The United States is holding its midterm elections on Tuesday (today), with opinion polls and surveys suggesting that Democrats could gain control of the House of Representatives, while seven key Senate seats are expected to witness closely contested races.
Amid the possibility of a Democratic victory in Congress, the administration of US President Donald J Trump has reportedly begun preparing a strategy to govern without congressional support.
Trump has warned that he would become “Mr Veto” if Democrats win control of Congress, saying he would initially rely on his veto powers before potentially reaching agreements with Democratic lawmakers on certain issues.
According to White House officials, legal assessments and proposals are being prepared to identify measures the administration could implement without congressional approval.
Sources said potential executive actions could cover immigration, tariffs, housing and government spending.
Supreme Court rejects bid to halt disputed vote counting in California
In a setback for the Trump administration ahead of polling, the US Supreme Court rejected a request to stop the counting of disputed ballots in California.
The administration had alleged that some voters whose ballots were involved in the dispute were not US citizens.
Early voting sets new record ahead of midterm elections
More than 51.3 million Americans had already cast their ballots through mail-in voting or in-person early voting ahead of Election Day, surpassing the previous record set during the 2022 midterm elections.
Democrats have maintained an advantage in early voting, while record participation in several key states has intensified the battle for control of Congress.
According to the University of Florida’s Election Lab, more than 100 million Americans could vote if turnout reaches the level recorded in the 2022 midterm elections.
In North Carolina, more than one million Democrats and 679,000 Republicans had cast early ballots. Texas recorded 7.6 million early votes, while nearly one million people voted early in South Carolina. Georgia reported more than 2.8 million early voters, representing a 13 per cent increase compared with 2022.
Early voting also increased by 30 per cent in Maine, Kansas and Michigan.
Data from 27 states showed that Democrats accounted for 43.1 per cent of early voters, compared with 31.8 per cent for Republicans, while independent voters made up approximately 25 per cent.
In Pennsylvania, Democrats represented 65 per cent of early voters, compared with 25 per cent for Republicans.
Democrats also matched or exceeded Republican early voting numbers in traditionally Republican-leaning states, including Iowa, Kansas and Nebraska.
However, Republicans recorded gains in early voting in Florida, Michigan and Texas.
In Florida, Republicans held a three-percentage-point advantage over Democrats, compared with a 6.4-point lead in 2022. In Michigan, 30 per cent of registered Republicans had voted early, compared with 23 per cent of registered Democrats.
