Election polls show Trump, Republicans under threat from Democrats; Iran strikes on Qeshm Island after US President’s comments; GOP loss of House, Senate expected

How Trump responds to the results – especially if Republicans lose control of Congress– could become one of the election’s biggest stories.

In the early hours of November 4, 2020, before vote counting had finished in several states, Trump declared victory and called for counting to stop.

He ultimately lost to Democrat Joe Biden, but continued to falsely claim the election had been stolen, helping fuel the January 6, 2021 attack on the US Capitol by a mob of his supporters who were seeking to stop certification of Biden’s win by Congress.

Trump still falsely claims he won the 2020 election and has cast doubt on the integrity of these midterms, raising the prospect of Republican challenges if the party loses one or both chambers.

This year, the Trump administration has pressed states for voter data and launched investigations into non-citizen voting, which election experts and studies have found little evidence to support.

Reuters