US midterms 2018 - Everything you need to know about the Midterms

Extract from The Guardian

Seán Clarke, Niko Kommenda, Ben Jacobs and Sam Morris

The votes on 6 November will give US voters their first chance to pass judgment on Donald Trump since he took the White House. Here’s what you need to know about what’s at stake

The key question in these elections is: will Republicans will be able to keep control of both chambers of Congress? Just 35 of the 100 seats in the Senate, and all of the 435 seats in the lower House of Representatives are up for grabs. To take control of the legislative agenda and block Trump's ability to implement his programs, the Democratic party needs to control both houses. With a Senate majority, the Democrats would be able to block cabinet and supreme court appointments. But while they may be able to take the House, clinching the Senate will be much harder. Impeachment, by the way, requires a two-thirds majority in the Senate, so would require Republican votes even if the Democrats won every available seat in November.

https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/ng-interactive/2018/sep/17/midterms-2018-vote-election-date-senate-house-who-will-win-candidates-all-you-need-to-know-explained