Hem
Fackföreningsmedlemmar förbereder valarbete för Demokraterna i Las Vegas. (John Locher / TT NYHETSBYRÅN/ NTB Scanpix)

Därför kan mellanårsvalet i november bli en rysare

Valet till USA:s kongress den 6 november kommer att få stor betydelse. Nyhetsbyrån TT har listat sex anledningar till att valet är av sällan skådad vikt.

  • Mätningar tyder på ett jämnt val.
  • Blir det maktskifte i senaten blir Trumps agenda än mer pressad.
  • Om Republikanerna behåller makten i kongressen befäster det Trumps ställning – och USA lär gå än mer mot den politiska högern.
  • Den 6 november bjuder på fler rafflande val – bland annat väljs guvernörer i 36 delstater, samt folkomröstningar.
  • Rekordmånga kvinnor, hbtq-personer och minoriteter ställer upp och valet har beskrivits som ”kvinnornas val” och ”regnbågsvalet”.
bakgrund
 
Mellanårsvalet
Wikipedia (en)
Midterm elections in the United States are the general elections held in November every four years, near the midpoint of a president's four-year term of office. Federal offices that are up for election during the midterms are members of the United States Congress, including all 435 seats in the United States House of Representatives, and 33 or 34 of the 100 seats in the United States Senate. The coming 2018 election is a midterm election. In addition, 34 of the 50 U.S. states elect their governors to four-year terms during midterm elections, while Vermont and New Hampshire elect governors to two-year terms in both midterm and presidential elections. Thus, 36 governors are elected during midterm elections. Many states also elect officers to their state legislatures in midterm years. There are also elections held at the municipal level. On the ballot are many mayors, other local public offices, and a wide variety of citizen initiatives. Special elections are often held in conjunction with regular elections, so additional Senators, governors and other local officials may be elected to partial terms. Midterm elections usually generate lower voter turnout than presidential elections. While the latter have had turnouts of about 50–60% over the past 60 years, only about 40 percent of those eligible to vote actually go to the polls in midterm elections. Midterm elections usually see the president's party lose seats in Congress, and also frequently see the president's intraparty opponents gain power.

Den amerikanska kongressen

Kongressvalet rör alla de 435 ledamöterna i underhuset, representanthuset, samt 33 av de 100 senatorerna i överhuset.

I dag har Republikanerna majoriteten i båda kamrarna, med 235 ledamöter i representanthuset och 51 i senaten.

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