November 10, 2022

Unpacking the U.S. Midterm Elections, with Steve Erlanger and Doug Kriner

On Tuesday, November 8th, voters went to the polls in the United States for the first federal elections since President Joe Biden took office. With control of both chambers of the U.S. Congress hanging in the balance, the results of these midterm elections have been highly anticipated not only in the United States but around the world. Although full results are not yet in, it looks likely that Democrats will lose their majority in the House of Representatives, while the Senate remains up for grabs. The shift in Congressional power will raise questions about the Biden Administration’s future ability to execute on its foreign policy agenda. Most significantly, it is unclear to what extent Congress will continue to provide support for Ukraine amidst considerable isolationist sentiment in the Republican party. Other issues of particular concern to allies in Europe include U.S. efforts to tackle climate change, persistent trade tensions, the future U.S. policy toward China, and more. Steve Erlanger and Doug Kriner join Andrea Kendall-Taylor and Carisa Nietsche to unpack what the election results could mean for the future of the transatlantic relationship and international relations more broadly.

Steve Erlanger is the chief diplomatic correspondent in Europe for The New York Times. A two-time Pulitzer Prize recipient, he has previously served as the Times’ bureau chief in seven countries, including posts in London, Paris, Moscow, and Berlin.

Doug Kriner is The Clinton Rossiter Professor in American Institutions in the Department of Government at Cornell University. His research and teaching interests focus on American political institutions and the separation of powers, as well as on US foreign policy.

  • Podcast
    • April 30, 2025
    Ukraine Negotiates for its Future

    There’s been a flurry of activity on the Ukraine front this week. Over the weekend, Donald Trump briefly met with Zelensky in Rome during ceremonies for Pope Francis’ funeral....

    By Andrea Kendall-Taylor & Jim Townsend

  • Commentary
    • The Washington Quarterly
    • April 30, 2025
    A U.S. Strategy for Advancing EU Enlargement

    In 2014, European Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker famously declared a pause in the European Union’s enlargement. This pause is now over, after Russia’s 2022 invasion ...

    By Nicholas Lokker

  • Video
    • April 30, 2025
    The U.S. Is No Longer the Leader of the West

    Trump’s second term has dismantled the idea of the U.S. as the leader of the West and instead it’s almost “every nation for itself”, says Adjunct Senior Fellow at the Center f...

    By Jim Townsend

  • Podcast
    • April 25, 2025
    Germany's New Defense Agenda

    On April 9th, Friedrich Merz, the leader of Germany’s center-right Christian Democratic Union, secured a coalition agreement with the Social Democrats following his party’s vi...

    By Andrea Kendall-Taylor & Jim Townsend

View All Reports View All Articles & Multimedia