Donald Trump faced a political reckoning on Tuesday as millions of Americans voted in midterm elections that could shift the balance of power in Washington and define the final two years of his divisive presidency.
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that → face → presidency
Based on consistently favourable opinion polls, Democrats were optimistic about regaining control of the House of Representatives and potentially also the Senate, although the party has suffered enough anguish during the Trump era to remain wary.
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party → base → era
“Now, we don’t want to count our chickens before they hatch,” said Chuck Schumer, the Democratic minority leader in the Senate.
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Schumer → want → Senate
“So I characterise our mood as nauseously optimistic.”
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I → characterise → mood
The elections are widely seen as a referendum on Trump’s second term, with voters concerned about the cost of living, rising fuel prices and an unpopular war with Iran.
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voters → see → Iran
The president’s approval rating has slumped to record lows, saddling Republicans with an unenviable task as they defend narrow majorities in both chambers of Congress.
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they → slump → Congress
Trump has held 30 campaign rallies over the past month.
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Trump → hold → month
The 80-year-old’s speeches have been strewn with lies, prejudice, repetitions and ruminations on men’s physiques including the “ass” of the Ohio senator Jon Husted.
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speeches → strew → senator
His closing address at the Lincoln Memorial Reflecting Pool on Monday focused mainly on algae, granite, re-caulking and grass.
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address → focus → algae
In remarks apparently aimed at swaying largely Democratic-leaning voters unhappy with US support for Israel, Trump said the US would stop $4bn in annual funding to Israel after the end of this year.
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US → aim → year
The president also said he would be watching the results come in later on Tuesday night at the White House, where he is hosting a viewing reception.
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he → say → reception
Trump’s campaign message has increasingly appeared at odds with voters’ priorities.
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message → appear → priorities
He has sought to cast Democratic candidates as radical, un-American and even communist.
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He → seek → candidates
“The Democrat party has nominated the most extreme and dangerous slate of candidates in American history,” the president said on Monday.
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president → nominate → Monday
But polls suggest voters care more about their economic situation and the affordability message that swept Trump to power in 2024 could now come back to bite him.
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that → suggest → him
A Reuters/Ipsos poll found that 48% of voters considered the cost of living their most important issue in deciding how to vote, compared with 26% who cited democratic norms and 13% immigration.
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who → find → norms
Nearly half of Americans said their household finances had deteriorated since Trump returned to office in January 2025.
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Trump → say → January
More than 57 million Americans had already cast ballots by Monday, exceeding the early voting total recorded in 2022.
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Americans → cast → 2022
Democrats, who deployed former president Barack Obama on the campaign trail, are hoping greater enthusiasm among their supporters, combined with dissatisfaction over the economy and the war with Iran, will translate into higher turnout.
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enthusiasm → deploy → turnout
All 435 seats in the House are being contested, alongside 35 of the Senate’s 100 seats.
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seats → contest → seats
Democrats need a net gain of three seats in the House and four in the Senate to take control of both chambers.
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Democrats → need → chambers
The party out of power traditionally makes gains in midterm elections, with the president’s party having lost ground in the House in all but two such contests since the second world war.
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party → make → war
The fight for the Senate is concentrated in about a dozen competitive races, many in states that Trump carried comfortably in 2024.
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Trump → concentrate → 2024
Democrats are seeking victories in traditionally Republican territory including Texas, Kansas, Iowa and Alaska, while also defending vulnerable seats.
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Democrats → seek → seats
In Texas, Democrat James Talarico is seeking to end his party’s three-decade drought in statewide elections against the Republican state attorney general, Ken Paxton.
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Talarico → seek → general
The race has attracted national attention and huge financial backing, including more than $150m in Republican support from the billionaire Elon Musk.
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race → attract → billionaire
Paxton, who has faced a series of scandals, has attacked Talarico on cultural issues, while the Democrat – who combines proud religious faith with economic populism – has focused on the economic consequences of Trump’s tariffs and the war in Iran.
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who → face → Iran
At a packed rally in Austin on Monday night, Talarico said Musk and other big money groups were desperately trying to stop him: “They are scared.
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They → say → him
They see what we see: that we are about to win this election tomorrow night.”
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we → see → election
The state voted for Trump by more than 16 percentage points in 2024 and has not elected a Democratic senator in nearly a century.
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state → vote → century
Michigan has emerged as another critical battleground.
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Michigan → emerge → battleground
The progressive Democrat Abdul El-Sayed is facing the former Republican congressman Mike Rogers in a contest complicated by an extraordinary intervention from Haley Stevens, who lost to El-Sayed in the Democratic primary before endorsing Rogers on Sunday.
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who → face → Sunday
The Republican told reporters on Tuesday: “I’m proud of her for doing what she believes was the right thing to do.”
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she → tell → her
The dispute has exposed divisions within the Democratic party over Israel.
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dispute → expose → Israel
El-Sayed, who could become the country’s first Muslim senator, has been subjected to attacks questioning his loyalty and patriotism.
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who → become → loyalty
He has dismissed them as shameful and argued that voters’ concerns about the cost of living should take precedence.
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concerns → dismiss → precedence
In Alaska, the race between the Republican senator Dan Sullivan and Democrat Mary Peltola has been overshadowed by allegations that Peltola’s campaign helped recruit a a second candidate named Dan Sullivan to confuse voters.
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campaign → overshadow → voters
Peltola has denied involvement.
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Peltola → deny → involvement
Other closely watched contests include Maine, where the Republican senator Susan Collins is seeking a sixth term, and Iowa, Nebraska, Ohio and South Carolina.
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senator → watch → term
Beyond Congress, voters are choosing governors in 36 states, alongside thousands of state legislative seats and ballot measures covering issues including abortion rights and taxes.
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voters → choose → rights
…and 17 more, not listed.
The Aporia
