Republicans in the Senate are very confident that this year will come to a close with bright times ahead — with the GOP returning to control in both Congress’ upper chamber as well as in the White House.
Media outlet The Hill published a report this week discussing the outlook for the conservative party, heading into the first-in-nation Republican caucuses, which were held Monday night.
Former President Donald Trump was considered to be the prohibitive favorite heading into the night. And while Florida Governor Ron DeSantis and former U.N. Ambassador Nikki Haley had hopes they would pull off a stunner — or at least end up with favorable results — neither of those things happened.
Trump won 51% of the votes in Iowa, with DeSantis claiming just 21.2% and Haley claiming just 19.1%. That resulted in Trump gaining 20 delegates, with DeSantis (9) and Haley (8) trailing far behind.
That proved that Trump is a force to be reckoned with, both in the GOP presidential primary — which might prove to be a quick result — as well as in a presumed head-to-head matchup with Democratic President Joe Biden.
In the Senate, the GOP is also well-positioned to retake the majority that they first lost four years ago. As if the prospects weren’t good enough, the fact that Democratic Senator Joe Manchin won’t be running for re-election in West Virginia basically handed them another seat.
If all the Republican Party did was maintain the current seats that they have now, plus flip Manchin’s seat, it would be a 50-50 split in the Senate. And if Trump were to win the presidency, that scenario would see Republicans having the technical majority in the upper chamber.
All of this is causing Republicans to have a lot of confidence with the General Election only 10 months away.
Republican Senator John Thune from South Dakota recently commented on the possibility of his party controlling the White House and Senate after November’s elections, saying:
“Both look really good. People are over it with [President Biden], and I just think that whoever we nominate is going to be well-positioned to win the presidency, and I think that bodes well for the Senate.”
Even if Trump didn’t win Iowa in convincing fashion, he was still going to be considered the far-away favorite to capture the GOP nomination for a third straight election cycle.
Haley has a better chance in New Hampshire, the next state to hold a GOP primary, though, she still trails in most polls by about 11 points. If she were to suffer another major defeat in The Granite State, it’s likely her optimism could quickly change to pessimism.
It’s something that Republican Senator Eric Scmitt of Missouri — who backed Trump for the nomination from the early stages — alluded to when he said:
“I think the primary … will be over in a couple of weeks. I don’t think anything in the last few days changes the trajectory or the dynamic.”
A quick victory for Trump in the GOP primaries would be a boon for his chances, since he could focus all his energy on campaigning against Biden, rather than having to worry about other members of his own party.
