2026 midterm elections live updates: Latest news, results, and analysis

President Donald Trump is polling 8 points lower in his second term than in his first, according to a New York Times/Siena University poll that compiled the approval ratings of presidents heading into midterm elections over the past 80 years.

Trump sits at 34% this year, compared to his 42% rating in 2018. Democrats took control of the House at the time, and that may be the case again this time around.

Trump is second only to Harry Truman in terms of the lowest presidential midterm approval ratings. Truman had a 33% approval rating in the 1946 midterm elections and a 39% rating in the 1950 elections.

In contrast to Trump’s numbers, Presidents Barack Obama and Bill Clinton were both at 46% when Democrats lost their House majority in 2010 and 1994. Also, President Joe Biden had a 41% approval rating in 2022 when Democrats lost the House to Republicans.

Trump has been polling considerably lower than in his first term as he campaigns for Republican candidates up and down the ballot in various states. His administration’s handling of the Iran war and surging costs are expected to be major factors in how voters cast their ballots on Election Day. Democrats hope those issues will give them control of the House and possibly the Senate.

While Truman was at the bottom of the list, Clinton had the highest approval rating of any modern president at 66% in 1998.

Rep. Ralph Norman (R-SC) on Wednesday faulted President Donald Trump for the tight South Carolina Senate race, claiming the dynamic would have been different if the president backed him over Sen. Darline Graham (R-SC).

Norman, who fell to Graham in the primary runoff after Trump endorsed her, told Kelly Nash that Trump played a significant role in the race that “was just not right,” saying the president wrongly swayed voters’ opinions. He was asked about a write-in campaign that began after his runoff loss, but declined to endorse the initiative.

“I would be guilty of what Donald Trump’s doing — forcing, using my whatever influence I’ve got to say ‘vote this way or that way,'” Norman said of aiding the write-in campaign. “My message: Vote for conscience and let the chips fall where they may. They should have — this race shouldn’t even be close, and it wouldn’t be if I [had won the primary] race.”

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Texas Democrat James Talarico said he believes actor Matthew McConaughey may be “uniquely positioned” to run for office as a third-party candidate.

Talarico’s comments come days after McConaughey pleaded with independents to vote in the midterm elections. The celebrity endorsed neither Talarico nor Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton in the Senate race.

In an interview with TMZ DC, Talarico said he supports the idea of McConaughey running for office in the future because the actor has a recognizable name and is “beloved by all of us here in Texas.” With those factors in his favor, McConaughey could potentially “break through” the country’s two-party system.

“If Matthew McConaughey feels strongly about it, he should step up and run” for any political office for which he’s qualified, Talarico said.

The Democratic candidate revealed he hadn’t yet watched McConaughey’s video about the importance of the independent vote, but he agreed with the “need to get rid of this two-party system.” Talarico also noted he has been a fan of the actor for years.

McConaughey has flirted with politics in the past, but he has never run for office. He once considered a run for Texas governor in 2021 before deciding not to enter the race.

The American Israel Public Affairs Committee is no longer endorsing or contributing to political candidates, marking a stunning reversal almost five years after it started directly engaging in U.S. politics.

The United Democracy Project super PAC will continue operating, but AIPAC’s own political action committee is ending. AIPAC is urging its members to donate to pro-Israel candidates themselves instead.

“To win the fight for the future of the country and the U.S.-Israel alliance, we must build a more strategic, consequential, and nimble political operation. We will prioritize increasing direct, organized contributions from individual Americans to candidates — expanding upon our current efforts — and maximizing the emerging political fundraising tools,” AIPAC leaders said in a press release. “Endorsements, direct PAC contributions, and earmarking will no longer be part of our approach so we can expand individual giving and utilize new tools to help our friends win.”

The pro-Israel lobbying group made the decision following an internal evaluation and a monthslong strategic review, according to the letter.

AIPAC began financially supporting candidates in January 2022 after forming the United Democracy Project and its traditional PAC at the end of 2021. Its direct political engagement lasted three election cycles, including the midterm elections.

Texas Democrat James Talarico slammed Tesla CEO Elon Musk for spending nearly $200 million in support of state Attorney General Ken Paxton’s Senate campaign.

“Elon Musk is trying to buy this Senate seat in Texas,” Talarico said at a campaign event on Wednesday. “We just found out that the richest man in the world is almost single-handedly bankrolling this effort to install Ken Paxton in the U.S. Senate and stop this movement we’re building in our state.”

Musk poured about $190 million into backing Paxton’s campaign. Roughly $158 million went to the Senate Leadership Fund, which rerouted the money to the pro-Paxton Texas PAC, and the remaining funds were distributed to the Lone Star Liberty PAC and the Musk-founded America PAC.

With Musk’s help, the Senate Leadership Fund has aired many television, radio, and digital advertisements in the Lone Star State.

“In all likelihood, if you’ve seen an attack ad on your screen, that was Elon,” Talarico said. “If you’ve gotten lies in your mailbox, that was Elon. If you’ve received a text message saying scary things about me, that was Elon, too.”

“Ken Paxton is funded by one dude,” the Democratic nominee said, adding that Musk is donating such money to Paxton because “he wants his very own personal United States senator.”

“He is trying to buy Texas,” Talarico continued. “But on Nov. 3, we are going to send a clear message to the world’s first trillionaire: Texas is not for sale.”

Musk’s political investment comes as the Texas Senate race remains too close to call. Talarico leads Paxton by 2.1 points, according to a RealClearPolitics polling average.

The gloves are expected to come off again Wednesday night as Democrat Abdul el Sayed and Republican Mike Rogers face off in the final debate of Michigan’s closely watched Senate race.

The candidates will meet at 7 p.m., less than two weeks after their first debate in Grand Rapids devolved into frequent interruptions and blistering personal attacks. With retiring Sen. Gary Peters’s (D-MI) seat up for grabs, the contest could help determine which party controls the Senate next year.

El Sayed, a former Wayne County and Detroit health director, and Rogers, a former U.S. House member, have sharply different visions for Michigan and the country and are expected to clash again over the economy, healthcare, President Donald Trump, and foreign policy.

The debate also comes amid a polling scandal that has added another layer of uncertainty to the race.

Wedgewood Polling admitted this week that it fabricated data from the Michigan Democratic Senate primary, including numbers showing state Sen. Mallory McMorrow trailing el Sayed. The firm said the fake results were part of a “social experiment” meant to expose a lack of vetting among political media and polling aggregators.

McMorrow, who dropped out of the Democratic primary in July, said the bogus poll had real consequences. She said donations dried up, volunteers were “devastated,” and reporters repeatedly pressed her to leave the race.

“Polling is broken,” McMorrow wrote on X, arguing that the episode underscored the need to rebuild trust in polling and political journalism.

Now el Sayed and Rogers have one final televised chance to make their case and to try to move the needle in a very close race that could have national consequences.

House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-LA) said new evidence is backing his long-held belief that the “polls are WRONG.”

His statement was made in light of the revelation that Wedgewood Polls was fabricating its polling data in multiple state and congressional races this election cycle. The fake pollster admitted it did so as part of an “experimental project,” prompting outcry on both sides of the aisle.

“Polling organizations are being forced to admit they are dramatically under-sampling Republican support, but the media is delighted to use it all to depress GOP turnout,” Johnson posted on X. “We can’t let that happen!

“Today, the Wedgewood scandal—where they’ve admitted it was ‘far too easy’ to produce and spread completely fake polling data—adds an even darker element with enormous implications,” he wrote.

The top House Republican then urged voters to “ignore the polls” and cast their ballots less than two weeks from now on Nov. 3.

In his post, Johnson cited a Fox News article that reported on Democrats’ frustration with Wedgewood’s admission to fabricating polling figures. Some of Wedgewood’s polls were cited by Michigan Democrat Abdul el Sayed’s campaign in his primary race, which he ultimately won.

Vice President JD Vance made fun of a protester’s disheveled hair after the man yelled “pedophile protector” at an Ohio rally on Wednesday.

During Vance’s speech, the person stood up and started screaming, prompting the crowd to boo the protester as he was escorted out of the venue by security. At one point, the man threw his red Make America Great Again cap on the ground. Before continuing his speech, Vance proceeded to mock the protester.

“That guy, he was trying to pretend to be MAGA,” Vance said. “You noticed how he took off his Make America Great Again hat and threw it down. Here is the problem, ladies and gentlemen: he told on himself. Because when he took that hat off, it was very obvious. He has not washed his hair in about three months.”

“And we all know that the people who haven’t washed their hair in three months, they vote for Democrats, not for Republicans,” he added.

The outburst was the latest instance of a protester disrupting one of Vance’s rallies ahead of the midterm elections. In North Carolina earlier this week, Vance suggested a protester who interrupted him was an illegal immigrant.

The vice president was in Sharonville, Ohio, on Wednesday to campaign for Republicans in the state, including gubernatorial candidate Vivek Ramaswamy and Sen. Jon Husted (R-OH).

CINCINNATI, Ohio — Vice President JD Vance declined to follow in President Donald Trump’s footsteps by commenting on Sen. Jon Husted’s (R-OH) football player physique.

“Now, this is a tough act to follow, ladies and gentlemen, because what could I possibly say about John Huston that Donald J. Trump has not already said?” Vance asked a crowd at the Sharonville Convention Center. “Don’t worry, I’m not. I’m not talking about Jon Husted’s a**. I’m not talking about that.”

Instead, Vance underscored Husted’s short record in Congress after he replaced the vice president in the Senate in January 2026.

“Over the last two years, in less than a third of a Senate term, Jon Husted has gotten more done than most United States senators get done in 10 years in Washington, D.C.,” Vance said.

Trump has complimented Husted’s physique on multiple occasions as he campaigns for the senator in his margin-of-error race against Democratic nominee, former Sen. Sherrod Brown.

“I looked at his a**, and then I looked at his legs, and my — I said, ‘His a** is like, it’s like a pile of muscle.’ Then I looked at his legs, and I said, ‘Man, his feet are big,’” the president said in North Carolina on Tuesday. “Then I looked at his shoulders, and I tapped him on the shoulder, and it actually hurt my hand. It was like a piece of steel. I said, ‘This guy’s a monster.'”

Vice President JD Vance dismissed the idea of Democrats winning statewide in his home state of Ohio.

“I just do not think the state of Ohio wants to give [Democratic candidate for U.S. Senate] Sherrod Brown a 50th year when he didn’t do anything with his first 49 years in public service,” Vance told the Washington Examiner at the Cincinnati FBI Field Office in Kenwood, Ohio. “I don’t think that they want to give the governorship over to a person who lies about every single one of her positions [referring to Democrat Amy Acton], who pretends that she’s a reasonable moderate when her entire life in public service she’s been a far left Democrat.”

Vance said his message to the people of Ohio is “very simple.”

“This is a good state,” he added. “The far left has run and taken over the Democratic Party. Don’t give these people power. They’re going to cause more of the very problems that we’ve been fighting against. That’s going to be my message, and I think ultimately it’s going to carry the day in the state of Ohio.”

Vance was in Ohio on Wednesday morning to announce that his White House Task Force to Eliminate Fraud had identified $40 million in SNAP fraud, with 40 people prosecuted for alleged misconduct.

KENWOOD, Ohio — Vice President JD Vance defended the White House Task Force to Eliminate Fraud’s crackdown on alleged fraud, waste, and abuse amid reports that former members of the Trump administration have tried to use their access to the president for financial gain.

“We want to fight fraud wherever we see it,” Vance told the Washington Examiner at the Cincinnati FBI Field Office in Kenwood. “What we’re not going to do is go and attack somebody based on an anonymously sourced story, and some of those cases you have to let the facts play out and see what the facts actually are.”

Vance said President Donald Trump was proactive in countering allegations of corruption within his own team.

“There is no person who hates the idea of people enriching themselves fraudulently over access to the government than Donald J. Trump,” he added. “I think he’s been a great advocate, obviously, for our anti-fraud efforts. He’s been the person who’s driven most of our anti-fraud efforts. Fundamentally, the president is not going to stand for this, but we’re not going to try people in the court of public opinion.”

Vance was in Ohio on Wednesday morning to announce that his task force had identified $40 million in Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program fraud and that 40 people had been prosecuted for alleged misconduct.

He has a rally in the afternoon for incumbent Sen. Jon Husted (R-OH) and GOP gubernatorial nominee Vivek Ramaswamy.

Michigan Republican Senate candidate Mike Rogers released a new campaign ad on Wednesday that tied Democratic candidate Abdul el Sayed’s “radical ideology” to national security.

“Abdul el Sayed is funded by people who finance Hamas. His family has ties to the Muslim Brotherhood. Abdul publicly supported these terrorists, and they publicly supported his primary will,” Rogers said, citing news reports in the 30-second ad. “Those are the facts. Abdul el Sayed’s radical ideology is a threat to our national security.”

Rogers also mentioned he was an Army officer, an FBI special agent, and the House Intelligence Committee chairman from 2011 to 2015 when he represented Michigan in the lower chamber of Congress.

“I know a threat to America when I see one,” he said after listing his credentials.

Allegations of el Sayed’s affiliation with the Muslim Brotherhood, a Sunni Islamist organization founded in Egypt in 1928, recently surfaced. El Sayed explicitly disavowed the group.

The U.S. government has designated certain chapters of the Muslim Brotherhood as foreign terrorist organizations or specially designated global terrorists rather than placing a blanket designation on the entire global organization.

Michigan Democrat Abdul el Sayed wrote a letter to Jewish voters, vowing to protect them from antisemitism if he’s elected to the Senate.

“As your Senator, I will always stand up against antisemitism and take the threat of violence against our Jewish community incredibly seriously,” he wrote in the letter, detailed with his campaign letterhead. “Antisemitism is a scourge, and we need to address it in all its forms. It has no place in our communities. Ever. Full stop.”

“I hope to earn your vote,” he concluded.

El Sayed’s promise is notable, considering he has faced intense scrutiny from Republican candidate Mike Rogers and Jewish leaders over the issue of antisemitism in the Senate race.

The Democratic nominee’s letter garnered a sharp response from Nonnegotiable Michigan, a coalition of Michigan rabbis and Jewish Democrats. The group is upset that el Sayed hasn’t met with its members yet.

“We have asked you to engage, publicly and privately, reiterating that Nonnegotiable is an invitation to dialogue,” the coalition said in a statement on its website. “You have not responded, and your silence only deepens our concern.”

Nonnegotiable explained the Muslim candidate misunderstands why Jews are being targeted in Michigan, making the case that the suspect who committed the vehicle-ramming and shooting attack at a synagogue in March did so because of the house of worship’s association with Israel rather than the Jewish faith.

“Much of the antisemitism endangering Jewish lives in America today is aimed at our connection to Israel –– not at our faith,” the group said.

“You cannot fight antisemitism without naming and condemning the kind of anti-Jewish bigotry rooted in the Jewish people’s inextricable connection to the land, people and State of Israel,” it added. “You cannot protect Jews while refusing to address that violent strain of this ancient bigotry.”

The Washington Examiner contacted el Sayed’s campaign for comment on the letter’s authenticity and Nonnegotiable’s statement.

Brendan Carr, the Trump-appointed chairman of the Federal Communications Commission, is putting journalists and broadcasters on notice for publishing false polls “without regard to basic journalistic ethics” ahead of the midterm elections.

Carr said on Wednesday the polls are “designed to do nothing more than interfere with the regular functioning of the electoral process and alter the normal patterns of voter turnout and enthusiasm.” He warned broadcasters against “engaging in News Distortion or promoting Broadcast Hoaxes” while urging them to “comply with their public interest obligations.”

The warning appears to be symbolic, but the FCC could presumably take action against broadcasters for airing fake polls if it deems fit.

“Broadcasters are advised to avoid engaging in News Distortions or running Broadcast Hoaxes by airing Polls that would violate their regulatory obligations,” Carr said. “If broadcasters believe they should provide their viewers with additional context and information about Polls they have covered, they can now take those actions consistent with FCC regulations.”

The statement came one day after Wedgewood admitted to fabricating its polling data, prompting the New York Times to retract the pollster’s surveys from its election tracker. Wedgewood said it intentionally fabricated polling numbers as part of an “experimental project to demonstrate the vulnerabilities, lack of oversight, and overall low barrier to entry in the modern political polling industry.”

Over the summer, Median Strategies also revealed it fabricated its polls as part of a “social experiment.” Unlike Wedgewood, Median never had its polls in the New York Times database.

Ohio Republican Vivek Ramaswamy said the mother of his gubernatorial opponent wasn’t paid for a campaign ad she was featured in.

Amy Acton’s estranged mother, Donna Arthur, “was not compensated,” Ramaswamy said at a town hall on Tuesday. “I asked my team that question because we’ve got that question. She was not compensated.”

The attack ad has been widely criticized for featuring Acton’s mother, who claimed her daughter was a “liar” and made the case that she is not fit to serve as Ohio’s governor.

It was later revealed that Arthur stayed married to a man who sexually abused Acton when she was a child. In the ad, Arthur reveals that she helped build “one of the first two sexual abuse programs in America.” Acton and her brother were ultimately removed from their mother’s custody when they were children.

After receiving pushback over the ad, Ramaswamy stood firm, spending $4 million to continue airing it ahead of Election Day. One of the reasons for the ad’s criticism was that it was initially unclear who had paid to run it. Ramaswamy eventually confirmed his campaign was behind the attack ad.

The Republican candidate said he never met Arthur or Acton, who has refused to debate Ramaswamy before Ohio voters head to the polls on Nov. 3.