What to know leading up to Election Day 2026
- Election Day is Tuesday, Nov. 3, and University of Florida Election Lab. is throughout the country.
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. → know → country
More than 35 million people have voted early as of Tuesday, according to the
-
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people → vote → the
All plus 35 Senate seats will be on the ballot, and voters in 36 states will be electing governors.
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voters → elect → governors
- CBS News' estimates that Democrats have an edge in the race for control of the House.
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Democrats → estimate → House
Senate control could be decided by voters in a handful of toss-up states ranging from Alaska to Maine.
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control → decide → Maine
- President Trump heads to Ohio today to campaign for GOP Sen. Jon Husted and Vivek Ramaswamy, the Republican candidate for governor, part of a weekslong blitz that brought him to Texas on Tuesday and Mississippi on Monday.
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that → head → Monday
Trump campaigns for Ken Paxton in Texas
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Trump → campaign → Texas
President Trump held two rallies in Texas on Tuesday to campaign for Attorney General Ken Paxton, who is running for Senate, and several House candidates, including Rep. Monica De La Cruz in South Texas.
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who → hold → Texas
The campaign stops in Corpus Christi and Lubbock came as Republicans fight to stave off their first statewide loss in Texas in more than 30 years.
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Republicans → come → years
CBS News considers the race between Paxton and Democratic Senate candidate James Talarico
, even though Mr. Trump won Texas by more than 13 points two years ago.
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Trump → consider → points
Talarico held a rally nearby in Lubbock.
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Talarico → hold → Lubbock
During his visit to Lubbock, the president touted his record and offered his familiar refrain for voters to "pretend I'm on the ballot."
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I → tout → ballot
He also encouraged voters who are on the fence about voting for Paxton: "Before you pull the trigger … take a look at your 401(k)'s."
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you → encourage → 401(k
He also predicted gas prices — which are elevated due to
, frustrating many voters — will come down "very, very rapidly."
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which → predict → voters
But he noted that Texas' oil industry has performed well.
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industry → note → ?
"We are making an absolute fortune.
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"We → make → fortune
More than we ever have," the president said.
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president → have → More
"Texas has never, ever done numbers like this."
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Texas → do → this
Mr. Trump railed against Talarico and said if Democrats win control of the Senate, "I'll be vetoing like crazy, OK?
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I → rail → Senate
But I'd rather work from the positive side as opposed to the negative side."
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I → work → side
The president also defended an eyebrow-raising riff at a rally earlier this month, when he marveled at Republican Sen. Jon Husted of Ohio's college football career, and described "examining his body" and "look[ing] at his ass."
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he → defend → ass
"I made the mistake of saying that I started off by studying his ass," Mr. Trump told the crowd in Lubbock on Tuesday, noting that he also complimented other parts of Husted's anatomy — his hands, feet and shoulders — and lamenting that media outlets "only covered the ass part."
Mr. Trump argued the joke about Husted helped the Ohioan in the polls.
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joke → make → polls
"Maybe I should do that with Ken Paxton, but I'm not sure your body is gonna qualify," he said.
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he → do → Paxton
Mike Johnson campaigning in 13 states in final week before election
President Trump is scheduled to campaign in Ohio on Wednesday for Republicans, including GOP Sen. Jon Husted and Vivek Ramaswamy, the Republican running for governor.
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Trump → campaign → governor
Although Ohio has become more reliably red in recent years, the race between Husted and Democrat Sherrod Brown, who served in the Senate from 2007 to 2025, is currently considered a toss-up by CBS News.
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who → become → News
Polls also show the governor's race between Republican Vivek Ramaswamy and Democrat Amy Acton could also be close.
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race → show → Ramaswamy
Vice President JD Vance, who grew up in Ohio, has also made several visits to the state in recent months, including one last week.
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who → grow → one
Former President Barack Obama campaigned in Cleveland over the weekend for Brown, Acton and more Democrats.
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Obama → campaign → Brown
47 battleground House seats could determine which party wins control
Control of the House of Representatives will come down to a number of battleground seats.
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Control → determine → seats
CBS News has identified 47 House districts that will likely determine which party will have the majority.
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party → identify → majority
Of those seats, 20 are currently held by Democrats and 27 are held by Republicans.
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27 → hold → Republicans
Republicans currently hold a razor-thin majority, with 218 seats, plus an independent who normally caucuses with them.
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who → hold → them
Democrats hold 214 seats.
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Democrats → hold → seats
CBS News' Battleground Tracker model
that Democrats are on track to take control of the House with 229 seats.
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Democrats → take → seats
There is still a path for the GOP to keep the House: The Battleground Tracker's estimates ranged from 215 Democratic seats — which would give Republicans a narrow majority — to 237 seats.
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which → be → seats
The 10 Senate races that will decide control of the Senate
Republicans currently hold 53 seats in the Senate, while Democrats have 47.
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Democrats → decide → 47
CBS News has identified 10 key seats this election that could determine control of the Senate.
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that → identify → Senate
Seven of those seats are held by Republicans: Maine, North Carolina, Ohio, Kansas, Iowa, Texas and Alaska.
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Seven → hold → Republicans
The other three are held by Democrats: New Hampshire, Michigan and Georgia.
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three → hold → Democrats
Ramamswamy avoids mentioning controversial ad with Acton's estranged mother
At two campaign stops on Tuesday, Ohio gubernatorial nominee Vivek Ramaswamy avoided mentioning his campaign's recent ad that
.At the first event, Ramaswamy did not mention Acton.
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Ramaswamy → avoid → Acton
…and 13 more, not listed.
The Aporia
