2022 US Congress elections in a time of political turmoil – analysis of the Polish daily press

Abstract

This article aims to reconstruct how the three most popular Polish dailies covered the 2022 US midterm elections. Traditionally, foreign non-presidential elections enjoy little, incidental interest in the mainstream media. In the case of the US Congressional elections held on November 8, 2022, in the USA, the Polish press argued for their high stakes. A complementary objective was to characterize the specifics of the midterm elections to the Congress, while also showing their place and significance in American electoral culture in the current political and social conditions. The study covered 83 articles from the peak campaign and voting period based on content analysis. It was identified that the Polish media attached particular importance to topics such as the future of democracy, inflation, abortion rights, and the war in Ukraine. The elections were attributed to high stakes due to the threat to the democratic system and international politics. The indicated thematic agenda appears to be consistent with the priorities of the Polish public debate and, simultaneously, Polish domestic and foreign policy, which proves the use of domestication mechanisms. Much attention was also paid to Joe Biden and Donald Trump, which suggests treating these elections as a prognosis before the 2024 presidential elections and fits traditional reporting mechanisms into the framework of dualistic political rivalry, despite the parliamentary nature of the elections.