Millions of Americans go to the polls in US midterm elections

The vote will determine whether the ruling Republicans or opposition Democrats control Congress which is made up of the House of Representatives and the  Senate.

All 435 voting seats are up for election in the House where Democrats need a net gain of three seats to secure a majority.

In the 100-member Senate, 35 seats are being contested. There, Democrats need a net gain of four seats to take control.

President Donald Trump, who made his final rallying call on Monday afternoon at the Lincoln Memorial Reflecting Pool in Washington, said: "This is the last day before the midterm elections, the most important midterm, I believe in our lifetime.

"The Democrat Party has nominated the most extreme and dangerous slate of candidates in American history. These are the most dangerous candidates ever put up."

Democrats bicker in Michigan

In the prelude to the vote, Democrats in Michigan in the mid-west began to implode.

Haley Stevens, Abdul El-Sayed's opponent in the race for the US Senate, stunned party officials by endorsing Republican Mike Rogers after attending a church service with him in Detroit.

Trump hailed Stevens for her bravery. He posted on his Truth Social platform: "Haley said what few people are willing to say."

Stevens, who lost out in August despite being backed by the Democratic establishment, struggled to explain her decision in an interview with the American broadcaster CNN.

"It's just where I was at the end of the night and earlier this morning," she said.

During the campaign, Trump's Republicans have painted Democrats as communists. El-Sayed, who is Muslim, was described as a terrorist.

"Democrats are extreme and dangerous radicals who will steal your wealth and let in migrants to ransack, rape and plunder," Trump told a crowd in Iowa on Sunday.

Campaign tone

The Republicans have also had their skirmishes. In the contest in Alaska for a Senate seat, the Trump administration, through the Department of Justice (DoJ), lodged an appeal after a federal judge dismissed a Republican attempt to delay certification of the result if incumbent Republican Dan S Sullivan were to lose.

The move followed the entry into the race as a Republican of the former elementary schoolteacher Dan J Sullivan.

In June, the Alaska Division of Elections tried to remove Dan J Sullivan from the primary ballot. It said he had not filed his candidacy as a Republican in “good faith.” That decision was overturned by state courts.

Trump says he rejects Iran proposal on Strait of Hormuz

To avoid any confusion, Dan S Sullivan is identified on the ballot paper as a Republican and the incumbent.

Dan J Sullivan told the Associated Press news agency he entered the race on his own accord and had no contact with the campaign of Democratic candidate Mary Peltola campaign. “This is my choice,” he said at the time.

Polls show wariness over Trump's approach

An NBC News survey released on Sunday showed 60 percent disapprove of Trump's performance, particularly over high prices exacerbated by the eight-month-long war against Iran.

The final New York Times/Siena poll, released on Sunday, showed Democratic candidates leading in all seven of the most competitive Senate races, although five of the contests remained within the margin of error.

A Democratic Senate would be able to shut down Trump's lifetime appointments to courts –  including the Supreme Court.

Even winning just the House would mean Democrats have voting power over the federal budget and party members would lead powerful committees able to investigate controversial issues such the files held on Jeffrey Epstein, the American financier and convicted sex offender who was accused of running a child sex-trafficking network.

The loss of total Republican dominance in both chambers would push Trump into unfamiliar territory: a lame-duck period in which he cannot rely on support from Congress.

"I am nauseously optimistic that we're going to get this done," Georgia's Democratic Senator Raphael Warnock told CNN. "I think we have a great shot at the Senate."

Fears over poll monitors

On the eve of voting, the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP) reminded voters they did not have to respond to questions if they were approached at polling stations by DoJ monitors.

On 22 October, a federal judge threw out the NAACP's request to ban federal law enforcement agents from serving as election monitors

The DoJ later confirmed that FBI and Immigration and Customs Enforcement  personnel would not serve as election monitors.

However, employees of the Federal Bureau of Prisons, the Drug Enforcement Administration and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives will be at voting stations. The DoJ said those monitors would be unarmed, would observe and take notes, and would not have powers to arrest people or act in a law-enforcement capacity.

"We remain determined to pull back the veil on the DoJ's plans to deploy monitors," said Kristen Clarke, NAACP general counsel.

"We will continue to work to ensure that all voters can cast ballots free from intimidation and harassment."

Votes cast before election day

A record 54 million votes were cast in early voting. At a polling station inside a train station near the Stephen P Clark Government Center in downtown Miami, voters spoke of neglected public services, low taxes and America's strained relationship with Europe.

“My overall philosophy and concerns are: keep low taxes, keep low regulation, keep things pro-business, strong national defence,” one voter old RFI.

Another added: "This city just isn't taking care of its most vulnerable citizens. 

"You can see right around this area, there are people who need social services and they're not receiving them.”