Midterm vote will decide control of Congress

Americans are scheduled to vote Tuesday, November 3, in midterm elections that will determine control of Congress and decide a wide range of state and local contests. All 435 seats in the House of Representatives and 35 of the Senate’s 100 seats are on the ballot, alongside gubernatorial races in 36 states. The elections take place halfway through President Donald Trump’s four-year term and will not decide who occupies the White House. Their outcome will shape the legislative balance for the next two years, including how much room the president has to advance his agenda and how Congress conducts oversight. More than 53 million Americans had voted early by November 2, according to one report. The figure is a lower-bound estimate; another account put early participation above 50 million. Neither total determines the result, which will depend on votes cast and counted under state and local rules. A November 2 forecast by Decision Desk HQ gave Democrats an 84% chance of winning the House and a 65% chance of taking the Senate. The model projected a possible Democratic 241-seat House majority and a 52-48 Senate split. Those are probabilities and projected outcomes, not results, and...