On the eve of Election Day 2026, more than fifty-seven million Americans have already spoken through their early ballots, and the country stands at the threshold of a verdict it has been slowly writing for months. In courtrooms, on stages, and even near the Strait of Hormuz, the contest for power in Washington has spilled into questions about who gets to decide how elections are run and who is trusted to guard them. The final hours carry the weight of old rivalries reopened: a party divided over its Michigan nominee, a president asking voters to imagine he is on the ballot, and a federal gover
Trump Says GOP 'Gave This a Very Strong Shot' as Midterm Eve Brings Court Fights, Iran Strikes and Tight Senate Races
Final hours in courtrooms, on stages and near the Strait of Hormuz
Mark
Of everything on Monday, what carries the most weight beyond Election Day?
Mimi
The 9th Circuit stay. The Justice Department can keep pressing election officials while the appeal runs, and the vote was 2-1.
Luke
Worth saying what the stay is not. It isn't a ruling on the merits. It pauses Judge Thompson's finding, which itself said the conduct only "likely" violated the Voting Rights Act.
Mark
And the dissent?
Mimi
Judge Murguia said states' control of elections means nothing if prosecutorial threats can force them to change procedures. She tied it to the Supreme Court's refusal to order California to segregate 20,000 ballots.
Mark
Michigan seems like a different kind of story.
Mimi
It's a party fracturing in public. Stevens endorsed a Republican and called El-Sayed unfit, and other Democrats condemned her.
Luke
Dingell's claim that this is "galvanizing" voters for El-Sayed is her read. Nothing in the reporting measures it.
Mark
The Iowa odds seemed notable.
Mimi
Turek showed visible surprise at 52 to 48 on Kalshi.
Luke
That's one prediction market on one phone. It's a mood indicator, not a poll, and Turek himself only called the race possibly the closest.
Mark
And Alaska?
Luke
The Times reported Peltola-linked operatives recruited the second Sullivan. Peltola and Democrats deny it, so that's reported but contested. Trump's "voter fraud" label is his characterization.
Le Pouls
- A federal appeals court has lifted a block on Justice Department pressure against California election officials, a 2-1 ruling that leaves a contested fight over alleged non-citizen ballots unsettled.
- Michigan Democrats are fracturing as Rep. Haley Stevens endorses Republican Mike Rogers and calls Abdul El-Sayed 'not fit to serve,' drawing condemnation from her own party.
- Texas, Iowa, Michigan and Kansas Senate races are running neck and neck, with campaigns chasing every late vote and every poll shift.
- Trump is pressing his closing message that a loss would wipe out his accomplishments, while the U.S. military quietly conducts limited strikes near Hormuz as talks are brokered.
- Results begin arriving Tuesday evening, and the answers will determine whether Senate control shifts hands.
On the eve of Election Day 2026, more than fifty-seven million Americans have already spoken through their early ballots, and the country stands at the threshold of a verdict it has been slowly writing for months. In courtrooms, on stages, and even near the Strait of Hormuz, the contest for power in Washington has spilled into questions about who gets to decide how elections are run and who is trusted to guard them. The final hours carry the weight of old rivalries reopened: a party divided over its Michigan nominee, a president asking voters to imagine he is on the ballot, and a federal government whose pressure on state election officials has been briefly restored by an appeals court. Whatever Tuesday brings, it will be read as a moment when a democracy tested its own machinery and its own temper at once.
More than 57 million Americans had already cast ballots by Monday, the eve of Election Day 2026, and the campaigns spent their last hours in courtrooms, on stages, and, in one case, on the water near the Strait of Hormuz.
President Trump gave his final scheduled remarks of the season at the Reflecting Pool in Washington, then appeared on Fox News, asking viewers to imagine he was on the ballot. He argued his legislative record could be wiped out if Republicans lost, and predicted a landslide if his supporters turned out.
Late Monday, the 9th Circuit paused a ruling that had restricted the Justice Department's pressure on California officials over alleged non-citizen ballots. The original judge had found the department's threats likely violated federal voting protections. The appeals panel, by a 2-1 vote, called the government's actions core executive functions, while the dissenting judge warned that states' control over their own elections would become meaningless under such coercion.
In Michigan, Rep. Haley Stevens, who lost the Senate primary, endorsed Republican Mike Rogers and called Abdul El-Sayed unfit to serve, citing feeling shut out and campaign ads she objected to. Democrats condemned her, though one congresswoman predicted the split would energize voters toward El-Sayed, who closed in Detroit with his core message on money and Medicare.
Across the map, the Senate races remained tight. In Texas, Democrat James Talarico rallied supporters against Ken Paxton, who said every poll pointed to a close finish. In Iowa, Democrat Josh Turek saw betting odds favoring him narrowly, calling his race possibly the closest in the country. In Kansas, Democrat Adam Hamilton pitched himself as a bridge to Republican Sen. Jerry Moran.
Trump also attacked a reported Democratic effort to field a candidate in Alaska and criticized ranked-choice voting. Meanwhile, U.S. officials confirmed limited defensive strikes on Iranian targets near the Strait of Hormuz, as talks brokered by mediators continued. Results begin arriving Tuesday evening.
More than 57 million Americans had already cast ballots by Monday, the day before Election Day 2026, and the campaigns spent their final hours in courtrooms, on stages and, in one case, on the water near the Strait of Hormuz.
President Trump delivered his last scheduled remarks of the midterm season at an event at the Reflecting Pool in Washington. He said Republicans "gave this a very strong shot." Later he appeared on Fox News' "Hannity" and repeated a line from his rallies, asking everyone to pretend he is on the ballot. "In a way, I am," he said, arguing that his legislative accomplishments could be "wiped out" if Republicans lose. "If our people vote, we win in a landslide."
Late Monday, the 9th Circuit Court of Appeals paused a lower-court ruling that had restricted the Justice Department. Last week, U.S. District Judge Trina Thompson found that the department's pre-Election Day demands on officials in California and elsewhere, and its repeated threats to prosecute those who refused, likely violated the Voting Rights Act's bar on intimidating, threatening or coercing people who help others vote. Her order, which was to run until Nov. 16, came in a suit brought by several labor unions and civil rights groups, and it directed the administration to stop ordering state officials to separate out or not count ballots of alleged non-citizens. By a 2-1 vote, the appeals panel granted a stay pending appeal, calling the government's actions "core Executive functions that did not actually disturb the states' regulation of their own elections." Two George W. Bush appointees formed the majority. Judge Mary Helen Murguia, an Obama appointee, dissented, writing that states' authority over election procedures is "meaningless if Defendants can coerce states into foregoing their chosen procedures by abusing their prosecutorial powers." She said the ruling could not be reconciled with a Supreme Court decision that refused to order California to segregate 20,000 ballots.
In Michigan, a Democratic split broke open. Rep. Haley Stevens, who lost the primary to Abdul El-Sayed, endorsed Republican Mike Rogers on Sunday. Late Monday she explained herself in a long post on X, calling El-Sayed "not fit to serve in the United States Senate" and describing the choice as "a decision of conscience." She said she felt "shut out" after initially endorsing him, cited an outside PAC ad blaming U.S. aid to Israel for grocery prices and an El-Sayed campaign ad featuring Tucker Carlson, and noted he left her out of a Sunday event. She rejected suggestions that her fiancé, who endorsed Rogers days earlier, was "pulling the strings," calling that "sexism dressed up as political analysis." Fellow Democrats condemned her, though Rep. Debbie Dingell argued the episode is "galvanizing" voters toward El-Sayed. Closing out in Detroit, El-Sayed said he was making a "bet on Michigan" and ran through his slogan: "Money out of politics, money in your pocket, Medicare for all."
Elsewhere, the Senate map looked tight. In Texas, Democrat James Talarico told a concert-style Austin rally he would be the first Democrat to win a Senate race there in more than 30 years, and attacked tariffs, a "new corrupt war in the Middle East" and Elon Musk's spending for Republican Ken Paxton. Paxton, the state attorney general, told supporters "every poll shows this is going to come down to the wire." He was impeached by the state House in 2023 on bribery and other allegations and has denied wrongdoing.
In Iowa, Democrat Josh Turek stood in a driveway in a small western town while former Sen. Tom Harkin showed him Kalshi odds that put him ahead of Republican Ashley Hinson, 52% to 48%. Turek said the race "may very well be the closest election on the entire U.S. Senate map." In Kansas, Democratic pastor Adam Hamilton, challenging Sen. Roger Marshall, noted that the last Kansas Democrat elected to the Senate predates Amelia Earhart's first Atlantic flight. He promised to become fellow Republican Sen. Jerry Moran's "best friend."
In an Alaska telerally, Trump denounced a reported effort by Democratic operatives to place a man named Daniel S. Sullivan on the ballot against GOP Sen. Dan Sullivan, and said Mary Peltola should be removed. The New York Times reported operatives linked to her campaign helped recruit him; Peltola and national Democrats deny it. Trump also called ranked-choice voting a "total scam."
And three U.S. officials confirmed to CBS News that the U.S. military carried out limited defensive strikes on Iranian targets near the Strait of Hormuz, as Trump floats resuming hostilities after the midterms and U.S. and Qatari mediators broker talks. Results begin arriving Tuesday evening.
Citations marquantes
Abdul El-Sayed is not fit to serve in the United States Senate.— Rep. Haley Stevens, in a post on X
I'm just asking everybody to pretend that I'm on the ballot.— President Trump, on Fox News' Hannity
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