In this bonus episode of Hot off the Wire podcast, we preview the midterm elections that will be held on Nov. 8.
Nate Silver's FiveThirtyEight.com is a news site that uses statistical analysis to tell stories about elections and other topics. As of the morning of Oct. 28, FiveThirtyEight ranked the Senate as a toss-up and gave Democrats only a slight edge of maintaining control, winning 53 out of 100 simulations. That’s significantly down from mid-September when the forecast gave Democrats about a 70% chance of holding onto control of the chamber.
FiveThirtyEight’s forecast looks even bleaker in the House of Representatives for Democrats, where the GOP has a roughly 80% chance of taking control of the chamber according to its model. Based on the data, the question isn’t whether Republicans will retake the House, but by how much.
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In the first segment, Associated Press correspondent Ed Donahue hosts a discussion previewing some of the key races that will be decided on Nov. 8. Donahue is joined by AP correspondent Marc Levy, AP national political reporter Meg Kinnard and AP national political reporter Bill Barrow.
In the second segment, we’ll listen to recent news reports covering the midterm elections:
- Legal challenges have already begun and the U.S. is warning about foreign efforts to sway voters.
- According to a poll, most Americans say voting is vital despite a dour outlook.
- President Biden vows abortion legislation is his top priority next year if Democrats retain control of Congress.
- Biden recently touted his infrastructure policies.
- And Biden’s White House Chief of Staff has been warned about a violation of the Hatch Act.
— Compiled and narrated by Terry Lipshetz from Associated Press reports
The survey revealed what the upcoming midterms might have in store. Veuer’s Tony Spitz has the details.
