(9 November 2022) The outcome of yesterday’s US midterm elections remains unknown today as many races are still too close to call.  With a near-even split of seats in both the House and the Senate, it may be days or even weeks before we know which party will win control.  US stock markets sold off today on the unexpected uncertainty, after many polls had suggested a Republican “red wave” which failed to materialize.

This unexpected result was perhaps not so very unexpected from an astrological perspective.  In a previous post, I had noted that the midterm election coincided with a lunar eclipse which significantly increased the likelihood of uncertain outcomes.  The disruptive potential of the eclipse was further increased since it occurred at 22 degrees of sidereal Aries and thus exactly conjoined Uranus, the planet of unpredictable and surprising events.  The negative market impact likely derived not from the eclipse itself, however, but from the fact that eclipse highlighted the ongoing Saturn-Uranus square.  As we know, planetary alignments involving Saturn are usually bearish for market sentiment.

So what happens now? In market terms, it is possible we could see further weakness this week as Mercury and the Sun square Saturn, either because of the continued election uncertainty or perhaps from tomorrow’s CPI report in the US.  Politically, there is some chance that Biden and the Democrats could salvage the situation over the weekend.  Biden’s chart is still quite afflicted by the ongoing Saturn-Uranus square and Saturn’s aspect to his natal Mars (19 Libra) and Mercury (28 Libra).  And yet there could be some improvement in his fortunes on Sunday and Monday as Venus and Jupiter align with his Sun-Venus conjunction at 4-5 Scorpio, as well as aspecting his natal Jupiter at 2 Cancer.   On Sunday evening, the Moon will join this alignment and create a “Grand Trine” where each planet is separated by 120 degrees. This is usually a signal for favourable developments.  While it is impossible to know if this will be election related, it nonetheless opens the door to some good news.  One possible scenario would be that the outcome of a key Senate races is finalized on Sunday or early next week that allows Democrats to retain control of that chamber.

The other favourable time window for Biden and the Democrats is around Nov 19-20 when the Sun conjoins Biden’s Sun-Venus conjunction.  As an added plus, both Mercury and Venus will conjoin Biden’s Ascendant, although we should note there is still some uncertainty about the accuracy of Biden’s birth time.  Nonetheless, this means that even if Senate control isn’t clear by early next week, the Democrats could get some more positive election-related news in this second favourable time window.

The other thing working in Biden’s favour here is that Jupiter is due to end its retrograde cycle and station direct at 4 degrees of Pisces on Nov 23.  This will form an exact 120 degree aspect to both his Sun-Venus conjunction and his his natal Jupiter and should provide a temporary boost for him at various points during the month of November.  This positive Jupiter influence will likely dissipate after Nov 23 as it begins to separate from the natal Sun and Venus.

The other takeaway from the election is the relatively weaker position of former president Donald Trump.  The failure of the “red wave” of GOP seats was a partial rejection by voters of his more radical platform that questioned US election integrity.  After the defeat of several of his endorsed candidates, his potential candidacy for the 2024 election is now in doubt.  Betting markets now put Florida governor Ron DeSantis as the favourite to be the GOP nominee over Trump for the first time.

We can see some astrological indications for Trump’s disappointing election outcome.  Not only was retrograde Mars conjunct his Sun and opposite his Moon, but Mars is forming a very difficult square alignment with Neptune.  The ongoing Neptune square with his Sun-Moon natal opposition is the major reason why Trump has been on the defensive this year, as he attempts to deflect responsibility for his role in January 6 Capitol riot.  Trump is likely to remain weakened politically into early 2023 at least as the Saturn-Neptune alignment (Dec 2022) and then the Saturn-Pluto alignment (Mar 2023) activate key points in his horoscope.

For more details, check out my weekly subscriber newsletter which is published every Sunday.   In addition to reviewing the key planetary and technical influences on US and Indian stocks for the short and medium term, I also provide an astrological analysis of potential upcoming moves in currencies, gold and oil.

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