By Islam El-Sakka
Americans headed to the polls on Tuesday, November 3, 2026, for midterm elections that will determine control of Congress for the final two years of Donald Trump's presidency. Democrats need to flip four Senate seats and three House seats to win majorities in both chambers, while Republicans currently hold slim advantages in each.
Trump approval and economic concerns shape races
A new AP-NORC poll showed Trump's approval rating at 35 percent, with 64 percent disapproving. About three-quarters of U.S. adults described the economy as "poor," and seven in ten said the country is heading in the wrong direction. Democrats have campaigned heavily on the high cost of living and the ongoing war in Iran, while Trump insisted on Fox and Friends that "inflation is solved" and predicted results "better than you think" for Republicans.
Key Senate battlegrounds and House defenses
Tight Senate races are underway in states Trump won in 2024, including Alaska, Ohio, Maine, North Carolina, Texas, Kansas, and Iowa. In the House, Republicans are defending battleground districts the president carried two years ago. More than 56 million voters cast ballots early before Election Day.
Trump announces halt to $4 billion in Israel aid
On Election Day, Trump phoned into Fox News to declare the U.S. would halt $4 billion in aid to Israel following discussions with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. "We give them $4 billion of things and money, and they don't need it," Trump said, adding that the aid had become a Democratic talking point ahead of the vote.
Obama and Harris back Michigan Senate candidate
Former President Barack Obama recorded a robocall urging support for Abdul El-Sayed, the Democratic Senate candidate in Michigan, praising him as a doctor who "has never taken corporate money" and fights for healthcare as a human right. Former Vice President Kamala Harris also recorded messages for El-Sayed, who leads Republican Mike Rogers in polls.
Stewart walks off set over Trump's closing speech
Jon Stewart walked off his Daily Show set after playing a clip of Trump's Monday speech at the Lincoln Memorial Reflecting Pool, where the president spent more than 20 minutes discussing renovation projects rather than the election. "That is not possible dimensionally in this realm," Stewart said of Trump's claim to have kept "far more promises than I made."
Other notable Election Day moments
Ohio Senator Jon Husted laughed off Trump's repeated comments about his physique, saying the remarks added "levity" to the campaign. An Alaska voter reported confusion over two Dan Sullivans on the ballot. Republican National Committee Chairman Joe Gruters told Fox Business that "Blue states are terrible," comparing them to "some communist utopia."
