If the Republican Party is to declare its independence from Donald Trump any time soon, it will likely be GOP members of the U.S. Senate that lead the way. Trump left the White House in January 2021 with a strong hold on the party. His final presidential approval rating in the Gallup Poll was just 34 percent overall, but 82 percent among Republicans. He still appears to have the power to force the allegiance of many Republican officeholders by throwing his weight for or against them in the party primaries. In this Election Report, elections expert Rhodes Cook explores Trump’s hold on the Republican Party and its impact on members of Congress and their reelection chances.

Love him or hate him, Donald Trump was the catalyst this year for the largest voter turnout in the history of American presidential elections. More than 156 million votes have been counted through November 18, 2020, easily eclipsing the previous record of 136.7 million set four years ago. That represents an increase of more than 19 million votes (and counting) from 2016, and constitutes the largest election-to-election jump ever in the number of presidential votes cast. In this Election Report, elections expert Rhodes Cook discusses the historic voter turnout in the 2020 election.

Election year 2020 is not a typical election year. Besides deciding who to vote for, voters must also figure out how to cast their ballot, as the coronavirus pandemic still affects much of the country and questions of voting safely abound. The second choice could be almost as important as the first in determining who will win the 2020 presidential election. In this Election Report, elections expert Rhodes Cook discusses the impact that various voting methods could have on election results and the timeline for declaring a winner.