In my previous column, I said it probably didn’t matter that the House recessed for the midterm break two weeks earlier than originally planned. There was not much that could be done in that short time frame to turn around public attitudes toward Congress or its ability to resolve issues like high prices, a war, or government corruption. Besides, I argued, people don’t pay much attention to what legislation Congress enacts unless it directly affects their lives and livelihood. The Senate, nevertheless, stuck to its guns and stayed working these last two weeks on matters that could potentially produce a favorability bump at the polls.

The Senate’s gambit reminded me of the country song, “Give me just a one more last chance, before you say we’re through.”Senate Majority Leader John Thune’s (R-S.D.) suggestion box soon filled with ideas from his colleagues on how to retain chamber control. Sen. Josh Hawley (R-Mo.) and Rep. Ashley Hinson (R-Iowa) urged suspending the federal gas tax to bring down prices at the pump.

Sen. Susan Collins (R-Maine) pressed their leadership to cap the cost of insulin at $35. Other proposals were tossed at the wishing wall in hopes they would stick. Despite the wealth of ideas, the Senate left town late last week with more of a whimper than a bang. Not surprisingly, at this late hour in the midterm countdown, partisan politics and the Senate’s sclerotic legislative pace came into play, resulting in near-gridlock on the legislative gridiron.

Heading the list of Republican leadership priorities was the Ratepayer Protection Act, introduced by Sen. Jon Husted (R-Ohio). It would require state utility regulators to consider making large data centers pay for their own grid and infrastructure costs instead of sticking consumers with the bill. An identical bill previously passed the House overwhelmingly.

Senate Minority Leader Chuck Shumer (D-N.Y.) called Husted’s bill a “fraud” because it is voluntary and would not affect current consumer energy costs because it would not take effect for two years. Last month, Sen. Martin Heinrich (D-N.M.) blocked Husted from bringing his bill to the floor by unanimous consent. Heinrich and Sen. Sheldon Whitehouse (D-R.I.) have been negotiating their own tougher data center bill and urged senators to wait until after the elections to compare the alternatives.

Husted is facing a tough reelection challenge from former Sen. Sherrod Brown (D-Ohio), who has spent millions on ads attacking Husted for supporting data centers and causing electric bills to spiral by thousands of dollars. Thune blasted his Democratic colleagues for blocking Husted’s permitting reform measure simply to deny Republicans another “win” before the election. With the demise of the data center bill, the Senate spent much of its time on bills of much less importance that could be passed by unanimous consent.

Some of these were the routine re-namings of federal post offices and buildings, or designating commemorative days, weeks and months of interest to individual members. One that caught my eye, introduced by Sen. Angus King (I-Maine), designated Sept. 25, 2026, as “National Lobster Day.”It had been introduced just a day earlier with lead co-sponsor, Susan Collins, who is in a tight reelection race. In the midst of this mish-mash of measures, the Senate voted 49-50 on Sept. 24 to defeat a resolution by Sen. Tim Kaine (D-Va.) to end the Iran war.

It was a Republican victory but one out of favor with the public. The only major measure the Senate could agree on before it adjourned was a bipartisan bill, the Protect College Sports Act co-sponsored by Sens. Ted Cruz (R-Texas) and Maria Cantwell (D-Wash.). The bill passed the Senate, 77-22. It would codify and revise existing standards regulating such things as athletes’ compensation, transfers, and years in school.

The bill is not exactly a campaign vote grabber. Sen. John Kennedy (R-La.), with his sardonic wit, said that while he would support the bill, he “hadn’t met a single person on the campaign trail” who said they lay awake at night worrying about those college football coaches. The moral of this fortnight frenzy in the Senate is: If you’re looking for a last-minute election elixir to secure your future, do not come knocking on legislative doors for a stay-in-power potion.

Chances are your fate will not change. Members will win or lose based on their reputation, character, strength of their opponents, and the economy, and not on the number of bill notches in their belts. Don Wolfensberger is a 28-year congressional staff veteran, culminating as chief of staff of the House Rules Committee. He is author of, “Congress and the People: Deliberative Democracy on Trial” (2000), and, “Changing Cultures in Congress: From Fair Play to Power Plays” (2018).