The stamp of diversity on midterm polls

The U.S. is increasingly diverse and census calculations project that by the year 2044, the White population of the country will be less than half of the total. The growing diversity appears to be reflecting on the political arena, though differentially, for the Democrats and the Republicans. In the current U.S House, about 86% of Republican representatives are White and male; among Democrats, the share of White males is 41%. Even as Republicans try to reinforce their support among the White base, multiple minority groups and women are expanding their influence in the Democratic Party. Twenty-one openly LGBTQ candidates won Democratic primaries for U.S. Senate or House this year — more than at any other time in U.S. history, according to the organisation ‘LGBTQ Victory Fund’. This number of nominees marks a 24% increase when compared to the 2016 election cycle and a 320% increase since 2010, it said in a report recently. A record seven known LGBTQ candidates ran for Governor this year, and four will appear on ballot in November. The four nominees represent the full LGBT acronym, with one lesbian (Lupe Valdez of Texas), one gay man (Jared Polis of Colorado), one bisexual woman (Kate Brown of Oregon) and one transgender woman (Christine Hallquist of Vermont), Victory Fund pointed out. Ms. Brown became the first openly bisexual Governor in the history of the country in 2015. All LGBTQ candidates this year are Democrats. An unprecedented number of women are contesting the elections this time. Democrats have nominated 182 women candidates and Republicans have 53, for House and Senate, while hundreds of others are in the fray in various other levels. Rashida Tlaib and Ilhan Omar are likely to become the first Muslim women to enter U.S. Congress. Ms. Tlaib is a Palestinian American running from Michigan’s 13th Congressional District. Ms. Omar is contesting from Minneapolis. Both were State legislators earlier. In the U.S, 1.1 % population is Muslim, but their representation in Congress is only 0.4%.

Source :  https://www.thehindu.com/todays-paper/tp-international/the-stamp-of-diversity-on-midterm-polls/article25018538.ece

About ChinmayaIAS Academy - Current Affairs

Check Also

Houthi militants and Red Sea Attack

In News The U.S. Naval Forces Central Command (CENTCOM) reported on Sunday (24th Dec 2023) …

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Get Free Updates to Crack the Exam!
Subscribe to our Newsletter for free daily updates