The slow-moving U.S. election results continue to cast a shadow over Vice President Joe Biden’s summit meetings in Asia, as world leaders – including some who rule without regard for popular acceptance – are closely monitoring the conclusion.
Biden left the United States with control of Congress up for grabs, and only learned his party would retain the Senate as he departed for his final day of meetings in Phnom Penh, where he met with foreign leaders.
National security advisor Jake Sullivan told reporters en route to Bali, where Vice President Joe Biden will engage in additional diplomacy, that there was a great deal of curiosity in the midterm election results.
According to him, there were “many statements from people” on the Democrats’ ability to preserve control of the Senate. Depending on the outcome of a runoff election in Georgia, they will either lead the chamber with 50 or 51 votes.
Sullivan said that it is fascinating to see how attentively world leaders, especially those from nations that are not themselves democracies, follow American politics, even down to the level of state elections, with which they are all shockingly familiar.
Even foreign leaders of “countries that are not themselves democracies” have been closely monitoring state elections while Vice President Joe Biden is abroad, according to the White House. Hun Sen, who has controlled Cambodia for the past 37 years, hosted the celebration.
He declined to elaborate, but stated that “several leaders took note of the midterm election results, approached the President to engage him, and stated that they were keenly monitoring them.”
The strength of American democracy and what this election revealed about American democracy, he continued, was a recurring topic.
This message was reiterated by another senior administration official in Bali, who stated that Biden got praise for his statement of democracy. This occurred two years after the Capitol riot, in which the entire world witnessed turmoil in the longest-running democracy.
This year, it appears that even defeated candidates are accepting the results.
President Joe Biden was greeted with a Balinese traditional dance as he departed Sunday evening for the G20 summit.
In every single meeting we have held, the first thing that countries have commented on is our democracy, according to a senior administration official who spoke with reporters.
Arizona and Nevada gave the Democrats their 50-seat majority.
Senator Mark Kelly (D-Arizona) entered the summit with a 5 percent lead, but it took him some time to secure the victory.
Sen. Catherine Cortez Masto (D-NV), whose seat was in jeopardy, propelled the Democrats to victory. If Senator Raphael Warnock is reelected in Georgia, where there is a runoff, her party might hold 51 seats.
Who will carry Washington’s third congressional district? Every official who has met with Vice President Biden (he met with Japan’s Prime Minister Fumio Kishida on Sunday), according to an official, has brought up the upcoming U.S. elections. Some even monitor state-level outcomes
Likewise, democratic friends have taken note. In every single meeting that we have had, the first thing that countries have commented on is our democracy, and they have congratulated the president on this result, as well as the conduct of the elections and the general acceptance of the expression of democracy, according to a senior administration official.
I believe the President’s pride was warranted. I believe that the manner that our backs are constructed permits us to compete in numerous ways.’
Later today, he will meet with Chinese President Xi Jinping, who came through the Third Party Congress and has the potential to rule for an even longer period of time.
The enormous lobby of the Sokha hotel in Phnom Penh, where the ASEAN summit was held and where seven visiting groups from around the region were based, was abuzz with discussion of the U.S. elections.
Allen Dodgson Tan, a former president of the American Cambodian Chamber of Commerce, remarked, “I did hear individuals interested in our elections; of course, many in ASEAN are concerned about swings in US politics as US-Asia relations are generally heating up.”
I would assume it was the majority! It was brought up by leaders, he said.
Biden stated that the Democratic control of the Senate aided him in his meeting with Xi Jinping.
It occurred on the same day that House Speaker Nancy Pelosi expressed her belief that Vice President Joe Biden should run for reelection, following significantly better-than-expected results in the House.
Biden stated, “I know I’m coming in stronger.”
One final issue remained unresolved: control of the House. If Republicans gain control, they have vowed to investigate the administration with vigor, but they would also struggle to control factions with a slim majority.