In the upcoming midterm elections, California voters will be
deciding on the political dynamics of Congress, with one senator,
Diane Feinstein, D-Calif., and all 53 representatives up for
re-election.
Issues both Republican and Democratic parties consider top
priorities include immigration, Social Security, alternative-energy
implementation and the war in Iraq.
While the top concerns for Republicans are immigration reform,
winning the war on terror, and fixing Social Security, Democrats
are emphasizing alternative-energy research and affordable health
care, increasing minimum wage and expanding Pell Grants.
Of California’s two senators, Diane Feinstein, D-Calif.,
will be up for re-election. She has held the seat since 1992,
making her incumbency one of her strongest assets.
According to her Web site, Feinstein’s biggest issue is
the fight against global warming.
In August, Feinstein introduced a plan that would start in
January of next year which would pressure carmakers to improve
mileage, encourage power producers to meet emission standards, and
extend green technology programs from California to the rest of the
nation.
Feinstein, the incumbent, has the lead over her Republican
opponent Richard Mountjoy with 59 percent of voters’
approval, compared to his 29 percent, as reported in an Oct. 3
Field Poll.
Mountjoy’s key objectives are to restrict undocumented
immigrants from using government programs, and root out terrorist
cells, and the legalization of same-sex marriage.
Though all 53 seats in the House held by California
representatives are up for re-election, according to the Cook
Political Report, a nonpartisan election analysis newsletter, there
are only two districts in which Republicans risk losing their seats
because of recent scandal.
Due to their association with Jack Abramoff, who is in the
middle of a political scandal because of his controversial lobbying
tactics, John Doolittle, R-Calif., and Richard Pombo, R-Calif.,
could lose their incumbency, the report said .
The biggest potential change may happen nationally in the House,
where the Republican Party is currently the majority.
All 435 seats, 53 of them from California, are up for
re-election and the Democrats would need 16 additional seats to
take control of the House.
According to the Cook Political Report, 78 seats have a
possibility of going either way and 25 seats are a complete
toss-up, which could create a potential Democrat majority.
Minority House Leader Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., has said if the
Democrats were to retake the House, the party would put higher
public-education affordability on top of its agenda.
“Your education is not only important to your
self-fulfillment, it is important and essential to our
competitiveness as a country,” Pelosi said in a speech
earlier this month.
During a visit to UCLA earlier this month, Sen. Barbara Boxer,
D-Calif., said with President Bush’s low approval rating and
the recent scandal in which a Republican congressman was accused of
molesting teenagers, now is an opportune time for the Democratic
Party to take power in Congress.
“I think it may be one of the most important elections of
our lifetime. On Nov. 7, we will determine not only the leadership
of Congress, but also the very direction of our country,”
Boxer said.
John Zaller, a political science professor who specializes in
election politics, said he is not sure which way the election will
go.
“I doubt that the so-called corruption issues will be
important in more than a few races,” Zaller said.
“However, with the balance in Congress close, a few races
could make a big difference.”
Of larger concern to Republicans this year is the increasing
violence and insurgencies in Iraq, Zaller said.
In addition to policies regarding Iraq, the reaction to North
Korean politics by President Bush and the rest of the Republican
Party will be under scrutiny in the weeks approaching the
election.