Politically leveling the playing field

I know that this brisk fall weather tends to have all of us here at St. Joe’s wishing we could go back to summer vacation, but fear not; as there are plenty of waves and current events to keep us all tied up until next June.

If my horrible wave puns lost you I apologize, but there is a Democratic “Blue Wave” phenomenon taking over the news headlines and possibly coming our way post-midterms.

Many Democrats have high hopes for regaining the majority in Congress, but, is that probable?

According to the Washington Post, Democrats currently have 193 seats, overpowered by the GOP’s 235. Seven seats are vacant, two of which were occupied by Democrats most recently.

In order to have a majority, the Democratic party will need to win 23 seats from Republicans while maintaining all of their current ones. If they are successful, it’ll be the first time since 2010 the party has had a majority.

The 35 seats being contested in the Senate don’t look like they’re in the Democrats’ favor either. Thus, after seeing these numbers, a Democratic comeback seems highly improbable. But, with a high influx of blue votes and intensive and strategic campaigning, the “Blue Wave” isn’t out of the picture completely. All it takes is some mobilization.

For President Donald Trump, this could be quite a set-back, as he has had all three branches of government dominated by his own party throughout his term thus-far. He has had plenty of support, enough for him to confirm two new Supreme Court judges and sign over 170 bills into law, according to GovTrack. 

But, the way I see it is that a Democratic resurgence in November is just a way to even the playing field. Who is to check the power of the majority if the majority of each branch is held to the standards of one ideological platform?

However, this possible “Blue Wave” is unfortunately a direct result of our political polarization. We, as citizens, are basing our voting on party lines.

Elections are no longer a matter of who would serve our country best, but rather a contest between the two most wealthy political groups competing for dominance.

What we need are two competing sides, which we obviously have, but to have the final outcomes of their debate be compromise. Allowing a new majority with a competing platform into Congress could possibly help to ease the split between the dominating parties by allowing a louder voice from the opposition to the Republicans to be heard.

Of course, this may not end up being the case judging by the current severe climate of our party polarization and that politics is a game and thus quite unpredictable. But I would rather be on the optimistic side of the speculation.

Bottom line, make sure you vote if you are of age on Nov. 6. The midterms, as we all know, are of the most importance for us as citizens than in any other national election.

The outcome of this election could cause a drastic change to our current government, whether that be a democratic resurgence, or a continuation of Republican dominance.