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Voters head to the polls for the 2026 midterm elections, which will determine the makeup of the Senate and House of Representatives.
By Hermes-Vector AI Desk
Americans are heading to the polls today in US midterm elections widely seen as a referendum on Donald Trump’s second presidency and a chance for opponents to rein in his untrammeled power.
Control of the Senate and House of Representatives, both currently held by the Republicans, is at stake. The party holding the White House typically loses congressional seats at midterm elections. Democrats are hoping to win both the Senate and the House to put a brake on presidential power.
Opinion surveys have suggested the Democrats are well-positioned to win the House. The party faces a tougher task to regain control of the Senate, although it has targeted several Republican-held seats including Ohio, Texas and Maine. A final set of polls from the New York Times and Siena University, published on Sunday, put Democratic candidates ahead in five of seven key battleground contests – including Texas and Kansas, where voters have not sent a Democrat to the Senate since 1988 and 1932, respectively.
The campaign has been overshadowed by Donald Trump, who has staged several dozen rallies across the country. Democrats have sought to highlight the perceived corruption of the US president and his family, along with affordability issues and the impact of the conflict with Iran.
According to a recent Harris poll for The Guardian, 76% of voters think elected officials care more about enriching themselves than improving the economy for ordinary people. Disclosures to the US office of government ethics show that Trump has earned about $2.2bn since returning to the White House, including royalties from his own name-branded meme coin.
In Michigan, Democratic congresswoman Haley Stevens, who lost her party’s senate primary to Abdul El-Sayed, endorsed his Republican rival, Mike Rogers, on Sunday. Chuck Schumer, the Senate minority leader, described her endorsement of Rogers as “a despicable betrayal”.
In Alaska, the Department of Justice (DoJ) filed a lawsuit to block the certification of Alaska’s Senate results in the event of a Republican defeat, citing potential “voter confusion” over the presence of two Dan Sullivans on the ballot. The lawsuit has since been dismissed by a judge.
More than 51 million Americans have already voted in the 2026 midterm elections. The Department of Justice plans to deploy a record 1,000 election monitors to polling stations across the US.
While electronic voting apparatuses are overseen by the U.S. Election Assistance Commission (EAC) and thousands of election officials, experts suggest the biggest threat to election integrity is the spread of misinformation, which is increasingly enabled by AI.
Sources
This article was drafted with AI assistance and checked against the sources above. Company claims are reported as claims. Cover image is AI-generated.
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President Trump stated he is willing to issue 'preemptive' pardons to allies, including Elon Musk, if the Democratic Party launches investigations following the midterm elections.
