Midterm elections: What they do and why they are important
What are the midterm elections?
Between each presidential election in the United States is the midterm election. This is a time every two years when voters have the chance to elect or reelect members in the Legislative Branch. But according to the Pew Research Center, voter turnout has a history of dropping during the midterm elections compared to the presidential elections.
According to the study from 2014, voter turnout has regularly dropped during midterms since the 1840s. During the 2008 presidential election that brought Barack Obama into office, 57.1 percent of the voting-age population voted. For the 2010 midterms during the his administration, however, the voter-turnout dropped to 36.9 percent. During the 2012 election, voter turnout rose back to 53.7 percent.
Despite having a lower voter turnout compared to presidential elections, the midterms can determine the balance of the political parties in Congress. In other words, while the presidential elections determine the party and leader in the executive branch, the midterm elections determine the party and leaders in the legislative branch.
The officials up for election during the midterms include all 435 members of the House of Representatives and one-third of the Senate who will then all serve a six-year term. Out of the 50 states, 36 also elect governors during midterms.
Currently, Republicans hold a 52–48 majority in the Senate. The House of Representatives’ 435 seats consists of 241 Republicans and 194 Democrats. Republicans hold the majority of seats in Congress, putting the party in control of the legislative branch.
What do midterm elections do to the balance of power?
The midterm elections are a time when the Senate and House majorities have the possibility of switching hands. In the midterm to determine the 2015 Senate and House during the presidency of Democrat Barack Obama, the Senate switched to Republican control and the House remained red as well. Republican President W. George Bush had the Senate and House switch to Democrat control in the midterm for the 2007 Congress.
Registering to vote
Different states have different deadlines for when citizens can register to vote. Typically, states require people to register a few weeks or even a month prior to the election. States have absentee voting to use in situations in where a citizen of a state might be absent, whether it be during vacation, at college, overseas or in the military. After registering to vote, citizens should note the location of where they will need to go to cast their ballot, as well as what forms of identification their state requires for them to bring.
Rules to remember
Although social media has started playing more of a part in politics, some states have laws against sharing photos while in the ballot booth. In Colorado, it’s a misdemeanor to share a ballot selfie and in Illinois, it’s considered a felony for “any person who knowingly marks his ballot or casts his vote on a voting machine or voting device so that it can be observed by another person.”
Other laws cover voting locations accessibility requirements, language accessibility and voting rights acts. However, voter suppression is still a concern in places such as Wisconsin and other states that carry laws that have a tendency to restrict minorities from voting. The Brennan Center for Justice has created a resource page on the U.S. states and changes to voting laws as of April 2, 2018.
