▲ U.S. President Donald Trump
On local time November 3, the day of the midterm elections that will determine the balance of power in the U.S. federal legislature, leaders from both the Republican and Democratic parties expressed optimistic outlooks regarding the election results.
In a phone interview with Fox News that morning, U.S. President Donald Trump stated, "Everything is going very well," and added, "Inflation has been solved."
President Trump further projected, "I think the results are going to be much better than people think."
By declaring that the issues of high inflation and high oil prices—which have been the primary drivers of public disaffection toward the ruling party in this election—have been resolved, he projected a positive outcome.
However, the high cost of living in the United States has not actually been resolved as President Trump claimed.
Gasoline prices, one of the key indicators of U.S. inflation, stood at $4.13 per gallon as of 10 a.m. Eastern Time that day, marking the highest price ever recorded on a U.S. midterm election day.
While these soaring oil prices have fueled voter dissatisfaction and dealt a blow to President Trump and the Republican Party, the opposition Democratic Party has harbored hopes, based on various polls, of reclaiming not just the House of Representatives but also the Senate majority.
Senate Democratic Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY) told reporters after casting his ballot at a school in Brooklyn, New York, that "there will be a new Democratic majority in the U.S. Senate."
However, he adopted a cautious stance by mentioning an American idiom advising against premature celebration.
"I don't want to count chickens before they hatch," Schumer said, adding, "So I would describe our mood as 'nauseously optimistic.'"
(Photo: AP, Yonhap News)
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