Midterms 2018: Early voting sees record-breaking turnout as Oprah heads on campaign trail for Stacey Abrams
The major elections are less than a week away
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Your support makes all the difference.The US is just four days away from the 2018 midterm elections on 6 November and races around the country are heating up.
Democrats are attempting to gain control of the US House and Senate in the wake of a contentious, partisan battle over the newly-confirmed Supreme Court Justice Brett Kavanaugh.
There are several state and local races of importance, too, as the parties square off for control of state legislatures and local city councils.
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Democrats on Capitol Hill are reportedly pushing to force a vote on health care just before the midterms.
The vote is seen as an attempt by the minority party to showcase Republican opposition to expanded health care access across the country.
White House advisor Kellyanne Conway took to Fox News on Wednesday to discuss the midterm elections, saying, “The historical trends mean that the party in power loses seats in the house. This is just a president who defies trends and rather than repeating history he tends to make history.”
Voting integrity advocates and electronic voting experts have called for states to issue official warnings if their voting machines lack integrated cellular modems, alleging those models may be vulnerable to hacks and further attacks.
As the midterm races heat up, progressive watchdog group Citizens for Ethics and Responsibility in Washington have brought attention to current law which allows Super PACs to avoid revealing their donors until after the crucial elections.
In terms of motivation to vote in the upcoming elections, it appears the Democratic Party has been greatly energised by Brett Kavanaugh’s controversial appointment to the Supreme Court.
A new Morning Consult poll says at least 77 per cent of Democrats are motivated to vote — a 10-point surge — compared to 68 per cent of Republicans, a one-point dip.
Republicans have voted down a health care bill that would essentially reverse blockades Donald Trump’s administration has implemented against coverage for patients with pre-existing conditions.
The vote could pose major consequences for lawmakers in vastly uninsured red states like Texas, with less than 30 days before the 2018 midterm elections.
Youth voter registration appears to gaining new ground in 2018, with scores of teenagers registering to participate in the upcoming crucial elections.
In 2014, just over 17 per cent of youth aged 18-24 voted — the lowest turnout for the demographic in midterm history.
Reports from Georgia indicate nearly 10 per cent of the state’s voters were removed from rolls without notice. The practice has become a controversial — and somewhat typical — strategy used by certain lawmakers to hold onto power, by attempting to reduce voter turnout.
The experts at Five Thirty Eight have posted an interesting conversation about which states could put Congress and the US Senate in play during the upcoming midterm elections.
While several analysts noted Texas’ surprising support for Democratic candidates like Beto O’Rourke, who is challenging incumbent Republican Ted Cruz for Senate, others mentioned North Carolina, Tennessee and other reliably red states as showing signs of possibly swinging blue come November.
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