[Rappler’s Best] America, your turn - Rappler

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TRUMP. United States President Donald Trump speaks to members of the media after disembarking Air Force One at Joint Base Andrews, Maryland, October 10, 2026.

The past week thrilled liberals and leftists across the world as elections in three polarized countries stemmed the march of the far-right in Latin America, demonstrated student power in Europe, and humbled Benjamin Netanyahu.

These polls have been hard fought, but the post-election transitions will be doubly harder.

And so we turn to the next logical question: what will America show the rest of the world this week? 

The US midterm elections are happening on November 3, and the results will determine control of Congress as Trump enters the last two years of his term. Here are things to know.

If you’re a liberal and listened to pollster Nate Silver’s interview with Ezra Klein (as I did), you’d be expecting a “momentous” turnaround — a more than 70% chance for Democrats in the Senate — that could flip Congress against Trump. If the results reflect what he’s seeing in his polling, Silver said these would effectively end the Trump era. 

The Economist has more conservative numbers. While conceding that the “auguries are good for Democrats,” it’s putting the probability of the US Senate going to the Democrats at just 54%. But the White House is already crafting a path to govern without Congress in case Democrats win, according to a Reuters report.

This also marks the first elections in the US where voters have been relying on chatbots to guide them. It’s a cautionary tale.

As Trump spent the past days doing his final push for a Republican win, his defense chief Pete Hegseth flew to Cebu for the ASEAN Defense Ministers’ Meeting. There, the host, Philippine Defense Secretary Gibo Teodoro, snubbed the Chinese defense attaché who ranked lower than him. Bea Cupin gives us a recap of the meeting in this report.

On another note, we extend our deepest condolences to the family of Philip Juico, who died on October 31 after years of battling cancer.

JC Punongbayan spells out what we can do as the peso continues its steep decline. Watch Shay Du’s take on it here. 

James Patrick Cruz shows how to track insertions in the House-approved 2027 budget. There’s pork barrel everywhere, writes JC Punongbayan.

Lance Spencer Yu lists the adjustments that businesses need to make to regain customers dealing with high prices and a weak peso.

Isagani de Castro Jr. tells us why 2 Valid IDs is on track to make Philippine film history.

Joey Salgado writes that Dutertismo will be on the ballot in the 2028 elections — even if Sara Duterte is disqualified from running.

Paterno Esmaquel II reminds us how Interior Secretary Jonvic Remulla dropped the ball on fugitive Senator Bato dela Rosa.

El Niño-ready? These infrastructures in Quezon City collect rainwater

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The views expressed by the writer are his/her own and do not necessarily reflect the views or positions of Rappler.