Showdown for Capitol Hill: US election

Can science influence politics in the forthcoming US elections? Nature investigates how Democrats and Republicans are striving to win the hearts of voters. Mid-term squall The stakes are high for November's mid-term congressional elections: the Democrats need to gain just six seats in the Senate and fifteen in the House to claim majorities. For President George W. Bush, it could mean the difference between a reinvigorated presidency or an unproductive lame-duck period. In a hard-fought election, both parties are occasionally and uncharacteristically turning to science to try to sway voters. The recent presidential veto against embryonic stem-cell research has provided fodder for Republicans and Democrats alike to try to distinguish their candidates. And candidates in three states are challenging incumbents largely on scientific issues — climate change, stem cells and (California, inevitably) on clean energy. A News Feature special this week looks at how scientific issues are playing in the campaign.