The high-stakes midterm elections are a day away, and candidates are making their final pitches to voters.
There are several key House and Senate races that could determine the balance of power in Congress as well as significant races for governor around the country. The elections could ultimately determine how effective President Donald Trump's agenda is in the back half of his second term.
This midterm election is most expensive ever, federal campaign spending data shows
An analysis of Federal Election Commission data by campaign finance tracker, OpenSecrets projects that spending on the 2025-2026 election cycle will reach about $12 billion -- meaning that, at the federal level, this cycle is slated to be the most expensive midterm election on record.
An analysis by AdImpact that incorporated gubernatorial elections found it to be the most expensive cycle on record, surpassing even the 2023-2024 general election cycle.
"I Voted" stickers are seen on a table on the last day of early voting at the Cuyahoga Board of Elections, November 01, 2026 in Cleveland, Ohio.
Michael M. Santiago/Getty Images
Advertising spending across House, Senate and gubernatorial races this cycle cost about $7.1 billion, according to an analysis by the Wesleyan Media Project. About $1.4 billion of that ad spending occurred late in the cycle, between Oct. 12 and Oct. 25.
-ABC News' Will Lennon
4:37 PM EST
Trump's closing message: 'We gave this a very strong shot'
Just one day before the high-stakes midterm elections, President Donald Trump on Monday touted his renovations of the Lincoln Memorial Reflecting Pool -- from the granite to the new pipes and "soft dark blue" of the new paint.
Trump claimed he has fixed 2,300 lighting fixtures around Washington, renovated 83 statues and monuments, multiple fountains and his brand new White House helipad. Those details from Trump all came before he mentioned Tuesday’s midterms, which he did 23 minutes into his speech.
President Donald Trump holds up a photo as he delivers remarks, at the Lincoln Memorial Reflecting Pool, reopened after months of repairs, ahead of the midterm elections, in Washington, November 2, 2026.
Evan Vucci/Reuters
President Donald Trump delivers a speech marking the end of the midterm election campaign, in Washington, November 2, 2026.
Evan Vucci/Reuters
In mentioning the midterms, Trump once again attacked Democrats.
"As you know, this is the last day before the midterm elections, the most important midterm, I believe, in our lifetime," said Trump, who delivered the remarks in front of the newly reopened Reflecting Pool.
The president, who noted the uphill battle he faces in efforts to keep control of Congress, said that his party "gave this a very strong shot."
"Because if the people that voted for me and voted in the last election where we had such a great victory, if they go out and vote, just a good portion of them, we will win in a landslide. Now, that doesn't happen, because usually whoever the sitting president is, Republican or Democrat, good or bad, good president, great president, bad. For some reason, the sitting president doesn't win the midterms, but we gave this a very strong shot," Trump said.
-ABC News' Michelle Stoddart, Nicholas Kerr and Devin Garbitt
3:08 PM EST
Vance delivers closing midterm election remarks in Ohio
Vice President JD Vance on Monday delivered his closing midterm election remarks in his home state of Ohio, where his political career began and where some of the most critical races are being decided, emphasizing the importance of this year's election cycle.
"I want to remind you that we are on the eve of one of the most important -- I would actually say the most important midterm election of my lifetime -- and I am closing out this midterm campaign right where it all started for me, the great state of Ohio, because I know you're going to choose right tomorrow," Vance said.
Vice President JD Vance speaks at a campaign rally at Griffiss International Airport, November 2, 2026 in Rome, New York.
Tom Brenner/Getty Images
The state is home to high-stakes Senate and House races that could determine control of Congress. Also the state's gubernatorial election has drawn nationwide interest.
Vance urged Ohioans to cast their ballots on Tuesday for Republican Senate candidate Jon Husted and Republican gubernatorial candidate Vivek Ramaswamy.
"The only game in town for low taxes, for common sense and for patriotic American values, it's Vivek's party. It's John's party. It's the Republican Party. And don't forget it tomorrow,” Vance said.
-ABC News' Hannah Demissie
2:32 PM EST
Many Americans are worried about healthcare costs as midterms approach. Why do they keep rising?
As Americans prepare to vote in Tuesday's midterm elections, rising healthcare costs are among the top financial and economic concerns, according to recent polling.
A quarter of voters say they are "very worried" about being able to afford healthcare costs and more than one-third say they are "somewhat worried," according to a KFF poll earlier this month.
Those who get their health insurance through the Affordable Care Act (ACA) saw their average monthly benchmark premium jump from $497 per month in 2025 to $625 in 2026, according to KFF, particularly after enhanced premium tax credits expired at the end of last year.
"At this point in time, I am not seeing that there's going to be any sort of magic bullet in the short term to bring costs down," Sabrina Corlette, a research professor, founder and co-director of the Center on Health Insurance Reforms at Georgetown University McCourt School of Public Policy, told ABC News.
