No Red Wave, But Republicans Poised To Win House
By Stefan J. Bos, Chief International Correspondent Worthy News
WASHINGTON (Worthy News) – Commentators said Wednesday that Democrats defied historical odds in the critical U.S. midterm elections as an anticipated “red wave” of Republican victories did not materialize.
Yet Republicans were still likely to win one if not both houses of Congress, with potentially significant consequences for Joe Biden’s presidency and his announced pro-abortion agenda.
Both parties were anxiously watching Senate races in Nevada and Arizona, as well as a tight contest in Georgia that could be headed for a December runoff to determine control of the upper chamber, much like two years ago.
For a time, it appeared Republicans might not win the majority in Congress at all. However, their taking the House of Representatives was still the likeliest outcome, according to results monitored by Worthy News.
The expected estimated House seats were 211 for Democrats and 224 for Republicans.
Yet it wasn’t the outcome former U.S. President Donald J. Trump had hoped for.
PRESIDENTIAL RUN
Trump, who only days ago was teasing the date to likely announce a 2024 presidential run, was blamed by supporters and foes for failing the Republicans’ anticipated “red wave.”
“The Red Wave Was More Like a Pink Splash” was the headline of a Time magazine story.
The color red for Republicans and blue for Democrats followed the epic election of 2000 when U.S. newspapers The New York Times and USA Today published their first color-coded election maps for the different parties.
Critics claimed Wednesday that Trump was the Republican party’s “biggest loser” of this year’s midterm elections, despite not being on the ballot paper.
His younger party rival Ron DeSantis swept to victory for the governor’s race in the U.S. state of Florida, potentially giving him a platform to challenge the ex-president in two years.
The outspoken Republican governor took to the stage in Tampa with his clamorous wife Casey and children to claim victory over “woke ideology.”
FACING CHALLENGE
Before that victory, Trump had looked like the probable 2024 presidential Republican candidate.
But after DeSantis’s highly convincing re-election against Democrat Charlie Crist, in which the governor took roughly 59.4% of the vote, the relative political newcomer was being tipped as a potential Republican frontrunner.
Even the New York Post newspaper, which just two years ago endorsed Trump for re-election, declared the Florida governor “DeFUTURE” on its front page.
A story by outlet Fox News, another traditional Trump ally, reported that Trump was “blasted across [the] media spectrum,” citing a quote describing the former president as the “biggest loser tonight.”
Media suggested that DeSantis, 44, will seek the Republican presidential nomination in 2024. That likelihood has drawn the ire of Trump, 76, who has nicknamed him “Ron De-Sanctimonious.”
Trump has said he will make a major announcement next Tuesday when he is expected to declare his candidacy.
TWO MORE YEARS?
DeSantis declined to say whether he would serve his second term as governor in full or seek a run for president halfway and did not mention Trump in his victory speech.
But when supporters chanted “Two more years!” though governors usually serve four-year terms, he smiled and said: “Thank you very much.”
Yet the midterms were a setback for those seeking more protection for the unborn by reducing access to abortion and increasing support for pregnant women and girls.
Democrats won elections for governor in the “blue wall” states of Michigan, Pennsylvania, and Wisconsin on Tuesday, enabling them to resist Republican efforts their to restrict abortion rights.
Another remarkable governor race was the one in Arkansas where Republican Sarah Huckabee Sanders, who was one of Trump’s White House press secretaries, was elected as that state’s first woman governor. Her father, Mike Huckabee, is a former Republican governor of Arkansas.
Yet, back at his Mar-a-Lago resort in Palm Beach, Florida, Trump showed some unease when meeting donors filling the room. Trump said it had been an “interesting evening” without mentioning the re-election of his rival DeSantis.
However, he did praise the Republican Senate candidate Katie Britt, whose win in Alabama was considered by commentators as a foregone conclusion.
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