U.S. Midterms and Chameleons

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Don’t get too comfortable, seems to be the motto of U.S. politics. Just when members of the House of Representatives and some senators get used to elevators and corridors leading to their offices, there’s another election.

A big one known as Midterms is just around the corner on 8 November ‘22. Let’s hope members of congress are prepared because voters are chameleons. Therefore they cannot take anything for granted, especially with these extraordinary Midterms.

Don’t get too comfortable, should be a windscreen sticker, because a lot has happened since the two historic 2021 dates: January 6 when former President Trump’s supporters stormed Congress and January 20, when Joe Biden was sworn in as 46th U.S. President.

Candidates running for office should be particularly careful about what was breaking news in both 2021 and 2020. Take the house committee investigating January 6 attempted coup, for example.

Candidates taking the Democratic Party bus cannot assume that the damning evidence of treason tabled on that Committee automatically translates into a Yes vote for them. Texas is another example. They vote Republic, but the state cannot assume that voters will vote red again this year.

Voters are chameleons. That is why politicians should not rely on how the public reacts to breaking news and Twitter feeds. The U.S. Supreme Court’s 24 June decision on abortion for example. Academics and gender activists were on television and podcasts to denounce its decision to overturn Roe vs. Wade. However, Democrats cannot relax and think that they've locked in the pro-choice vote.

There are many examples of breaking news that might lure politicians into thinking that voters are in their corner. They might not, because voters are chameleons.

By: Nonqaba waka Msimang.

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