Collins accuses Schumer of pushing attack ads filled with ‘outright lies’ in tight Maine race
Sen. Susan Collins on Sunday blasted Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer and the Democratic Party over what she described as a wave of false attack ads targeting her and other Republican candidates, saying she has never seen a campaign with “so many outright lies.” She made the remarks during an interview with Fox News on Sunday, just two days before Election Day in Maine, where she is seeking reelection in a closely watched race against Democratic rival Troy Jackson. According to the latest Fox News poll, the two candidates are tied at 49%. Collins accused Democrats of following “Chuck Schumer’s playbook,” pointing to attack ads she said were nearly identical to those targeting other Republican lawmakers. MANCHIN CALLS SCHUMER ‘CRAZY’ FOR TRYING TO OUST GOP SENATOR IN CRUCIAL SENATE SHOWDOWN “One of the outrageous, completely false ads against me had to do with Jeffrey Epstein. And it turns out, in talking to two of my colleagues who are in tough races, that they had virtually identical ads run against them. So this is part of Chuck Schumer’s playbook,” she said. “There are a lot of differences between my opponent and me, but I’ve never seen a campaign with so many outright lies. It’s very frustrating,” she added. Collins further accused Democrats of trying to shift the focus away from local issues and toward divisive national political battles. “It’s certainly an attempt by my opponent and Chuck Schumer and their allies to nationalize this race,” she said. SENATE CONTROL IS A COIN FLIP — AND DEMOCRATS’ PATH RUNS THROUGH TRUMP COUNTRY Turning to her own campaign, Collins portrayed herself as a bipartisan lawmaker willing to work across party lines, arguing that the Senate needs more centrists as moderates increasingly leave Washington. “Unfortunately, a lot of them have given up and retired or decided they just didn’t want to run again. And that’s one reason I am running again,” she said. “We need more people who are willing to work across party lines. That is really important,” she said. FOX NEWS POLL: NAIL-BITER IN MAINE SENATE RACE She also described herself as the “most independent senator on either side of the aisle,” pointing to her voting record and saying her decisions are based on what she believes is right, rather than who occupies the White House or what President Donald Trump supports. “There’s this phony figure out there that I voted with President Trump 95% of the time. That’s based on a sample of only 30% of the votes. If you look at a broader sample of 90% of the vote, that drops significantly to like 72%. And I voted against the president’s policies 138 times,” she said. While Jackson previously told Fox News that he believes he has a “good shot” at defeating Collins, the longtime Republican senator touted strong voter support and said she is more optimistic than ever about her reelection chances. “I’m feeling very optimistic based on the great response I get in visiting communities all over the state,” she said.
DOJ set to appeal ruling in Alaska Senate race dispute over ‘Decoy Dan’
A federal judge on Sunday dismissed the Justice Department’s lawsuit seeking to delay certification of Alaska’s Senate election amid the “Decoy Dan” controversy, rejecting the Trump administration’s bid two days before the midterm elections. The DOJ said it would appeal. The lawsuit centered on two candidates with similar names: Republican Sen. Dan S. Sullivan and challenger Daniel J. Sullivan Jr. The DOJ lawsuit sought to delay or block certification while investigating whether voter confusion may have affected the outcome. DEM BUCKS PARTY OVER ALLEGED ALASKA VOTE-SIPHONING EFFORT: ‘NEITHER PARTY SHOULD BE DOING IT’ U.S. District Judge Sharon Gleason said the government had not shown how the requested investigation could identify voters’ intent while protecting ballot secrecy. She also said the relief sought would intrude on Alaska’s responsibility to run its elections. The DOJ said it would appeal, arguing the judge dismissed the case on procedural grounds without addressing its claim that Sullivan Jr. entered the race to confuse voters. The case now heads to the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals. The dispute has roiled the campaign in recent days. The New York Times reported that people connected to Democratic nominee Mary Peltola’s campaign helped recruit Sullivan Jr. to run as a spoiler. Peltola has denied involvement, and Sullivan Jr. has denied coordinating with her campaign. Sen. Sullivan said Sunday he would accept the results of Tuesday’s election, even as the Trump administration pursues a criminal investigation into Sullivan Jr.’s candidacy. Sullivan accused the challenger of trying to confuse voters. GOVERNOR PROBING ‘DECOY DAN’ SULLIVAN ELECTION SCANDAL WARNS SYSTEM FLAW HIDING IN PLAIN SIGHT Alaska Gov. Mike Dunleavy, a Republican, has suggested he may not certify a Peltola victory. Sullivan declined to say whether he would support efforts to refuse certification. The Senate race could help determine which party controls the chamber. Alaska uses ranked-choice voting, under which lower-performing candidates are eliminated in rounds if no one wins a majority in the first count. The closely watched race could help determine which party controls the Senate. Alaska uses ranked-choice voting, so if no candidate wins a majority in the first round, the last-place candidate is eliminated and voters’ next choices are counted.
Connecticut Dem Sen Chris Murphy hospitalized Saturday for stroke
Sen. Chris Murphy, D-Conn., was hospitalized after experiencing a stroke, his chief of staff Allison Herwitt said in a statement released Sunday. Murphy, who is not running in the midterms but has been stumping for Democrats, began feeling numbness in his arm Saturday afternoon while at his son’s hockey game and was taken to a local hospital before being transferred to Johns Hopkins for further monitoring, according to Allison Herwitt. WHAT TO DO IF SOMEONE IS HAVING A STROKE, AFTER JILL BIDEN REVEALED DEBATE-NIGHT FEARS “He was taken to a local hospital, where it was discovered he had experienced a stroke. He was transferred to Johns Hopkins for further monitoring and is responding well to treatment,” she said in a statement. “The doctors are encouraged by his progress, he is awake and alert, and we are optimistic he will make a full recovery.” Murphy was first elected to the Senate in 2013 and has been viewed as a potential 2028 Democratic presidential primary candidate. He has spent the past several weeks on the campaign trail with Democrats as he stumped to help retake control of the Senate majority in the midterm elections. He had been scheduled to campaign for Democrats in New Hampshire on Sunday. Murphy is 53 years old, born August 3, 1973.
‘Squad’ rakes in record $2.35M while slamming the door on cop donations
Hey cops, your money’s no good here. A joint fundraising committee for four progressive House Democrats has raised a record $2.35 million so far this election cycle, while barring donations from the Fraternal Order of Police, according to federal filings and the committee’s disclosure. The Squad Victory Fund is authorized by Reps. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, D-N.Y.; Ilhan Omar, D-Minn.; Ayanna Pressley, D-Mass.; and Rashida Tlaib, D-Mich. The fundraising gives the four lawmakers and their allied political groups a shared vehicle to collect and distribute campaign contributions. ILHAN OMAR’S WEALTH SCANDAL TAKES A TURN JUST ONE DAY AFTER RAID OF HER DC HOME The fund’s donor rules also make clear which groups it says it will not accept money from, and one is the Fraternal Order of Police, the nation’s largest police organization. It also bars donations from corporations, federal lobbyists and fossil fuel interests. The disclosure does not explain the FOP exclusion. SOCIALIST PRIMARY SWEEP SPARKS LAUNCH OF NEW RESOURCE LAYING OUT WHAT’S AT STAKE IN 2026 The fund’s other participants include four allied PACs. Contributions are generally divided equally among the eight participants, with each slated to receive 12.5%, though donors may designate their contributions for a specific participant. The fund has raised $2,351,388.02 in the 2025–2026 election cycle, its highest total to date, according to its FEC summary. Through March 31, 2026, it had spent about $1.6 million and reported roughly $68,000 in cash on hand. The committee remains active, so those figures may change. Contributions are not tax-deductible, the disclosure notes.
Democrat Haley Stevens endorses GOP Senate nominee Mike Rogers at Detroit church
Rep. Haley Stevens, D-Mich., endorsed Republican Senate candidate Mike Rogers on Sunday amid Democratic infighting that has roiled the Michigan Senate race. The endorsement came on the heels of Stevens’ appearance alongside Rogers at Detroit’s Perfecting Church, where Fox News confirmed she attended a service. Stevens lost in the primary to fellow Democrat Abdul El-Sayed, and has been critical of his unwillingness to condemn the overt antisemitism of some of his supporters. “Hey Michigan, as you may have seen, our Democratic nominee for U.S. Senate, Abdul [El-Sayed] said that I was no longer welcome in his campaign and that I should stay away and he’s right. And that’s why I’m endorsing Mike Rogers for the United States Senate today,” Stevens said in a video posted on X. Stevens said she remains “a very proud Democrat” who loves Michigan but could not support El-Sayed, citing his backing from political streamer Hasan Piker. “I’m honored to have Haley Stevens support today. I’m honored to have earned that vote,” Rogers told reporters gathered outside the church. “This is more a statement about standing together against hate and the future of this state and this country than it is anything else,” he added. The appearance came after Stevens was disinvited from a planned church event with El-Sayed, the man who narrowly defeated her in Michigan’s August Democratic primary. The reversal left Stevens at the same church as Rogers, El-Sayed’s Republican opponent. HALEY STEVENS RIPPED BY FELLOW DEMS FOR REFUSING TO EXPLICITLY BACK EL-SAYED: ‘STAY THE F— OFF TELEVISION’ Stevens has pressed El-Sayed to condemn an outside group’s ad linking U.S. support for Israel to higher grocery prices, which she called antisemitic. El-Sayed said the ad was not produced by his campaign and that he disagreed with its contents. Rep. Debbie Dingell, D-Mich., who helped organize the planned appearance, said Stevens was asked to skip it after the dispute became a distraction and upset the church’s bishop. FORMER RIVAL DODGES FULL-THROATED EL-SAYED ENDORSEMENT AFTER BITTER SENATE PRIMARY El-Sayed’s campaign also asked Stevens to stay away from its remaining events. Stevens fiancé, Jason Turkish, has previously endorsed Rogers and appeared at a Rogers campaign event, saying he could not support El-Sayed because of his positions on Israel. The dispute has put a spotlight on Democratic divisions in a close Senate race that could help determine control of the chamber.
Inside top Trump bulldog’s plan to save House GOP majority and defy history
Rep. Jim Jordan, R-Ohio, was jumping into the car with his wife on the way to the airport when he took a call from a Fox News Digital reporter on Thursday morning. It’s a microcosm of what the House Judiciary Committee chairman’s recent weeks and months have been: a seemingly endless series of planes, trains and automobiles across the U.S. campaigning for fellow Republican lawmakers. House Republicans’ senior leadership is crisscrossing the country raising money and support for their members to win Tuesday’s midterm elections. Jordan, though he’s not part of the trio, has much the same schedule. “Sometimes they’re fundraisers, sometimes they’re rallies, sometimes they’re both,” Jordan said. “We’re doing everything we can just to help our team win, because… if these Democrats get in there, my real concern, I gotta be honest, is what they’re gonna try to do to the structure of our government.” MAPPED: TRUMP’S NONSTOP CAMPAIGN BLITZ SWEEPS KEY STATES A source familiar with Jordan’s travel schedule said he’ll have gone to 115 districts across 34 states during this election cycle. That includes 19 consecutive days on the road in the lead-up to Nov. 3 in states such as Washington, Oregon, Texas, Arkansas, Florida, Illinois and South Carolina. And despite the diverse areas, Jordan said his message is mostly the same: Republicans cut taxes, secured the border and Democrats will make it all worse. “We understand things cost a little too much, and we’re working on that. But remember, most of that’s because of the Biden administration and their record inflation. We’re bringing that inflation rate down, but you know, we still understand things, things cost too much, and we’re gonna keep working on that,” Jordan said. TRUMP VOTERS REVEAL THEIR BIGGEST FEAR HEADING INTO MIDTERMS — AND IT’S NOT RISING PRICES “But the big issue we talk about is, if these radicals that now control the Democrat Party, if they get control of the government, the crazy things they’re gonna do are just frightening.” And because he’s not a member of leadership, he’s not afforded the same charter flights and police motorcades that come with that job. While he’s had some private flights, most of Jordan’s travel has been comprised of commercial airlines and long drives between destinations — including sitting in traffic. He said his favorite travel tunes include the greatest hits of late country star Glen Campbell. But Jordan said he also uses much of that time texting or calling colleagues, asking how their races are going, and talking to staff about what issues to raise at his next event. He’s also raised a significant amount of cash for their campaigns, donating $1.97 million to Republicans across the country and $2.65 million to the House GOP campaign arm. 10 DEMOCRAT-HELD HOUSE SEATS REPUBLICANS COULD FLIP TO SAVE THEIR MAJORITY It comes as House Republicans fight an uphill battle to retain their majority, as multiple political forecasts show Democrats poised to take over the chamber. Jordan’s volume of travel is notable for someone who is not in senior House leadership, but it’s not a surprise, given his years-long high profile. “His celebrity status is very helpful,” one House Republican previously told Fox News Digital. “When Jim Jordan comes to town for you, you put 300 butts in seats.” Another lawmaker shared a similar figure. Rep. Tim Moore, R-N.C., told Fox News Digital that Jordan reached out to him about doing an event in his district that wound up a success. DEMOCRATS SEE NEW CHANCES TO FLIP RED STATES — BUT A $400M GOP SPENDING ADVANTAGE COULD DERAIL THEIR PLANS “We had a fundraiser in Gastonia and it was very well attended. A huge crowd, nearly 300 people there — raised a lot of money, a lot of excitement, a lot of enthusiasm, and so I appreciated him coming down to do that,” Moore said. His district also saw a visit from House Majority Leader Steve Scalise, R-La., which Moore said also raised a significant sum. Jordan has appeared alongside conservatives in deep red districts and moderates in battlegrounds — walking out to Survivor’s “Eye of the Tiger” for many of those appearances — painting a picture of party unity that’s a far cry from his roots as an anti-establishment rebel leading the House Freedom Caucus. “It’s kind of a Jordan 2.0,” the first House Republican said. “He’s just a great citizen of the conference.” A second House Republican told Fox News Digital that a wide range of members see Jordan as a “mentor.” They said Jordan’s travels are a mix of Republicans asking him to come out and him extending those offers himself. “Jim doesn’t care if you’re moderate or even if you have to lean left to keep your seat, you have to represent your people,” the second House Republican said. Asked whether he’s changed or the party has, Jordan said it was “the overall picture.” “Any differences that exist in the Republican Party are pretty small compared to the differences between Republicans and the left, the hard left, the radical left, which now controls the Democrat Party,” Jordan said. It has also inspired questions about what he wants out of it. House Republicans and members of the media are widely expecting that Jordan is eyeing a bid for senior leadership after failing to clinch a position in the past. If Republicans lose the majority, he’s expected to run for minority leader, where he’d be Trump’s top defender in Congress. But Jordan himself has publicly dismissed those notions. “I’m focused on… Tuesday,” he told Fox News Digital. “The way you stop the radicals from making these structural changes to our constitutional form of government, these radical policy positions that they have, the way you stop them is at the ballot box, and that happens on Tuesday.” And then the conversation ended, because Jordan had to catch a flight to campaign with Republican candidates in Florida that night.
Trump’s DOJ makeover hasn’t changed where the political cash is flowing — and the gap is growing
The Trump administration has sought to eliminate what it alleges is partisan bias within the Justice Department, but the vast majority of political donations from individuals identifying themselves as DOJ employees are still going to Democratic-aligned committees, according to a Fox News Digital analysis of federal campaign finance records. Between January 2025 and August of this year, just over 75% of campaign contributions from individuals identifying themselves as Department of Justice employees went to Democratic committees, the analysis of federal campaign finance records found. Fox News Digital analyzed roughly $300,000 in political contributions recorded by the Federal Election Commission between January 2025 and August 2026 from donors who listed their employer as “Department of Justice,” “DOJ” or a variation of those names. Contributions were categorized by the political affiliation of the recipient candidate or committee, while independent-expenditure committees were classified according to the candidates or parties they supported. When exporting data from the Federal Election Commission’s dashboard, an option to include donations from “unique individuals only” was selected to filter out duplicative records. As the Trump administration has progressed, the partisan slant of DOJ donations has become more pronounced. Through 2025, about 70% of donations from those identifying themselves as DOJ staff went to Democratic committees, a figure that rose to just under 90% in 2026, according to Fox News Digital’s findings. TODD BLANCHE EXPOSES HOW AGGRESSIVE BIDEN DOJ TARGETED LOW-LEVEL MAR-A-LAGO EMPLOYEES Attorney General Todd Blanche and his predecessor, Pam Bondi, both claimed that the Trump administration inherited a deeply corrupt DOJ, pointing to allegations that the agency was inundated with political bias under President Joe Biden’s tenure. “There are a lot of people in the FBI and also in the Department of Justice who despise Donald Trump, despise us,” Bondi said in early 2025. “Right now, we’re going to root them out; we will find them, and they will no longer be employed.” Critics have pushed back against claims of political weaponization during the Biden administration, arguing that high-profile investigations into President Donald Trump and other conservatives originated from legitimate legal concerns. DOJ DANGLES MASSIVE SIGNING BONUSES FOR LAWYERS READY TO FIGHT ‘LAWLESS’ CITIES FAR BEYOND DC Both of Trump’s attorneys general under his second administration have made strides to recruit a greater number of ideologically aligned lawyers while attempting to push those out who may not be willing to advance the administration’s interests. In early February 2026, DOJ chief of staff Chad Mizelle publicly encouraged lawyers who “support President Trump” to contact him about becoming federal prosecutors. Stephen Miller amplified the appeal on social media with the caption “patriots needed,” and sitting U.S. Attorney Jason Quiñones reposted the appeal alongside the phrase “we are hiring!” Mizelle later defended the approach as ensuring that executive-branch lawyers were in line with the elected president’s agenda. LEGAL WAR ON TRUMP’S AGENDA GAINS FIREPOWER AS FEDERAL LAWYERS DEFECT TO DEMOCRATS The administration’s personnel overhaul has coincided with a substantial exodus of attorneys from federal service. Over 10,000 attorneys have left federal service since Trump took office for a second term. Fox News Digital reported in July that well over 100 federal attorneys had left the Trump administration for roles in Democratic-run state attorneys general offices. Many of these lawyers took decades of experience with them, prompting concerns that the Trump administration could be depriving itself of the ability to handle highly technical legal matters. Some of these seasoned former federal lawyers have since joined legal action against the Trump administration. While a significant number of government lawyers have left federal service under Trump, and some prominent conservatives have joined the administration, campaign finance records show that Democratic committees continue to receive the overwhelming majority of political contributions from donors identifying themselves as Justice Department employees. Among the most common recipients of donations from those identifying themselves as DOJ employees were Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, D-N.Y., Sen. Jon Ossoff, D-Georgia, and Emily’s List, a pro-abortion group associated with the Democratic Party. Some conservative committees, such as those in Trump’s network of PACs, were also common targets for Justice Department donors. DEMOCRAT POLITICOS RERUN UNDERHANDED LEFTIST PLAYBOOK IN EFFORT TO TORPEDO TRUMP’S AG NOMINEE Much of the DOJ’s work concerns investigations and prosecutions unrelated to partisan politics, and the campaign finance records do not establish whether employees’ political preferences have influenced the department’s day-to-day operations. Progressive critics, to the contrary, have alleged that the Trump administration is using the Justice Department to target its political enemies. “Those who were fired from the Department were fired for a reason. Those who resigned or took the fork in the road option likely aligned more with the priorities of President Biden and would naturally leave, which is common during transitions,” a DOJ spokeswoman previously told Fox News Digital. “The Administration gave career employees the fork in the road option to intentionally reduce the size of the government and eliminate unnecessary layers of staff who don’t effectively contribute to the mission of aggressively tackling crime.” The DOJ did not respond to a request for comment when reached by Fox News Digital on Monday.
Americans forced to change clocks again as Senate stalls Trump-backed daylight saving time bill
Daylight saving time has dodged the wrath of President Donald Trump — for now. As Americans again participate in the twice-yearly ritual of fiddling with their clocks — this time rolling back an hour on Sunday morning — Congress has fallen short of tackling the issue in time. Earlier this year, the House passed legislation that would allow states to voluntarily observe daylight saving time year-round. But progress on the legislation has ground to a halt in the Senate, even though it’s a popular issue with voters and Trump. BATTLE OVER DAYLIGHT SAVING TIME ERUPTS AS PUSH TO STOP CHANGING CLOCKS HITS SENATE WALL But it’s not for lack of trying. Trump has routinely pressured the upper chamber to pass the bill and re-upped that call earlier this week in the midst of traveling across the country to rally in key states and safe red bastions to urge voters to keep Republicans in power. “The United States Senate is letting the daylight saving bill die when a vast Majority of the Country want it,” Trump said on Truth Social. “Most people are demanding light in the evening, but ALL want not to change their clocks anymore. TAKE A VOTE!” Trump wants the Senate to pass, or at least take a vote on, the Sunshine Protection Act, but it’s facing heavy headwinds from a broad swathe of lawmakers in the upper chamber on both sides of the aisle. TRUMP FACES REPUBLICAN REBELLION OVER DAYLIGHT SAVING TIME AS SENATE BILL NEARS DEAD END His pressure campaign got to the point that he shared the cellphone number of one of his top allies, Sen. Tom Cotton, R-Ark., one of the more vocal opponents of the bill, urging supporters to call the lawmaker and demand he work on passing the bill. “No one likes changing the clock, me included, but Congress has enacted permanent Daylight Saving Time multiple times before and repealed it each time once Americans experienced absurdly late sunrises in the winter,” Cotton said in response. “Arkansans don’t want their kids going to school in the pitch dark, and I’ll always put Arkansas first.” The House of Representatives passed the Sunshine Protection Act along bipartisan lines in July. Majorities of Democrats and Republicans voted in favor of the bill, which passed 307 to 117. Just 22 Republicans and 95 Democrats opposed it. But it’s one of several pieces of legislation that House lawmakers complain has fallen by the wayside in the upper chamber. House Majority Leader Steve Scalise, R-La., pressed the Senate to take up that bill in comments to Fox News Digital in early October. TIME ENOUGH AT LAST: WHAT’S NEXT AFTER THE HOUSE PASSES BILL TO DO AWAY WITH DAYLIGHT SAVING TIME? Scalise told Fox News Digital, “There’s no reason Americans should lose an hour of sunlight at the end of the day when more daylight means more time with our families, more activity for our businesses and safer communities.” “President Trump has been pushing to make daylight saving time permanent, and House Republicans delivered by overwhelmingly passing the Sunshine Protection Act. It’s a commonsense change and the Senate should take it up,” Scalise said. And when the Senate returns after the election, lawmakers will have a densely packed schedule crammed with leftover legislation. With floor time being the top commodity in the upper chamber, squeezing the Sunshine Protection Act onto the floor may be a challenge, even without the resistance it already faces. “The president feels strongly on it like he does a lot of issues,” Senate Majority Leader John Thune, R-S.D., told reporters earlier this month. “It’s something we’re having conversations about, but there’s no clear path forward or consensus on it yet.”
Everything to know about House and Senate control, ballot measures and 2026 Election Day poll closing
In two days, Americans voting in the midterm elections will decide control of the U.S. House and Senate for the next two years. Republicans are defending their slim congressional majorities, but President Donald Trump predicts the GOP will hold the House and Senate. “If you elect a Republican House and a Republican Senate on Nov. 3, we will continue to put America first every single day,” the president pledged on the campaign trail last week. And he claimed if the Democrats take control, “this country will go to hell.” CHECK OUT THE FINAL FOX NEWS POWER RANKINGS IN THE MIDTERM ELECTIONS Republicans are fighting political history, as the party in power in Washington has traditionally lost seats during midterm election years. The GOP also faces a challenging political climate fueled by persistent inflation tied in part to what polls show is an unpopular war with Iran and Trump’s increasingly negative approval ratings. Also up for grabs in this year’s midterm elections — governorships in 36 of the 50 states (as well as the territories of Guam, the Northern Mariana Islands and the U.S. Virgin Islands). Plus, all but four states are holding legislative elections. And voters will also weigh in on 145 statewide ballot measures in states from coast to coast. Here’s a closer look at what’s up for grabs on Election Day 2026. Republicans currently control the chamber 53-47, with the final Fox News Power Rankings ahead of Election Day rating the race for Senate control a toss-up. Both parties are three seats short of a majority, according to the forecast. Democrats are favored in 48 seats and Republicans are ahead in 47. The GOP needs to hold 50 seats to retain control of the chamber, since Republican Vice President JD Vance is the tie-breaking vote in the Senate. WHO’S UP AND DOWN IN THE FINAL FOX NEWS MIDTERM ELECTION POLLS If Democrats ride a blue wave to victory by winning most or all of the competitive races, they could potentially come away from the midterms with up to 54 seats. But if Republicans have a good night and defy expectations, the GOP could hold the majority with up to 52 seats, according to the forecast. Republicans are playing defense in Alaska, Iowa, Maine, South Carolina and Texas, which are all rated toss-ups in the Power Rankings. They’re also defending seats in competitive races in Kansas, which is rated Lean Republican, and Ohio, which is rated Lean Democrat. Democrats are on defense in Michigan, which is rated a toss-up, and in Minnesota and New Hampshire, which are listed as Lean Democrat. HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES The GOP is hanging on to a razor-thin majority in the House, and the Power Rankings point to the Democrats retaking control of the chamber. A good night for the Democrats could see them ending up with as many as 240 seats in the 435-seat chamber. But if Republicans have a good night, they could end up with 212 seats. That’s six short of a majority, but enough to make life difficult for the next Democratic House speaker, who would have to balance the demands of the moderate and far-left wings of the party. SIGN UP TO GET THE POLITICS NEWSLETTER The earliest-closing districts on election night will give some sense of the House’s future. “Keep an eye on Kentucky’s 6th District, which covers Lexington and a large central area of the state. Trump won here by 15 points in the last presidential election. Thanks to a combination of left-leaning college voters and farmers grappling with higher costs, it looks close this cycle,” Remy Numa, a Fox News contributor who steers the network’s Power Rankings, said. There are currently 26 Republican and 24 Democratic governors. The Power Rankings list three states where the GOP controls the governor’s office – Alaska, Nevada and Georgia – as toss-ups. Wisconsin, which has an open Democratic-controlled governor’s office, is also rated a toss-up. The gubernatorial races in red states Florida, Kansas and Texas are rated Lean Republican, according to the Power Rankings. DEMOCRACY 2026: STAY UP TO DATE WITH THE FOX NEWS ELECTION HUB Five other races are also seen as competitive and rated Lean Democrat. They are Arizona, Michigan and Oregon, where Democrats are playing defense, and Iowa and Ohio, where the GOP is defending open governor’s offices. Referendums requiring voters to present identification when they show up at the polls, or bans on noncitizen voting, are on the ballot in 11 states: Alaska, Arizona, Arkansas, California, Colorado, Kansas, Nevada, North Carolina, Ohio, South Dakota and West Virginia. Voters in Alaska will also decide if they want to repeal the state’s ranked choice voting system, open primaries and a campaign finance disclosure rule. Voters approved the current system in 2020 and narrowly kept it in 2024. But the voting system has come under fresh scrutiny amid the controversy over a potential spoiler candidate in Alaska’s U.S. Senate race. Voters in Virginia will decide whether the right to vote should be restored to convicted felons upon their release. California’s Proposition 40 is making national headlines. The measure, the first of its kind, would slap a one-time 5% tax on wealth for Californians worth over $1 billion, with the vast majority of the revenue generated going to pay for healthcare. Also in the spotlight is a millionaires’ tax in Washington state. If passed, the referendum would repeal a 9.9% tax on income over $1 million a year, which state lawmakers recently approved. Washington state currently does not have a personal income tax. Voters in Maryland, Missouri and Colorado weigh in on ballot measures on congressional redistricting, as the mid-decade redistricting fight between Democrats and Republicans will be waged again in 2028. Arizona, Colorado, Nebraska and Washington state have referendums on transgender students’ participation in sports. Colorado also has a referendum on blocking gender transition surgeries for minors and preventing state or federal funding from being used for those operations. Voters in Missouri weigh in on repealing a right to
Fox News Power Rankings: Kansas moves to Toss-up, Nebraska moves to Lean R
Updated Nov. 1: We’re updating this forecast to move Kansas from Lean R to Toss-up, and Nebraska from Likely R to Lean R. Kansas is a conservative stronghold, but Republicans are spending too much time and money relative to other states to conclude that Sen. Roger Marshall has an edge over Democrat Adam Hamilton. The odds remain in Republican Sen. Pete Ricketts’ favor in Nebraska. A larger-than-expected swing against the GOP could open the door for independent Dan Osborn to pull off an upset. We still consider Senate control a toss-up. Seven states are most likely to decide the majority. On a good night for the Democrats, their ceiling rises to 55 seats. A good night for the Republicans could see them retain control with up to 52 seats. TRUMP-BACKED SENATOR ADMITS GOP FACES NIGHTMARE SCENARIO IN STATE REPUBLICANS HAVEN’T LOST IN 90 YEARS — It seems like there are two electorates in these midterms. SCHOEN, COOPERMAN: DEMOCRATS COULD BE RIDING A MIDTERM WAVE. THESE NUMBERS SHOULD TERRIFY THE GOP The first is frustrated with President Donald Trump and ready to reject Republicans. It includes growing numbers of independent, rural and Hispanic voters who say they’ll vote for a Democrat. That’s what the latest round of House polling shows, including a survey last week that had Democrats up 11 points on the generic ballot, and Fox’s most recent national poll. The second electorate is wavering on Republicans but won’t necessarily hand Democrats the Senate. These are the voters in the Midwest and a few other places. They say they prefer the Democrat or Republican in their states by a point or two at most. That’s the right conclusion from most of the battleground Senate polling. How could both things be true? In other words, if Democrats have such a wide lead in the House, won’t the Senate fall too? Both are true, and a big lead in the House doesn’t necessarily translate to the Senate. These voters are all in the same electorate, and they only seem divorced from each other because the House and Senate maps are so far apart this year. FOX NEWS POWER RANKINGS: FOR THE DEMOCRATS, WHERE COULD IT POSSIBLY GO WRONG? The president’s declining approval rating and Democratic advantages on the issues will likely deliver them the House, and possibly by many seats. Those advantages have also allowed the blue team to play in a lot of Senate races that Republicans thought were unreachable, but only to the point of making them battlegrounds. GOP SENATE MAJORITY FACES FRESH UNCERTAINTY AS 2 KEY RACES TIGHTEN DAYS BEFORE MIDTERMS The road to a Senate majority goes through several states that Trump won by 11 points or more. Democrats can win any of these races. If Republicans turn out and stay loyal to their party, the climb for the left will be steep. That’s why the Senate is a toss-up. Voters could give Democrats a majority, and maybe with several seats to spare. They could also let the Republicans keep control. We’ll find out next week. In his 11-year political career, Trump has triumphed over almost all the threats to his power. The exception was the coronavirus pandemic, which was the top issue for voters in the 2020 election and ushered in the Biden presidency. It was also one of the few threats that Trump has faced from abroad. This time, Trump and the Republicans face a new foreign opponent: Iran. The administration’s decision to start joint U.S.-Israeli military strikes against the nation in February has cast a shadow over the GOP. First, it has impacted Trump’s approval rating, which will decide the fate of many congressional Republicans and has fallen since the war began. It was 44% in the last pre-war survey and sits at 36% now. The war has also given Democrats advantages on the top issues. In Fox’s October survey, Iran played a role in four issues that more than two-thirds of voters said they were concerned about: inflation (85%), gas prices (83%), government leadership (79%), and the war in Iran itself (75%). Most voters said they preferred the Democrats to handle those issues: 16 points on inflation, 12 points on gas prices, 11 points on leadership, and 9 points on foreign policy. Still, voters are not convinced that the Senate should change hands. That comes down to the territory. Trump won seven of the 11 battleground states in 2024, and seven of them by double digits. That includes Alaska, Iowa, Kansas, Nebraska, Ohio, South Carolina and Texas. Democrats don’t need to win all of those states to take the Senate, but it’s hard to see how they get to 51 seats without at least two of them. While former Democratic Sen. Sherrod Brown leads in Ohio, the other states are close. Turnout, a polling error in either direction or both could decide them. There are also a lot of undecided voters. In Alaska, Iowa and Kansas, three states with recent high-quality polling, an average of 10% of voters say they haven’t decided who they will support or won’t support the major candidates. Any guess on how those voters will break at the ballot box is only a guess. All we know from prior results is that the overall electorate leans conservative, so the Democrats have the tougher assignment to bring them over to their side (or keep them at home). There are far fewer undecided voters in Texas, where last week’s Fox News Poll showed a tied race at 49%-49%. If Democrats only win two Trump-won battlegrounds, they’ll need to win three other races where former Vice President Kamala Harris delivered single-digit victories in 2024: Maine, Minnesota and New Hampshire. Democrats are ahead in the latter two. Maine could go either way. While Democrats win its presidential races, it could just as easily be considered a Republican state when Susan Collins is on the ballot. Both parties are short of a majority in this forecast. Democrats are favored in 48 seats and Republicans