“These elections are important, but it’s not necessary to exaggerate their importance in the short and medium-term for our relations,” Russia’s RIA Novosti news agency quoted Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov as telling reporters.
“These elections cannot change anything essential. Relations still are, and will remain, bad,” he added.
Polling places across the US opened for the midterm elections on Tuesday, traditionally considered a referendum on the ruling party’s performance. With most Americans worried about the difficult economic situation, some of the policies favored by President Joe Biden – such as giving billions in aid to Ukraine – may lead to Democrats losing control of Congress to their Republican challengers, many endorsed by former President Donald Trump.
All 435 seats in the US House of Representatives are being contested, as are 35 seats in the Senate. Democrats currently have a five-seat majority in the House and Vice President Kamala Harris is the deciding vote in the 50-50 Senate.
Also at stake are the governorships of 36 out of 50 US states, with Republicans currently controlling 28 and the Democrats 22.
Poll aggregator Real Clear Politics has predicted the Republicans will end up with 227 seats in the House to the Democrats’ 174, and with a 53-47 Senate favoring the GOP.
