Every two years elections take place where a third of the senate, half of the governor positions, and all of the house positions are up for election. Every other year these elections take place not while during a presidential election. These are called midterms. This year on November 8, the 2022 midterms took place. Senator positions are held for six years, and there are two senators per state, making 100 total. Governors are also up for election, with their terms lasting 4 years, and being only one per state, since they act as a sort of “president” for their state. Lastly, a house of representatives’ term lasts 2 years, with their numbers per state being dependent upon the population of each, however, there are a set 435 spots that all need to be filled. As you can see, there are many elected officials chosen at this time, which will affect laws at both the state and national levels.

Importance of midterms and this year’s midterm

Every election matters since not only do elected officials have a large effect on how a nation functions, but also both political parties have such vastly different beliefs compared to one another. These largely different beliefs make it so people are largely affected when one side wins over the other, especially when congress is making and passing potential laws. The margins between controlling each system are so thin that it often comes down to one to five seats, which emphasizes that every vote counts. President Biden being elected in 2020, meant that democrats needed to maintain their position of control over the senate (in 2020 it was 50-50 and tiebreaker went to them since Kamala Harris is democratic), in order for the democrats to pass legislation easier. If republicans won the majority in the senate and the house, then President Biden would have a difficult time controlling what things he wants to get done.

Results

The results of the midterm election in 2022 are as follows:

-In the senate the democrats gained one seat, and now have 48 seats to the republican’s 49 seats, however, the two independent senators caucus with the democrats. This means that the democrats really have 50 seats, or the majority. At the time of writing this article Georgia’s senator election was too close to call, since neither party had greater than 50% of the vote which was needed to win. An independent candidate took the remaining percentage. The democrats have already clinched the senate, since even if it gets tied 50 seats to 50 seats the tiebreaker goes to the democrats because the vice president’s party determines who controls the senate. This is big for the democrats, since now Biden’s agenda is not completely blocked out. 

-In the position of governor, Virginia didn’t see any change since it is not an election year for us. Glenn Youngkin, the Virginian republican governor, will be in his current position until 2025, when another election takes place. In the rest of the United States, the democrats gained two seats, and now have 24 seats to the republican’s 26 seats. One party necessarily having more governors than the other doesn’t mean too much, since they are independent in their own states. This being said, the party who has a greater number of seats might be able to enforce their beliefs on a greater number of states.

-Though the house of representatives change every two years, the trends of what party controls it is usually similar, since some positions are in regions where the demographic of voters is so heavily in support of that party. This year, the republicans gained eight seats, and now have 220 seats with the democrats having 213. The last two representative positions have 99% of the vote, however, they are very clearly both republican.

Students voting this year 

This year many students here at Oakton were able to participate in their first election. The margins for controlling any one of the three bodies of government are so small, so having students vote is a good way for them to learn and see how much their vote really does matter.