Washington: Joe Biden and Donald Trump headline a frantic last day of campaigning Monday on the eve of a midterm election that will shape the rest of the US president’s term — and could pave the way for a White House comeback by his predecessor.
After months of divisive campaigning, Biden and Democrats face a gargantuan struggle to hang on to Congress, in a race that he has cast as a “defining” moment for American democracy — though kitchen-table issues like inflation have largely dominated voters’ minds.
Republicans appear set to snatch a majority on Tuesday in the lower House of Representatives, and many Democrats fear the Senate also slipping away in a defeat that would see Biden’s foes in near total charge of legislation during his next two years as president.
Polls show most Americans are anxious about the economy and feel the country is on the wrong track, emboldening Republican candidates in districts that once looked out of reach.
With all 435 seats in the House of Representatives up for grabs alongside a third of the 100-member Senate and a slew of state posts, Democrats were putting a brave face on their prospects.
“The party in the White House usually loses during midterms but the reality is we still have a very strong pathway, not just to keeping the Senate but really picking up seats,” Senator Cory Booker told ABC.
Democratic candidates have been lent star power on the campaign trail by the party’s most popular elder statesmen, including presidents Barack Obama and Bill Clinton.
Republicans have tapped a narrower roster of their own big hitters, with the spotlight turning in recent weeks to Trump — who has been teasing a probable new presidential run in 2024.
Biden and Trump go head-to-head on election eve. The president holds a rally in Maryland while Trump will campaign in a turbulent US Senate race in Ohio.
