Introduction
Election according to Smith is the act of choosing an individual willingly to fill a certain position in an office. Mid-term election is the act of selecting an individual to fill a certain position before the date of the general election. The period of election is divided into two and elections done half way thorough. Mid-term elections in the US for example are done after a period of two years. This paper thus seeks to find out what impacts the midterm elections have on presidency, citizens and on the parties involved (Smith, 2007).
Background Information
According to Cortlandt, the president is chosen by the Electoral College. Midterm elections are usually conducted two years after the general voting in the US. The last mid-term elections to be held were conducted on 2nd November 2010. Mid-term elections began as early as when the elections began in the US and during this time members of the congress and House of Representatives are selected. According to Cortlandt, in the earlier periods, midterm elections have been filled with astonishment. In 2002 for example, republicans defeated democrats to take the US Senate. In 1994, the democrats took the chief state govern ships and 20 state houses. Republicans secured eight additional houses of state legislatures (Cortlandt, 2009).
Midterm elections have been distinctively known for two reasons. According to smith, the voter attendance is always lower compared to that of the general election. It is normally 10-15 % lower because there is usually a low stimulus, of presidential contest. For the past two years for example, less than 40% of the nation‘s adult population has voted. The turn out he claims, is usually associated to the struggle of congressional races.
Secondly, a pattern has been held for the outcome of the elections from 1938-1994. It has been predicted that the presidential party would obviously gain seats in congress in presidential election years but not get places in mid-term elections. This pattern has been held for house seat and senate seats in three mid-term elections in the same period. Thus, it has been known that the party in which the chief executive belongs does not get more seats in the mid-term election of the president’s second term than in the president’s first term. According to the New York Times Newspaper (pg. 4), elections in 1998 and 2002 supported this familiar trend. At the same time, during both of these elections, the president enjoyed unusual high public approval scores (New York Times, 2010).
Impact on Citizens
Midterm presidential elections have a great impact on the welfare of the citizens. According to a research done by Viperlord, the performance of the stock market tends to increase during mid-term elections. According to him, the stock market performance has expanded with a profit of 2.2% revenue in November. He claims that, “history indicates but does not guarantee that once the uncertainty of the mid-term elections has ended, the equity market breathes as sigh of relief and begins a meaningful move higher.” According to the international business times, a strong market performance has been witnessed in August and September. The living standards of the citizens increase and they are able to live healthy lives. The economy of the country generally does up as a result (Viperlord, 2010).
Stovall’s research however indicates that whenever two months have been positive there is an implication that the market may have used up some of its energy leading up to the elections. This implies that prices of goods will increase by almost twice the price. This greatly affects the citizens for they are forced to cope up with the recession in the economy of the country. They end up using the little money they had saved up for daily consumption and this leads to underdevelopment. There is no progress and the living standards of the citizens go down. Investors are normally disappointed according to Viperlord, and they are forced in effect to lock in profits.
Impact on Presidency
According to Paul, the mid-term election has a great impact on the presidency of a nation. In the US for example, the outcome of the presidential election is influenced by the language of the presidency used at the time of the election. In 2010 elections for example, the republicans won because they promised the citizens they would cut government pending. Evidence shows that the allocation of finances towards foreign policy has been directed towards Iraq and Afghanistan. The resources will be directed towards maintenance of nonproliferation of nuclear weapons and technology as well as preserve stability in Pakistan. The focus that the president has and the vision towards the development of the economy can cause a great rise in the number of votes garnered during a mid-term election (Paul, 2009).
According to Presutti, there was a negative effect of the 2010 mid-term elections. To some extent, the policies and politics of the president were rejected. Though the republicans worn the elections, the democrats control the white house and the United States senate. This therefore means that the president has no full control of the running of the government. According to Presutti, there is an emerging trend for the outcome of the presidential elections since 1948. During Clinton’s reign for example, in the 1994 midterm elections, democrats lost their position. Republicans later acquired power but two years later, Clinton was brought back into office. In 1992, president bush was challenged by pat during the republican nomination. He later lost the election to Clinton (Presutti, 2010).
Due to the above trend Schwitters argues, presidents have learnt to learn from their mates’ previous mistakes and forge from there. President Obama for example the New York Times Newspaper claims was closely studying the Clinton presidency. From what Clinton went through, he has learnt to teach the republicans to say no to certain non-development issues. Obama, they claim is aware that the loss of the house has historically presented an opportunity to run against the opponent. Previous mid-term elections thus help shape the way of governance of the current president and ensure good strategies are put in place for the next mid-elections.
Mid term elections also ensure the president is kept on toes knowing that he has people to be accountable to and his office to retain in the next election. Thus, proper measurements and strategies are put in place to ensure that the economy is at per. According to the New York Times newspaper, Schwitters says that “… we expect a core accomplishment of the second half of Obama’s term to be material reduction of American military forces in Afghanistan commencing in July 2011….actions such as this are exemplary of the sort of attention that we anticipate the president will pay to the progressive wing of his party.” Thus, the thought and the reality of a mid-term elections keep the president on toes to ensure it is answerable to the people who will eventually determine whether he retains his seat or not.
The Position of Parties
There are two parties in the US, the republicans and the democrats. The republicans stand for change. They are geared towards bringing about the change that America waited and hoped for during the last election. According to the voice of America news by Presutti, though the Americans are not satisfied with the governance of the republicans, they are determined to deliver to their best. 50% of Americans claim that they are frustrated just two years after the historic election of the nation’s first African American president according to a prediction by analysts. Despite all these, the republicans being the majority seek to fulfill their promises to the citizens by improving the economy and opening up more job opportunities in order to curb the persistent high unemployment rates. Their agenda also include the vow to be hard on terrorism which they seek to achieve.
The democrats on the other hand according to Cortlandt, want to take up the majority or representations in the house and vote in a president from their own party. They stand for truth and they take the mid-term elections as an opportunity to expose the ills of their opponents and work to achieve that which their opponents were not able to. Both the democrats and the republicans however have a say in governing the country. The Americans hold both parties accountable for the actions of the government (Cortlandt, 2009).
Presidential Take
The presidential take on the mid –term election according to…., I s that the elections are important t to assist put the house united and work together to ensure they achieve their goals so they can be assured to win the next election. Research shows that presidents who have not in the past worked closely with members of their party have not had a smooth take on the side of elections. For president Obama for example, his take on the mid –term elections according to a prediction conducted by Schwitters, is that he sought to press hi agenda taking a risk of being voted down or discard is program and cooperate with his party members which re-established his image.
Conclusion
Mid-term elections are a lee way to presidential elections. According to Smith, a political analyst, they assist a president to prepare himself and correct any weak points before the general elections come. Events surrounding the mid-term elections thus have been found to either shape or misshape presidential politics and determine the possibility of a candidate retaining the presidential seat (Smith, 2007).
References
Cortlandt, F. (2009). History of Elections in the American Colonies. New York: BiblioBazaar Press.
Paul, S, et al. (2009). The Enduring Vision: A History of the American People. New York: Cengage Learning.
Presutti, C. Voice of America: Congressional Midterm Elections Over, 2012 Presidential Race Next. Washington: Washington press. 3rd November 2010.
Schwitters, K. Yale Press Log: New York Times. New York. 3rd November 2010.
Smith, S, et al. (2007). The American Congress. New York: Cambridge University Press.
Viperlord, O. Historum: Mid Term Election Day in the US. Jelsoft Enterprises: Retrieved on 24th August 2010.
