Why the US mid-terms matter to the world

CAMPAIGNING for the US mid-terms has reached fever pitch as Election Day closes in. Early voting returns indicate that both Democratic and Republican voting bases are unusually engaged, with multiple states having more than double the number of early votes casts compared to this point in the 2014 mid-terms.

Yet, it is not just the public in the United States who are following the campaign closely. Populations right across the globe are watching the mid-terms with significant interest given the key policy differences between Democrats and Republicans, and the overall large stakes in play with control of Congress up for grabs.

Part of the reason for this global appeal is that the mid-terms are being perceived very much as a referendum on Donald Trump's first two years of office, and the results may therefore give an early signal as to whether the president will be re-elected in 2020. However, a deeper factor driving foreign interest is the high prominence of international issues in the campaign.