By T.N. Ashok

Washington, Nov 5 (IANS): The US goes on the ballot on November 8, in less than a week, to elect 35 senators to a 100 member senate and all 435 representatives to the Congress in the 2022 midterms where pollsters claim that four states hold the key to victory for either of the two parties -- the Republicans and the Democrats.

Additionally, 39 state and territorial and gubernatorial elections are also being held simultaneously as state and local elections. The 2022 results will help form the 118th United States Congress and this will be the first election affected by the redistricting that followed the 2020 census.

Redistricting is the reapportionment of seats in various states following the increase in populations and their migratory patterns since the Covid-19 pandemic. One state could see an increase in the number of seats and another see a reduced number.

Pollsters, according to media reports, claim that from the polling it should be obvious that control of the Senate will likely come down to four races: Arizona, Georgia, Nevada and Pennsylvania.

The arithmetic is very simple, democrats need to win three of these four races to retain control of the Senate. For Republicans, it's slightly easier as they have to win only two of these four races.

But there can still be a margin of error in all these races, say pollsters. The states are not all that similar in demographics, which means that any late movement or polling error could affect the states in different ways. Unique issues affect each of these states.

Arizona seems easy to understand as Democrats have won the last two Senate races in the state, after not having won one since 1988.

The Democrats have shown strong performances in the Phoenix suburbs among White college-educated voters and a reliable Hispanic base. (The democrats can also count on one of the largest Native American populations in the country)

OBAMA RALLIES THE ELECTORATE: As the countdown to Election Day nears, former president Barack Obama has stepped up the campaign for his party and also to boost the image of his once fellow Vice President of eight years, Joe Biden. During his speech on a campaign trail in Detroit, Michigan, Michelle Obama's husband got a steamy compliment from a crowd member.

Obama told a Detroit Renaissance High School audience: "Sometimes going on a campaign trail feels a little harder than it used to, not just because I am older and grayer..."

While the crowd began laughing, a woman sitting behind the former president said: "You fine as (expletive)."

Her comment made the 61-year-old react by jokingly responding, "I'm not going to tell Michelle (Obama) you said that."

"Although Michelle does agree, she knows,'' Obama said to laughter from the audience.

Obama's stepped up efforts have resulted in encouraging response from potential voters to show up in the upcoming elections.

"This election requires every single one of us to do our part," he said.

"I understand why you might be worried about the course of the country. Sometimes it's tempting just to tune out, watch football, watch Dancing with the Stars. I'm here to tell you tuning out is not an option," Obama was quoted by CNN as saying.

STORY BEHIND THE ELECTION DATE: In the US, elections are always held on the first Tuesday after the first Monday in November, as a tradition under the Presidential Election Act of 1845. Presidential elections are held every four years, while the elections to the US House of Representatives and the Senate are held every two years.

The electors were chosen for the first US presidential election on January 7, 1789. The Federal law permitted each state to choose Presidential electors any time within 34 days and send their electors to the Electoral College.

As communications and transportation evolved, this became a problem since the states that voted earlier could influence states that voted later. To prevent this, Congress responded by mandating a uniform national date for choosing the electors, according to a Senate historian.

The first Tuesday following the first Monday was chosen as Election Day for future presidents on January 23, 1845.