Today is election day. I trust you have taken the time to vote. What's at stake is more than just the presidential election.
The partisan margin in the House of Representatives is the smallest it has been in 46 years. If six seats (out of the 435) shift to the Democrats, they will retake the majority in the House. That would mean a change in leadership, a change in committee chairmen, and a change of direction in the House.
The margin in the Senate is also very slim. With the death of Senator Paul Coverdell, the Republican margin changed from 5 to 4 and put Democrat control of the Senate within the realm of possibility. The death of Missouri Governor Mel Carnahan has slightly dimmed the possibility of Democrat control, but some races are still too close to call.
Another set of important elections are for control of the state legislatures which are currently evenly divided between the two parties. Twenty-two states have bodies with partisan margins of five seats or less. These state legislatures will redivide congressional districts next year, after the 2000 Census. So control of the state legislatures will no doubt affect the distribution of congressional seats.
Finally the Supreme Court will be affected by the November elections, at least indirectly. The next president may appoint as many as three or four Supreme Court justices. Many of the important cases before the court this year were decided by one or two votes in 5-4 or 6-3 margins.
So take the time to vote today. These elections are very important. Your vote could make the difference. And be listening to KCBI tonight as we cover the results in races throughout the country. This is democracy in action.
I'm Kerby Anderson of Probe Ministries, and that's my opinion.