• About Us
  • Who Are We
  • Work With Us
Friday, June 2, 2023
No Result
View All Result
NEWSLETTER
The Globe Post
39 °f
New York
44 ° Fri
46 ° Sat
40 ° Sun
41 ° Mon
No Result
View All Result
The Globe Post
No Result
View All Result
Home Opinion

True Meaning of 2018 Midterms: Nation Deeply Divided

Steffen Schmidt by Steffen Schmidt
11/14/18
in Opinion
US President Donald Trump attends a Make America Great Again rally in Council Bluffs, Iowa on October 9, 2018

America is divided into the 'Party of Trump' and the 'Party of Never Trump.' Photo: AFP

Share on FacebookShare on Twitter

The headlines after the midterms were striking: “Democrats Retake House of Representatives.” “Republicans Gain Seats and Hold Majority in US Senate.” The most significant outcome, however, is that the American nation is more politically, socially, and economically divided than ever.

A careful analysis of exit polls and voting returns reinforces the truism that Republicans are holding strong in rural areas while Democrats are becoming the party of America’s cities and suburbs. This accounted for many of the House losses. Since America’s population growth is in cities and suburbs, this is bad news for the Republican Party.

Changing Demographic

The 2018 contests were also the “year of young voters.” An analysis from TargetSmart showed that early voting across every age group increased, but that the surge was most pronounced among voters between 18 and 29 years old. In this age group, more than 3.3 million voters went to the ballot, a 188 percent increase compared to 2014.

These young voters were not evenly distributed by party. Republicans are apparently becoming the party of older Americans while younger voters are favoring the Democrats. In future elections, this demographic reality poses a challenge to Republicans as serious as the urban/rural divide.

Exit polls show that 2 out of every 8 people polled said they were voting to support Donald J. Trump, but 3 of 8 said they were voting to oppose him: the evidence that President Trump hurt the Republican Party and helped Democrats retake the House of Representatives. America is now divided into the “Party of Trump” and the “Party of Never Trump.”

Iowa’s Case

No races suggest this more clearly than the First and Third congressional districts in Iowa. In the First, incumbent Republican Rod Blum happily invited President Trump to a big rally where Trump encouraged voters to vote for Blum and asked them to see a vote for Blum as a vote for Trump. Blum lost to the 29-year-old Democratic woman Abby Finkenauer who will be one of the two youngest ever elected to the House.

In Iowa’s Third district, David Young, protégé and former staff member of powerful Republican Senator Chuck Grassley, was also thrilled to have President Trump hold a big rally for him. The result was also negative, as Young lost his seat to Cindy Axne, a businesswoman who had never held public office.

We did it! I’m honored to be your Democratic nominee for #IA03. Everyone played a critical role in this victory & I couldn’t be more grateful for your support.

Together, we'll defeat Republican David Young & his healthcare-stripping, tax-raising agenda in November! #iapolitics pic.twitter.com/z1Pd8J15wr

— Cindy Axne (@Axne4Congress) June 6, 2018

Finkenauer and Axne are the first women ever elected to Congress from Iowa. Many political analysts believe that both Blum and Young could have squeaked to a victory by focusing on issues of importance in their districts and avoiding the distraction of a visit by President Trump.

As Trump rolls out his reelection campaign, opposition to him personally and to his policies will give Democrats an opening for retaking the White House, assuming they can unify around a viable candidate.

Gun Control

Another issue that demonstrates the division in the U.S. is gun control: 59 percent of voters support stricter gun control and only 37 percent opposed it. The U.S. is the nation of the National Rifle Association (NRA) and Republicans and on the other side the nation of gun control and the Democrats.

The continued disasters of mass shootings in schools, workplaces, churches, the synagogue in Pittsburgh, and the Thousand Oaks shooting in California just a day after the elections, make this issue more visible and intense going forward.

An FBI agent stands behind a police cordon and an ambulance outside the Tree of Life Synagogue (L) after a shooting there left 11 people dead in the Squirrel Hill neighborhood of Pittsburgh on October 27, 2018
An ambulance outside the Tree of Life Synagogue in Pittsburgh after a shooting there left 11 people dead. Photo: Brendan Smialowski, AFP

We already saw many more candidates taking a position in favor of a variety of gun safety issues and gun control in the 2018 election than in previous years. While the NRA has been a powerful force in warding off most regulations on guns, a changing public opinion could bring supporters of new laws into office at the state and national level. According to some reports, the NRA has already seen a decline in income and perhaps membership.

The 2018 election also showed a continued shift of Hispanic, black, and Asian American voters away from the Republican Party and to Democratic candidates. Since this is the fastest growing voter sector, the swing poses a long-term challenge to Republicans.

As with women, suburban, and young voters, Republicans need to address this growing diversity deficit. This should not be impossible since these groups share some of the values espoused by Republicans such as religiosity, family, and community solidarity. George W. Bush demonstrated that Republicans can address the interests of these diverse groups, receiving larger percentages of votes from these groups than Trump.

Congress Reflects Polarization

These polarized metrics suggest that the U.S. Congress will now have more hardened conservatives and Trumpists on the Republican side of the divide and more progressive, liberal Senators and Representatives on the Democratic side.

In 2018, many moderate Republicans and Democrats retired, were “primaried” or defeated in the general election by more sharply ideological candidates. After all, there are real and deep differences between the two parties and in the current political climate, there is an emphasis on differences rather than on commonly shared agreements.

Over the next two years, this will make it even harder to legislate and to move on critical issues facing the nation. The United States has seen polarization over the past decade, but the 2018 election has elevated the roots of these divisions to new levels, posing dangerous paralysis at the state level and in Washington D.C. at a time when the world is more dangerous than it has been in generations.

Disclaimer: The views and opinions expressed here are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the editorial position of The Globe Post.
Share4Tweet
Steffen Schmidt

Steffen Schmidt

Professor at Department of Political Science of Iowa State University

Related Posts

A noose is seen on makeshift gallows as supporters of US President Donald Trump gather on the West side of the US Capitol in Washington DC on January 6, 2021
National

Militia Leader Gets 18 Years in Prison Over US Capitol Attack

by Staff Writer
May 26, 2023
A billboard showing the debt limit is seen in Washington, D.C.
National

US Republicans Upbeat on Prospects for Debt Deal

by Staff Writer
May 19, 2023
Top view of the US House of Representatives
National

Chaos as US House Adjourns Without Choosing Speaker

by Staff Writer
January 4, 2023
Donald Trump
National

US Supreme Court Freezes Release of Trump Tax Returns

by Staff Writer
November 1, 2022
Donald Trump
National

US Capitol Riot Probe Votes to Subpoena Trump to Testify

by Staff Writer
October 13, 2022
Steve Bannon
National

Former Trump Advisor Bannon Charged With Fraud in New York

by Staff Writer
September 8, 2022
Next Post
A woman reading ads in South Korea

Sexist Recruitment Targets: Jobs for the Boys Under Fire in South Korea

Britain's Prime Minister Theresa May addresses a press conference at the end of the EU Informal Summit about Brexit in Salzburg

'It's Crap': Brexit Voters Voice Scorn for Draft Deal

Recommended

A man holds US, Taiwan flags

US and Taiwan Ink Trade Deal as China Issues Warning

June 2, 2023
Migrants waiting at the Turkish border.

Beyond Numbers: Confronting Europe’s Broken Border System

May 30, 2023
A noose is seen on makeshift gallows as supporters of US President Donald Trump gather on the West side of the US Capitol in Washington DC on January 6, 2021

Militia Leader Gets 18 Years in Prison Over US Capitol Attack

May 26, 2023
Customers queue to enter a re-opened Zara clothes shop

EU Targets Fast Fashion in Push for Durable Goods

May 23, 2023
A billboard showing the debt limit is seen in Washington, D.C.

US Republicans Upbeat on Prospects for Debt Deal

May 19, 2023
Military hardware rolls through Dvortsovaya Square during a Victory Day military parade in central Saint Petersburg

Pressing Russia, US Shares Nuclear Warhead Data Under Treaty

May 16, 2023

Opinion

Migrants waiting at the Turkish border.

Beyond Numbers: Confronting Europe’s Broken Border System

May 30, 2023
A man holding a gun

The NRA’s Continuing Agenda of Fear

May 12, 2023
US Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas

A Supreme Folly 

April 24, 2023
Transgender Army veteran Tanya Walker speaks to protesters in Times Square near a military recruitment centre

Tennessee Is A Drag on the First Amendment

March 26, 2023
Chinese President Xi Jinping

China’s Path to Economic Dominance

March 15, 2023
An earthquake survivor reacts as rescuers look for victims and other survivors in Hatay, a Turkish province where hundreds of buildings were destroyed by the earthquake

Heed the Call of Our Broken World

March 1, 2023
Facebook Twitter

Newsletter

Do you like our reporting?
SUBSCRIBE

About Us

The Globe Post

The Globe Post is part of Globe Post Media, a U.S. digital news organization that is publishing the world's best targeted news sites.

submit oped

© 2018 The Globe Post

No Result
View All Result
  • National
  • World
  • Business
  • Interviews
  • Lifestyle
  • Democracy at Risk
    • Media Freedom
  • Opinion
    • Editorials
    • Columns
    • Book Reviews
    • Stage
  • Submit Op-ed

© 2018 The Globe Post