A red – i.e. Republican – wave was predicted during Tuesday’s by-elections. Historically, they were supposed to make a snap election; virtually every by-election after a presidential election ends with the opposition doing well in the United States. With Joe Biden as president and soaring prices, the Republicans should have made a snap election. It didn’t turn out that way. The Democrats have done better than in 40 years in this type of by-election. The votes are still being counted. But: The Democrats are best placed to retain the majority in the Senate. In the House of Representatives, the Republicans look set to gain a slim majority. Joe Biden calls the day after the election “a good day for democracy.” By that he means a good day for the Democrats. Here are three reasons why the Democrats did so much better than expected. 1. Abortion was important nevertheless American women have had the right to self-determined abortion since 1973. In June this year, the US Supreme Court, where six out of nine judges have been appointed by Republican presidents, removed this right. Now it is up to the states whether they want to ban or legalize abortion. A clear majority of Americans believe self-determined abortion should be legal. In 13 states, abortion is now illegal, with no exceptions. In nine states, the ban has been taken to court. In Ohio, a 10-year-old girl who had been raped was not allowed to have an abortion (she had to go to Indiana). Polls showed that the economy was the most important issue for American voters. But women used their right to vote to a greater extent than expected to defend the right to abortion. Or in the words of former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton: “It turns out that women appreciate having human rights, and that we vote. » 2. Trump lost the election Former President Donald Trump is still popular among Republican voters. But to independent and moderate voters, it may appear that he has lost confidence. Several of Donald Trump’s handpicked candidates lost clearly on Tuesday. In Pennsylvania, TV personality and Trump candidate Mehmet Oz lost to Democrat John Fetterman. In Georgia, where Trump’s close friend and American football star Herschel Walker ran, the election goes to the second round because no one received more than 50 percent of the vote. The more moderate Republican governor won clearly. Mehmet Oz lost despite strong support from Trump. Photo: WIN MCNAMEE / AFP In Arizona, Trump’s apple of the eye, the relatively young investor Blake Masters, lost by a good margin. Trump traveled to all these states before the election. It did not bring victory. Trump focused a lot on himself in the election campaign, which was really about Congress and the states. Trump has said he will make a serious announcement next week: It is expected that he will say that he will run for president again in 2024. Donald Trump in Florida on election night. He said he was both a little disappointed and that he saw the election as a personal victory. Photo: Andrew Harnik / AP On his own social media platform, Trump himself says that he is “a little disappointed”, but “that from my personal point of view this was a very big victory”, according to Axios. Trump is now weaker than he was before the election. 3. Young voters decided President Joe Biden (79) pleaded with the American people to vote to save democracy. Much may indicate that America’s youngest voters – Generation Z – responded to the president’s plea: At several universities, hour-long queues to vote were reported. The final numbers are not in yet, but the number of advance votes indicates a high turnout in general. And especially among young people. Jon Taylor, professor of political science at Texas University, believes the right to abortion was decisive for the many young voters. – If the Supreme Court had not removed Roe v Wade in June, the Democrats would not have been able to mobilize voters in the same way, he says to the BBC. Young voters are more democratic than older ones, points out John Della Volpe at Harvard University. – Americans over 40 prefer the Republicans. Americans under 40, especially Millennials and Generation Z, prefer the Democrats by a large margin, says Volpe to NPR. He also says that only 4 per cent of young voters say they feel that they live in a “well-functioning democracy”.
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