Live: US prepares for voting as polls predict close midterm races

Tue 3 Nov 2026 at 4:19pmTue 3 Nov 2026 at 4:19pmSo what's up for grabs?All 435 seats in the House and 35 of the seats in the Senate.Donald Trump's Republican Party currently controls both chambers of Congress.The Democrats are hoping to flip enough seats to win a majority. If they win control of at least one chamber, they will gain power to bring their own laws to the floor.Tue 3 Nov 2026 at 4:15pmTue 3 Nov 2026 at 4:15pmSend your questions for our Q&A!Later this afternoon, the ABC's chief elections and data analyst Casey Briggs will be joining this live blog to answer some of your questions about the midterms.Send your questions in at the top of this page, under "submit a comment or question".Tue 3 Nov 2026 at 4:13pmTue 3 Nov 2026 at 4:13pmWhat is a midterm election?Americans vote on who their next president is every four years.But they have the chance to decide which political party controls Congress (the US House of Representatives and the Senate) more often.When a president is being voted in, seats in both chambers are up for election as well.And then halfway through the president's term, voters can head back to the polls to shake Congress up again.This is known as the midterm election.Tue 3 Nov 2026 at 4:01pmTue 3 Nov 2026 at 4:01pmUS strikes Iranian targets in Strait of Hormuz, AP reportsThe United States has conducted strikes on some Iranian targets in the Strait of Hormuz, a US official has told the Associated Press.The official, speaking on condition of anonymity, said the US targeted "Iranians using surface-to-air missiles against US assets".Cargo ships in the Strait of Hormuz. (ISNA via AP: Amirhosein Khorgooi)These strikes, of course, come on the eve of the crucial US midterm elections that we are covering from today.Iran said on Monday it had a two-day plan to reopen the strait and resume nuclear talks with the United States.Iranian state television reported that explosions were heard on Qeshm Island.Reporting with APTue 3 Nov 2026 at 3:59pmTue 3 Nov 2026 at 3:59pmWelcome to our live coverage of the US midterms!