Biden isn’t the only one playing on what should be friendly ground as the vote nears. First Lady Jill Biden traveled to Northern Virginia, where she campaigned with Rep. Jennifer Weston (D-Va.) In a congressional district, the president won by nearly 20 points in 2020. Meanwhile, former President Donald Trump rallied alongside Republican JD Vance Monday night in Dayton, Ohio , a dark red state where Democrat Tim Ryan has forced a tighter contest for the open Senate seat.
“Tomorrow you have to vote Republican in a giant red wave that we’ve all heard about,” Trump said, after walking straight from a Trump-branded plane to the rally stage in Dayton.
Trusting Vance and the crowd, Trump said, “JD, you have some really good polls, I saw today. What the hell am I doing here? Good night everyone” and faked an outing.
The late swings in the campaign underscored how Tuesday’s midterm elections could drastically reshape the makeup of Congress and state houses across the country. Democrats are defending in blue-leaning House seats while Republicans are eyeing supermajority control in state houses, such as in North Carolina and Wisconsin. House Republicans only need five House seats to topple the chamber, while an evenly split Senate 50-50 means the GOP must give up a single seat to take over.
Public polls show races on the margins of error across the country, particularly in the Senate, as agents from both parties anxiously watch how swing voters could shatter on Tuesday. In recent weeks, Republicans have narrowed or edged out Democratic candidates in a handful of races, from Georgia to Arizona to New York.
Biden, along with former President Barack Obama, gathered in Pennsylvania on Saturday night for one of the most publicized races: the contest between Democrat John Fetterman and Republican Mehmet Oz. The president has centered much of his final campaign calendar on rallying against election deniers, including at that rally when he told voters, “We need to reaffirm the values that have long defined us.”
“We are good people,” Biden continued. “I know that.”
Biden’s emphasis on defending democracy comes as Americans are voting for the first time since the Jan. 6 uprising, and a number of candidates who refuse the election look set to be elected tuesday.
Trump, who continues to deny the outcome of the 2020 presidential election, said Monday night in Ohio, “The vote count is more important than the candidate.”
But many voters, according to public and private polls, consistently cite economic concerns, like the soaring cost of living, as the top issue that will determine their vote.
It sparked a first round of recriminations from inside the Democratic Party over his message, as agents and candidates brace for a tough night. One of Biden’s pollsters, John Anzalone, told the Wall Street Journal, for whom his firm conducts polls, that Republicans appear on track to make gains not just with Latino voters but with black voters as well. .
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