It’s in America, with voters heading to the polls to determine control of the U.S. House and Senate for the next two years.
Republicans are defending their slim congressional majorities, but President predicts the GOP will hold the House and Senate for the final two years of his presidency.
“We’re going to win and let’s make the next two years bigger and better and stronger than ever before,” Trump told supporters Sunday night at a rally in Kansas.
But Republicans are fighting political history, as the party in power in Washington has traditionally lost seats during midterm election years. The GOP also faces a challenging political climate fueled by persistent inflation tied in part to what polls show is an unpopular war with Iran and Trump’s increasingly negative approval ratings.
The GOP is also facing a potential turnout deficit, with public opinion polls indicating Democrats are more energized than Republicans to cast ballots in the midterms.
Early voting in the midterms has shattered previous records, with more than 54 million people already casting ballots, according to the Associated Press. That’s nearly nine million more ballots cast in early voting than in 2022, the previous midterm elections.
With early voting traditionally favoring Democrats, Chair Joe Gruters, pointing to Election Day turnout, recently told Fox News Digital, “If our voters turn out, we win.”
The political climate has the GOP playing plenty of defense on the campaign trail, as the president tries to energize the GOP base.
Trump’s event in red-leaning Kansas, which he touted as his 30th rally over the past month, came hours after the Fox News Power Rankings shifted the state’s Senate race from Lean Republican to Toss-up. Democratic pastor Adam Hamilton, who is challenging GOP Sen. Roger Marshall, is aiming to become the first Democrat in nearly a century to win a Senate election in Kansas.
The Fox News Power Rankings, as well as many of the leading nonpartisan political handicappers, point to Democrats retaking control of the House, with the majority in the Senate a toss-up heading into Election Day.
“Think of what is possible tomorrow: Democrats can flip the House, take back the Senate, and stop Trumps harmful agenda,” Chair Ken Martin spotlighted, in an Election Eve social media post.
Also up for grabs in this year’s elections â governorships in 36 of the 50 states. Plus, all but four states are holding legislative elections. And voters will also weigh in on 145 statewide ballot measures in states from coast to coast.
The big question with Election Day upon us â have the public opinion polls that point to a potential blue wave undercounted Republican voters?
We’ll find out in the coming hours.
Until then, here’s a closer look at what’s up for grabs on Election Day 2026.
Republicans currently control the chamber 53-47, which means Democrats need a net gain of four seats to win back the majority. The GOP needs to hold at least 50 seats to retain control of the chamber, since Republican Vice President is the tie-breaking vote in the Senate.
Besides Kansas, Republicans are also playing defense in Alaska, Iowa, Maine, Nebraska, Ohio, South Carolina and Texas, which are all rated toss-ups in the Power Rankings. They’re also defending seats in competitive races in Kansas, which is rated Lean Republican, and Ohio, which is rated Lean Democrat.
Democrats are on defense in Michigan, Minnesota and New Hampshire.
The GOP is hanging on to a razor-thin majority in the House, with Democrats needing a net gain of just three seats to reach 218, which would hand them the majority.
A good night for the Democrats could see them ending up with as many as 240 seats in the 435-seat chamber, according to the Power Rankings. But if Republicans have a good night, they could end up with 212 seats. Thats six short of a majority, but enough to make life difficu
