Live Updates: Voters hand control of Congress to Democrats in sharp rebuke of Trump

2026 ELECTION COVERAGE: Watch Live | Poll Closing Times | All Live Results | Live Updates | Live Fact Check

Democrats have won control of Congress in Tuesday's 2026 midterm elections in a widespread repudiation of President Donald Trump and the Republican Party, a drubbing that reached deep into reliable GOP territory.

Democrats won at least seven Senate seats in ruby-red states and battlegrounds alike: Kansas, which hasn't elected a Democratic senator in nearly a century, Iowa, Texas, Ohio, Maine, North Carolina and South Carolina. In the House, Democrats flipped districts that voted for Trump by as much as 18 points in 2024.

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Democrats Keisha Lance Bottoms in Georgia, Amy Acton in Ohio, Rod Sand in Iowa and Gina Hinojosa in Texas won races for governor, flipping GOP-held offices.

While Trump urged voters to pretend he was on the ballot, most appear to blame his administration for high costs and want Congress to impose more checks on him, according to The AP Voter Poll. Trump tried to shift the blame away from himself during a Fox News interview that aired early Wednesday, saying Democrats "did a good job" in their campaigns and blaming GOP candidates for losses.

Here's the latest.

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1:31 a.m. EST

Democrats win the U.S. House and take unified control of Congress

Democrats have won control of the U.S. House in addition to the U.S. Senate, delivering a shockingly decisive rebuke of Republican governance in Washington and ushering in a new era of congressional resistance to Trump.

The midterm elections Tuesday channeled voters' deep frustrations over high prices, the Iran war and concerns over government corruption. Democrats routed their rivals across the map, from Texas to Iowa to New Hampshire, including states Trump won by double digits just two years ago.

Democratic control will profoundly reshape Trump's final two years in office and likely hamstring his agenda.

1:09 a.m. EST

Democrat Troy Jackson wins election to U.S. Senate from Maine

Incumbent Sen. Susan Collins conceded earlier to Jackson, ending her run for a sixth term.

Democrats considered defeating Collins as key to winning control of the U.S. Senate, and she was one of Republicans' most threatened incumbents this year.

Jackson, a former state legislative leader, replaced Graham Platner as the Democratic nominee after Platner dropped out while facing an allegation of sexual assault, which he denied.

Sen.-elect Josh Turek says Iowa loves an underdog

Turek, a Democrat who flipped Iowa's Republican-held Senate seat, celebrated the win that seemed far-fetched in the state Trump won by 13 percentage points just two years ago.

"They told me it was impossible to win this Senate race, but tonight, Iowa, we have once again proved that the impossible is possible," Turek said.

Turek will replace retiring Republican Sen. Joni Ernst and is among the seat-flipping Democrats ushering in a new majority in the chamber. Turek, who campaigned on rooting out corruption, said he'd be accountable to all Iowans.

"My political North Star has always been about what is best for the people, not about party," he said.

California defeats voter identification requirements

A proposal to enhance California's voter identification requirements had been placed on the ballot after a conservative group gathered thousands of petition signatures. But voters in the Democratic-led state rejected the proposed constitutional amendment Tuesday.

Opponents campaigned against it by linking the measure to Trump, who's advocated unsuccessfully for a voter photo ID requirement at the national level.

The California measure would have required a government-issued ID to vote in person or the last four digits of that identification number to vote by mail in California. The vast majority of California's ballots are cast by mail.

'We just took back Texas,' Talarico tells crowd after victory

That line made the crowd shout with joy, but to Talarico it wasn't about a party victory — even as Democrats tout his Senate win in the Republican state.

"We are tired of being told to hate each other," he told a crowd, who yelled in agreement. "We didn't win this race by alienating our neighbors or shaming our neighbors."

His campaign, he said, is changing the game to a "politics of love."

"This win is for every Texan who has ever wondered if anyone is ever listening," he said. "I heard you. We heard you. And tonight, the world hears you."

Democrat Amy Klobuchar warns that as governor not all may like what she does

Klobuchar, who's been in the U.S. Senate for 20 years, said in her victory speech that she's focused on being a "transformative governor" for Minnesota.

"I am not interested in moving Minnesota to the left or the right; I want to move us forward," she said.

She pledged to audit state government and invest in new technology to detect and deter fraud.

"We are going to speed up government, rebuild trust and work for you," Klobuchar said. "Spoiler alert: you may not like every single thing I do."

Klobuchar also said she was "not going to be a rubber stamp for Donald Trump. And I will do my job without fear or favor. I will govern for Minnesotans and nobody else."

12:47 a.m. EST

Trump says he'll accept election results but says 'I don't view it as a hit on me'

Trump has congratulated Democrats for their string of victories but maintains that the midterm elections are not a referendum on him.

"The Democrats did a good job. They fought hard," he said in a phone interview with Fox News.

READ MORE: Trump says Democrats 'did a good job,' blames Republican candidates for midterm losses

Several Trump-backed candidates lost in places that he won easily in 2024. But he blamed the candidates themselves, not policies of his that voters have looked on unfavorably, like the economy and Iran war.

"I don't view it as a hit on me," he said. "We've had the greatest two years in the history of the presidency."

Maine Sen. Susan Collins concedes to Democrat Troy Jackson, ending her run for a sixth term

The Associated Press has not yet called the race.

Jackson is a former Maine Senate president who took over as the Democratic nominee in July after primary winner Graham Platner dropped out. He was tasked with defeating the longtime incumbent after a chaotic primary season that left the Democrats in disarray and briefly without a candidate.

Democrats had seen the race as a top opportunity to flip a Republican-held seat. Maine has supported Democrats for president since 1992, and Collins was running for reelection at a moment when President Trump is deeply unpopular.

Iowa Republican Lahn says his loss shows U.S. is at a crossroads

Zach Lahn said his defeat to Democrat Rob Sand in the Iowa governor's race sends a message to corporate interests, career politicians and lobbyists.

"America is at a crossroads," he said. "The fight is just beginning right now."

Lahn called on his supporters to "protect this state," coming after Sand became the first Democrat elected governor in the state in two decades.

He said he spoke to Sand and that he'd keep him in his prayers.

"I wish him well in this," he said.

Democrats flip 3 House seats in Iowa

Iowa had an all-Republican congressional delegation going into the election. Democrats have now picked up three of the state's four House seats.

In the 1st Congressional District, Christina Bohannan defeated Republican Rep. Mariannette Miller-Meeks. About 800 votes separated them two years ago, even though Trump comfortably carried the district, setting the stage for Bohannan to win on her third try for the seat.

Democrat Sarah Trone Garriott, a state senator and a Lutheran minister, defeated Zach Nunn in the state's 3rd Congressional District.

And finally, Democratic candidate Lindsay James, a chaplain, defeated Republican Joe Mitchell in an open seat in the state's 2nd Congressional District. The move by Rep. Ashley Hinson to run for the Senate had left the opening.

Both parties invested heavily in a state where farmers are dealing with headwinds from high gas prices and retaliatory tariffs.

Democrats flip control of Wisconsin Senate

Republican control of the Wisconsin Legislature has come to an end in at least one chamber.

Democrats won control of the state Senate on Tuesday and were making gains in the Assembly.

Democrats haven't fully controlled Wisconsin's government since 2010. But new legislative districts, ordered by the liberal-controlled Wisconsin Supreme Court, gave Democrats a better shot at flipping the legislative chambers this year.

Iowa's Hinson says she'll keep up 'fight for common sense' after defeat

Republican Ashley Hinson made brief remarks to supporters after Democrat Josh Turek won Iowa's open seat in the U.S. Senate.

Hinson, who serves in the House, was hoping to replace retiring Republican Sen. Joni Ernst. Flanked by her family, Hinson thanked her staff and supporters for helping her fight to keep the American dream within reach for more Americans.

"I will continue to fight for common sense," Hinson said.

"I think we ran an absolutely fabulous campaign across the state," she added. "Lots of late nights and lots of miles."

The AP Voter Poll: Hamilton won Kansas Senate voters who were moderates

Republican Sen. Roger Marshall performed significantly worse with Kansas Senate voters under 30, with roughly 8 in 10 backing Democrat Adam Hamilton. Marshall split this group with his Democratic opponent in 2020, during his last Senate campaign, according to AP VoteCast.

Hamilton won moderates in Kansas this year, with roughly 7 in 10 backing him over Marshall. Marshall only won about one-quarter of this group, down from about 4 in 10 in 2020.

Many Kansas voters also appeared concerned about Marshall's character, after he faced accusations throughout the campaign that he had sent unpaid medical bills from former patients to collections agencies. A slim majority of Kansas voters said Marshall did not have the right personal character to serve in the U.S. Senate.

About half of voters, by contrast, said Hamilton was "too extreme."

12:27 a.m. EST

Gillibrand taken aback by breadth of Democratic Senate wins

New York Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand was confident going into Tuesday but said she was surprised anyway.

"The size of the blue wave is bigger than I ever imagined," the chair of the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee told The Associated Press. "It's unbelievable."

Calling from her hotel after the evening at the committee office watching returns, she at times broke into laughter when ticking through the high points of the evening.

For Gillibrand, the biggest thrill was easy. "Kansas," she interrupted. "First time since 1932."

Beyond the wins, she credited candidates with talking about issues that were heavy on voters' minds: "housing costs, fuel costs, medical costs and how they are going to fight for these families across America."

Democrat Adam Hamilton says win in deeply red Kansas is repudiation of Washington

Speaking before a raucous crowd, Hamilton said he won over Republicans and independents because they were not on board with the administration's policies.

He cited economic pressure weighing on voters from tariffs along with the war in Iran as factors.

"I think the people in Kansas, Republicans, independents and Democrats are saying what's happening in Washington is not OK," he said.

He added: "I got elected because Kansans were saying, 'We're tired of the bullies. We're tired of the chaos,'" Hamilton said to cheers.

Sherrod Brown says Ohio residents 'sent an undeniable message'

Democrat Sherrod Brown told supporters they had made themselves clear to the nation.

"You sent an undeniable message tonight: Ohio is not for sale," he said.

Brown's victory over Republican Sen. Jon Husted was among the most expensive in the nation, topping $500 million in spending by campaigns and outside groups.

The former three-term senator pledged to return to Washington to fight for the average Ohio resident.

"My pledge to all Ohioans, whether you voted for me or not, is that I will always be on your side — always," he said.

Figures wins redrawn Alabama House seat

U.S. Rep. Shomari Figures overcame an effort to unseat him through redistricting to win a second term in Alabama's 2nd Congressional District.

Figures defeated Trump-backed Republican Rhett Marques. The district had been reshaped to favor the GOP after the U.S. Supreme Court's redistricting decision.

"We had the deck stacked against us," Figures said at his victory party. But he said they got to work, "and we did not look backwards."

Rob Sand celebrates win in Iowa governor's race

Sand told a loud and energized crowd of Democrats in Des Moines that Iowans sent a clear message Tuesday.

"We have to have bigger hearts and minds than just our party," Sand said. "Come January, we will be forced to work together."

Sand's win breaks a Republican trifecta that's gripped state government for about a decade. He told lawmakers Tuesday that he looks forward to working across the aisle to solve Iowa's problems.

Sand also had supporters in the crowd sing an election-night rendition of "America the Beautiful," which he asked attendees to sing at each of his town halls. He also thanked his family and offered a tribute to his late brother-in-law, Walter Lauridsen, who died unexpectedly last month.

Democrat Gina Hinojosa says her faith in Texas 'never wavered' in stunning upset

The crowd in Austin at her victory party screamed "Gina" repeatedly as the Democratic legislator who will be Texas' first Latina governor addressed supporters.

"It never bothered me that they doubted me. It bothered me that they doubted us," Hinojosa said. "Texas, my faith in you never wavered."

READ MORE: Democrat Gina Hinojosa wins election for governor in Texas

Hinojosa said Gov. Abbott had called to congratulate her and offered to assist with her transition into office.

Hinojosa is a state lawmaker from Austin who entered the race last year with little money or name recognition. She told supporters about her upbringing along the Texas-Mexico border and her policy priorities, including fighting for public school teachers and keeping billionaires out of politics.

"Your life can be bigger than your dreams," she said.

Xavier Becerra celebrates Democrats' winning streak in California

He'll take over from termed-out Democratic Gov. Gavin Newsom.

Becerra defeated GOP rival Steve Hilton while campaigning on a promise to push back against Trump and his administration's Republican policies, from immigration to voting rights.

READ MORE: Democrat Xavier Becerra wins California governor's race, defeating Republican Steve Hilton

"If anyone wants to come after California or any one Californian, they better be ready for a fight," Becerra said at a rally near Sacramento.

He'll become the state's first Latino governor since the late 19th century. Becerra was born in Sacramento to a mother from Mexico and a father who was born in California and raised in Mexico.

"What a great night to be an American, to be the son of immigrants from a union household, to be standing in victory with all of you," Becerra said.

Sen. Chuck Schumer tells voters 'relief is on the way' after Democrats take the Senate

The longtime Democratic leader told reporters in Washington that "Americans voted for change" and that there had been a "generational remake of the Senate map."

"Five words for the American people: relief is on the way," the New York senator said.

Texas' Democratic victories a 'rude awakening'

After Talarico and Hinojosa won the races for Senate and governor in Texas, respectively, overturning more than three decades of Republican control, voter Aaron Dickerson, 30, said it's a wake-up call for the Lone Star State.

"I think it is a rude awakening," said Dickerson, who attended Talarico's exuberant watch party. "They've been in power here in Texas for 30 years, and I think voters are realizing that, the problems with Texas, the only people to blame are Republicans."

Trump criticizes Texas governor after loss

After Republican Texas Gov. Greg Abbott's defeat, Trump accused him of being a "RINO," or a "Republican In Name Only."

Abbott, one of the president's most steadfast allies, lost his bid for a fourth term to Democratic state Rep. Gina Hinojosa.

"If Greg Abbott, the Governor of Texas, hadn't become a RINO in the last six months of his Political Life, he wouldn't have lost," Trump wrote on Truth Social. "He went back to his original formula, and it wasn't pretty!"

'Speaker! Speaker!'

Cheers erupted for Jeffries after he and his leadership team addressed the crowd at the House Democrats' watch party.

Jeffries is in line to make history as the first Black speaker of the House, if Democrats win control and colleagues elect him to the job.

12:05 a.m. EST

What to watch at midnight

Polls close in Hawaii and almost all of Alaska at midnight. The final polls of the 2026 midterms close at 1 a.m. in the Aleutian Islands, home of Alaska's westernmost polling location.

In Alaska in 2024, about 25% of the total vote was not counted on election night. The bulk of the state's mail voting results aren't expected before Nov. 18, the deadline to receive overseas and military ballots. Mail and early in-person ballots comprised about 35% of the total vote in 2022 and about 45% in 2024.

Key contests to watch include the Senate and House races in Alaska.

Redistricting strategy falters for Republicans

Three more Democratic U.S. House members targeted for defeat through redistricting have won reelection.

In Alabama, Democratic Rep. Shomari Figures won a second term in a district that was redrawn to help Republicans after a U.S. Supreme Court ruling severely weakened the Voting Rights Act.

The Republican redraw dropped the district's Black voting age population from 48% to 40%, making it more challenging for Democrats. While some incumbents affected by redistricting chose to retire or run in another district, Figures viewed the race as still winnable, and both parties ended up investing heavily in the race.

Meanwhile, in Texas, Republicans hoped to pick up five seats through redistricting. But Democratic Rep. Vicente Gonzalez won reelection to a sixth term in a reconstituted district that Trump had won by about 10 percentage points over Kamala Harris.

And in Ohio, Rep. Greg Landsman, whose district on the westside of Cincinnati was redrawn, won reelection to a third term.

Republicans lay blame squarely at Trump's feet

Republican campaign officials were unsparing in their blame of President Trump for Tuesday's wholesale losses, particularly in Senate races.

The losses in South Carolina, Ohio and Texas — all states Trump carried easily two years ago — were a direct repudiation of the president, two officials with Senate campaigns said.

Trump asked voters to pretend he was on the ballot, which they did but not in the way the president hoped, the Republican strategists said, speaking on condition of anonymity to share internal conversations.

Voters were not happy with his policies and upset with what they felt was his exacerbation of their cost-of-living concerns, they said, adding that the broader Republican Party apparatus understands it was Trump and his team who cost the party the elections.

Texas Republican Wayne Hamilton, a former state GOP executive director, upon Texas Democrats capturing the U.S. Senate seat for the first time since 1988 as well as the governorship: "Does we got our butts kicked summarize it distinctly enough?"

"You just can't overcome this environment."

— Thomas Beaumont

Hakeem Jeffries: 'America is back'

The House Democratic leader said this is not a partisan moment, but a patriotic one.

"Today begins the great American comeback," Jeffries said to a cheering crowd at the Democrats' watch party.

"We're going to work hard to deliver on the dramatic change that you deserve," he said.

"We hear you," he said. "House Democrats are committed to making life better for you."

11:50 p.m. EST

In Ohio, Brown improved on his 2024 performance among key groups

Ohio Senate voters had a more positive opinion of Democrat Sherrod Brown than Republican Jon Husted, according to The AP Voter Poll, which found that about half of voters had a "strongly" or "somewhat" favorable view of Brown, while only about 4 in 10 felt the same way about Husted.

Most Ohio voters also saw Husted as "too supportive" of Trump, while less than half of voters said Brown was "too extreme."

About half of Ohio voters said control of the Senate was "crucial" to their vote, and Brown won a majority of this group.

Brown substantially improved on his 2024 performance among young voters, while making more modest — but still significant — gains among moderates, lower-income voters and women. The vast majority, about 7 in 10, of voters under 30 supported Brown this year, while only about half of this group voted for him in 2024, according to AP VoteCast.

Brown also won about two-thirds of moderates this year, up from about 6 in 10 moderate voters in 2024, and just over half of women voters, after splitting this group with Sen. Bernie Moreno in 2024.

Texas Republican Ken Paxton congratulates James Talarico on winning Texas Senate seat

Paxton spoke briefly after Talarico's victory.

"I will commit that I will be praying for him, that he will do good for Texas and this nation," he said.

Paxton also acknowledged Republican losses across the country.

"We've had a difficult night tonight across the country, but it's not over," he said.

11:46 p.m. EST

Democrats have won the U.S. Senate

It marks a decisive rebuke of Republican control of governance in Washington, ushering in a new era of congressional resistance to Trump.

The midterm elections that came to a close Tuesday channeled voters' deep frustration with high prices, the war in Iran and concerns about government corruption.

READ MORE: Democrats take control of the Senate after winning key midterm races

The House remains too early to call, but Democrats have already flipped seven seats as they try to win the majority in that chamber as well.

Democratic control of the Senate will profoundly reshape Trump's final two years in office and likely hamstring his ability to push his agenda, including his hopes for sustaining a conservative shift to the Supreme Court.

Trump has promised he would use his veto power to block Democrats' agenda, forecasting the potential for gridlock in Washington.

Crowd erupts when race is called for Talarico, then Gina Hinojosa

Thousands had arrived hoping a Democrat would win a statewide race in Texas for the first time in more than three decades. Talarico won the Senate seat. Then came another Democratic victory.

Gina Hinojosa beat Republican Gov. Greg Abbott, and the crowd's excitement reached a crescendo.

People leapt in the air; others hugged; one danced; a young man called his dad; and an older man marveled that it was "unbelievable."

Ramaswamy says he has 'serious concerns' about the nation's future

Republican Vivek Ramaswamy expressed both reservations and hope for the future after losing the Ohio governor's race to Democrat Amy Acton.

"I have to tell you, I have some serious concerns about the future direction of our country. There's no avoiding that," he told supporters at a subdued watch party. "But I do believe that there have been many ups and downs in the history of our country, and we have, in the end, still found our way upward."

The biotech billionaire thanked his parents, who were in attendance, as well as his wife and her parents.

Trump tells The New York Times that he'll respect the results of the election

As he watched election results from the White House, Trump told The New York Times late Tuesday that he would respect the results of the election and work alongside Democrats, who continued to rack up unlikely victories.

"I am absolutely willing to accept those results," he said shortly before 10:30 p.m. "We'll work with the Democrats, and we'll, you know, look forward to working with them. We'll probably work something out."

Missouri voters reject abortion ban for a second time

Voters defeated a proposed amendment to the Missouri Constitution that would have reimposed restrictions on most abortions.

The defeat Tuesday came just two years after voters approved an abortion-rights amendment, making Missouri the first state in the nation to undo an existing abortion ban through a ballot measure.

The Republican-led Legislature responded by referring a new, less restrictive version of an abortion ban to this year's ballot. The measure would have allowed abortions only for medical emergencies and fetal anomalies, or in cases of rape or incest up to 12 weeks of pregnancy. The Legislature paired the latest abortion measure with a prohibition on certain medical procedures for transgender minors.

Abortion-rights advocates, led by national progressive groups, heavily outspent abortion foes in a successful campaign to defeat the ballot measure.

11:28 p.m. EST

Democrat Gina Hinojosa wins election for governor in Texas

Hinojosa defeated Republican incumbent Greg Abbott.

Hinojosa's win marks an upset victory for Democrats. The state House member from Austin will be Texas' first Latina governor. She also is the first Democrat to win a governor's race in the state since 1990.

Abbott was seeking an unprecedented fourth term after first winning election in 2014.

James Talarico wasn't born the last time a Democrat won a U.S. Senate seat in Texas

The Austin state representative overcame his party's decades-old curse Tuesday, defeating Republican Ken Paxton in a race that once seemed like another far reach for Democrats.

Talarico benefited from a combination of circumstances, including Paxton's liabilities and Talarico's stellar fundraising.

In the race's closing months, Trump and Senate GOP super PACs tried to paint Talarico as out of the mainstream, with Elon Musk spending $158 million to oppose the Democrat.

But Talarico won in Texas' metro areas, as well as in once GOP-leaning urban and suburban areas.

The last Democrat to win a Texas Senate seat was Lloyd Bentsen in 1988. Talarico was born the following May.

AP Voter Poll: Skepticism among Texans about Ken Paxton's character

Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton has been dogged by questions of corruption during his run for the Senate — and about two-thirds of voters in the Senate race say he lacked the personal character to serve in that chamber.

Democratic State Rep. James Talarico has been portrayed by Republicans as a vegan who is too supportive of transgender rights.

The attacks have had mixed results. Texas voters are roughly split on whether Talarico's views are "too extreme."

Talarico beat Paxton to net the first Democratic win of a statewide office in Texas since 1994.

11:14 p.m. EST

Democrat James Talarico wins election to U.S. Senate from Texas

Talarico's victory represents the first time a Democrat has won a statewide office in Texas since 1994, a shakeup for a state long dominated by Republicans. The outcome boosts Democrats as they look to retake control of the Senate.

A seminary student and state representative, Talarico focused on bringing down everyday costs and revisiting corruption allegations against Republican opponent Ken Paxton, a state attorney general.

Paxton, who had Trump's endorsement, said Talarico's progressive stances on social issues were out of step with Texas.

Bottoms calls her election as Georgia governor a response to Washington 'chaos'

The Democratic former Atlanta mayor addressed a boisterous crowd of supporters after being declared the winner in an election that will make her the nation's first Black female governor.

She was met with chants of "Keisha! Keisha!" when she took the stage and was introduced by her daughter.

Bottoms called her campaign a victory for all Georgians, from teachers to farmers to entrepreneurs.

"No matter who you voted for tonight, I will be a governor for all of Georgia," Bottoms said. "Georgia, we sent a message loud and clear that we want a leader who will put Georgia first and who will stand up to all the chaos coming out of Washington, DC."

Annie Andrews says she'll be a 'brick wall' for South Carolina, even against Democrats

The Democrat said she'd stand up to her own party in Congress and pledged to show up for voters, including those who didn't support her.

Speaking to cheering supporters, she acknowledged her historic victory — she's the first woman to be elected to represent South Carolina in the U.S. Senate — and lamented vitriol in politics and influence from billionaires.

"South Carolina, you have shown the nation what is possible," Andrews said.

She also said she'd stand up for her state, even if it means disagreeing with other Democrats.

But Andrews also alluded to Trump's support for Darline Graham, her opponent and the sister of late Sen. Lindsey Graham, whose seat Darline Graham was appointed to fill.

"The Senate seat does not belong to one family, one party or to Washington, D.C.," Andrews said.

Darline Graham says she still owes Trump gratitude after stunning U.S. Senate loss

Trump strongly pushed for Graham to be named senator after her brother Lindsey Graham died in July. Trump visited the state twice in the weeks before the election as her chances appeared to be fading.

"He loves this country dearly and I appreciate all that he has done," Graham said.

Graham told the crowd they should remain as proud of her brother as she is.

"This is a tough cycle and all of us need to be involved as we chart a path forward. It is clear that we as conservatives have work to do and that work starts tonight," Graham said.

Trump told voters to pretend he was on the ballot. New York governor says they did

In a victory speech, New York Gov. Kathy Hochul reminded a crowd of the president's request to vote as if he was on the ballot, saying, "Well, Mr. President, you got your wish!"

Hochul won a second full term Tuesday night, defeating Republican Bruce Blakeman, a Trump ally.

11:05 p.m. EST

Democrats marching toward House control after flipping 6 Republican-held seats in key races

Republican Reps. Tom Kean of New Jersey and three Republicans in Pennsylvania, Ryan Mackenzie, Scott Perry and Rob Bresnahan, lost reelection and Democrats won open seats in North Carolina and Kentucky. Democrats need a net gain of three seats for a majority.

Trump responds to midterm results

As Democrats continued to pick up seats, Trump responded on Truth Social, shirking blame for the showing among Republican candidates.

"I wasn't on the Ballot and if I was, we would have won IN A LANDSLIDE! Thank you for your attention to this matter," he posted shortly after 10:30 p.m. He was watching the returns in the East Wing with political advisers and Cabinet members, according to his official schedule.

Trump campaigned for many Republican candidates, urging voters at rallies to pretend that he was on the ballot.

What to watch for after polls close at 11 p.m. ET

All polls close at 11 p.m. in California and Washington, as well as the remaining polls in Idaho and Oregon.

Elections in California and Washington are conducted primarily by mail. Mail ballots postmarked by Election Day will be counted if received by Nov. 10 in California and Nov. 23 in Washington.

In the 2024 general election, about 38% of the vote in California and about 33% of the vote in Washington was not counted on election night. The count reached 90% in Washington by Nov. 9, four days after Election Day, and in California by Nov. 14, nine days after Election Day.

Some key contests to watch in this hour are California governor, California's Proposition 40 and U.S. House races in California and Washington.

10:47 p.m. EST

Democrat Annie Andrews wins election to U.S. Senate from South Carolina

She defeated Republican incumbent Darline Graham.

Andrews' victory in a state Trump won three times by double digits is a stark defeat for the Republican Party. A pediatrician, Andrews had previously run unsuccessfully for the U.S. House.

Graham had been appointed to the seat that her brother, Sen. Lindsey Graham, held before he died unexpectedly in July. She later won a contentious special primary for the Republican nomination with Trump's backing.

Democrats pick up a Kentucky House seat

In a race viewed as an early test for Democratic efforts to take the House majority, former federal prosecutor and Navy veteran Zach Dembo has won an open seat created by Republican Andy Barr's decision to run for the Senate.

Dembo is also a former aide to Kentucky Gov. Andy Beshear.

Beshear easily won the district during an off-year gubernatorial contest in 2023 and has spent time campaigning for his former legislative director.

Ralph Alvarado, a physician and ex-state senator, was the Republican nominee.

The district includes Democratic-trending Lexington and covers multiple rural counties that are Republican strongholds.

Top House Oversight Democrat tells Republicans to 'Lawyer Up'

California Rep. Robert Garcia issued the blunt two-word statement to Republicans as Democrats grew increasingly optimistic about reclaiming control of the House.

If Democrats secure a majority, Garcia and other party leaders have vowed an aggressive oversight agenda, including investigations into Trump, his family and his administration.

10:34 p.m. EST

Vote counting in competitive New York district delayed after ballot-scanning issues

A judge gave elections officials in Westchester County permission to move thousands of paper ballots to a secure warehouse for counting after a technical problem caused vote scanning machines to malfunction.

The issue is expected to delay counting until Wednesday in New York's 17th Congressional District, which features a competitive race between GOP Rep. Mike Lawler and Democrat Cait Conley.

The New York Board of Elections said machines throughout the county wouldn't accept paper ballots when polls opened Tuesday because of a programming glitch.

Voters were instructed to put completed ballots in emergency bags that would be safeguarded to be processed later.

The bags will be transported under police escort to a county warehouse, where they will be scanned and counted under the supervision of representatives of parties.

Lawler and Conley had both implored residents to cast their ballots despite the problem and stressed that all votes would be counted.

When the AP will call control of the House

The Associated Press does not make projections and will only declare which party has won control of the House when one of the parties reaches 218 seats.

Currently, 219 members caucus with Republicans, just one more than the minimum needed for a majority when all seats are filled. There are two vacancies now.

During the last elections in 2024 and 2022, the AP called control of the House eight days after Election Day.

10:24 p.m. EST

Voters in Nevada's 2 largest counties waiting over an hour to cast ballots

A line of voters Tuesday night snaked around a Las Vegas parking lot in a busy shopping plaza, where a tent was set up as a polling location. With an estimated wait time of two hours, a DJ played music as voters stood in line.

Earlier in the day, pizza, water and other snacks were handed out. Some Clark County voters skipped the line and dropped off their mail ballots.

Voters in Washoe County, home to Reno, also were waiting over an hour.

Amber Falgout with the Institute for a Progressive Nevada, which runs a nonpartisan voter education program, attributed the long wait times to increased voter turnout plus an additional step in-person voters must take this year. Once they finish voting, their ballot is printed out and they must turn that in, Falgout said.

The polls close at 7 p.m. Pacific time, but any voter still in line at that time will be allowed to cast a ballot.

Shapiro says people of Pennsylvania spoke with 'resounding force'

Democratic Gov. Josh Shapiro, considered a potential candidate for president in 2028, told the crowd celebrating his reelection victory in Pennsylvania that the people spoke with "resounding force" that they are done with leadership "that fails to make life better."

"You left no doubt," Shapiro told the crowd at a suburban Harrisburg hotel ballroom.

He said people want to raise Pennsylvania's minimum wage to $15 an hour, to build more housing and invest in infrastructure, kids, cops and communities. They also want to enshrine abortion rights for women in the state constitution, he said.

Clerk in New Mexico county ordered to accommodate Republican poll watchers

A state judge in New Mexico has sided with Republicans who filed a lawsuit on Election Day over concerns that a Democratic county clerk had placed restrictions on election challengers.

The Republican Party of New Mexico, the Republican National Committee and the Republican Party of Doña Ana County sued County Clerk Amanda López Askin. They claimed GOP election challengers were placed in a corner where they could not properly see whether mail ballot envelopes contained the required signatures.

The judge granted a preliminary injunction, ordering that the challengers be positioned where they could properly observe the processing of the ballots.

"Transparency and accountability are fundamental to public confidence in our elections, and we will continue to stand up for those principles," said Leticia Muñoz, executive director of the state party.

López Askin is running for the secretary of state's office.

Voters cheer Keisha Lance Bottoms' history-making win in Georgia

"I want to cry. I'm very grateful and excited that we finally got the first female governor," said Conqula Milner, 54, who was wearing a long blue shirt with "Blessed" written on the back in silver sparkles.

Milner, who was at Bottoms' election night party, said she was confident Bottoms would win but thought the margin would be tighter.

A veteran who works at the VA hospital in Atlanta, Milner says she believes Bottoms will do a lot to help veterans.

Paula Sanders, 69, a retired school counselor, said she supports Bottoms because she strongly agrees "with her plan to make life better for all Georgians."

Dancing to the music with some friends as she waited for Bottoms to come out and address the crowd, she savored the election of the country's first Black female governor: "This is a real history-making moment. So proud of Georgia!"

10:11 p.m. EST

Sen. Jon Ossoff calls Democratic wins a rebuke of Trump

Speaking to a cheering crowd in Atlanta, Ossoff cast the results as a defeat for the term-limited president, entering his final two years in office.

"In sweeping and decisive victories, the American people have rebuked the depravity, corruption and incompetence of a failed lame duck President Donald J. Trump," Ossoff said.

He added that the country's politics have been "small and selfish, bought by big money, unmoored from fixed moral principles, and resigned to intractable division."

He called for healing "brokenness" in the country, not just pushing back on the president.

In sweeping language, he said the wealthy had benefited from inside information and favors while families suffered with "higher and higher" bills.

Voting rights group says Election Day voting was 'uneventful'

As Election Day voting is wrapping up across the states, Common Cause, a voting rights group that has previously sued the Trump administration, said their volunteers at polling sites noticed few disruptions.

"It was, again, largely uneventful. As our elections should be," Virginia Kase Solomón, the group's president and CEO, said during a press briefing. "It is just really great to see a normal election happening."

Common Cause directors from Arizona, California, Hawaii, North Carolina and Texas didn't report any serious incidents at polling locations. The relatively routine issues throughout the day included weather-related delays, long lines and electioneering near polling places. Most problems were quickly resolved.

Newly elected Florida governor Byron Donalds thanks Trump in his victory speech

"I want you to hear from Florida that we are still red," Donalds said to a crowd of cheering supporters. "Mr. President, I also want to tell you thank you for your support and thank you for being in my corner."

Donalds also thanked outgoing Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis, promising to continue the work DeSantis has done over the past eight years.

Donalds defeated Democrat David Jolly, a former Republican congressman who switched parties and ran a centrist campaign.

10:01 p.m. EST

Democrats flip New Jersey House seat held by Republican Tom Kean

Democrat Rebecca Bennett, a former Navy helicopter pilot, has defeated two-term Rep. Tom Kean, who missed four months of votes in Washington this year as he underwent treatment for depression, a diagnosis he did not disclose until his return.

Kean represents a battleground district that includes Trump's Bedminster golf club. His great-grandfather was a senator, his grandfather was a congressman and his father is the former two-term Gov. Tom Kean Sr.

The seat has changed hands in the two most recent midterm election cycles, so it was automatically viewed as a competitive race going into this year.

Democratic Rep. Jared Moskowitz says Florida Republican gerrymandering backfired

Republicans tried to tilt four more House seats to the GOP in Trump's adopted home state. Moskowitz was among their targets, but the Democratic congressman decided to run anyway in one of the redrawn districts.

"I've worked across the aisle. I've delivered results for my community, and they spent $26 million trying to beat me," he said after his victory in Florida's 25th District. "They lit that money on fire tonight."

Moskowitz said voters in his new district, like those nationwide, were most concerned about the economy and their ability to afford a good quality of life. But he said the redistricting and concerns about Trump's business dealings angered voters, too.

He said Democrats, should they control Capitol Hill in January, must use their power to address affordability but also to hold the Trump administration accountable.

What to watch for after polls close at 10 p.m. ET

Polls close at 10 p.m. in Montana, Nevada and Utah, with some polls closing in the eastern portions of Idaho and Oregon.

Key contests to watch in this hour include U.S. House races in Montana, Nevada and Utah and congressional and gubernatorial races in Arizona, where polls close at 9 p.m. but results are held until 10 p.m.

Abdul El-Sayed's supporters rally in downtown Detroit

The crowd at a watch party hosted by the state's Democratic Party listened to music spun by a DJ underneath colorful lights as they watched election results roll in from around the U.S.

Democratic leaders in the state, including Detroit Mayor Mary Sheffield and former Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg, spoke from a podium flanked by American and Michigan flags.

Attendee Sarah Karim came from Seattle to canvass for El-Sayed, who is friends with her husband after they attended the University of Michigan together, she said.

"This race also represents something really powerful nationwide," Karim said. "We feel the effect of it in the Pacific Northwest because of what Abdul is representing."

9:56 p.m. EST

Energy buzzes through House Democrats' election watch party

Democratic volunteers and staff are crowding the room for an election night watch party in Washington.

Cheers erupt when Democratic candidates for House, Senate and gubernatorial races flash on the TV screens.

"America is alive and well!" House Democratic Leader Hakeem Jeffries posted on social media.

Democrat Juliana Stratton vows to fight for progressive agenda as Illinois senator

Stratton, the current lieutenant governor, told supporters at her victory party that she "won't be sitting back and listening quietly when I get to Washington."

Stratton says she will fight "loudly" for affordable healthcare, reproductive freedom, workers' rights, voting rights and for working families.

"Working families have been left to pick up the tab for the wealthy and well-connected while the crook in the Oval Office enriches himself and his allies," she said.

Stratton supports Medicare for all, a $25 minimum wage and abolishing Immigration and Customs Enforcement.

Stratton defeated Republican Don Tracy, the former state Republican Party chair. She's replacing retiring Democratic Sen. Dick Durbin.

Maryland voters pass Democratic-backed redistricting amendment

A constitutional amendment passed Tuesday could pave the way for Democratic lawmakers to redraw Maryland's congressional districts ahead of the 2028 election.

Supporters of the amendment touted it as a way to fight back against Trump's push to reshape U.S. House districts in Republican-led states to the party's advantage. Democratic former President Barack Obama was among those backing the ballot measure.

The amendment undercuts a 2022 court ruling that struck down a previous Democratic redistricting plan as "extreme partisan gerrymandering." The judge in that case said a constitutional provision requiring compact districts that respect "natural boundaries" applied to congressional districts.

The newly approved amendment applies those parameters only to state legislative districts — allowing greater leeway to manipulate the boundaries for U.S. House districts.

Moody calls her Senate win in Florida a victory of freedom over socialism

In a victory speech, the Republican noted that "throughout this campaign, I said that this election would come down to freedom versus socialism. Well, Florida chose freedom."

She added, "We are the beating heart of freedom, not only for the United States of America, but indeed the rest of the world."

Moody defeated Democrat Angie Nixon to hang on to the job she was first appointed to in 2025, when Marco Rubio was chosen to be Trump's secretary of state.

Nixon is a longtime labor organizer who recently joined the Democratic Socialists of America. She championed policies like universal healthcare and childcare and has been an outspoken critic of U.S. foreign policy and the war in Gaza.

Democrat Keisha Bottoms wins election for governor in Georgia

Bottoms is the first Black woman elected governor of any state. She also is the first former Atlanta mayor to be elected Georgia governor and the first Democrat to win the state's highest office since 1998. Bottoms previously worked in President Joe Biden's administration.

She defeated Republican Rick Jackson, a healthcare tycoon who tapped his personal fortune for his campaign.

9:39 p.m. EST

Democrats flip longtime target North Carolina

Roy Cooper won decisively, holding a double-digit lead in the Senate race at the time of the call. Cooper expanded on his margins in his two gubernatorial victories. He won by 0.2 and 4.5 percentage points in 2016 and 2020, respectively.

Democrats had targeted the seat after Trump won the state by less than four points in each of the last three presidential elections.

Abortion rights amendment passes in Virginia

Voters have approved a ballot measure that creates a "fundamental right to reproductive freedom" in the Virginia Constitution.

The amendment passed Tuesday ensures abortions can occur during the first two trimesters of pregnancy. It allows government regulations during the third trimester while still ensuring that abortions can be carried out to protect the life and health of pregnant women. The amendment also creates a right to contraception and fertility care, among other things.

The U.S. Supreme Court overturned a nationwide right to abortion in 2022, opening the way for states to create their own policies. Since then, voters in more than one-fifth of the states have passed ballot measures protecting abortion rights.

9:21 p.m. EST

NYC Mayor Zohran Mamdani says Democrats' work begins now

"Together we have an opportunity, my friends, to prove that Democrats can deliver. To provide an alternative to the hollow promises and the lasting betrayals of the right," he said at an election watch party in Manhattan.

Mamdani, who took office this year, was on stage delivering a speech just as AP called the New York governor's race for Democratic Gov. Kathy Hochul.

"The work that we began here on the streets of New York City is being carried forward tonight all across our country," he said.

Capito is first West Virginia Republican elected to 3 straight U.S. Senate terms in more than a century

Shelley Moore Capito said she was humbled after becoming the first West Virginia Republican to be elected to three consecutive terms in the U.S. Senate in more than a century.

"From the beginning, this campaign has been focused on listening to West Virginians about the concerns most important to them and coming together to bring those voices to Washington," Capito said in a statement. "That mission will never change, and I am more energized than ever to continue delivering for our state."

Capito defeated Democrat Rachel Fetty Anderson.

Trump watches election returns from the White House

Trump gathered with political advisers and members of his Cabinet in the East Room of the White House to watch election returns come in, the White House said.

Interior Secretary Doug Burgum said earlier Tuesday that he planned to attend the reception. Burgum was with the president when he delivered his final message to voters from the Lincoln Memorial Reflecting Pool, where Trump spoke at length on the renovation work he and Burgum have completed in the nation's capital.

Earlier in the evening, Trump complained on Truth Social about Fox News, saying the network was spending "too much time" covering Democrats.

North Carolina's Roy Cooper nods to Democratic flip of Senate seat

The former two-term governor told cheering supporters that he spoke to Republican Michael Whatley and said his opponent acknowledged the result.

"Thank you for everything you did to take this United States Senate seat back for the people of North Carolina," Cooper said.

He also promised to be an "independent voice" for the state.

Cooper said the campaign was about standing up for people who felt crushed by Trump's tariffs and the cost of fuel and fertilizer "because of this never-ending war."

9:06 p.m. EST

Democrats score their first U.S. House flip in North Carolina

Democrats have picked up their first Republican-held House seat of the night in western North Carolina.

Democrat Jamie Ager has won an open seat resulting from the retirement of Republican Rep. Chuck Edwards, who was censured by the House this year for engaging in inappropriate conduct toward two young female staffers in his office.

Democrats were hoping Ager's farming background would appeal to rural voters in the district. He defeated Republican Jennifer Balkcom, a state legislator.

8:55 p.m. EST

JB Pritzker says his reelection as Illinois governor shows hope is winning out over fear

"It looks like maybe, just maybe, something is stirring in the conscience of America," Pritzker told his supporters after winning election to a third term. He's the first Democrat elected to a third term as governor in Illinois.

Pritzker is considered a potential Democratic candidate for president in 2028.

"We climbed one mountain tonight," Pritzker said. "But we are sitting at the base of another."

Pritzker defeated Republican Darren Bailey, a former state lawmaker.

Mike Collins says result not 'what we wanted'

The Republican acknowledged the result in the Georgia Senate race in a brief speech to his supporters.

"The results may not be what we wanted tonight, but y'all, that's OK. I'm going to continue to serve," he said.

Collins, a current House member, praised Trump, calling it an honor and privilege to serve under him.

Democratic Sen. Jon Ossoff won the seat.

8:47 p.m. EST

Cooper supporters cheer former governor's Senate win

Supporters erupted into cheers, hugs and chants when they learned the former governor had won election to the U.S. Senate representing North Carolina.

A crowd gathered in a downtown Raleigh hotel ballroom Tuesday night, where music was thumping and CNN played on a big screen. When the news of Cooper's victory appeared, the crowd exploded and began chanting, "Cooper! Cooper!"

LIVE RESULTS: Roy Cooper wins Senate race in North Carolina

Anderson Clayton, who leads North Carolina's Democratic Party, said Cooper's decades in elected office made him an especially strong candidate.

"He's woven into the fabric of North Carolina," she said.

By electing Cooper, North Carolina voters chose "competence over chaos," Democratic Gov. Josh Stein said in a speech shortly after the race was called.

Cooper defeated Republican Michael Whatley.

Sununu says 'it's not our night'

The Republican says he had a great message and vision but came up short in his New Hampshire Senate race against Democrat Chris Pappas.

"This has been an incredible campaign, but it is not our night. I called Chris to congratulate him a few minutes ago. He ran a good race. More importantly, we ran a good race," John E. Sununu told supporters.

Pappas, who is in his fourth term in the U.S. House, will replace retiring Sen. Jeanne Shaheen, a three-term Democrat who ousted Sununu in 2008.

Pappas says 'New Hampshire showed up today'

Pappas says his U.S. Senate victory in New Hampshire is proof that Washington needs a "new generation at the table to fix things."

"This has been a long campaign against the backdrop of chaos, corruption and costs coming out of Washington," Pappas told supporters in Manchester. "New Hampshire showed up today, you spoke up today, you said in a resounding voice that New Hampshire needs a course correction. Washington needs a new generation at the table to fix things."

8:38 p.m. EST

Pappas' win blocks a path for GOP Senate gains

Democrat Chris Pappas in New Hampshire has blocked an opportunity for Republicans to gain a seat as they try to hold onto their Senate majority.

Pappas, a four-term House member, had called his Republican opponent John Sununu, a former U.S. senator, "the wrong Sununu" in a reference to the popular former Republican Gov. Chris Sununu. Republicans thought the race could work as a check against potential Democratic gains.

LIVE RESULTS: Chris Pappas wins Senate race in New Hampshire

With New Hampshire and Georgia staying in Democratic hands, Republicans now look to Michigan for a pickup, where Democrat Abdul El-Sayed is competing with Republican Mike Rogers.

Pappas is also the first openly gay man elected to the U.S. Senate.

Juliana Stratton makes history with Black women in the Senate

Illinois Democrat Stratton's election marks the first time in history three Black women will be in office at the same time in the U.S. Senate. She'll join two other Black Democratic women — Sen. Lisa Blunt Rochester of Delaware and Sen. Angela Alsobrooks of Maryland, who were not up this election cycle.

Sen. Jon Ossoff supporters erupt in cheers

Ossoff's supporters who'd gathered Tuesday night at a downtown Atlanta hotel erupted in cheers, hugged and kissed when television screens around the room showed Ossoff had won.

Ossoff is expected to address the crowd later in the evening.

Many of the supporters said Ossoff represented an important generational shift for their party.

"He's bringing in a lot of young voters and that is what we need right now to get the young voters on the right way of life, showing them which way to go," said Jennifer Gray, 63, a retired IRS employee. "Ossoff, he talks to them. And because he's younger, they're listening to him."

8:15 p.m. EST

Republicans once saw Georgia seat as within reach, until Ossoff surged

Georgia Sen. Jon Ossoff's reelection blocks a targeted effort by Republicans to pick up a Senate seat.

The Democrat's victory over Republican Mike Collins is a notable turnabout from last year, when Republicans were optimistic about the state, given that Trump carried it narrowly in the 2024 presidential race.

LIVE RESULTS: Jon Ossoff wins Senate reelection in Georgia

Instead, Ossoff dominated in fundraising throughout the campaign. Republican groups supporting Collins pulled back their spending in mid-October, signaling the race was likely lost.

Democrats' hope of gaining the majority is premised on holding seats in Georgia, Michigan and New Hampshire.

What to watch for after polls close at 8 p.m. ET

The 8 p.m. hour is primetime on election night, with polls fully or partially closing in almost half the states, including key states like Florida, Maine, New Hampshire and Pennsylvania. Polls close at 8:30 p.m. in Arkansas.

Florida tends to have one of the faster counts in this time slot, since results in most of the state start releasing in the 7 p.m. hour. In 2024, the Florida vote count was 90% complete by 8:07 p.m.

READ MORE: Here's when polls are closing in each state this midterm election

The 2024 vote counts in New Hampshire and Pennsylvania reached the halfway mark at 10:12 p.m. They reached 90% at 12:48 a.m. in Pennsylvania and 1:42 a.m. in New Hampshire. Maine didn't reach the halfway mark in 2024 until 12:54 a.m.

Polls in almost all of Michigan and Texas close at 8 p.m., including in the states' most competitive congressional districts, but no statewide winners will be declared until the final polls have closed at 9 p.m.

Some key contests to watch in this hour are U.S. Senate races in Florida, Maine and New Hampshire; gubernatorial races in Florida and Pennsylvania; and U.S. House races in Alabama, Maine, Michigan, New Hampshire, New Jersey, Pennsylvania and Texas.

7:53 p.m. EST

Black voter turnout appears robust on Election Day, voter coalition says

LaTosha Brown, co-founder of the voting rights group Black Voters Matter, said turnout in some states seemed to rival that of 2008, when Democrat Barack Obama was running for president for the first time.

She and others said turnout appeared particularly high in Michigan and Mississippi.

Brown, speaking during a media briefing organized by the National Coalition on Black Civic Participation, said her organization had more than 2,000 poll observers in several states. They reported no "widescale issues" for voters, she said.

Melanie Campbell, president and CEO of the coalition, said the group has extended its monitoring efforts beyond Election Day — through vote counting, certifications and even winners' inaugurations.

"As those of us who believe that this democracy is for all people, we have to also stand in the gap," she said.

7:33 p.m. EST

Civil rights group says ICE social media message intended to intimidate voters

Carmen Feliciano, vice president for policy and advocacy at the Latino civil rights group UnidosUS, criticized U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement for a social media post that said, in part: "If you vote illegally, we will find you."

The agency posted the message on Election Day.

"This is part of a strategy we have been seeing for the last few years — intimidation and trying to block people from going out to the polls," Feliciano said.

She noted that Latino turnout was expected to be high for the midterm elections.

Asked why the message went out, the Department of Homeland Security, which includes ICE, issued a statement that read in part: "ONLY Americans should elect American leaders."

Throughout the day, ICE announced arrests or charges against people suspected of voting as noncitizens in previous elections.

7:14 p.m. EST

Key U.S. House races to watch in Florida

A handful of key U.S. House races in Florida could offer early signs of how Democrats are performing tonight.

LIVE RESULTS: Florida Senate midterm election

Democratic Reps. Darren Soto and Kathy Castor are defending their seats in the redrawn 9th and 14th Districts. Both of the districts would have favored Trump by double-digit margins in the 2024 presidential election.

The 22nd District is an open seat after Democratic Rep. Lois Frankel opted to run in the 23rd District when her district was redrawn.

What to watch for after polls close at 7 p.m. ET

All polls close at 7 p.m. in six states, including Georgia, South Carolina and Virginia, which tend to complete almost all of their vote counting on election night.

In the 2024 general election, the vote count in all three states reached the halfway mark in the 8 p.m. hour. The counts were 90% complete at 10:21 p.m. in Georgia, 11:14 p.m. in South Carolina and 12:07 a.m. in Virginia. In Georgia's competitive presidential contest, The Associated Press declared Trump the winner at 12:58 a.m.

Most Florida polls will also close at 7 p.m., including in every competitive congressional district, but no statewide winners will be declared until polls in the Central Time Zone close at 8 p.m.

Polls in North Carolina, Ohio and West Virginia close at 7:30 p.m. All three states also count votes relatively quickly, reaching the halfway point at around 9 p.m. in 2024 and about 90% in the 11 p.m. hour. The AP declared a winner in Ohio's competitive 2024 U.S. Senate race at 11:27 p.m.

Some key contests to watch in this hour are U.S. Senate races in Georgia, South Carolina, North Carolina and Ohio; gubernatorial races in Georgia and Ohio; and U.S. House races in Florida, Indiana, South Carolina, Virginia, Ohio and North Carolina.

6:52 p.m. EST

Flooding strands voters on the Navajo Nation

Hundreds of voters in Rock Point, Arizona, on the Navajo Nation were unable to reach the polls Tuesday as flooding had closed a major bridge and washed out dirt roads, a tribal official said.

On a typical Election Day, the chapter house parking lot would be buzzing with voters, candidates and pop-up food stalls.

"Unfortunately, today that parking lot is underwater," said Valinda Shirley, vice president of the Rock Point Chapter, the local seat of tribal government.

Officials moved the polling place across the street to an administration building, but many residents remained stranded.

"I have people that are still texting me asking how I can get them out so they can vote," Shirley said Tuesday afternoon.

The flooding is keeping those residents from casting ballots in both the U.S. midterms and races for Navajo Nation president and council delegates.

6:38 p.m. EST

Jeffries says House Democrats are ready to deliver the 'best version' of America

Jeffries, who's in line to make history as the first Black speaker of the House if Democrats seize control and elect him to the job, said House Democrats don't work for any president.

"We work for all of you, the American people, and we're committed to delivering an America that's the best version of herself," he said.

He told the volunteers that Democrats are "committed to ending this national nightmare, fighting to make this country affordable" and "continuing our country's long, necessary and majestic march toward a more perfect union."

He urged them on: "Let's go win this thing."

6:11 p.m. EST

Jeffries says Democrats 'on the brink' of taking back the House

House Democratic Leader Hakeem Jeffries popped by to rally and thank volunteers at a phone bank in Washington for battleground House candidates.

"We're on the brink of a dramatic change in the direction in the country," Jeffries said.

"We're on the brink of Democrats taking back control of the House of Representatives."

He said a Democratic win would be a victory for Americans.

"We're going to deliver a Congress that actually puts the American people first," he said.

Democrats are dialing voters in an election evening push for the House

House Democrats have opened a phone bank in Washington with dozens of volunteers calling voters in key House races across the country before polls close.

They're encouraging voters to cast ballots as Democrats work to wrest control of the House from Republicans.

5:57 p.m. EST

Ballot shortages cause delays at some Chicago voting sites

Some Chicago polling places ran out of paper ballots.

Chicago Board of Elections spokesperson Julie Metea said more ballots would be printed and that everyone in line by the time polls close would be able to vote — though it might be a long wait for an electronic voting machine. Voters could also go to one of the city's universal voting centers.

In the Logan Square neighborhood, Jenna Roggensack, 37, said poll workers told her in the morning to return later. Because she's a teacher who had the day off, that was possible — if inconvenient. When she returned, she said she had to wait an hour and a half, though ultimately did get to vote.

Later in the afternoon, though, a poll worker emerged and told those waiting outside that they had run out of paper ballots again.

5:36 p.m. EST

House races to watch: Districts that flipped in 2024

The handful of House members who flipped the toughest seats in 2024 all face challenging races again this year. Can they avoid a sophomore slump?

WATCH: Mapping the battle for control of the House

Most of these districts flipped to the GOP in 2024, riding Trump's coattails as he clinched a second term. The good news for these Republicans is that it's almost always easier to win a seat that you already represent. The bad news is that many of them won their seats by tiny margins and are facing a much tougher national environment this time around.

DOJ escalates criminal investigation of Alaska Senate candidate

The Trump administration notified prominent Democratic attorney Marc Elias and others that they may be targets of the inquiry, which focuses on a Senate candidate who shares a name with the Republican incumbent.

That's according to two people familiar with the matter, who spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss an ongoing investigation.

READ MORE: FBI visits Dan J. Sullivan donor in candidate's hometown as Alaska Senate inquiry widens

Trump's DOJ is investigating retired teacher Dan J. Sullivan's decision to run for Senate, which the president says will confuse voters because he shares a first and last name with Republican incumbent Dan S. Sullivan. The New York Times reported that Democrat Mary Peltola's campaign appeared to be involved in recruiting Dan J. Sullivan.

"This administration has repeatedly weaponized the DOJ against the President's political enemies despite zero evidence of wrongdoing, and we are the latest targets," Elias said in a statement Tuesday.

4:41 p.m. EST

Immigration enforcement agency issues warning to voters

Federal immigration officials took to social media on Election Day to warn against illegal voting by noncitizens.

In a message on X, U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement wrote: "If you vote illegally, we will find you. We will track you down, arrest you, and prosecute you. There will be no escape."

The agency did not return messages seeking comment about the post. Throughout Tuesday, it also posted about arrests of noncitizens accused of voting.

While that has been a major emphasis for the agency this year, the number of arrests and earlier investigations in the states demonstrate the problem is rare.

READ MORE: Justice Department urges sanctions for database analysis critical of its noncitizen voting claims

David Becker, executive director of the Center for Election Innovation & Research, called the post unfortunate but said heavy early voting suggested the administration's tactics appeared to have no effect on turnout.

"If there were individuals in this administration who thought that they could scare voters away from this election, they're going to be disappointed," he said.

Incumbents in redrawn districts face very different electorates than in 2024

Many incumbents running for reelection in redrawn districts are facing a very different set of voters than they currently represent.

Several districts went from being majority-nonwhite to majority-white after mid-decade redistricting. These are also some of the places that shifted the most toward Trump when comparing the 2024 vote margin under old and new congressional boundaries.

Similarly, a number of districts shifted from being majority-white to being majority-nonwhite. Many of these districts also shifted toward Harris, but some in Texas and Florida moved further to the right.

4:16 p.m. EST

Michigan raised concerns about federal monitors in two cities

Michigan election officials objected after hearing that federal poll monitors in Dearborn and Flint were asking workers about their training or requesting to see training materials, a spokesperson said.

"This is not permitted under the law," said Angela Benander of the Department of State.

The U.S. Justice Department agreed and pledged to inform the election monitors, Benander said.

Separately, she said federal monitors in Lansing were trying to talk to voters, which is OK if the exchange happens after a ballot is cast and is outside the polling place.

"We don't have any concerns," Benander said.

4:11 p.m. EST

3 precincts in Pennsylvania extend voting hours due to machine issues

Officials in Pennsylvania's Chester County say they're extending voting hours in three precincts after "machine set-up issues" delayed the opening of polling sites just west of Philadelphia.

The Chester County Court of Common Pleas granted the three precincts a 30-minute extension, meaning voters will be able to cast ballots until 8:30 p.m. EST, according to the county.

Voters casting ballots at these three sites after 8 p.m. EST — when polling stations close statewide — will use provisional ballots.

5 polling sites will stay open late in North Carolina

Election officials extended voting hours at each location after county election supervisors reported delays caused by technical problems with computers.

The longest extension granted by the North Carolina State Board of Elections was 45 minutes at one location in Columbus County, where officials said computer problems forced election workers to switch to backup paper poll books, slowing lines Tuesday morning.

Two precincts in Hertford County and one each in Lenoir and Wilson counties also will stay open an extra 15 to 30 minutes. The five-member board approved each extension unanimously.

The extended hours mean state election officials in North Carolina won't begin reporting results until after the last polling site closes at 8:15 p.m. ET, said Adam Steele, an attorney for the election board. He said county election officials will tally their votes without delay.

Polls in North Carolina close at 7:30 p.m. ET, unless extended by the board.

Latest views on the 2 major parties from AP-NORC polling

At least half of U.S. adults have a negative opinion of the two parties, according to AP-NORC polling.

About half have a "very" or "somewhat" unfavorable view of the Democratic Party in an AP-NORC poll from October, while just over half say that about the Republican Party.

Roughly 7 in 10 Democrats hold a favorable view of their own party, which is down from 85% in September 2024. Republicans, however, feel about as positively as they did two years ago, with 85% in the latest polling saying they have a favorable view of the Republican Party.

Only about 2 in 10 U.S. adults feel "very" or "somewhat" optimistic about the future of the Democratic Party or the Republican Party. Republicans are a bit more optimistic about their party's future than Democrats are — slightly fewer than half of Republicans, 46%, say they are feeling positive, compared to 35% of Democrats.

3:58 p.m. EST

In Texas, Korean vet voter weighs in on Iran war

In southeastern Texas, Juventino Sáenz accompanied a relative to the polls in McAllen.

The 91-year-old Korean War veteran who said he'd voted early shared his feelings about Trump's decision to go to war with Iran.

Sáenz blamed Iran but also blamed Trump, saying the president should have gone to Congress for permission.

"He couldn't do it just because he's the president," Sáenz said.

He said he's backed Republicans in the past, citing his votes for Ronald Reagan and George H.W. Bush for president.

But in the closely watched Texas U.S. Senate race, Sáenz said he voted for Talarico, the Democrat, because he didn't like Paxton's record or that Paxton's own Republican Party impeached him.

"He was doing a lot of things that were not right," he said of Paxton.

Pain at the pump powers voter fury

Gas prices have shot up by nearly a third since Trump launched his war against Iran, fueling voter distress about the economy and high prices. But another fuel source has risen even higher and caused potentially more pain.

That's diesel fuel, which powers not just a whole bunch of farming and industrial equipment but the ships and trucks that transport a range of goods and services to voters' doors.

READ MORE: Trump administration promised farmers $15 billion in weeks before midterms

Diesel prices have nearly doubled since the start of the Iran war. A disproportionate share of the oil that comes through the Strait of Hormuz is used to make diesel. Ukrainian strikes on Russian refineries that produce the fuel added to the shortage.

That pushed Trump to take controversial action to try to lower the price of diesel, cutting a deal with Russian President Vladimir Putin to sell diesel from his country to the U.S. But even that hasn't significantly brought diesel prices down.

3:38 p.m. EST

Ranks of Black governors could grow with 8 nominees nationwide

Maryland's Wes Moore is the only Black governor in the U.S., and he's only the third elected Black governor in history, all of them Democrats and men.

But Moore, who's heavily favored for reelection, could soon have company.

There are seven additional Black major party nominees for governor. They include Republicans and Democrats, men and women. Each would be the first Black chief executive in their respective states.

Georgia's Keisha Lance Bottoms, the former Atlanta mayor and a Democrat, and Minnesota's Lisa Demuth, a former state legislative leader and a Republican, could each make history. No Black woman has ever been elected as governor.

LIVE RESULTS: Georgia governor midterm election

Two Black Republican men are on gubernatorial ballots: Byron Donalds in Florida and John James in Michigan. Both are U.S. representatives currently.

Three other Black men, all Democrats, round out the slate: Aaron Ford in Nevada, Jermaine Johnson in South Carolina and David Crowley in Wisconsin.

Early vote count reaches nearly 60 million as Election Day voting continues

More than 59 million people have voted so far, according to an Associated Press analysis.

The advance vote has spiked ahead of Election Day compared to 2022. There were 59.7 million ballots cast as of Tuesday, compared to a little over 58 million in 2022.

The tally includes early in-person and mail balloting.

The election will determine which party controls the House and Senate.

A Trump-backed redistricting plan goes to voters

At Trump's urging, Republicans in eight states adopted new congressional districts to try to gain an edge in the midterm elections. But after a long legal battle, Missouri's new map was blocked by both the U.S. Supreme Court and the Missouri Supreme Court because of a referendum petition.

Voters are now deciding whether to uphold or reject the new map. If approved, it could be used in the 2028 election.

Maryland voters are deciding a constitutional amendment that also could pave the way for a new House map in the 2028 election. Democratic proponents have urged a "yes" vote as a means to "stop Trump."

READ MORE: About 35 million people have been put into new House districts in the fight over congressional maps, report says

Some Colorado Democrats also want to redistrict. But a citizen initiative on the ballot there would prohibit any potential redistricting for 2028 from favoring one political party and require approval from both an independent commission and the state Supreme Court.

Some voters in Georgia receive false texts from an unknown sender about polling site changes

A few hiccups have come up in Fulton County, Georgia, a Democratic stronghold Trump has long falsely accused of widespread voter fraud that he says caused him to lose the state in 2020.

Some voters have reported receiving texts that were not sent by the county about polling place changes, according to Fulton County's Facebook page. A county spokesperson did not immediately respond to a request for more information.

Kyle Gomez-Leineweber, policy director at election watchdog group Common Cause Georgia, said the group was aware of the texts but didn't know who sent them or if they were based on incorrect information or were intentionally trying to mislead voters.

Gomez-Leineweber said volunteers have been telling people to double-check information with official sources.

Separately, about 1,000 ballots received during early voting last month will be rescanned "as a precaution" due to equipment failures with two scanners, Georgia Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger said Tuesday. He said it would not delay election results.

Progressive Democrats try flipping swing House districts

Democrats' path to winning the House could rest with progressive candidates challenging Republicans in districts that swung between Trump and Joe Biden.

In California's 22nd District, incumbent Rep. David Valadao faces Democratic challenger Randy Villegas, who has Sen. Bernie Sanders' endorsement.

In Colorado's 8th District, Rep. Gabe Evans faces Democrat Manny Rutinel, who had campaigned with New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani.

In Michigan's 7th District, Rep. Tom Barrett is up against Will Lawrence, a longtime liberal activist and former member of the Democratic Socialists of America.

Republicans are hoping their rivals' political backgrounds are a mismatch in districts that are by and large evenly divided politically.

2:59 p.m. EST

3 NASA astronauts cast ballots from the space station

Astronaut Anil Menon's sleeping compartment aboard the International Space Station doubled as his voting booth. Menon said in a brief video posted via X on Tuesday that he used his computer to fill out and submit an electronic ballot to Harris County, Texas. Crewmates Jessica Watkins and Luke Delaney did the same.

Harris County is home to NASA's Johnson Space Center and Mission Control.

U.S. astronauts have been voting in space since 1997.

Values motivate Texas voters — but for different candidates

In the Dallas suburbs, two voters say Christian values factored into their votes.

James Bender said he wants the country to get back to an identity rooted in Judeo-Christian values.

He said he respected Talarico's religious roots and faith but said, "At the end of the day, I just, I don't agree with him."

Bender, 47, said he wasn't voting for Paxton's character as much as the policies he'd try to enact if elected.

Paxton has faced a string of legal and ethical problems and allegations of marital infidelity.

April Vindiola said those issues made Paxton a "no" for her. She said a candidate's morals and values are important.

"I've been following Talarico for quite some time," Vindiola said. "I think whenever I've heard him speak … it resonates with me what his beliefs are."

Republican governor hopeful to voters in liberal California: 'Just try it!'

The last time California elected a Republican to statewide office, George W. Bush was president, entertainer James Brown was still alive and the second "Pirates of the Caribbean" movie was the biggest film of the year.

Republican Steve Hilton is trying to defy those odds and end his party's 16-year drought in a state with 4.5 million more registered Democratic voters than Republicans.

He's tried to win over Californians who rarely vote Republican by repeating the motto "Just try it!"; blaming Democratic leadership for the state's high cost of living; and releasing splashy ads, sometimes using AI to mock his Democratic rival, Xavier Becerra.

Becerra, meanwhile, has campaigned on a promise to uphold the state's status as a liberal counterweight to Trump's policies. He's tried to tie Hilton to Trump, who endorsed him in the primary.

California billionaire tax proposal tests voters' appetite to 'tax the rich'

The ballot measure, known as Proposition 40, has racked up support from progressives like Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders, who has framed it as a monumental step toward reining in deep wealth inequality, while also drawing criticism from Gov. Gavin Newsom and other Democrats, who say it will trigger wealthy people to flee the state.

The ballot fight has also been defined by the copious amount of money tech moguls and venture capitalists have poured into it. Google co-founder Sergey Brin alone has donated more than $100 million to a political committee working to defeat the proposal.

The first-in-the-nation measure would levy a one-time, 5% tax on the wealth of Californians whose net worth exceeds $1 billion. Most of the money would be used to backfill federal funding cuts to healthcare, while 10% would go toward education and food assistance programs.

In Virginia, a retiree says Trump has 'done a great job'

Joni Borrell, 67, and her father, Herman Jamerson, 91, described themselves as solidly Republican. They voted that way a week before Election Day, casting ballots in Henrico, Virginia, for GOP Rep. Rob Wittman and Bert Mizusawa, the Republican mounting a long-shot bid against Democratic incumbent Sen. Mark Warner.

Jamerson, a retired plumbing contractor, said he thinks the president has "done a great job" so far this term.

"He's for the common person. To me, that's his biggest success. I mean, he looks out for the little guy, just the average person," Jamerson said.

As for Trump and the economy, Jamerson added: "Well, he ain't done yet, that's the thing. And it was in such a mess."

Borrell, a retired nurse who now works with youth camps, said her strong objections to Democratic Gov. Abigail Spanberger factored into her vote. Keeping Republicans in control of Washington would help preserve some "balance," she said.

Missouri could undo its amendment protecting the right to abortion

Abortion is on the ballot in four states including Missouri, where voters are being asked to erase the constitutional right to abortion they adopted two years ago.

The Republican-dominated state legislature advanced the measure, which also would write into the state constitution a ban on much gender-affirming healthcare for transgender minors.

Conservative Idaho's question would remove a ban if it were adopted.

READ MORE: A guide to the key ballot measures voters will decide on Election Day

A measure in Nevada would ensure access until at least fetal viability and one in Virginia would create a right to abortion for the first two trimesters of pregnancy.

Since the Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade in 2022 and allowed enforcement of state abortion bans, abortion-rights supporters have prevailed on 14 of the 17 ballot measures across the U.S.

2:23 p.m. EST

Trump is miffed about reaction to his Reflecting Pool speech

Trump spent part of Election Day complaining about reaction to his Monday speech at the Lincoln Memorial Reflecting Pool, criticizing a news outlet and a Democratic congressman.

Trump spoke in great detail on social media about his upgrades to infrastructure and plumbing at the Reflecting Pool, devoting more time to that project than to Republican candidates he hopes will help the party retain control of Congress.

WATCH: Trump officially reopens Lincoln Memorial Reflecting Pool on eve of midterm elections

Trump ripped the Daily Mail for describing the speech as a "final midterms speech." He said his rallies Sunday in Iowa and Kansas were meant to close out the campaign.

He also went after Rep. Ted Lieu, D-Calif., who on social media shared an edited clip of Trump suggesting he might rename the iconic spot on the National Mall the "Trump Reflecting Pool."

Trump followed up by saying he was joking.

"I said, very clearly, 'I'm joking,'" he wrote.

What is The Voter Poll and when will we start to get results?

Later tonight, we'll start sharing data from The AP Voter Poll, a large survey of verified voters conducted for The Associated Press and the major broadcast news networks.

It's a high-quality preelection survey of voters merged with the best practices of the historic exit poll, which major broadcasters have relied on for decades. Reflecting the complexity of American elections, it uses a combination of methods to find voters no matter how they cast a ballot, whether early, by mail or on Election Day.

We'll start sharing data around 5 p.m. EST.

Oklahoma City man charged with mailing letters with nonhazardous powder to officials before the election

An Oklahoma City man is charged with sending hundreds of letters containing nonhazardous white powder to public officials ahead of the 2024 and 2026 elections.

The powders turned out to be yeast or flour, though not all letters have been fully tested, the FBI said in a court filing.

READ MORE: Man charged with mailing hundreds of letters containing powder to officials ahead of the election

Robin Martin is charged with conveying a hoax and mailing threatening communications. He was in custody, and online records didn't list an attorney who could comment on his behalf. He is expected to make an appearance Tuesday in U.S. District Court in Oklahoma City.

Authorities said last month that they were investigating suspicious letters mailed to congressional and election offices nationwide and urged recipients to treat the mailings as "potentially hazardous."

Some letters bore ominous messages that could only be read under ultraviolet light. The sender wrote a return address as "U.S.T.E.A., United States Traitor Elimination Army, Takoma Park, MD."

Texas voters offer two takes on Talarico

Outside an early voting site in Dripping Springs, Texas, 25-year-old Ian Brown said he had just voted for a straight Republican ticket.

He referenced some of Democratic Senate candidate James Talarico's past statements about God and gender, which Republican Ken Paxton has highlighted in attack ads.

"He claims he's Christian, but he says you know there's multiple genders. That's not even biblically accurate," Brown said.

READ MORE: Paxton and Talarico tussle for Texas Senate seat as Trump campaigns virtually

The self-described Republican Libertarian said he thinks Trump is "the best thing for our country right now."

Sofia Sites, meanwhile, voted for the first time this election and supported Democrats.

Sites, 21, has a transgender sibling, and Talarico's stance on transgender and LGBTQ+ rights was something that drew her to him, she said.

"There's no perfect politician; there's no one I like to bow down to," Sites said. "I just think that I'm wanting to see more empathy.

Voting machine programming blamed for election issues in a New York county

The vote-counting issues bedeviling Westchester County stem from a program update that happened after polling equipment was initially prepared and tested, according to the state Board of Elections.

A change in an unnamed local race required an update that wasn't made to machines in other counties, the board said. As a result, those tabulators were unable to recognize completed Election Day ballots.

State officials said they're working with their counterparts in Westchester County to restore ballot-scanning capability to at least one vote-counting machine at every polling location. Voting continues through established emergency ballot procedures.

Westchester County Executive Ken Jenkins vowed to launch a bipartisan investigation into what he called a "debacle."

Arizona voter hopes to see a 'more conservative' government after the election

John Shaw of Phoenix said he showed up to the polls on Tuesday to support "American values" and "patriotic things."

Shaw, who declined to say which candidates he picked, said he hoped to see government "be a little more conservative" and to see "less government" overall after the election.

Democratic Arizona Gov. Katie Hobbs is seeking a second term but faces a challenge from Republican Rep. Andy Biggs. Voters will also decide a full slate of contests, including congressional and state legislative races that could shift the balance of power both in Washington and in the state government.

While there were long lines at Shaw's polling place, he said it was still exciting to talk to fellow voters.

Democrats make push in Alaska Senate, gubernatorial races

Alaska voters last elected a Democrat to the U.S. Senate in 2008 and as governor in 1998. But Democrats are making strong pushes in both races ahead of the ranked choice general election.

In the Senate race, two-term Republican incumbent Dan Sullivan has gotten support from Trump and Vance as he seeks to fend off Democrat Mary Peltola, a former congresswoman. Peltola finished first in August's open primary.

Two other candidates, including another Dan Sullivan, also are running but have done almost no campaigning. Trump has directed the Justice Department to investigate the presence of another candidate with the same name as the incumbent, even calling for Peltola's prosecution. He also continued voicing his opposition to the state's use of ranked voting.

State Republican leaders have long expressed skepticism about ranked voting but encouraged voters to rank the Republicans. Many Republicans see the strategy as essential to winning the governor's race, featuring Democrat Jonathan Kreiss-Tomkins and three Republicans, including Trump-backed Bernadette Wilson.

1:27 p.m. EST

Georgia Democratic Sen. Jon Ossoff seeks a second term against GOP Rep. Mike Collins

A year ago, Ossoff was considered Democrats' most vulnerable incumbent. The campaign hasn't turned out that way.

Ossoff had no primary opposition, and he quickly became a fundraising machine, exciting Democrats nationally with his broadsides against Trump. He collected at least $109 million, tops among all Senate candidates.

Republicans had an extended primary battle. Rep. Mike Collins, a self-declared "MAGA warrior" who echoes Trump's 2020 election denial, received the president's late endorsement and defeated Derek Dooley.

Georgia Gov. Brian Kemp, the Republican whom GOP leaders wanted to run, backed Dooley and spent the spring telling voters Collins couldn't win in November.

Collins struggled to hit the $10 million fundraising mark, and he was dogged by questions about an unresolved House ethics investigation and his ties to white nationalists.

Ossoff is trying to capitalize on Election Day as some Democrats openly hope he runs for president in 2028.

2 states could ban transgender girls from girls' sports

Voters in reliably Democratic Colorado and Washington are deciding on ballot measures that would ban transgender girls from girls' sports competitions.

Both supporters and opponents say that if one or both are adopted, it could open the door to further measures in Democratic-led states in coming elections.

Similar measures are on the ballot in Arizona, where voters are being asked to apply an existing ban to private schools, and in Nebraska, where a measure would add an existing ban in state law to the state constitution.

Every state where both the legislature and governor's office are held by Republicans has already passed a law like this. But no state has done it through a ballot question so far.

The votes come at a time when a growing number of Democratic politicians are saying transgender girls shouldn't be allowed to play girls' sports.

1:10 p.m. EST

Vance's Election Day message makes misleading claims about tax cuts

In a post on X, the vice president sought to remind voters about the Trump administration's effort to cut taxes over the past year and a half.

"We ended taxes on overtime. We ended taxes on tips. We ended taxes on Social Security," Vance wrote on the social media platform.

But the changes made by the wide-ranging tax law enacted by Trump are not that clear-cut.

More than 40 states have not implemented the federal law ending taxes on tips, meaning workers who receive a federal tax deduction for tips or overtime still will owe state taxes on those earnings.

As for taxes on Social Security, the legislation targeted seniors' income with a temporary benefit, not just Social Security.

12:57 p.m. EST

Data center backlash may be a potent election issue

Opposition to data centers in communities across the U.S. has snowballed from a local issue into a midterm election weapon in statewide races from Texas to Ohio to Florida amid the artificial intelligence revolution.

Candidates spent millions to paint their opponents as data center patsies — giving them nicknames like "Data Nate" — as onetime data center boosters worked to distance themselves or get tough on the industry.

READ MORE: Trump keeps embracing data centers, an unpopular topic in midterm races

They had an ally: Trump urged communities to accept data centers, as the industry spent millions to boost its image.

Meanwhile, the issue crossed traditional ideological boundaries.

Labor unions became allies of tech giants, as they scrambled to build the behemoth projects.

Clean energy advocates became staunch critics of data centers, as energy-hungry server warehouses set off the biggest-ever construction boom of natural gas-fired power plants. Ranchers and farmers worried about water shortages or losing agricultural land.

Pennsylvania man says he voted to stop Trump

Kim Dean, 74, is a Democrat who voted for Kamala Harris in 2024 but says he's never voted strictly for Democrats — until this year.

Dean has a long list of grievances about how Trump has governed: the way U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement is "running around" and deporting people, the president "tearing down" the White House, the war in Iran, the way Trump "berates" people.

"A lot of this stuff, I just don't agree with it. It just don't make sense to me," the retired steel worker from Harrisburg, Pennsylvania, said after dropping off his mail ballot.

"I'll be honest with you, I would have voted for Pepe the dog this year, you know what I mean? To try to get this administration changed. Yes, I'm voting against the whole administration."

Aided by Trump's super PAC, Republicans outraised Democrats

If Republicans lose ground in Congress, it won't be because they didn't have more money than Democrats.

Republicans have held a financial advantage leading up to the midterm elections, owing to GOP-aligned outside groups' outsized role, notably in Senate races.

Combined, the Republican National Committee, its related congressional committees and corresponding super PACs, including Trump's MAGA Inc., raised more than $2.2 billion, compared with about $1.3 billion for the Democratic National Committee and its aligned committees and groups.

READ MORE: Trump's political groups spend nearly $277 million in late midterm blitz on behalf of GOP candidates

Democratic candidates, however, have outraised Republicans in their individual races, more than $2.3 billion to about $1.6 billion. That money goes further than super PAC dollars because candidates get lower advertising rates.

The two sides have spent an astronomical amount on the midterm campaigns — more than $11.9 billion, according to Federal Election Commission records. The vast majority of spending has been on advertising: Republicans and allied groups have spent more than $5.5 billion while Democrats and allied groups have spent a little more than $5 billion, according to the media-tracking firm AdImpact.

Man charged with mailing hundreds of letters containing powder to officials ahead of the election

Federal authorities have charged an Oklahoma man with sending hundreds of letters containing nonhazardous white powder to public officials ahead of the 2024 and 2026 elections.

The powders turned out to be yeast or flour, though not all letters have been fully tested, the FBI said in a court filing made public Tuesday.

Robin Martin is charged with conveying a hoax and mailing threatening communications. Martin was expected to make his initial court appearance Tuesday afternoon in Oklahoma City. Online records do not list an attorney to comment on his behalf.

Democrats aim to capture a majority of governors' offices for first time since 2006

If they pull it off, it would be the first time in two decades that Democrats hold a majority of the governors' offices.

All told, 36 states will elect a governor on Nov. 3. Heading into the elections, Republicans held a 26-24 majority. Democrats need to pick up two more states to capture a majority. Democrats last gained a majority in 2006 and lost it four years later.

The parties see about a dozen races as competitive.

Democrats' best opportunities to pick up a governor's office are in Alaska, Georgia, Iowa, Nevada and Ohio.

Republicans' best opportunity to capture an executive suite is in Kansas.

Next on the GOP's list are Wisconsin's and Michigan's open governor's offices.

Democrats think they have a chance in Texas, Florida, Oklahoma and Nebraska.

12:06 p.m. EST

Helicopter to help South Carolina island count votes faster

Several hundred ballots from South Carolina's most remote precinct should be counted a lot faster Tuesday night thanks to the local sheriff's office helicopter.

LIVE RESULTS: South Carolina Senate midterm election

There are no bridges to Daufuskie Island on the far southern coast of the state. In previous elections, voting officials had to collect ballots and other equipment and wait for the regular ferry schedule or another boat, which could delay results for five hours.

There are stories of one night the Daufuskie Island precinct left everyone waiting until the early morning hours because the person bringing the votes back stopped because the fishing was good.

11:42 a.m. EST

For some voters, Trump is either doing the right thing or he's a threat to democracy

Patricia Witt, 82, is a registered Democrat in Raleigh, North Carolina. But the retired information technology worker voted for Trump's handpicked Senate candidate, Republican Michael Whatley, because she wants to maintain GOP support in Congress for Trump and his policies.

"And I do not want to go through what we went through before with the Senate and the House fighting against the man, rather than fighting for what they should be doing — representing us as citizens," she said.

But David Kastenberg, 65, a physician living in Philadelphia, wants the opposite. He said he voted for Democratic candidates in part over concerns that American democracy is at stake.

"I'm extremely upset with what's happening in Washington with President Trump's policies," he said. "And I want to see Congress change."

LA, DC could follow NY with democratic socialist mayors

Voters in Los Angeles and Washington, D.C., are considering candidates for mayor aligned with the Democratic Socialists of America.

If Nithya Raman captures the mayoralty in LA and Janeese Lewis George wins in Washington, the two cities would follow New York's lead, where democratic socialist Zohran Mamdani was elected mayor in 2025 after promising to transform city government to restore power to the working class.

Both cities are heavily Democratic.

Raman is trying to oust Mayor Karen Bass, who's fighting to keep her job after a rough first term that included the deadly Palisades Fire, which ignited when she was out of the country and caught the fire department unprepared. The former political allies are progressive Democrats.

In Washington, Lewis George is favored after winning the Democratic primary. Her victory would signal a break with a quarter-century of centrist governance in Washington. It would place her in the vanguard of democratic socialists that also includes Katie Wilson, who won an upset victory to lead Seattle last fall.

Kansas voter trusts Trump will bring fuel prices down

Daryl Compton, a 73-year-old retired UPS worker, attended a rally in Topeka, Kansas, last week headlined by Vice President Vance wearing a red "Make America Great Again" cap.

Compton said he's concerned about illegal immigration, the economy and national security, particularly the threat posed by Iran.

He also said fuel prices are too high, "but I put my trust in Trump that they are going to come down."

LIVE RESULTS: Kansas Senate midterm election

"And I think they'll come down a lot further than we even expect," he said.

Compton said he's motivated to vote for Republican Sen. Roger Marshall because if Democratic challenger Adam Hamilton wins, that could put Democrats in charge of the Senate.

"I don't like Democrats," he said. "They're basically not Democrats. They are more like Communists, and I'm against Communism."

Voting in one Florida county delayed due to bar code issue as polls open

Voting was delayed for 20 minutes at voting sites across Broward County as polls opened because a new safety feature malfunctioned, officials said.

During a news conference, Supervisor of Elections Joe Scott apologized to voters who had to wait and said some left before they were able to vote. The problem was solved by 7:20 a.m., and Scott encouraged those who left to return. He did not have an estimate of how many voters left.

Scott said the state's late redistricting meant some people within the same precinct voted on different ballots, and the new bar code feature was meant to ensure poll workers did not give people the wrong one.

Some people received an error message that they were voting on the wrong ballot, but they were not, Scott said.

"Nobody voted on the wrong ballot," Scott said. "None of the counts were impacted."

Millions of voters face new laws at ballot box

More than three dozen voting laws passed in Republican-controlled states are taking effect for the first time this year, many of them containing elements of proposals that Trump tried unsuccessfully to get through Congress.

At the state level, the changes include new requirements to show proof of citizenship. College students in New Hampshire won't be using college IDs. Iowa voters without ID can't count on other voters to vouch for them, and some voters in Mississippi might need birth certificates or passports for verification. Naturalized citizens might get to polling places and learn they've been purged because databases used to check their citizenship against voter registration lists are outdated.

READ MORE: 5 expert takeaways on 2026 midterm election security

Opponents say the restrictions make it harder for eligible voters to vote. Republican lawmakers who support the tighter voting laws, especially around voter ID, say they help build trust in elections.

The Texas governor's race has focused on a new lightning rod: data centers

Republican Gov. Greg Abbott, who has comfortably held the governor's mansion since 2014, is in one of his tougher fights. He faces Democratic state Rep. Gina Hinojosa in an election year favoring her party.

The race, still an uphill slog for Hinojosa, has revolved around the standard concerns of high costs and public education, but the hulking structures that power artificial intelligence butted in. Data centers have drawn bipartisan anger from Americans who live by them and concerns that the buildings guzzle too much water and electricity.

Last year, Abbott celebrated Google's investments partly to build data centers in the state. Hinojosa hammered him for it, arguing that it represented the influence of wealthy people over everyday Texans. The governor has since shifted his position, ordering the pause of data center permits and saying, "Texans come first."

11:11 a.m. EST

Flooding prompts relocation of some polling places in Florida

Some voters in Florida were being directed to cast their ballots in new places on Tuesday after their polling sites were relocated due to continued rain and flooding.

Florida elections officials said 21 polling places in eight counties were moved. The relocations were mostly along the central and southern Atlantic coast, with some inland counties included. County officials said they notified voters by text and email, and signs were posted at voting locations directing people to the new sites.

Some residents expressed frustration and concern on social media that some voters may not be able to get to the polls because of flooding.

Amy Keith, the Florida state director for Common Cause, said the flooding is a big issue.

"Today it has already been a pretty challenging morning," she said, urging voters to double-check their voting locations with election supervisors.

Schumer says he's 'nauseously optimistic'

After casting his vote at a Brooklyn school, Democratic Senate leader Chuck Schumer said he was optimistic that when polls close, "there will be a new Democratic majority in the United States Senate."

"We don't want to count our chickens before they hatch. So I'd characterize our mood as nauseously optimistic," Schumer said.

He predicted that Democrat Abdul El-Sayed would win the U.S. Senate race in Michigan, despite the decision by his former primary opponent, U.S. Rep. Haley Stevens, to endorse Republican Mike Rogers.

WATCH LIVE: House Democratic Leader Jeffries holds Election Day news conference

"She's one vote," Schumer said. "He's going to win tonight because he's talking about what Michiganders care about."

Schumer said that a year ago, no one thought the Democrats might be in a position to retake the Senate. But he credited the party's "relentless" focus on affordability and "chaos overseas in a war with Iran that nobody wants" with making Democrats more competitive.

A look at recent midterm election results

Midterm elections generally favor the party that doesn't hold the White House, but the two most recent cycles generated a mixed result.

When Joe Biden was president, Republicans won control of the House in 2022, picking up nine seats and assuming a slim majority. But Democrats maintained control of the Senate and even picked up a seat in the chamber.

A similar dynamic occurred during Trump's first term, though the gains were much larger for Democrats in the House. They netted 40 seats in the 2018 midterms and took the majority for the first time in eight years. Still, Republicans expanded their Senate majority by two seats.

Some analysts see similarities between this midterm political environment and that of 2006, when President George W. Bush and Republicans faced headwinds from high fuel prices and the war in Iraq. That year, Democrats added 30 House seats and six Senate seats to take the majority in both chambers.

10:36 a.m. EST

Massive spending and presidential visits signal Ohio is back in play

After years of having its storied bellwether status written off, Ohio is competitive again.

Republicans should have run away with critical contests for U.S. Senate and governor, based on Trump's three consecutive sweeping victories in the state. Instead, they headed into Election Day in close contests with their Democratic rivals.

WATCH: Campaigns spend big to sway voters with increasingly personal attack ads

Democratic former Sen. Sherrod Brown has mounted a comeback bid against Republican U.S. Sen. Jon Husted, appointed last year to the seat formerly held by Vice President JD Vance. Both Trump and Vance visited Ohio in the campaign's closing weeks to rally voters, as did former President Barack Obama for Democrats.

The governor's contest pits Republican biotech entrepreneur Vivek Ramaswamy against Democrat Dr. Amy Acton, the state's former COVID-era health director.

An ad Ramaswamy ran featuring Acton's estranged mother became a flashpoint in the race and across the U.S.

Ukraine's Zelenskyy warns of massive Russian strikes as the world focuses on U.S. midterms

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has warned that Russia will step up massive drone and missile strikes on his country's energy facilities this week while international attention is focused on the U.S. midterm elections.

"The world will be watching the American midterms, and what is happening here in Ukraine, along with our difficulties with air defense and Patriot missiles, will be overlooked," he said in an evening video post.

Russian ballistic missiles and drones damaged energy facilities in 10 Ukrainian regions Tuesday — part of a campaign by Moscow to pressure Kyiv over the winter months.

General mood of the country from AP-NORC polling

Americans have been in a sour mood about the country's direction for several years, according to AP-NORC polling.

About 7 in 10 U.S. adults say the country is heading in the wrong direction, according to AP-NORC polling from September. Only about one-quarter of U.S. adults say things are headed in the "right direction." Democrats and independents are much likelier than Republicans to say things are not going the right way.

READ MORE: Election Day underway after a surge in early voting, as Trump sows doubt on results

Roughly 6 in 10 U.S. adults say they are feeling "very" or "somewhat" pessimistic about the state of politics in this country, according to an AP-NORC poll from October. About half are feeling negatively about the future of democracy in the U.S.

U.S. will halt $4B in aid to Israel as ally shifts to buying military hardware, Trump says

The Republican president told Fox News Channel during an Election Day telephone interview that Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu had approached him about the idea and that they have been talking about it for a couple of years.

Trump said Israel doesn't need the aid and that it's a lot of money for the U.S. to spend. But Trump also said the aid had become a Democratic talking point for candidates such as Michigan U.S. Senate candidate Abdul El-Sayed.

READ MORE: Trump says U.S. will stop giving $4 billion in aid to Israel next year

"We give them $4 billion of things and money, and they don't need it," Trump said.

Netanyahu's office had no immediate comment.

The United States has sent tens of billions of dollars in military aid to Israel over the past few years.

Trump has spent months trying to overhaul how U.S. elections work, without much success

This year's midterm elections are being run by state and local officials, in much the way they've always done it — but that's not for lack of trying by Trump.

The Republican president has been trying to expand his influence over the way U.S. elections operate ever since returning to office, largely unsuccessfully, through executive action, lawsuits and legislation.

READ MORE: What to look for on Election Day as questions loom over Trump

The Supreme Court in September closed the chapter on one of his boldest efforts — a plan that would have demanded a dramatic overhaul of the nation's mail voting processes. Trump also failed this year to coerce the Republican-led Senate to pass his SAVE America Act, which would have required documentary proof of citizenship for anyone registering to vote.

Still, some of his administration's efforts have succeeded in reshaping the midterms, including a redistricting push that convinced multiple Republican-led states to pass partisan congressional maps to minimize potential losses.

Trump says midterm results will be 'better than you think'

Trump says Tuesday's midterm results will be "better than you think" for Republicans, declaring that "inflation is solved" and "everything's going good."

Trump's closing day message conflicts with frustration many voters are feeling with the economy, as the cost of groceries, gas and healthcare has climbed despite the president's promise to bring down prices.

READ MORE: 3 things to watch on election night (and beyond)

Inflation is running at 3.7% annually, up from 3% when Trump's second term started.

Trump didn't acknowledge concerns about prices in his Tuesday morning interview with "Fox and Friends." Instead, he touted his administration's immigration enforcement and said U.S. manufacturing was expanding.

"I think the results are going to be better than you think," he said.

Talarico takes Democrats' biggest swing in years at winning Texas

Texas hasn't elected a Democrat to the U.S. Senate since 1988, but the party is brimming with hope that it has the perfect storm to do so this year: a well-spoken candidate in James Talarico, an opponent saddled with scandals in Republican Ken Paxton, and an election favoring Democrats nationwide.

Talarico, a Presbyterian seminarian and state lawmaker, has focused on Texans' struggles against everyday costs, which he squarely blames on uber-wealthy people corrupting politics. Paxton, Talarico argues, is the flag-bearer of that corruption.

LIVE FACT CHECK: Election Day 2026

Paxton is the Lone Star State's longtime attorney general and conservative culture warrior. He's lived under a cloud of ethical questions, which led to his own party impeaching him on corruption allegations in the statehouse. Paxton has repeatedly hammered Talarico on his past statements, including "God is nonbinary," insisting that he's too "woke" for Texas.

Voting continues in suburban county outside New York City, despite machine issue

Voters in Westchester County continue to cast ballots at polling locations despite a countywide issue with machines that aren't accepting paper ballots.

The Westchester County Board of Elections said ballots are being placed in designated orange emergency ballot bags as they resolve the issue. The board said the ballots would remain secure and monitored and would be counted.

Some voters in the county are deciding a competitive U.S. House race between Rep. Mike Lawler and his Democratic opponent, Cait Conley. Both candidates posted statements on X, urging voters to stay in line.

State Attorney General Letitia James said her office is in contact with state and local election officials.

The county includes the cities of Yonkers and White Plains. It is located north of Manhattan along the Hudson River and has more than 1 million residents.

Paxton's past split this Texas couple's vote

Liz Tabor, 62, and her husband, Mark Bauer, 59, cast their early vote for Republicans at Buda City Hall in Texas, though Tabor's GOP ticket had a few exceptions.

"I did not vote for Paxton," she said of the Republican Senate candidate, who was impeached by his own party but acquitted and has faced allegations of extramarital affairs. "I just can't. There's so much with his past."

"It's an accumulation of his shady behavior," she added.

LIVE RESULTS: Texas Senate midterm election

She didn't vote for his Democratic rival, though, either. She instead opted for the Libertarian candidate.

Bauer voted for Paxton, saying it was more important to have a Republican in office.

The two have lived in Texas for 26 years and said that what Republicans have done at the border is a good thing, and that they hoped to see more of it.

The nation's longest Senate winning streak is at stake in Kansas

Sen. Roger Marshall is trying to fend off an unusually strong challenge from Democratic megachurch pastor Adam Hamilton in a race that's generated a Kansas record for spending on advertising.

A Democrat hasn't won a Senate race in the state in 94 years.

But Marshall is seeking a second term at a moment of deep frustration with Trump's handling of the economy, and Hamilton made affordability a key issue while positioning himself as a moderate who could work with Republican colleagues in Washington.

Hamilton is the founder and senior pastor of the Kansas City-area Church of the Resurrection. With 25,000 members, it's the nation's largest United Methodist congregation.

DeSantis urges Trump, Republicans not to 'gaslight' voters

In a Monday interview with commentator Stephen A. Smith, Republican Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis said Trump originally promised not to start new wars in the Middle East, but is currently in an "open-ended" conflict in Iran, which has driven up fuel prices.

DeSantis said some Republicans have tried to blame former President Joe Biden for the higher prices, but he urged them to be honest.

LIVE RESULTS: Florida Senate midterm election

"Gas is higher and it hurts people, working-class people," he said. "And it's higher because of this conflict. That's just a fact. If you can't admit that to voters, then you're gaslighting them and they're not going to listen to you on other things."

DeSantis unsuccessfully competed with Trump for the 2024 presidential nomination and could run again in 2028.

Sen. Susan Collins tries to keep her seat while fending off Troy Jackson

Collins is running for her sixth term on a pledge to continue serving Maine as one of the few remaining moderates in the Senate.

The Republican faces a challenge from Democrat Troy Jackson, who entered the race late. Jackson has tried to paint Collins as too close to Trump, while Collins has touted her willingness to break from the rest of the Republican Party on key votes.

Collins is the only Republican senator from New England, and she has triumphed in previous tough elections.

This time, Democrats focused on unseating her from the beginning, but the party's June primary winner, Graham Platner, withdrew from the race after facing sexual assault allegations that he denied.

Jackson became the new nominee after winning a special nominating convention in late July.

Justice Department dispatches 1,000 election monitors to the polls

The Justice Department announced early Tuesday that it is sending roughly 1,000 federal election monitors to all 50 states to observe Election Day voting.

Many are expected in populated areas that tend to vote for Democrats. They include past hot spots for election tensions, like Detroit, Philadelphia and Georgia's Fulton County.

The monitoring program isn't new, but it has faced criticism from voting rights groups concerned about federal interference and voter intimidation.

The NAACP sued after the department said it would include law enforcement officers in the program, but a judge ruled against the group overnight, arguing the government had made it clear that monitors would be in plainclothes, would not carry firearms and wouldn't have the power to make arrests at poll sites.

The Justice Department has said its monitors will observe and will not interfere with voting.

House races playing out deep in Trump country

Republicans are mostly on defense in the battle for control of the U.S. House.

Most of the top battlegrounds are districts Trump won in 2024, sometimes by a lot.

Republicans and allied groups pulled spending from several House races in October, shifting, for example, away from GOP incumbents in Iowa and New Jersey.

At Trump's urging, Republicans in states including Texas and Florida tried to give themselves a boost with early redistricting, but that may turn out to be a flop.

Democrats are defending a handful of seats in Trump country as well, and there are pockets of potential GOP upside around the country.

The AP has a detailed rundown of the House districts in play and the fight for the majority.

Senate control up for grabs in states Trump carried

Control of the Senate hangs in the balance in a way few could have foreseen.

Originally, Democrats believed they only had a narrow path to the majority, and their plan required flipping seats in Alaska, Ohio, Maine and North Carolina.

However, the map has shifted, and Democrats believe they have a shot at Texas, Kansas and Iowa as well.

READ MORE: 13 races that will determine control of the Senate

Many of these are states Trump won by double-digit margins two years ago.

Democrats need to play defense as well. Although they're expected to hold Georgia, they also need to lock down Michigan and Minnesota.

In Maine, a voter feels 'the weight of the world'

In Falmouth, Maine, 60-year-old Susan Myers said she's optimistic that Senate candidate Troy Jackson can take advantage of anti-Trump sentiment and defeat longtime Republican Sen. Susan Collins. She's also aware of how recent elections have gone for diehard Democrats like herself.

"I'm hopeful. I feel like there's been so much disappointment these last few election cycles that I don't want to get my hopes up," she said.

LIVE RESULTS: Maine Senate midterm election

Myers voted early at Falmouth Town Hall and was picking up an absentee ballot for her daughter.

She said so much national attention on Maine this election has been overwhelming. The Senate race is one of this year's most competitive and could decide which party controls the chamber.

"It feels a little bit like we have the weight of the world on our shoulders," Myers said.

Latinos form a crucial bloc of swing voters

Latinos helped return Trump to the White House in 2024. Now they're poised to play an outsized role in the midterms.

The path to a U.S. House majority runs through heavily Latino districts in states such as Arizona, California, Colorado, Florida and Texas. The front-line Senate race in Texas likewise could hinge on Latinos.

WATCH: GOP's big bet on Texas Latino voters could backfire in midterms

About 6 in 10 Hispanic adults disapprove of Trump's handling of the presidency, according to an Associated Press-NORC Center for Public Affairs Research poll from October. About 7 in 10 disapprove of his performance on the economy.

One key factor will be how effective Democrats have been at making the case for themselves. Will disaffected Trump supporters vote for Democrats, or just sit out the midterms?

In Michigan's Senate race, history and control of the chamber are on the line

Democrat Abdul El-Sayed is seeking to become the first Muslim elected to the U.S. Senate. Republican Mike Rogers wants to be the first member of his party to win a Michigan Senate race in more than three decades.

The contest to replace retiring Democratic Sen. Gary Peters is among a handful that could determine which party controls the Senate.

Although Michigan Democrats have been successful in recent midterm elections, Trump carried the battleground state in two of his three campaigns. That divided political landscape helped set the stage for one of the most bitter and contentious Senate races of the cycle.

El-Sayed has accused Rogers of being a "puppet" for Trump. Rogers has accused El-Sayed of having ties to the Muslim Brotherhood, while Trump has falsely called the Democrat a "jihadist."

Progressives are hoping an El-Sayed victory will signal their agenda can resonate in a battleground state ahead of the next presidential election.

Millions of Americans will be voting in new congressional districts

Mid-decade redistricting shook up the House map ahead of the midterms, changing the boundaries of around one-third of congressional districts.

The AP analyzed each district's 2024 presidential vote margin before and after redistricting and found that while many individual districts saw dramatic shifts in partisanship and demographic makeup, the national U.S. House map did not shift significantly toward either party.

Learn more about how redistricting shaped the 2026 midterm elections and see how your district boundaries changed in this map.

Midterm results will chart the course of Trump's final two years

Trump is staring down twin threats from Capitol Hill for his last two years as president if his party loses at least one chamber in Tuesday's midterms: investigations and impeachment.

Democratic lawmakers are eager to exercise oversight, with senior officials long telegraphing how they would go after an administration they believe has escaped accountability for policies, personal profits and abuses of power.

The majority party controls gavels on powerful House committees, which come with larger staff budgets and more expansive resources, including subpoena powers.

Less certain are prospects for impeaching Trump, although House Democratic leaders will almost certainly come under pressure from their left flank to do so. Rather than Trump, who was impeached twice during his first term but acquitted by the Senate both times, Democrats may instead try to impeach Cabinet officials.

If Republicans lose the Senate, Trump's ability to push his judicial and executive branch nominees through to confirmation will also be severely weakened.

Races for Senate, governor in Iowa are open for the first time since 1968

Iowa's top of the ticket is up for grabs after Republican Gov. Kim Reynolds and Sen. Joni Ernst opted out of reelection bids.

Republicans control state government and comprise the entirety of Iowa's federal delegation. But the openings have given Democrats opportunities to win over voters who may want a new direction amid high grocery and gas prices, manufacturing job losses, a crippled agricultural economy and growing cancer rates.

In the governor's race, Rob Sand, the state auditor and only Democrat in statewide elected office, faces Republican Zach Lahn, a political newcomer who stunned even members of his own party when he won the primary over a Trump-endorsed congressman.

Democrat Josh Turek and Republican Ashley Hinson are competing for a U.S. Senate seat. Hinson, a congresswoman endorsed by Trump, has tried to assure voters she will push back when his policies are wrong for Iowa. Turek, a state lawmaker, was endorsed by Barack Obama, the last Democrat seeking federal office to win Iowa before Trump won the last three presidential elections.

Judge blocks Trump administration from sending lists of alleged noncitizen voters

A federal judge has ruled that the Trump administration must stop sending voter lists of alleged noncitizens to election officials, as it has done in California and Washington state, while urging the states to set aside those ballots.

U.S. District Judge Tanya Chutkan in Washington, D.C., said in her decision late Monday that more voter data transmissions would likely confuse voters and election officials at a time when election resources need to be focused on administering the midterms.

States and voting rights groups have pushed back on the administration's claims and said the lists are riddled with errors.

The decision is one in a string of court losses for the administration in its efforts to expand federal authority over elections, which are run by the states.

Southwest flooding forces the Navajo Nation to change some Election Day voting plans

The Navajo Election Administration says it has altered five polling locations — two in Arizona and three in New Mexico.

The tribe's reservation surrounds the Four Corners Monument, where Arizona, New Mexico, Utah and Colorado meet. The area has seen major flooding since October, with rivers overflowing their banks and some residents having to evacuate.

The tribe says it has more than 298,000 members.

GOP loses immigration advantage

Trump roared back to power due to the Biden administration's border troubles. He cut illegal crossings of the border, which were already plummeting, to close to zero.

That's when the trouble started.

The president turned to the trickier task of deporting people in the U.S. illegally from the interior. Soon the main image of illegal immigration wasn't desperate people crossing the border, but mothers screaming as they were torn from their children, or masked federal agents chasing people — sometimes citizens — through streets.

Trump openly bemoaned how the U.S. didn't get enough migrants from Scandinavian countries and only accepted white South Africans into the country as refugees. And then two citizen protesters were shot and killed by immigration agents during the administration's raids on Minneapolis.

Now the GOP fears it will especially lose ground in immigrant-rich areas running from New Jersey to Florida to Texas. And polls show more voters oppose Trump on immigration than support him.

Democrats are hopeful — but not optimistic — in South Carolina

Lindsey Graham's sudden death left South Carolina Republicans scrambling to pick a new nominee in a special primary, which his sister, Darline Graham, ultimately won.

The switch-up left the state's Democrats with renewed hope they could break a 20-year drought on winning a statewide race.

But even some of Democratic nominee Annie Andrews' supporters acknowledge their state might not yet be ready to go blue, despite Democrats' advances in neighboring North Carolina and Georgia.

South Carolina has consistently backed Trump, who endorsed Graham, urged her to run and has stumped twice for her in the state.

Graham and Andrews have portrayed each other as ill-prepared for the role.

Latest views on Trump from AP-NORC polling

Trump might not be on the ballot, but Americans are very unhappy with his performance so far in his second term.

Only about one-third of U.S. adults, 35%, approve of how Trump is handling the presidency, according to AP-NORC polling from October.

Trump's approval tends to stay within a fairly narrow range, but the most recent measure is below where his overall approval stood shortly after he started his second term, when 42% of U.S. adults approved of how he was handling the presidency.

He's seen modest declines in approval among Republicans and independents. About 70% of Republicans approve of how Trump is handling the presidency, down from 82% at the start of his term.

Trump's current approval rating is slightly below where it stood in October 2018.