Voting Is Underway: Live Updates

Maine Sen. Susan Collins’ Biddeford office was vandalized on the eve of the midterm election.

Photos obtained by The Washington Sun show red paint slathered on the steps of Collins’ district office with the words “BLOOD ON HER HANDS.”

Katie Brown, Collins’ chief of staff, said: “These tactics are disturbing, but not effective. Our staff is undeterred and on the job.”

The Justice Department sent notifications to Democrats saying they are part of an investigation into possible fraud and conspiracy related to efforts to recruit a man named Dan Sullivan to run for Senate in Alaska, The New York Times reported based on unnamed sources.

The Times reported Tuesday that notification letters went to about 20 people, including at least one official from the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee and elections attorney Marc Elias. It is unclear when the letters were sent or if all intended targets received them.

Norman Eisen, who serves as the executive chair of Democracy Defenders Fund, told The Sun that the reported inquiry was a clear example of the Trump administration “abusing criminal powers for political purposes.”

“Federal & state courts have ruled that the ballot is legal for heaven’s sake. No normal administration would be doing this … around election day. That is a tell, as is the fact that Republicans who did the same thing in Alaska and around the country are not reported to be under investigation,” Norman said in an email.

The DOJ had sued Alaska, seeking to block certification of the Senate results over potential voter confusion between the independent candidate Dan Sullivan and the incumbent Republican senator with the same name. A federal judge dismissed the lawsuit on Sunday, ruling that the court lacked jurisdiction, and the administration has vowed to appeal.

For all the billionaires donating mega-millions to political causes this election, the most notable one of all — President Donald Trump — has decided to sit the midterms out.

Through Oct. 14, Trump hasn’t personally donated a dime to congressional candidates or conservative super PACs, according to a Washington Sun review of federal records. There’s no indication Trump’s contributed anything since, either.

And while he’s been generous with his time and social media posts — the president has conducted about 30 rallies and political events during the past month and is currently in the midst of a multi-message bender on X promoting dozens of Republican candidates — Trump’s decision to withhold his own fortune is potentially damaging to his party brethren.

Forbes estimates Trump is worth about $7 billion; another $200 million or $300 million in donations could stand to swing at least a couple House or Senate races.

A spokesperson for MAGA Inc., the super PAC that Trump leads, told us that Trump is “responsible for raising hundreds of millions of dollars in support of Republican candidates.”

But MAGA Inc. is funded by other rich people — Elon Musk, Miriam Adelson, et al. — not Trump himself.

Democrats have flipped their first red district. Alicia Limtiaco is projected to beat Republican incumbent James Moylan for Guam’s nonvoting delegate to the House of Representatives.

House Democrats are feeling optimistic.

“Folks are just in the zone. Guam has people excited,” California Rep. Sydney Kamlager-Dove told The Sun.

Republicans, however, flipped control of the island’s governorship, according to unofficial results from the Guam Election Commission.

President Donald Trump took to Truth Social to celebrate Republican candidate Tony Ada’s win.

“Wow, hopefully that’s an indication for things to come!” Trump said.

Gov. Ron DeSantis closed 23 polling locations and opened a number of emergency sites after devastating flash floods in South Florida threw a wrench into the state’s Election Day plans.

The Florida Department of State has released a list of the new polling locations, including sites in Brevard, Highlands, Indian River, Martin, Okeechobee, Palm Beach and St. Lucie counties.

DETROIT, Mich. — I’ve been to rallies for both Democratic Senate candidate Abdul El-Sayed and his Republican opponent, Mike Rogers, in the Detroit area over the past few days. Supporters for both candidates told me this election is about putting a check on the opposing party.

“If he won, it would show how mad people are about what’s going on because Michigan is kind of like an ecological indicator,” said Mary O’Donnell at an El-Sayed rally in Royal Oak on Monday. “There’s a lot going against him racially in this state, so if he overcame that, it would really show how much people want change, that would show there might be a pendulum swing.”

At a Rogers rally, voters told me they’re voting Republican in part due to what they see as a socialist bent in the Democratic Party.

Rogers is trying to flip a Senate seat that a Republican hasn’t won since 1994, during an unpopular Trump administration. But Rogers’ break with the president over tariffs with Canada may be something that shores up votes.

“That’s another reason why I support him,” said Adam Blazejewski, an independent voter at a Rogers rally Monday in Rochester Hills. “He’s not going to blindly back the president.”

Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer said today that he’s “nauseously optimistic” about Democrats’ chances of taking back the Senate.

“Now, we don’t want to count our chickens before they hatch, so I characterize our mood as nauseously optimistic,” Schumer told reporters after casting his ballot. “A year ago, no one thought we could do this.”

It’s become a popular line with Democrats this cycle. Georgia Sen. Raphael Warnock said Sunday on CNN’s “State of the Union” that he is “nauseously optimistic that we’re going to get this done.”

Rodericka Applewhaite, Majority Democrats’ rapid response director, told The Sun’s Jasmine Wright last week: “To steal some phrasing I heard earlier today, I think the party is nauseously optimistic,” though she added that “no one seriously thinks a double chamber sweep is a done deal.”

Election models from Harvard University updated late Monday predict Democrats have a 96% chance of taking back the House and a 78% chance of winning the Senate.

SHREVEPORT, La. — Speaker Mike Johnson is continuing his defense of Republicans’ House majority — and his job as speaker — to the very end.

He is spending the first part of Election Day in South Texas, campaigning alongside Rep. Monica De La Cruz, Judge Tano Tijerina and Eric Flores. He plans to fly later to his hometown of Shreveport, Louisiana, where he will spend Election Night.

The rising cost of gas and diesel was among voters’ top issues heading into Election Day. Matt Rourke/AP

Voters are heading into the polls with higher gas prices than in any other election, according to Patrick De Haan, GasBuddy’s head of petroleum analysis. The average price of gas on Tuesday is $4.14 and the average price of diesel is $6.28, according to AAA.

While prices today are not as high as the $4.56 per gallon that consumers were paying in May, the economy — and the high price of gas — have repeatedly been ranked as top issues for voters heading into the midterms. Voters have consistently blamed Trump’s decision to go to war in Iran for the high prices at the pump. Trump has repeatedly said that gas prices will drop when the war in Iran ends.

Donning an oversized sun hat on her way to vote in Michigan, Rep. Haley Stevens said she expected — and wanted — Democrats to win the House majority.

“It’s majority-makers’ day,” Stevens told NewsNation outside her polling location when asked about the backlash she has faced from Democrats over her endorsement of Republican Senate candidate Mike Rogers.

Stevens said she believes Rep. Hakeem Jeffries (D-New York) will become speaker of the House.

Stevens had endorsed Democratic Senate candidate Abdul El-Sayed after narrowly losing to him in Michigan’s Democratic primary in August. But on Sunday, two days before Election Day, she announced her support for Rogers, citing a growing rift with El-Sayed over an outside group’s advertisement linking U.S. support for Israel to rising grocery prices.

The endorsement drew sharp criticism from Democratic leaders, including Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, who had supported Stevens in her primary race.

Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, who is being floated as a potential 2028 presidential candidate, released a public memo today touting her role and fundraising skills ahead of the midterm election results, with a conclusion addressing rumors of whether she plans to run for higher office.

The five-page memo, titled “How AOC Wins in 2026,” did not address her specific political future, but stated: “You may be asked whether you support her running for President or for Senate in New York or staying in the House of Representatives.”

It added: “We’d recommend you rely on the details of this memo and answer that Rep. Ocasio-Cortez will continue to do what she’s always done: look for ways to do the most good for the most people.”

The memo also stated that Ocasio-Cortez raised more than $38 million this election cycle through more than 2 million donations and that her campaign directed more than $3 million to Democratic candidates and organizations.

The North Carolina State Board of Elections says hours in polling places located in the counties of Wilson, Lenoir, Gates and Hertford might be extended until 8:30 p.m. because of technical issues. Polls are scheduled to close at 7:30 p.m., and the board will meet at 2 p.m. to consider possible extensions.

The board’s executive director, Sam Hayes, said in a press conference that it is not an indication of “malicious activity” and added that it is “not unusual for the board to extend voting hours beyond 7:30 p.m. if a disruption of the polling place causes stoppage in voting.”

Election officials in New York’s Westchester County are scrambling after poll workers arrived at their locations this morning and found that ballots were too thick to scan in the county’s voting machines.

In the meantime, the county’s election board has instructed workers to place ballots in orange emergency bags to either scan them later or hand-count the results.

The Trump administration is sending Department of Justice election monitors to all 50 states for the first time, but many won’t be allowed to enter polling sites.

Laws in a number of states, including Minnesota, Colorado and Arkansas, require unauthorized individuals, including federal observers, to remain 100 feet away from polling locations. Virginia’s statutes require only a 40-foot buffer zone.

The DOJ said it plans to comply with all state rules that deny its observers from directly accessing polling sites, and “every monitor is trained on the rules for their assigned jurisdiction,” DOJ spokesperson Kiersten Pels told The Washington Sun.

Voters will weigh in on over 100 ballot initiatives today, with many of the biggest national issues on state ballots. Competitive campaigns will touch on redistricting, abortion rights, voter identification requirements, taxes and transgender students’ participation in sports.

Some to watch: whether California voters approve the country’s first wealth tax; redistricting-related measures in Maryland, Missouri and Colorado; and ballot initiatives on voter ID in California, Nevada, Arizona, North Carolina and Ohio.