How 2020 races across the country lay the groundwork for a president’s influence

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The Washington Post

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🗓️ 22 October 2020

⏱️ 17 minutes

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Summary

In the upcoming 2020 election, 35 U.S. Senate seats and 435 seats in the U.S. House of Representatives are up for grabs. Plus, 44 states with seats in their state legislative chambers are also on the ballot.

Many of these races have an impact on the agenda of the next president and the future of the American political landscape.

Yes, the makeup of Congress will, of course, affect the way the next president can govern. Parties in control of each house of Congress can help a president carry out his agenda. They can also impede a president from legislative accomplishments.

But it’s not just the national-level races that lay the groundwork for a president’s influence. And it’s not just the national-level races that can be influenced by a sitting president or a party’s presidential candidate.

The reality is, the outcome of state house races across the country will also end up carrying significant meaning for the future of our electoral landscape. And they might carry more weight for the power of the next president than you’d expect.

On this episode of“Can He Do That?” national political correspondent Dave Weigel delves into the details of how 2020 races across the country might influence power inside and outside of Washington.

Transcript

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0:00.0	Election Day 2020 is less than two weeks away.
0:05.6	Though early voting has been underway for weeks in some states, the presidential election
0:10.1	day that we've been talking about for so long is almost here.
0:13.6	But what we haven't talked too much about, at least here on this show, are the other
0:17.3	races Americans are voting on as they cast their ballots across the country.
0:21.8	This year, 35 U.S. Senate seats and 435 seats in the U.S. House of Representatives are
0:27.7	up for grabs.
0:28.7	Not to mention the 44 states with seats in their state legislative chambers that are
0:32.5	also on the ballot.
0:33.8	And many of these races have an impact on the agenda of the next president and the future
0:38.2	of the American political landscape.
0:39.9	Yes, the makeup of Congress will of course affect the way the next president can govern.
0:44.3	Parties in control of each House of Congress can help a president carry out his agenda.
0:48.2	They can also impede a president from any legislative accomplishment.
0:51.1	But it's not just the national level races that lay the groundwork for a president's
0:55.5	influence, and it's not just the national level races that can be influenced by the
0:59.4	actions of a sitting president or a party's presidential candidate.
1:03.0	The reality is, the outcome of state house races across the country will also end up carrying
1:07.8	significant meaning for the future of our electoral landscape.
1:13.1	They might carry more weight for the power of the next president than you'd expect.
1:22.8	This is Ken, he do that, a podcast that explores the powers and limitations of the American
1:27.3	presidency.
	...

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