Economics, inflation, immigration, security, and abortion laws were the themes which dominated the election campaign in the United States. Great emotion, shouts of delight, thunderous applause, tears of disappointment and bitter words spoken from the rostrums. America has never been so divided.
In the US, votes are counted after the midterm elections. Preliminary voting results indicate that they are closer than expected. Everything suggests that the House of Representatives will pass into the control of the Republicans, although not by the majority some commentators were forecasting. In the Senate, the result is too close to call.
Many polling stations were open the week before the election, and in some states, people could even register on election day. The most dominant issues in this election were inflation, abortion, immigration, gun ownership laws and crime.
In June, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled that the U.S. Constitution does not grant the right to abortion. As a result, five states have organized a vote to adopt local regulations related to abortion. Montana and Kentucky are set to tighten abortion laws, while in Vermont, Michigan and California, voters voted on an amendment to the state constitution to provide access to abortion.
Why are the election results in California significant? California Democrat Alex Padilla now holds the former position of Vice President Kamala Harris. All indications are that he received enough votes to represent California in Washington for another term.
The Golden State is the most populous in the US and has as many as 53 representatives. By comparison, Pennsylvania has 18 representatives, Texas has 36, and New York has 27. If the Republicans win a majority in the House of Representatives, it is likely that Republican Kevin McCarthy, a California native, will take over for Speaker Nancy Pelosi.