US midterm elections 2026 live updates: economy a top issue for voters as Americans deliver referendum on Trump’s second term

Roughly 70% of voters say that lawmakers are doing “not enough” to provide checks and balances on the presidency.

in Austin, Texas There is a slow but steady flow of voters at the Austin Recreation Center in Austin, the Texas capital, which has emerged as one of the biggest battlegrounds of the midterm elections. Maya Murshed, 19, a student at the University of Texas, was voting for the first time in her life – but preferred not to say for whom. “It was a good experience.

It felt good, being able to participate in it for the first time and voice what I want.” Zach Garvey, a 33-year-old software developer, said he approached the ballot as an independent voter, using nonpartisan online resources to evaluate each candidate. Ultimately, he backed Democrats down the ballot. “I like to consider myself to be fairly nonpartisan.

I’m looking for, do they promote individual liberty of a person like me maybe wanting to start a small business? And I feel like it ended up being Democrat after Democrat in the state.” Garvey cited concerns over religious influence in public institutions and the platform of state

in Columbus, Ohio Throughout the afternoon, voters streamed out of Burbank Early Childhood School, a polling site located in a northwestern suburb of Columbus, Ohio. Many carried their “Ohio Voted” sticker in hand, with one first-time voter telling the Guardian he was excited to put the sticker in a special notebook to commemorate the moment.

As voters exited the school, voters shared their thoughts on the direction of the Buckeye State. The competitive senate race between Democrat Sherrod Brown and Republican Jon Husted is a major test of whether Ohio will continue its rightward shift. Voters in the state chose Donald Trump in three consecutive presidential elections.

The result of the race for the governor’s office between Republican Vivek Ramaswamy and Democrat Amy Acton will also signal whether Ohio can renew its title as a battleground state. “We need more balanced power, not one party controlling all branches of the state. It should be divided power, not one party just being corr

in Rochester, New Hampshire Rebecca Connors, 49, is an independent, but today, she said, she voted “very Democratic”. Speaking outside her polling location during the after-work crush in Rochester, a small town in New Hampshire’s seacoast region, she said she voted blue to send a message of disapproval to Donald Trump, whose favorability is at a record low in the Granite State.

Trump was the first reason Connors gave for going out to vote, saying, “He’s wreaking havoc.” But she also cited the top issues driving many voters to the polls, like the cost of living. “I want the economy to come back down again. I want to be able to get gas for below $3. 50,” said Connors. “We work hard every day, and yet, we can’t get ahead.”

She added that it was important for the democratic process to put some “checks and balances” on Trump, and she wanted elected officials who would question him, “as opposed to getting down on their hands and knees and kissing his feet.” Connors was also concerned about he

in Austin, Texas Greetings from the Austin Recreation Center in Austin, Texas, where Gina Hinojosa, the Democratic candidate for governor, greeted supporters clutching “Save our schools” signs to highlight cuts to public education.

No Democrat has won a Texas gubernatorial election since Ann Richards in 1990, but Hinojosa, running against the incumbent Republican governor Greg Abbott, insisted that “everything is different” this time. She told reporters: “For one, Greg Abbott had never seen a poll that he was losing ever before when he ran for governor. I don’t know, there’s been like 15? I mean, so many.

This election is within the margin of error and it is because Greg Abbot has done so much damage to public schools. “It is because what he has done to public schools is one example of a governor doing the bidding of the moneyed interests and not the people of Texas. Datacentres are another example. There are people all across the state very angry at this governor who no longer fears t

The majority of polls in Indiana and Kentucky have now closed. As parts of both states are also in the central time zone, some polling places will remain open until 7pm ET. Here’s an hour-by-hour guide to when election sites across the country will shut throughout the night:

As polls begin to close on election night, some early House and Senate races could indicate which way the election is trending – whether Democrats are set for the blowout they’re hoping for, or whether Republicans will defy the polls and hold onto control of Congress. There’s a strong possibility we won’t have an idea which party will come out on top until tomorrow or later this week.

But these states might provide some early signs (timings are in ET): Kentucky (polls begin closing at 6pm) Florida (polls begin closing at 7pm) Virginia (polls begin closing at 7pm) Ohio (polls begin closing at 7:30pm) North Carolina (polls begin closing at 7:30pm) Pennsylvania (polls begin closing at 8pm)

It’s almost 6pm ET on Tuesday 3 November, and the first round of polls in the US midterm elections are about to close. After months of campaigning, debate and analysis, Americans have been casting their ballots in these critical elections that will take the political temperature of the nation halfway through Donald Trump’s second term – and determine the trajectory of the remainder of his presidency.

Americans, who have already voted early in record numbers and are turning out in numbers significantly outstripping the totals from the 2022 midterms, will decide the balance of power in Congress and, therefore, Trump’s ability to advance his agenda for the next two years.

With the US president almost unprecedentedly unpopular, Democrats are aiming for what would be stunning victories in seats where, for decades, turning blue would have been unthinkable. Trump is not on the ballot, but this election is very much a referendum on the direction of the country under his Republican party. Resul

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