US Midterms Today: All 435 House Seats and 35 Senate Seats on the Ballot as Democrats Lead National Polls

Voters across the United States go to the polls on Tuesday, 3 November, in midterm elections that will decide who controls Congress for the second half of President Donald Trump’s term. All 435 seats in the House of Representatives and 35 Senate seats are up for election, along with a number of governorships.

To win majorities in both chambers, Democrats need a net gain of three seats in the House and four in the Senate. More than 51 million Americans had already voted early, although early-vote totals do not reveal how people voted.

What the polls show

National surveys have given Democrats a clear lead on the generic ballot. The RealClearPolling average had Democrats at 51.5% and Republicans at 43.1%, while an Emerson College poll taken on 24–26 October showed Democrats ahead by 10 points. Some analysts expect Democrats to win the House but describe the Senate as harder to call. A Republican strategist cautioned that polls may under-count Republican voters, some of whom do not respond to pollsters.

Races to watch

• Michigan (Senate): Democrat Abdul El-Sayed against Republican Mike Rogers, seen as close and dependent on turnout
• Kansas (Senate): Democrat Adam Hamilton is challenging Republican Senator Roger Marshall; a Washington Post-Schar poll put Hamilton ahead 52% to 43%, while Emerson had a tighter 50% to 47%
• Iowa: Democrat Josh Turek is in a competitive race against the Republican candidate
• Also competitive: Texas, North Carolina and Alaska

When results come in

Polls close on Tuesday evening US time, which will be Wednesday morning in India. Indiana and Kentucky are among the first states to close and are watched as early signals. Close contests could take longer to count.

Featured image: The United States Capitol at dusk (file photo). Photo: Martin Falbisoner, CC BY-SA 3.0 (source).

Sources

• US midterms: 2 days to go – what polls say – Al Jazeera