Now that Democrats have a majority in the lower house, it is expected to launch an investigation into Donald Trump’s ties with Russia.
The US mid-term elections threw a surprising win for the Democrats and warning bells for the Republicans. The US Congress is now divided between the democrats and republicans. President Donald Trump’s political Rival-Democratic party has captured the House of Representatives, (the equivalent of Lok Sabha) while the Republicans maintained their dominance over the Senate (the equivalent of Rajya Sabha). Though the complete result is yet to come, the Democrats have won the crucial 23 seats to prove majority in the House of Representatives. For President Trump, the mid-term elections definitely were like a tremendous shock.
Before diving deep into the details, let us first know what are the mid-term elections, what is the significance of the mid-term election in 2018? The United States Congress is the bicameral legislature of the Federal government of the United States. The legislature consists of two chambers: the House of Representatives and the Senate. The total number of seats in the Senate is 100, while the total number of seats in the House of Representatives is 435.
The US mid-term elections are held in the middle of the four-year term of the President, i.e. two years after the beginning of a Presidential term. Thus, it is called mid-term elections. These elections are held for all 435 seats of the lower house of the US Congress i.e. House of Representatives. Whereas, only one-third of members of the 100-member Upper House are elected during the mid-term election. This time the elections for 35 seats of the Senate took place on 6 November.
According to the Associated Press, a “Blue wave” swept across the House of Representatives as the Democrats registered a victory on 223 seats out of the 420 seats. The Trump’s rival party crossed majority mark of 218 while the Republican Party won 197 seats. Although the results for the 15 seats have not been announced yet, it is believed that Democrat candidates may emerge triumphant on most of these seats.
For Democrats, it is indeed a time to be elated. It is for the first time since 2010 that the Democratic Party has crossed the majority’s figure in the lower house. It also means that the Democrats can now keep a check on President Trump’s policies and he cannot take arbitrary decisions.
However, the Republican Party’s dominance in the Senate persists. Adding two more seats to the earlier tally of 51, the Republican Party now stands at 53 out of total 100 seats in the Senate. The Senate plays a crucial role in approving officers and appointment on some high posts in the administration. The Senate also approves the appointment of judges of the courts. It means the Republican party and President Trump will have a greater say in the appointment of judges. It is expected that continuing the Republican tradition, Trump may appoint more conservative judges to federal courts.
The mid-term elections are considered the reflection of public opinion on the work of the current President. For Democrats, gun violence in America and allegations of sexual harassment against President Trump and health care were the main election planks. Even before the elections, it was anticipated that Democrats would sweep the lower house as the donation to the party increased multi folds. The donation democrats received this time was more than the last mid-term elections.
Democratic Party leader Nancy Pelosi, who can now also hold the post of speaker in the House of Representatives, said that the victory has enabled the Democrats to curb the malpractices of the trump administration. Nancy said, “Now the Democratic Party is in the House of Representatives through the majority. It’s about restoring the Constitution’s checks and balances to the Trump administration, all the legal restrictions will be imposed on the administration. The party will work to work in the interests of the common people. The party will work in areas like health, education, and economy.”
But Pelosi also said that the Democratic Party will definitely try to gain consensus with everyone. The victory of the Democratic Party is considered to be a political setback for President Donald Trump. In the mid-term elections, the performances of Indian-origin candidates were spectacular. Pramila Jaipal, Raja Krishnamoorthi, Row Khanna and Ami Bera have won the elections again.
Tremendous success tonight. Thank you to all!
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) November 7, 2018
President Trump also tweeted after the election results were declared late in the night. He wrote, “It was a great success … thanks, everyone …”. Perhaps Trump was pointing to the Republican victory in the Senate.
Trump’s real challenge comes from the House of Representatives. Now that Democrats have a majority in the lower house and the chances of the party having its candidate in speaker’s chair are high, it can thoroughly investigate every policy of the Trump administration. It can also examine President Trump’s private business and financial affairs. It is also expected to launch an investigation into Donald Trump’s ties with Russia. Most importantly, the Democratic Party can now even bring an impeachment motion against President Trump in the House of Representatives. However, will the Democrats be able to corner Trump government is to be seen?
In recent months, there have been many cases against Donald Trump on the basis of which impeachment can be conducted against him. The proposal of impeachment is sent to the Senate after passing it in the lower house, where the proposal must be passed with a two-thirds majority. The Democratic Party has already said that it will bring an impeachment motion against Donald Trump in parliament after the mid-term elections. But, obviously, the success of this proposal will depend on its position in the Senate which currently doesn’t look favourable.
The big question now arises-whether Trump will be able to fulfil his first term as the President? Whether the results of the midterm elections are a sign of countdown of the Trump government?
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