The Republican Party gained seven seats in the Senate last Tuesday giving them the majority for the first time since 2006. The GOP also retained majority in the House giving them full control of Congress for the next two years.
All 435 seats in the House of Representatives and 36 in the Senate were up for re-election this year. Republicans won 246 seats in the House and 22 in the Senate, up seven for a total of 52 out of 100. Thirty-six of 50 governorships were also up for re-election, 24 of which sided with Republican candidates.
This major shift in power is most likely due to the poor standing President Barack Obama currently has with voters, according to USA Today. His popularity, which is in the low 40 percent range, actually may have proved detrimental to some candidates. Obama refrained from campaigning for or endorsing candidates in fear of harming their chances at the polls.
With the loss of a majority in either the House or Senate, Democrats hope the power of the filibuster will help them block any legislation that will harm Obama’s legacy.
“Americans want results and they want them fast,” senior Preston DeLong said. “It is difficult to deliver results with varying opinions and the media always manipulating news stories.”
DeLong said many Americans are discouraged by politics because of the constant gridlock between parties who are unwilling to compromise.
While this election on a national scale was what analysts were predicting, the state election in Arkansas took many by surprise. Arkansas, which has long traditionally been a holdout Democratic state, turned red.
“Arkansans have not changed very much in their political views but they have seen that the Democratic Party no longer represents them,” said Gwen Moritz, editor of Arkansas Business and adjunct professor of mass communication. “They no longer feel connected to the party.”
Republicans in the state legislature gained 13 seats for a total of 64 in the 100-member state House of Representatives and gained two in the 35-member state Senate for a total of 24. According to The Washington Post, all seven of the constitutional offices and all six congressional seats are now occupied by Republicans for the first time since Reconstruction 141 years ago.
This year’s elections also made history in several different areas. Voter turn out was at it’s lowest point in 72 years, according to Time Magazine. Only 36.4 percent of eligible voters, down from 40.9 percent in 2010, went to the polls. The 2014 midterm election also broke as the most expensive midterm election in history. More than $4 billion was spent between all parties.
“There has never been a midterm where this amount of money was spent,” Moritz said. “It could have either motivated people for change or turned them off from voting all together.”
