Democratic candidates are poised to take back the House and the Senate it the 2018 midterm elections in November.

The election of President Donald Trump in 2016 and the resulting Republican majority in all branches of government, the Democratic Party believes that it is more important than ever for their party to take back the Senate. A problem that plagued the party in the 2016 elections was a lack of voter turnout, which many voters now recognize as an issue that needs to be addressed.

Annie Ken, a teacher at Woodside High School hopes that “people will acknowledge that their vote matters” in the 2018 midterms, leading to a “higher voter turnout.”

Other people, when interviewed, expressed similar feelings.

.”Women, even those that may have voted for Trump two years ago, are now rethinking his decisions and are challenging the status quo through the #MeToo movement and will do so with their votes in the mid-term.” [Karen Grites]

Regardless of voter turnout, however,  most agree that the midterms will be highly influential.

“The results of these midterms will certainly be important for President Trump,” Mr. McDevitt, a teacher at Woodside High School said. “If Republicans retain control of the House and Senate [Trump] will obviously be in a very strong position, assuming he wins the popular consent of his party on upcoming decisions.”

If the Democratic Party succeeds in the midterms, however, the Republican Party will be in a somewhat weaker position as they will be unable to further their party agenda.

“The impact of the midterm vote in favor of the Dems would be that Trump will be unable to move forward on the issues Republicans care about: lower taxes, reduction of business regulations, [and] reforming welfare,” Philip Grites, a local business owner told the Paw Print.  

If the Democrats win, one possible focus of their attentions will be on LGBT+ rights.

the attention that people who are not going to back homophobic legislation are voted in,” Alexandra Huisman, a Woodside High School freshmen, asserted. “As many Democrats know the current administration has many discriminatory policies, that is why the Democrats are more determined than ever to win back the house. If they took back the house, they could block Trump in his tracks.”

Despite misgivings over voter turnout, Democratic supporters are highly eager for the Senate to turn blue.

“He won’t be able to get away with things that he usually could get away with if it were Republican.” Woodside student Sophia Colbecle claimed.