Midterm Elections
Voters get ready to choose the nation's leaders
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| Democratic U.S. Senate candidate Jim Webb speaks to supporters during a kick-off rally for Democratic U.S. congressional candidates for Virginia. (Photo: Alex Wong/Getty Images/NewsComa) |
The race is on. Voters across the nation are getting ready to shape America’s next two years as midterm elections approach. Midterm elections are held midway into a president's term in office. This year, voters will elect 36 governors, 33 of the 100 U.S. Senators and all 435 members of the House of Representatives. The election is Tuesday, November 7.
The stakes are high in a midterm election. Since Congress has the power to pass legislation, the party that wins control of the House and the Senate can affect the amount of support the President receives for his agenda.
The majority party, or the party with the most elected members, also has more power to get things done. Right now, the Republicans have more members in the House and Senate. This means they can chair, or lead important committees and pass more laws. But since the Republicans only have a small majority, they don't always get to pass the laws they want.
Nancy Pelosi of California is the minority leader in the House for the Democrats. In 2002, she became the first woman to be elected in that position. If the Democrats do win control of the House this November, she could become the first female Speaker of the House as well.
"If elected Speaker, I would set the House on a new direction to ensure economic opportunity and security for all," Pelosi said in an interview with Scholastic News Online.
Midterm elections often indicate how the public feels about the President’s performance. If a Republican President is doing well, his party is more likely to do well in midterm elections. If voters are unhappy with a President, they sometimes vote against his party in midterm elections.
This year, Democrats hope to regain control of congress. If the Democrats can win 6 more seats in the Senate and 15 more seats in the House, they will have the majority in Congress.
This year, public opinion polls revealed that the President’s approval rating had dropped to the lowest of his presidency. As a result, some Republicans running for office are trying to distance their connection to the President.
The Republicans have had control of the Senate since 2003. They have had control of the House since 1995.
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Tiffany Chaparro is a contributing writer for Scholastic News Online.
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