Elections · Washington and Sioux City
Early voting surges in Senate battlegrounds as poll shows voters want costs and Iran addressed
Early voting is running well ahead of 2022 in many states that will decide Senate control, while a new AP-NORC poll finds voters want Congress focused on living costs and the Iran war.
AI text based on reports by The New York Times, Washington Post, POLITICO and other publishers. Published . How it is made
In brief
Early voting in Texas is up 74% compared with 2022 and in Kansas it has more than doubled, per an AP analysis taken two weeks before Election Day.
About 8 in 10 registered voters call lowering the cost of living a top priority, and roughly 7 in 10 say the same about ending the war with Iran, according to an AP-NORC poll.
Ashley Hinson faces Josh Turek as Trump rallies in Sioux City on Thursday, 22 October, with a return visit expected on 1 November.
The most vulnerable 17 House Republicans, in districts Biden won in 2020, have not endorsed Trump, while Trump has the backing of every House GOP leader.
58% of Arab American registered voters back Democrats for Congress and 34% back Republicans in a Washington Post-Schar School poll conducted in August and September.
Early voting climbs in Senate battlegrounds
Early voting is running well ahead of the last midterm election in many states expected to decide control of the U.S. Senate, according to an Associated Press analysis taken two weeks before Election Day. In Texas, early voting is up 74% compared with 2022, and in Kansas it has more than doubled. Maine, North Carolina and Ohio each saw increases of more than 30% in early in-person and mail voting over the same point in 2022. Democrats are trying to flip Republican-held seats in each of those states, and in most of them Republicans make up a smaller share of advance voters than they did four years ago.
Voters want Congress to tackle costs and Iran
A new AP-NORC poll finds that about 8 in 10 registered voters, including large majorities of Republicans and Democrats, consider lowering the cost of living a top priority for the coming session. Roughly 7 in 10 want Congress to prioritize ending the war with Iran. About 4 in 10 want the chamber to make investigating the Trump administration a high priority, while only about 2 in 10 want it to support Trump's agenda. The poll also exposes deep splits inside both parties. Most Democrats who identify as supporters of democratic socialism want an investigation of the administration, and many want military aid to Israel ended, while MAGA Republicans want Congress to back Trump's agenda. Moderates in both parties are far more likely to want common ground.
- Lower cost of living (about 8 in 10)
- 80 % of registered voters
- End war with Iran (roughly 7 in 10)
- 70 % of registered voters
- Investigate Trump administration (about 4 in 10)
- 40 % of registered voters
- Support Trump's agenda (about 2 in 10)
- 20 % of registered voters
Data from the article text
Justin Campbell, a 31-year-old Democrat from Brookhaven, Mississippi, said he wants government to help people like him rather than wealthy people.
“I prefer policy that helps me instead of someone I'll never be.”
Republicans in Iowa balance Trump ties with local concerns
Ashley Hinson, Iowa's Republican nominee for U.S. Senate and a current U.S. House member, faces Democratic state lawmaker Josh Turek. Hinson has said she will push back on the president when it matters to Iowa, and she now describes herself as Iowa's best bipartisan fighter after first pledging to be Trump's top ally in the Senate. Trump is joining her at a rally in Sioux City, in the state's conservative northwest corner, on Thursday, 22 October, a visit aimed at boosting turnout. Turek said the president's visit would show how tariffs and the Iran war have hurt Iowa more than any other state. Trump is expected to return to Iowa on 1 November.
“I will be there at the rally to welcome him to Iowa because I think this is a contrast election.”
Swing-district Republicans hold back endorsements
Trump has won the backing of every House GOP leader and a growing number of senators. The 17 most vulnerable House Republicans, who represent districts Biden carried in 2020, have not endorsed him. Representative Marc Molinaro, whose central New York district voted for Biden by 4.6 points, said he does not want to get involved in presidential politics, but he suggested he would back Trump if Trump wins the nomination.
“I'm confident I'll support the Republican nominee.”
Bipartisan messaging and the Arab American vote
A POLITICO poll finds 66% of Republican voters want a Democratic House to find common ground with Trump next year if the party flips the chamber. Nearly 200 GOP ads mention bipartisanship, up more than 60% from 2024. A Washington Post-Schar School poll conducted in August and September finds Arab American registered voters back Democrats for Congress by 58% to 34%, after the group split evenly between Trump and Harris in 2024. Seven in 10 Arab American voters disapprove of Trump's handling of the economy.
- Democrats
- 58 %
- Republicans
- 34 %
Data from the article text
Other developments
Calley Means, who helped unite Robert F. Kennedy Jr. and Trump behind the Make America Healthy Again campaign, resigned from the administration on Thursday, 22 October. According to NPR, the U.S. and Israel are preparing for a possible attack on Iran after the midterms, and Tesla and SpaceX are exploring a merger.
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Sources and context
- Donald Trump
- President of the United States whose endorsement and campaign events shape the midterm race
- Ashley Hinson
- Iowa's Republican nominee for U.S. Senate and a current U.S. House member
- Josh Turek
- Iowa Democratic Senate nominee and state lawmaker
- Justin Campbell
- 31-year-old Democratic voter from Brookhaven, Mississippi, interviewed in the AP-NORC poll coverage
- Marc Molinaro
- Republican U.S. representative whose New York district voted for Biden by 4.6 points
- Calley Means
- Former Make America Healthy Again figure who resigned from the administration on Thursday, 22 October
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