Americans Vote in Midterms Seen as Test of Trump's Second Term and Control of Congress

Americans voted Tuesday in midterm elections widely seen as a referendum on President Donald Trump's second term, with control of Congress and the final two years of his presidency at stake. The party holding the White House typically loses congressional seats at midterms, and Democrats are hoping to take advantage of the president's falling popularity to rein in his power. Trump spent most of the past month trying to shore up red states that will decide the Senate. Democrats are projected to win the House by a wide margin and are competing to flip the Senate. On the eve of the vote, the Justice Department in California charged six more people with alleged voter fraud crimes, while the Supreme Court ruled against efforts to make California election officials set aside and not count ballots from people the department says are non-citizens. Key races include a Senate contest in New Hampshire, where Republicans hoped to flip a seat, a Texas bid by Democrat James Talarico, and a California governor's race in which Xavier Becerra is a heavy favorite.

The right-leaning Washington Examiner frames the vote around Trump's place in the Republican Party and whether he becomes a lame duck. It notes he has urged voters to treat him as if he were on the ballot, and quotes an unnamed Republican strategist saying the GOP will still revolve around him, and White House spokesman Davis Ingle calling him the party's unequivocal leader. The left-leaning Guardian US instead leads with Democrats' hopes of curbing Trump, adds the Justice Department fraud charges and the Supreme Court ruling against the administration, and points to reporter dispatches on Republican worries that Trump is dragging down candidates. CNN, also left-leaning, focuses on Trump's efforts to protect red-state Senate seats and offers live updates. Both sides agree the election is a referendum on Trump and that Democrats are positioned to gain. Alternative and independent outlets had not reported this story at the time of writing, while left- and right-leaning outlets had.