Donald Trump has taken advantage of the last hours of the midterm election campaign to intervene on Fox News, one of the main conservative networks in the United States, while several of his commentators and analysts questioned the electoral prospects outlined by some polls.
The president participated by phone in Sean Hannity’s program on the eve of the November 3 voting day, on a television day marked by warnings about the political consequences of a possible Democratic victory.
The intervention took place at a decisive moment for the Republican Party, which is trying to retain its parliamentary majorities in the face of an opposition that aims to regain control of Congress.
Hannity acknowledges his surprise at the polls from The New York Times
As journalist Brian Stelter reports in his CNN newsletter, Hannity’s program devoted part of its broadcast to analyzing the reliability of election polls.
The host acknowledged that the latest poll from The New York Times and Siena had come as a surprise to him, although he expressed doubts about its veracity.
During the segment, Matt Towery, a Republican pollster, also intervened, defending that the party had managed to improve its position compared with weeks earlier.
Towery avoided assuring that Republicans were winning the races, but said they had managed to recover from a situation that was considerably more unfavorable electorally.
His statements reflect the dispute over how to interpret the polls in the final stretch of the campaign, when the results still depend on turnout and on the behavior of undecided voters.
Fox News devotes part of its programming to warning about a Democratic victory
Fox News coverage on the election eve was also driven by the interventions of Jesse Watters and Laura Ingraham.
According to the analysis by Andrew Kirell reported by CNN, both hosts devoted part of their programs to criticizing Democratic candidate Abdul El-Sayed and to warning about the political consequences of Democrats regaining legislative power.
The approach contrasts with that of other U.S. outlets that have highlighted citizens’ economic concerns and the character of a referendum on the presidency of Trump that these elections take on.
While The New York Times has paid special attention to the cost of living, USA Today has summarized the contest as a political assessment of the president.
The dispute for Congress will condition the last two years of the term
The outcome of the elections will determine the scope of action for Trump during the last two years of his presidency.
A Democratic majority in the House of Representatives could spur parliamentary investigations into the Administration and make the approval of certain legislative initiatives more difficult.
If Republicans retain control of both chambers, the president will have a more favorable parliamentary position from which to push his agenda, though he will continue to depend on the procedures and majorities required for each vote.
Polls provide information about voters’ preferences before going to the polls, but they do not replace the results.
In this context, the discussion about the reliability of polls has also become part of the political and media battle that accompanies the elections.