Midterm elections 2018 results LIVE: HUGE turnout as USA votes – Exit polls latest

The USA is today voting for all 435 seats in the House of Representatives and 35 of 100 seats in the Senate in the midterm elections.

If Republicans maintain their hold on both the Senate and the House of Representatives, the party will have the chance to build on President Donald Trump’s America First agenda.

But if the Democrats wrestle control of one or both chambers, the opposition will have a better hope at stifling some of Trump’s more radical plans.

Barack Obama, who joined Democrat candidates on the campaign trail, issued a rousing plea for votes as he claimed “the character of our country is on the ballot”. 

The former president also issued an emotional tweet, saying the vote “might be the most important of our lifetimes”.

Voters across the USA flocked to cast their ballots today, with long lines forming at polling stations amid speculation the election could bring see turnout in record numbers.

Polls will close between 11pm and 4am GMT tonight and results will begin to trickle in during the early hours of Wednesday morning.

Follow Express.co.uk’s live blog on midterm election results here – with the final exit polls and latest results as soon as polls close from 11pm tonight. All times in GMT.

Midterm elections results:

Midterm elections results: Obama called the election a ‘vote of a lifetime’ (Image: REUTERS – EPA – GETTY)

0.08am update: President Trump watching results with family and friends 

President Trump and first lady Melania Trump are watching the results at the White House with “friends and family” according to White House Press Secretary Sarah Sanders. 

Ms Sanders claimed Trump had run “an extraordinary ground game geared towards defying midterm history and protecting the GOP’s majorities”. 

11:40 update: Kentucky’s 5th congressional district declares – Republican win 

Republican Hal Rogers has been re-elected to represent Kentucky’s 5th congressional district in the House of Representatives. 

Mr Rogers, who was first elected in 1981, is already the longest serving Kentucky Republican ever elected to federal office. 

11.37pm update: One in four Latino voters voted for the first time 

One in four Latino’s who voted in the mid-terms did so for the first time ever according an NBC News Exit Poll. 

The same figure was one in five for African American voters and one in ten for white voters.  

mid-term elections

Ballots are cast in Las Vegas, Nevada (Image: GETTY )

11.27pm update: Over $3billion spent on traditional media 

Campaigners and political parties spent $3.2billion via tradition media, predominantly TV and print, during mid-term campaigning according to Advertising Analytics. 

This is an increase of around $1billion since 2014. 

Figures for online spending are not currently available. 

11.18pm update: Houston polling station opening extended 

Voting at nine polling stations in the Houston area has been extended until 8pm CT (2am GMT) at the order of a Harris County judge. 

Voting was delayed in these stations by late opening or technical issues. 

A lawsuit has been filed by the Texas Civil Rights Project and the Texas Organising Project. 

James Bickerton takes over live reporting from Georgina Laud 

10.35pm update: Two-thirds of voters have turned up to oppose Trump

Two thirds of voters say they vote was about President Trump – and they  are voting to oppose him, early exit polls state.

4 in 10 voters chose healthcare as the biggest problem facing th US.

7 in 10 voters said the health care systems needs reforming.

2 in 10 chose the economy and immigration as their top issues.

10.18pm update: First exit polls in from CNN

56 percent of people think the country is on the wrong track.

36 percent of voters said Donald Trump was a factor when voting.

40 percent approve of the job Donald Trump is doing

65 percent of people made up their minds a month ago.

9.40pm update: American voters targeted on social media, US government says

Social media companies have been forced to removed limited “misinformation” targeting American voters on social media sites, the US government has said.

Details about the posts and their content were not released and officials played down their importance, according to Reuters.

Facebook and Twitter previously removed millions of posts and shuttered accounts linked to Russian and Iranian operations in the lead-up to the midterm elections.

This is after US intelligence agencies said the 2016 presidential elections were targeted by Russian operatives.

Midterm elections 2018 results LIVE: Vote sign

Midterm elections 2018 results LIVE: Polling stations are starting to close (Image: Reuters )

Midterm elections 2018 results LIVE: Trump tweet

Midterm elections 2018 results LIVE: President Donald Trump urges Republicans to vote (Image: Donald Trump/Twitter)

915pm update: Trump urges voters to get to the polls in Florida and Illinois

Donald Trump has urged his followers to vote for Congressman Randy Hultgren in Illinois and Florida Congressional Candidate Michael Waltz in last-minute tweets.

Both states have tightly-run contests and could see potential Democrat wins.

8.42pm update: What could be some of the landmark appointments in these elections?

Here are some of the possible firsts the 2018 midterm elections could mark:

First female Muslim member of Congress: There are two women running with the potential to become the first female Muslim member of Congress – Rashida Tlaib in Michigan and Ilhan Omar in Minnesota. If elected, Omar would also the first member of Congress to wear a hijab or headscarf and the first Somali-American elected to Congress. While Tlaib would be the first Palestinian-American elected to Congress.

First female African-American governor: In Georgia, Democrat Stacey Abrams is locked in a tight race with Brian Kemp to lead the southern state. If she wins, Abrams would be the nation’s first female African-American governor.

First transgender governor: In Vermont, Christine Hallquist is running as a Democrat and would be the nation’s first openly transgender governor. A poll conducted in October by Gravis found her trailing Republican Phil Scott by 10 percentage points.

First Native American governor and woman in Congress: Three candidates could make history representing Native Americans in elected office. In Idaho, Democrat Paulette Jordan has an uphill battle for the governor’s race against Republican Brad Little, but if she won would be the nation’s first Native American governor.

State’s first female governor: There are four women running for governor’s seats who, if elected, would be their respective states’ first female state executive. Jordan in Idaho and Abrams in Georgia would each be firsts. Democrat Janet Mills is the front-runner in the Maine gubernatorial race. Republican Kristi Noem has a narrow lead in the governor’s race in South Dakota.

First consecutive female governors: New Mexico’s Michelle Lujan Grisham, a Democrat, is trying to replace outgoing Republican Governor Susana Martinez, which would be the first time a state has elected two women in a row to the governor’s office.

First gay male governor: Jared Polis already notched a first when he was elected to the U.S. House as the first openly gay non-incumbent elected to Congress. Now he is hoping to win his close race to be the governor of Colorado and become the nation’s first openly gay man to win a gubernatorial election

First Korean-American woman elected to Congress: There are two women running who could become the first Korean-American female U.S. representative. Republican Young Kim of California and Republican Pearl Kim of Pennsylvania are both locked in tight races.

First black woman from New England in Congress: Democrat Jahana Hayes could secure two firsts if she is elected to the U.S. House, the first black woman elected to Congress from Connecticut and from all of New England. And she may not be the only African-American woman to get elected to Congress in New England. Ayanna Pressley is likely to win a seat in Congress from Massachusetts.

First Hispanic woman to Congress from Texas: There are two women running in Texas both hoping to be the first Hispanic women from the Lone Star state to go to Congress. Democrats Veronica Escobar and Sylvia Garcia are both front-runners in their races.

First openly gay veteran elected to Congress: Democrat Gina Ortiz Jones in Texas could become the first openly lesbian veteran elected to Congress if she wins her close race.

8.05pm update: Voting machines prevent some people casting ballots in Georgia

Technological problems with voting machines have prevented some people from voting in Georgia.

Broken voting machines were reported in 12 states by 5pm GMT, according to an “election protection” coalition of more than 100 groups that set up a national hotline for reporting irregularities.

A US Department of Homeland Security officials said it had received reports of “sparse” voting technology failures but they were not significant impacting on people’s ability to vote.

But people have reported waiting in line for several hours.

Postal worker Shirley Thorn, 56, said technical problems caused her to wait more than four hours at a polling station in Snellville, Georgia, to cast her ballot.

She said: “I was determined I was going to cast my ballot today because it’s a very important election.”

Midterm elections 2018 results LIVE: map

Midterm elections 2018 results LIVE: How Americans are forecast to vote for the House (Image: Five Thirty Eight)

7.40pm update: Final forecasts out

The final forecasts from polling website Five Thirty Eight are out and they remain largely unchanged. 

Republicans have a 82 percent chance, 5 in 6, of holding control in the Senate.

But the Democrats have have an 85.8 percent chance, 6 in 7, of winning the House.

7.10pm update: What time do polls close?

The first polls close from 6pm Eastern Time (11pm GMT).

The final ones to shut will be 9pm AKT in Alaska (6am GMT).

Results will start trickling in from then onwards but a final outcome is not likely until later on November 7.

Midterm elections 2018 results LIVE: Voters

Midterm elections 2018 results LIVE: Voters in Virginia (Image: AFP/Getty)

6.35pm update: President Trump will spend polling day at the White House

President Trump is spending today working from the White House today, according to his staff.

White House press secretary Sarah Sanders said: “After 11 rallies in 8 states and weeks of campaigning for Republican candidates, the President will spend today making phone calls, monitoring Congressional, Senate and Gubernatorial races across the country and meeting with his political team for real-time updates.

“Later this evening the President and First Lady have invited family and friends to join them in the residence as they watch election returns.”

6.18pm update: Joe Biden says he will be ‘dumbfounded’ if the Democrats do not win

Former US vice president Joe Biden has said he would be “dumbfounded” if the Democrats do not win control of the House.

Speaking to reporters shortly after voting in Wilmington, Delaware, Mr Biden said he expected the Democrats to win in six gubernatorial races in the Midwest and West.

He said: “This is the single most important off-year election in my lifetime. It’s about the character of the country.”

Midterm elections 2018 results LIVE: Voter

Midterm elections 2018 results LIVE: A voter casting her ballot paper (Image: Reuters)

5.50pm update: Weather could encourage people to vote Republican, weather forecaster says

The stormy weather could impact on the way people vote, Accuweather has claimed. 

AccuWeather Data Scientist and Meteorologist Tim Loftus said: “Weather was found to be, on average, nearly 20 percent of the change in voter turnout based on our analysis.

“Democrats are more weather sensitive, when compared to Republicans, and among the most weather-sensitive were African-Americans, those 65 and older and 18-24 year olds.” 

5.00pm update: Former President Barack Obama’s message in full.

He wrote: “Tomorrow’s elections might be the most important of our lifetimes. The healthcare of millions is on the ballot. Making sure working families get a fair shake is on the ballot. The character of our country is on the ballot.

“When we’ve been at such crossroads before, Americans have made the right choice.

“Not because we sat back and waited for history to happen — but because we marched, and mobilized, and voted. We made history happen.

“When you vote, you have the power to protect voting rights. To make sure our criminal justice system treats everyone equally under the law. To strengthen laws that protect women in the workplace from harassment – and make sure they’re paid equally.

“When you vote, you have the power to make it easier for a student to afford college, and harder for a disturbed person to shoot up a classroom.

“When you vote, you have the power to make sure a family keeps its health insurance.”