By The Editorial Board
During the years Americans select a president, typically that election captures the nation’s focus. Yet, there are 469 additional races this year to determine the individuals who will represent us in Washington, D.C.
These elections are, collectively, just as crucial to the governance of the United States as the contest for the White House. In addition to shaping the nation’s legislation, Congress is responsible for managing the federal budget, authorizing the country’s borrowing, and overseeing its commerce. It holds the power to declare wars, ratify treaties, confirm appointments, and hold federal officials accountable through investigations and the impeachment process.
In essence, Congress is the institution that empowers or limits the ambitions and plans of the White House. While these fundamental responsibilities will remain constant irrespective of today’s results, if Donald Trump secures reelection, the House of Representatives and the Senate will serve as crucial checks on his possible actions in office.
Trump has shown that he lacks the integrity, temperament, and dedication to the Constitution required to be entrusted with the power and responsibility of the presidency. He was impeached twice during his initial term for actions that blatantly disregarded his duties. He faces criminal indictment on felony charges linked to his attempts to overturn the election. Nonetheless, many of the former president’s most troubling instincts did not materialize during his prior administration. This wasn’t due to a change in his behavior once in office, as some of his hesitant allies now claim. Rather, the primary factor mitigating the impact of Trump’s impulses has always been others intervening to restrain him, ranging from his appointed officials to members of both the House and Senate.
The initial significant task for this new Congress will be to guarantee a peaceful transfer of power. Its members will take their oaths on Jan. 3, 2025, just three days prior to the Jan. 6 certification process that will officially determine the winner of the presidential election. In 2021, Republicans demonstrated their unfitness for this fundamental duty. Trump’s supporters were complicit in the endeavor to overturn the 2020 election. A majority of House Republicans refused to certify the election—the current speaker of the House, Mike Johnson, was among those who orchestrated the plans to overturn it—and a majority of Senate Republicans declined to convict Trump for his involvement in that attempted coup, which included the storming of the Capitol.
Fortunately, the Electoral Count Reform Act, passed with bipartisan support in 2022, significantly mitigates opportunities for deception, regardless of which party controls both chambers. Any election interference, if it occurs, is more likely to manifest at the state level this time. However, the ongoing tolerance of Trump’s unfounded claims that the previous election was illegitimate or that the next one will be, provides ample justification for not desiring a Republican leader presiding over either chamber.
Shortly after the transfer of power, the Senate will commence reviewing and approving the president’s nominations. Already, as reported by The New York Times, Trump’s aides are indicating they will attempt to expedite nominees for such roles without the necessary vetting by the FBI. If he is reelected, Trump has implied he will prioritize loyalty over experience or integrity from his closest advisors and subordinates. Senators must act to prevent the most extreme or unsuitable candidates from securing Cabinet roles, such as defense secretary and attorney general, as well as positions on the Supreme Court and the federal judiciary. They can take measures to block blatantly unfit candidates from holding any significant position. This is what the Senate accomplished in 2020 when it rejected Trump’s numerous attempts to appoint grossly unqualified individuals to the Federal Reserve Board.
Congress would then serve as a crucial safeguard against abuses of presidential power. Trump has claimed that he will leverage government power against his adversaries and restrict rights that Americans cherish. He has outlined intentions to prosecute “the enemy from within,” including members of Congress, judges, and journalists; to deploy troops into American cities against lawful protesters; and to withhold funding from state and local governments that do not align their policies with his preferences. He promises a harsh policy of mass deportations and threatens to dismantle longstanding international alliances.
Congress members can thwart some of those plans (a president requires the House to authorize spending for any significant deportation plan, for instance), and they play an essential oversight role for federal agencies and the executive department. The House also possesses considerable influence to obstruct or facilitate Trump’s agenda through annual appropriations bills that are vital for keeping the government operational. This will be critical if Trump attempts to implement proposals dismantling the Department of Education, ending Title IX’s protections against sex discrimination, or undermining the work of critical agencies such as the Environmental Protection Agency, the IRS, and the Justice Department’s civil rights division.
There are additional reasons to be concerned about the potential harm a Republican-controlled Congress could inflict. Trump loyalists consistently blocked a series of Republican candidates—both moderate and conservative—for speaker of the House, immobilizing Congress and leaving it without leadership for the most extended period since 1962. Since then, the caucus has become more recognized for what it has attempted to obstruct, often under Trump’s direct orders, such as funding to maintain government operations, essential support for Ukraine’s defense against Russian aggression, and, most hypocritically, border security legislation crafted by conservative members of their own party. Indeed, it is challenging to identify a single piece of substantial legislation proposed by Johnson—despite his alignment with Trump—and his House. Conversely, his documented support for Trump’s antidemocratic initiatives is well-established.
Many of the most competitive House races are in states that predominantly vote for Democrats, including seven in California and five in New York, along with significant contests in Connecticut, Colorado, Michigan, and Maryland. There are also extremely tight races in Arizona, Iowa, Pennsylvania, Maine, Nebraska, and New Mexico. Among the 43 most competitive House races this year, 22 are classified as tossups; every single vote in those contests will be crucial to prevent Trump’s enablers from assuming office.
There are closely contested Senate races in Pennsylvania, Wisconsin, Ohio, and Michigan, as well as competitive Senate races in Montana, Nebraska, and Texas. We encourage voters to ensure they focus on those contests.
In poll after poll, Americans have expressed their desire for more from their public servants. Tuesday’s election provides them with the opportunity to demand improvement.
