The polling is done, the last ads have been bought, and the last text messages have been sent.
asserted
messages → do → ?
Voters are voting.
asserted
Voters → vote → ?
Now all we can do is wait and watch.
asserted
we → do → ?
But what should we be watching?
asserted
we → watch → what
The first polls to close in tight races are in South Carolina and Georgia at 7 p.m. Eastern.
asserted
polls → close → p.m.
If the race between Sen. Darline Graham (R-SC) and Democrat Annie Andrews is tight, or if Andrews is ahead, expect a bad night for Republicans.
asserted
Andrews → expect → Republicans
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The same goes if Democrat Keisha Lance Bottoms jumps ahead of Rick Jackson in the Georgia governor’s race.
asserted
Bottoms → go → race
Democrats can lose both these races and still have a good night.
asserted
Democrats → lose → night
If Republicans lose these early contests, we are talking about an electoral catastrophe of biblical proportions.
asserted
we → lose → proportions
At 7:30 p.m., Ohio’s polls close, giving us an early look at whether Sen. Jon Husted (R-OH) will overcome the odds to beat former Sen. Sherrod Brown (D-OH) and whether Republican Vivek Ramaswamy can defeat Democrat Amy Acton.
asserted
Ramaswamy → close → Acton
Brown has run a strong campaign, and Ramaswamy has run a terrible one, so reading too much into these races nationally might be a mistake.
uncertain
reading → run → races
But if Democrats comfortably win both, it is going to be a bad night for Republicans.
asserted
it → win → Republicans
At 8 p.m., Maine’s polls close for the race between Sen. Susan Collins (R-ME) and Democrat Troy Jackson.
asserted
polls → close → Collins
Collins has repeatedly outperformed her polling in past elections, so it would not be a big surprise if she pulled out another win, this time against Jackson, who currently leads in most polls.
asserted
who → outperform → polls
If Jackson, an extremely flawed candidate, beats Collins, we are looking at a very bad night for Republicans nationally.
asserted
we → beat → Republicans
Also at 8 p.m., the polls finally close in Florida’s western Panhandle, meaning we will start to get some real results from the governor’s race pitting Rep. Byron Donalds (R-FL) against Democrat David Jolly.
asserted
we → close → Jolly
Donalds should win this race somewhat easily.
asserted
Donalds → win → race
If Jolly wins, it will be an early sign of a Democratic wave.
asserted
it → win → wave
At 9 p.m., the last polls close in Iowa, Kansas, Michigan, Minnesota, Nebraska, and Texas, giving us the clearest picture yet of the battle for the Senate.
asserted
polls → close → Senate
Republicans need Rep. Ashley Hinson (R-IA) to beat Democrat Josh Turek in Iowa.
asserted
Hinson → need → Iowa
They also need Sens. Roger Marshall (R-KS) and Pete Ricketts (R-NE), along with Ken Paxton, the Republican nominee in Texas, to hold their states.
asserted
Marshall → need → states
Democrats need Abdul el Sayed in Michigan and Peggy Flanagan in Minnesota to hold theirs.
asserted
Sayed → need → theirs
If Republicans sweep their four states and pick off either Michigan or Minnesota, they can breathe easier.
asserted
they → sweep → Michigan
If Democrats hold their two and start winning in Kansas, Nebraska, or Texas, Republicans will be watching their Senate majority slip away.
asserted
majority → hold → Kansas
By this point, we should know whether we are looking at a Democratic tsunami or a tight battle for control of the Senate.
asserted
we → know → Senate
Alaska’s final polls don’t close until 1 a.m. Wednesday, and considering the state’s ranked choice voting system, it is highly unlikely we will know the results from that race until Wednesday afternoon at the earliest.
asserted
we → close → earliest
Republicans will spend the early evening looking for signs that the polls were wrong and the late evening hoping Alaska won’t decide their fate.
asserted
Alaska → spend → fate
Democrats will be looking for a wave big enough to settle the question before bedtime.
asserted
Democrats → look → bedtime
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