On some issues – including several key county issues – alignment of the parties’ priorities could result in bipartisan agreement on major pieces of legislation. In the upper chamber, a likely 2-seat gain will increase the GOP’s margin for internal dissent in confirmations of federal judges and cabinet officials, but the party is still several votes short of a filibuster-proof majority. In the House, the impact of the Democrats’ victory will be tempered by the party’s relatively slim majority in the chamber and, more importantly, continued Republican control of the White House and Senate. The end result is a divided 116th Congress in which both parties could struggle to advance their legislative priorities. Democrats, meanwhile, were felled in the Senate by an election map that called for the party to defend 27 of 33 contested seats, including blue seats in five states that President Trump won by at least 18 points in 2016. Republicans lost at least 30 seats in the House, continuing a trend that has seen an average loss of 25 seats for the president’s party in midterm elections since World War II. With most races settled, each of these factors has played out as predicted. Heading into the midterm elections, two factors seemed likely to influence the outcome in Congress: the historical improbability of the president’s party maintaining control in the House, and a particularly challenging set of races for Democrats in the Senate. In races for governorships and state legislatures throughout the country, meanwhile, Democrats made considerable gains, chipping away at significant majorities built by Republicans over the last several years. Senate, setting up a divided 116th Congress that could be marked by partisan contention and gridlock. Whether or not this result is considered a “blue wave,” Democratic momentum heading into the elections failed to prevent Republicans from maintaining and strengthening their majority in the U.S. House of Representatives in the 2018 midterm elections. NACo Executive Director Matthew Chase provides an overview of NACo's 2018 election analysis.įour years of bicameral Republican control of Congress will end in January after Democrats secured a majority in the U.S. Introduction: Midterm elections set up divided 116th Congress 2022 Fall Board of Directors Meeting & LUCC Symposium.Legislative Presentations, Reports & Toolkits.
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