Foreign media reported that former vice-president Kamala Harris has returned to the campaign trail, stumping for candidates in the midterm elections.

US midterms are congressional elections held midway through a presidential term. They have generally gone against the party in power, and with the whole House and a third of the Senate at stake they shape the conditions for governing thereafter.

Reactions within the party diverge. Some expect a high-profile surrogate to lift turnout; others worry that a national figure can overshadow local issues.

The discussion is sensitive because it is entangled with the next presidential contest, since roles and results in midterms tend to feed assessments of standing within the party.

The contest itself is forming around living-standard issues: prices, jobs and immigration policy. A prominent campaigner draws attention but does not replace the issues.

For Asian countries including Korea, Taiwan and China, the point of interest is continuity in trade and security policy, since a changed Congress alters the force of budgetary and legislative checks.

This paper offers no assessment of any party or candidate, reporting instead on the schedule and institutional implications.