Democrats Set For Damming Mid-Term Losses

BY SIMON WRIGHT & TAMIKA SHORT

BARACK Obama and his Democratic party face massive losses in America today, as millions of Americans vote in the mid-term elections.  What will the affects be from these results?  Simon Wright and Tamika Short investigate.

The final opinion polls indicate that the Republican Party is likely to gain control of the House of Representatives, whilst the Democrats majority in the Senate will be severely cut.  As America struggles to recover from the great recession, energy and enthusiasm seems to be edging onto the right-hand support, unlike in 2008.  Sky News political editor Adam Boulton commented on his blog the general feelings of the nation; “The mood for change is strong and Obama is no longer the change candidate.”

Up for grabs are all 435 seats in the House of Representatives and 37 seats in the Senate.  Should the Republicans gain a majority, then Obama’s power within congress will sharply decrease, which means his controversial measures on healthcare reform and financial bailouts will struggle to be passed.  However, American Studies expert at the University of Northampton, David Waller doesn’t think it will affect Obama’s worldwide position too much; “Obama still has some cards up his sleeve, as this is a domestic situation, not an international scenario.  It won’t affect any of his foreign policies.”

The Democrats took control of both houses in the 2006 mid-term elections.  The US president has been campaigning across the weekend on many nationwide radio stations.  Former president Bill Clinton and Obama’s wife Michelle have also been making desperate final pleas to undecided voters.  Currently, nationwide polls suggest the 55% of American people will vote Republic, compared to 40% Democratic, with 5% undecided.  Should these polls be accurate enough, it will be the worst mid-term election losses in more than 60 years. 

It is not the first time that a current president has suffered in these polls.  In 1994, Bill Clinton saw the Democrats lose 52 seats, yet the Republicans failed to usurp him from power in 1996.  Republican Ronald Reagan also had a bad mid-term loss in the 1980’s, yet held on for two terms.  Consequently, these results aren’t likely to have a terminal blow for Obama’s chances in regards to a second term in office.

Barack Obama – Eight facts about the US president

-          Born in Hawaii on August 4 1961.

-          Studied a law degree at Harvard University.

-          Worked as a civil rights lawyer in Chicago.

-          Obama was elected to the US senate in 2004.

-          He taught constitutional law at the University of Chicago Law School from 1992-2004.

-          He is a devoted Christian and is the first ever African-American president.

-          He follows American football closely, a fan of the Chicago Bears and Pittsburgh Steelers in the NFL.

-          Barack Obama was the surprise winner of the Nobel Peace Prize in 2009.

Political Power

BARACK Obama defeated Republican candidate John McCain to become the first black president of the United States.  He was sworn into power in January 2009.  During his first year in office, he has battled to reform healthcare in the United States, amid strong criticism.  He has also been trying to achieve new agreements on nuclear disarmament and climate change, though with little breakthrough so far.  He has been criticised for his slow responsive actions towards the catastrophic Gulf of Mexico oil spill.  Obama’s tactics for deploying an additional 30,000 troops on the war in Afghanistan and support for building a Muslim memorial on the site of the World Trade Centre have also come under-fire.  However, it is the economic recovery that will probably play the major dynamic of Obama’s political power.