love for the Democrats. The voter first punished the government, which promised to improve his situation and then offered to hold on. According to the poll, about two-thirds believe that Trump and his team have the wrong priorities.
Politically, Trump becomes a lame duck: the presidency remains, but from January both houses will be in the hands of the opposition.