Polling places are opening across the nation Tuesday for the midterm elections that President Donald Trump has called the most important of "our lifetime."
At stake is control of Congress and whether Trump will finish his final term with Republican majorities in the House and Senate, or Democrats will win enough seats to block an agenda they call dangerous.
"With your vote we will decide: These extremists will be given power or not power," Trump said Monday in a final pitch to voters. "We'll defend our country, our culture, and our heritage for generations to come."
Democrats have also pitched the stakes as existential, warning that Trump threatens to crater the American economy with his war on Iran and undermine democracy in the nation with his aggressive
immigration enforcement agenda.
"We’ve seen in these last few months attacks on civil rights and voting rights unprecedented for decades," Sen. Jon Ossoff on Monday told supporters in Georgia, where he faces reelection. "But when our civil rights and voting rights are under attack, we defend them by using them."
Bookmark these pages to follow Tuesday's official results: U.S. House Election Results | U.S. Senate Election Results
Ahead of midterms, Trump defends Iran war
06:26 AM ET, November 3 2026, Michael LoriaPresident Donald Trump defended the U.S. war on Iran in an interview on Fox News Monday evening, just hours before polls open.
"We cannot let them have a nuclear weapon and we won’t," Trump told Fox News anchor Sean Hannity, justifying the war he and U.S. ally Israel launched on Feb. 28.
The war has seen long stretches without fighting but has become deeply unpopular, in part because it has driven fuel prices to their highest levels in years. Other concerns include its rising $47.1 billion price tag, reports of sinking morale among troops, and the deaths of at least 21 U.S. service members.
Trump on Monday night batted away criticisms, arguing that it’s not a war, though he hinted that the United States could attack Iran again if they don’t make a deal to end the conflict.
"There’s no war raging. It could happen if they don’t make a deal. But they want to make a deal very badly," said Trump, repeating claims about the intentions of Iran’s leaders that Tehran has derided as largely false throughout the war.
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Control of Congress up for grabs on Election Day 2026: Live updates
