Scientists in mathematics, medicine, biology, engineering, etc. entered the U.S. Congress in large numbers.

(Seoul = Yonhap News) Reporter Kwak Min-seo = In the U.S. midterm election, which ended with a landslide victory for the Democratic Party, scientists from various fields such as mathematics, medicine, and biology entered Congress, attracting attention.

The New York Times (NYT) reported on the 6th (local time) that most of these people are members of the Democratic Party, and their stance is to oppose the Trump administration's 'anti-scientific' policies, such as cutting research budgets.

According to the NYT, Daniel Biss (Illinois), who earned a doctorate in mathematics from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), will wear the badge of a federal representative for the first time in this midterm election.

Biss taught mathematics at the University of Chicago, then entered politics and served as a member of the Illinois State Assembly. At university, he mainly studied combinatorics and topology.

Jasmine Clark (Georgia), a professor of biology at Emory University, is also entering the U.S. House of Representatives for the first time.

Clark mainly studied genetic analysis of samples from HIV-infected people, and politically, he was a person who openly criticized the policies of U.S. Secretary of Health Robert Kennedy Jr.

He pointed out that the 'Make America Healthy Again' (MAHA) movement led by Secretary Kennedy was "a complete disaster" and that "it is making us sicker."

It is expected that issues will continue to be raised regarding the ‘vaccine skepticism’ advocated by Secretary Kennedy.

Secretary Kennedy has repeatedly raised questions about the safety and efficacy of vaccines, drawing criticism for lowering public trust in vaccines and creating health risks.

In addition, Rebecca Bennett (New Jersey), who earned a degree in chemical engineering from Cornell University, was elected to the U.S. House of Representatives in this midterm election.

In Michigan and South Carolina, epidemiologist and physician Abdul El-Sayed and pediatrician Annie Andrews entered the Senate as Democrats, respectively.

In the Republican Party, John Cowan (Georgia), a neurosurgeon and undergraduate physics major, was elected.

'314 Action', a Democratic-leaning group, expected these lawmakers from the scientific community to play a role in checking 'anti-scientific' policies such as cuts to the Trump administration's research budget.

“(The scientists’ election) shows a real rejection of the last two terrible years for science and public health,” 314 Action CEO Shaughnessy Norton told the NYT. “Now is a good time to correct policy direction and implement real oversight.”