By Dmitri G. Sobolev, 6th Grade

As most people know, after the 2020 election the Democrats gained three Senate seats putting the total number of Senators caucusing with the Democrats at 50 and the number of Senate Republicans at 50. Effectively putting the Senate in a 50-50 split. But then who gets the majority?

Of course, most people know that Vice President Kamala Harris would be the tiebreaker (and the Democrats would take the majority). But would she always have to be at the Capitol, her motorcade driving down Pennsylvania Avenue all of the time?

Actually, no. While Kamala Harris is the tie-breaking vote, number 51, most votes in the Senate actually need 60 votes, the amount needed to stop a filibuster, a procedural hurdle used in the Senate to prevent voting from taking place, and each party is 10 votes short.

But with the Senate’s composition so close Kamala Harris will probably have to be at the Capitol for most of 2021-2023 (until the midterm elections). With the Senate tied, the next few months should be interesting to watch.