Polls have opened in parts of the United States for Tuesday’s midterm elections. All 435 House of Representatives seats and 35 of the Senate’s 100 seats are being contested.
Each state sets its own voting hours. Vermont, New Jersey, Virginia, Connecticut and Kentucky were the first to open polling stations, and other states will begin voting shortly.
Early ballots and governor races in 36 states
More than 57 million Americans have already cast early ballots. The heaviest turnout has come from Georgia, Michigan, North Carolina, Ohio and Texas, which are among this year’s biggest political battlegrounds.
Also read: Trump makes final campaign push before US midterm elections
Voters in 36 states will also choose governors.
Republicans defend narrow majorities as Democrats eye gains
Republicans hold a 53-seat majority in the 100-seat Senate, while Democrats and independents who caucus with them hold 47. In the House, Republicans have a narrow four-seat majority.
Democrats have campaigned on easing the nation’s cost-of-living crisis and ending Trump’s war on Iran. They are eyeing historic gains in both chambers of Congress that could reshape the president’s final two years in office.
Republicans rely on loyal voters despite weak approval
Republicans, by contrast, are hoping to buck expectations. Trump’s approval ratings are near record lows, and the party of a sitting president has historically suffered significant midterm losses. Conservative and right-leaning candidates are instead counting on their most loyal voters and distrust of progressive politics.
Earlier this year, Haley Stevens lost Michigan’s Democratic Senate primary in August. On Sunday, she endorsed Republican Mike Rogers over her party’s nominee, Abdul El-Sayed.
