This November's elections are called "midterms" for a good reason: We're about halfway into the four-year term President Joe Biden won in 2020.
The results will determine whether Biden has a supportive Congress or a hostile one for the next two years. Yet it's worth remembering that far more state and local races are on the Nov. 8 ballot than national ones.
The U.S. Constitution sets up the midterm dynamic by requiring every member of the U.S. House of Representatives and about a third of the U.S. Senate to run for office halfway between presidential elections. House members serve for two years and senators for six (with their terms staggered, so no more than 34 of the 100 senate seats are up for election at a time); the president serves for four.
