President Donald Trump made his final appeal for votes in Tuesday’s midterms when he called into Sean Hannity‘s Fox News show late Monday in a last-ditch attempt to drum up support from disaffected conservatives.
Shortly before Trump appeared, it was reported that the U.S. had launched new airstrikes on Iran’s Qeshm Island in the Strait of Hormuz but the president did not mention the development to Hannity.
He did refer to an alternative target, however, and otherwise denied that the conflict amounted to a war because there was no man-to-man fighting, only long-stance strikes.
Trump otherwise repeated his plea to voters to “pretend I’m on the ballot” to encourage turnout and warned that Democrats will be able to reverse his policies if they win the day.
Earlier, Trump had rambled about the damage sustained by the Lincoln Memorial Reflecting Pool for 20 minutes during an appearance at the site in Washington, D.C., before he even got around to his “closing argument” to voters.
The president insisted the memorial was “now better and more beautiful than it’s ever been before,” hinted he was considering renaming it after himself and griped about the “vandalism” he insisted it suffered.
Read MoreTrump’s final midterms speech really kicked the Republicans while they’re down
Trump’s favorite CNN pollster delivers devastating news just before midterm elections
Key Points
- Donald Trump appears unaware of new Iran strikes during Fox News interview
- Trump's final pitch to voters: 'Pretend I'm on the ballot'
- President delivers rambling Reflecting Pool address and barely mentions midterms
- Pundits and journalists give their verdict on Trump's midterms eve messaging
- Supreme Court shoots down Trump’s California ballot battle
In pictures: The many illustrations held up by Trump in his Reflecting Pool speech
09:30 , Joe SommerladThe president is well-known to enjoy a large printout graphic to make his point and truly indulged himself yesterday, holding up multiple photographs of the pool in various stages of its renovation.
Analysis: Trump’s final midterms speech really kicked the Republicans while they’re down
09:00 , Joe SommerladHere’s a look at the president’s remarks from the Lincoln Memorial Reflecting Pool yesterday, which drew a withering response from media pundits astonished by his failure to tackle more pressing issues in his final chance to speak to voters before they go to the polls today.
In his final scheduled remarks before Election Day, aside from telerallies, President Trump made the case that the Lincoln Memorial Reflecting Pool is “now better and more beautiful than it’s ever before.”
— CBS News (@CBSNews) November 2, 2026
“We’re very proud of it. We went through a lot with vandalism,” the… pic.twitter.com/GmikVE3HCr
Erin Burnett wraps up Trump’s final speech on the eve of the midterm elections: “Trump spent about 25 minutes talking about what you just heard: the reflecting pool… grass, algae, the golf course.” pic.twitter.com/p8jSrGisMe
— Erin Burnett OutFront (@OutFrontCNN) November 3, 2026
For Holly Baxter, this was a speech that could hardly have gone worse for Republicans out on the campaign trail hoping for some last-minute help.
Trump’s final midterms speech really kicked the Republicans while they’re down
Trump appeared unaware of new Iran strikes during Hannity interview
08:30 , Joe SommerladThe president made no reference to the new U.S. airstrikes on Qeshm Island in the Strait of Hormuz when he spoke to Sean Hannity on Fox News last night, giving rise to the suggestion that he may not have known about them.
That seems highly unlikely but here’s what he did say about the conflict:
“We bombed out all of their potential nuclear power,” Trump said, referring to the Operation Midnight Hammer strikes of June 2025.
“Now, we might have to go after Pickaxe [Mountain], but that’s not a big deal… We can do that in one hour, OK?”
He was alluding to a fortified facility buried deep underground near one of Tehran's main nuclear sites.
Trump floating new strikes on Iran: We might have to go after Pickaxe but that's not a big deal pic.twitter.com/Zf2UigA1xg
— Acyn (@Acyn) November 3, 2026
“I mean, what’s a war? A war is fighting,” the president continued. “Take a look at World War I, World War II. When was the last time you saw us fighting with them?
“We’re not fighting a war. Everyone says, ‘You’re at war!’ Well, when was the last time we fired anything? This isn’t a war. It’s a very soft war.”
Trump on Iran War: This isn't a war. it's a very soft war. But this isn't like a war that's going on. There’s no war raging. It could happen if they don’t make a deal. pic.twitter.com/spYcVikApS
— Acyn (@Acyn) November 3, 2026
Trump concluded: “We did have a big hit on them, and we hit ’em very hard, and that took out their Navy: 159 ships are gone.
“But this isn’t, like, a war that’s going on. There’s no war raging. It could happen if they don’t make a deal, but they wanna make a deal very badly.”
Here’s Maroosha Muzaffar on the strikes that did occur last night, which were first reported by The Wall Street Journal just prior to the president’s TV appearance.
Trump breaks promise not to bomb Iran before midterms with Strait of Hormuz strikes
Flooding forces relocation of Florida polling stations
07:30 , Jasmine FernándezHeavy rain and severe flash flooding across Florida forced election officials to relocate multiple polling stations on Monday, NBC News reported.
The emergency moves come as forecasters predict a tight race for governor, raising concerns over voter turnout. In response to the extreme weather, Gov. Ron DeSantis declared a state of emergency across seven counties along the Atlantic coast.
Fake Truth Social posts target 2026 midterms with false Trump claims
06:30 , Jasmine FernándezA wave of fabricated Truth Social screenshots attributed to Donald Trump has spread across social media in the final days of the midterm campaigns.
Fact-checkers at AFP Fact Check have debunked multiple widely shared images, including a satirical post claiming Elon Musk enabled a system where “every Republican vote counts as 3 votes.” Another manipulated image falsely depicted Trump prematurely declaring a nationwide landslide victory before polling had concluded.
'If we lose Texas, we lose America': Ken Paxton makes final pitch in tight Senate race
05:30 , Jasmine FernándezTexas Attorney General Ken Paxton warned voters that the state is on the brink of falling to Democrats during his final campaign pitch ahead of Tuesday’s midterm election.
“I am not exaggerating when I say if we lose Texas, we lose America,” Paxton said at a campaign event on Monday. He added that “if Texas falls, we don’t have another Texas to move to.”
Paxton urged supporters to rally Republican voters, citing internal and public polling that showed the contest coming down to the wire.
Trump's final pitch on Hannity: 'Pretend that I'm on the ballot'
05:14 , Adam WithnallDonald Trump has made his final play for support in Tuesday's election, calling in to Fox's Sean Hannity in a last-ditch attempt to get out the vote.
His pitch to voters was essentially to "pretend I'm on the ballot", arguing that Democrats will be able to reverse his policies if they win the midterms.
"Well, when I'm on the ballot, as you know, I've won every time, and we get 50% more votes than when I'm not on the ballot. So, I'm just asking everybody to pretend that I'm on the ballot. And in a way, I am," he said.
He then listed his apparent achievements in his second term, including "no tax on tips", and claimed that "all the things that we've done, everything gets erased" if the Republicans lose the election.
"All of that is going to be wiped out. We have the hottest country anywhere in the world; they gotta get out. Pretend I'm on the ballot, do whatever you want, but you have to vote. If our people vote, we win in a landslide."
Trump says U.S. 'might go after Pickaxe Mountain' in Iran
05:07 , Adam WithnallDonald Trump told Fox's Sean Hannity that the U.S. may need to resume strikes on Iran to target Pickaxe Mountain, a fortified facility buried deep underground near one of Tehran's main nuclear sites.
He claimed the U.S. had already "bombed out all of their potential nuclear power" with Operation Midnight Hammer in June 2025.
"Now we might have to go after Pickaxe [Mountain], but that's not a big deal. We can do it in literally... one hour, soon as we want, at any time we want," he said.
He also played down the significance of the ongoing conflict, saying: "This isn't war... When was the last time we fired anything?"
Trump's remarks came shortly before US officials confirmed new defensive strikes targeting Iranian positions in the Strait of Hormuz.
Abdul El-Sayed rakes in huge campaign donations after Haley Stevens endorsement flip
04:32 , Ryan ParkerThe campaign for Michigan Democratic Senate candidate Abdul El-Sayed reported raising more than $2.4 million Sunday after his former primary rival announced a bombshell endorsement of the Republican nominee.
Rep. Haley Stevens’s last-minute endorsement of Mike Rogers, two days before Election Day, triggered a mass exodus of her office staff, widespread condemnation from Democratic officials — and a massive outpouring of support for El-Sayed.
El-Sayed breaks fundraising record after Haley Stevens endorses Mike Rogers
Haley tries to explain her backing of Mike Rogers
03:28 , Ryan ParkerHouse Representative Haley Stevens defended her decision to cross party lines and back Republican candidate Mike Rogers in Michigan’s crucial U.S. Senate race.
Hours after making a surprise Sunday public appearance with Rogers, the centrist Democrat addressed the fallout from her endorsement on CNN.
“I woke up this morning clear-eyed, fresh and focused on what was in my heart, and that's that,” Stevens said in an interview with Anderson Cooper.
Read on
Haley tries to explain her backing of Mike Rogers as a centrist choice
Newsom takes victory lap after Supreme Court rejects Trump's ballot move
02:30 , Ryan ParkerCalifornia Gov. Gavin Newsom took a victory lap via social media on Monday night, not long after word came down that the Supreme Court rejected President Trump’s ballot battle with the state.
Trump’s last-ditch demand was to set aside ballots from more than 20,000 people the government “believes” are “likely” noncitizens who have illegally cast votes in California’s midterm elections.
Newsom celebrated with a simple message: “Democracy won.”
BREAKING: California just secured a HISTORIC Supreme Court defeat against Donald Trump.
The Court rejected Trump’s emergency request without even asking the other side to respond — a first.
Democracy won. VOTE! https://t.co/OJo7u3yiRP
Trump set to appear on Hannity for midterms plea encore
01:31 , Ryan ParkerPresident Trump says he will appear on Hannity to once again make a plea to GOP voters to come out in force for tomorrow's midterms.
The announcement comes after his speech earlier today at the iconic Reflecting Pool landed with a thud — the president mostly rambling about construction issues with the national monument.
— Rapid Response 47 (@RapidResponse47) November 2, 2026
Supreme Court shoots down Trump’s California ballot battle
00:10 , Alex WoodwardCalifornia Gov. Gavin Newsom is warning federal judges that Donald Trump’s administration could try to seize ballots in the state after the president’s legal battle over alleged noncitizen voters repeatedly struck out in court.
On Monday night, hours after the Department of Justice made an emergency request, the Supreme Court rejected the administration’s last-ditch demand to set aside ballots from more than 20,000 people the government “believes” are “likely” noncitizens who have illegally cast votes in California’s midterm elections.
Read on
Newsom warns Trump’s DOJ could seize California ballots in escalating legal battle
Recap: Trump drops jaws with low-energy ramble about Reflecting Pool day before Americans decide his party’s fate
Monday 2 November 2026 23:00 , Andrew FeinbergOn the last afternoon before Americans vote on whether his party keeps control of Congress, President Donald Trump stood in front of the Lincoln Memorial and talked, at length and in considerable detail, about plumbing, Andrew Feinberg writes.
The 80-year-old president, whose remarks had been billed as a closing argument intended to remind voters off why they should be casting ballots for his preferred candidates on Tuesday, instead turned in a meandering address of roughly 50 minutes that swung from the quality of the pool's new coating to the renaming of bodies of water, the conquest of Venezuela, and a slate of Democratic candidates he described as “communist jihadists.”
Read on
Trump drops jaws with low-energy ramble about Reflecting Pool ahead of midterms
The 8 Senate races you need to know about
Monday 2 November 2026 22:30 , Rhian Lubin, APDemocrats need to win at least four Senate seats to make a net gain and retake the upper chamber.
Thirty-five Senate seats are up for reelection this year. Republicans are defending 22, while Democrats hold 13. The GOP currently controls the chamber with a 53-47 majority.
Because Republican Vice President JD Vance can break tie votes, Democrats need 51 seats to win control.
The most straightforward route to the majority involves Democrats holding all of their seats, including the battlegrounds of Georgia, Michigan and New Hampshire. On top of that, they will need to pick up four more seats, and their best opportunities are in Alaska, Iowa, Maine, North Carolina, Ohio and Texas.
Read on for more details of the races to keep a close eye on tomorrow night:
Midterms poll tracker: Key Senate races to know as Trump risks prized majority
Analysis: Trump’s final midterms speech really kicked the Republicans while they’re down
Monday 2 November 2026 22:00 , Holly BaxterThis was a speech that could hardly have gone worse for Republicans out on the campaign trail hoping for some last-minute help from the president, writes Holly Baxter.
If the Republicans weren’t headed for disaster in the midterms, perhaps they will be now.
The former shadow of Donald J. Trump arrived at the Reflecting Pool Monday to ramble for an hour about pipes, granite, algae and caulking. He threw in some stuff around halfway through about the election, before returning to huge printouts of cracks in concrete. And then he finished it all off by declaring wealth inequality a good thing. It was quite a speech.
All of this was delivered in a halting, croaky voice, from a man who looked, to put it politely, tired.
Read on...
Trump’s final midterms speech really kicked the Republicans while they’re down
Pundits and journalists give their verdict on Trump's address to voters
Monday 2 November 2026 21:40 , Rhian LubinTrump’s closing message: Finally, America has defeated the algae in the Reflecting Pool.
— Susan Glasser (@sbg1) November 2, 2026
Scriptwriters outdoing themselves with a 2026 election finale culminating in Trump as Narcissus speaking at the Reflecting Pool.
— Bill Kristol (@BillKristol) November 2, 2026
Voters: The economy is terrible. We can’t afford groceries, gas, or health care.
— Republicans against Trump (@RpsAgainstTrump) November 2, 2026
Trump, one day before the midterms: https://t.co/FqSJ12xDVL
More than 10+ minutes into his midterms 'closing argument' speech at the Reflecting Pool, Trump has just just been talking about the pool.
President pictured after Lincoln Memorial Reflecting Pool remarks
Monday 2 November 2026 21:20 , Rhian Lubin
Democrats torch Trump's final pitch to voters
Monday 2 November 2026 20:50 , Rhian LubinDemocratic National Committee chair Ken Martin had a scathing assessment of President Donald Trump’s final pitch to voters before they head to the polls on Tuesday.
“For the last two years, working families, farmers, and small business owners have been forced to dip into their savings or take on debt just to afford gas, groceries, and healthcare, while Donald Trump dedicates his focus — and taxpayer dollars — to his vanity projects and special favors for the ultra-rich,” Martin said.
“Now, the bill is coming due: Americans are sick of paying the price for the Republican agenda while Trump, JD Vance, and Republicans turn their backs on them.”
Watch: Trump awkwardly refers to Lincoln Memorial Reflecting Pool as 'massive piece of pool'
Monday 2 November 2026 20:31 , Rhian LubinMajor news networks, including Fox News, cut away from Trump's speech
Monday 2 November 2026 20:11 , Rhian LubinMajor networks, including Fox News, cut away from the president’s speech before he finished, pundits noted.
“This Trump event has gone on for so long that CNN, MS NOW, Newsmax, and Fox News have all cut away at various points,” said journalist Aaron Rupar, who noted the networks stopped showing the speech once Interior Sec. Doug Burgum appeared.
Trump says 'we're building a world class golf course' in final midterms pitch to voters
Monday 2 November 2026 20:00 , Rhian LubinTrump has finished his speech, which lurched between touting his renovation projects and reeling off his usual campaign claims about winning wars, closing the borders and reducing crime.
Toward the end, Trump gave an update about his renovation to a public golf course in Washington, D.C.:
We're going to make it a world championship course for the U.S. Open, for the PGA Championship, for the Ryder Cup, Presidents Cup...It'll be in shape to play that on one day's notice, it's going to be built to the highest standards of golf, and it'll be unbelievable. And you know, you have views of the different monuments, and it's going to be open to the public.
And we're going to give a discount to people that live in Washington D.C. Substantial discount, so they can play it. But it's in very bad shape right now. It's had it. It's a mess, and we will be building a a world class golf course open to the public, and it will be something really great.
So we have a lot of great things planned for Washington, and I could get into the nation, but for that you don't have enough time.
Meanwhile, affordability - the issue voters are consistently ranking as their greatest concern - was barely mentioned.
Trump hands over to Interior Sec. Doug Burgum, who repeats vandalism claims
Monday 2 November 2026 19:47 , Rhian LubinTrump has handed over to Interior Secretary Doug Burgum, who has repeated the president’s baseless claims that the Reflecting Pool was vandalized.
“People that would vandalize this pool is [sic] no different than throwing a bucket of red paint on the statue of Lincoln itself,” Burgum said.
Trump: 'We gave this a very strong shot'
Monday 2 November 2026 19:44 , Rhian LubinTrump claimed that if everyone who voted for him in 2024 voted tomorrow, “we will win in a landslide.”
He went on to explain that the sitting president historically doesn’t fare well in the midterm elections.
“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,” he said.
“But we gave this a very strong shot.”
20 minutes in, Trump finally mentions the midterms
Monday 2 November 2026 19:27 , Rhian LubinTrump has finally mentioned the midterm elections more than 20 minutes into his closing pitch to voters.
He spent the first part of the speech ranting about the damage to the Lincoln Memorial Reflecting Pool and touting his administration’s repair job.
“As you know, this is the last day before the midterm elections, the most important midterm I believe in our lifetime,” Trump said. “The Democrat Party has nominated the most extreme and dangerous slate of candidates in American history.”
The president ventured into familiar territory, including a warning about the “transgender mutilation of your children.”
Trump moves on to touting federal takeover of D.C.
Monday 2 November 2026 19:20 , Rhian LubinAfter 12 minutes on the Reflecting Pool, Trump has moved on to touting his federal takeover of D.C.
“We are making D.C. safe and beautiful again,” he said. “And our National Guard and other law enforcement partners have made over 16,000 arrests, including over 3,000 narcotics arrests, hundreds of gang members, and dozens of murderers... crime is down.”
Trump repeats unfounded vandalism claims
Monday 2 November 2026 19:16 , Rhian LubinTrump has repeated unfounded claims that the Reflecting Pool and the surrounding area were vandalized during the summer, despite an inspection ruling that it was because of a botched repair job.
He also made the claims despite a judge throwing out a criminal case against the former Olympian accused of damaging the pool. The judge has blocked prosecutors from trying to charge him again.
“We went through a lot with vandalism. The vandalism was unprecedented. People don't like talking about it,” Trump claimed Monday.
“There was great vandalism with slashing. We have pictures of it. Jesse Watters did a whole long piece on it. It was sad to watch because the vandals really went to town.”
Trump rails about Obama minutes into his midterms 'closing argument'
Monday 2 November 2026 19:10 , Rhian LubinTrump has railed against former president Barack Obama within minutes of his “closing argument” before voters head to the polls tomorrow.
He has consistently blamed Obama for the problems that have plagued the Reflecting Pool.
“President Obama and other presidents long before him worked on it, but President Obama and President Biden together spent over $144 million trying to figure it out and fix it, renovate it, and it was closed almost during the entire time,” he said.
“They were unable to get it working, and the closure... was usually for periods of a year or two years, and the project was never completed.”
Trump went on to accuse Obama and Biden of putting in “very defective material.”
“That’s one of the reasons it leaked so badly.”
The president conceded that some of the leaking took place “long before Biden and Obama.”
Trump jokes that he is giving 'serious thought' to renaming Reflecting Pool after himself
Monday 2 November 2026 19:04 , Rhian LubinTrump opened by joking that he is giving “serious thought” to changing the name of the Lincoln Memorial Reflecting Pool to the “Trump Reflecting Pool.”
“Now we're giving serious thought to changing the name to the Trump Reflecting Pool,” he began. “We'll announce that sometime tomorrow. I'm sure that Secretary Doug Burgum will have a lot of fun in announcing that. No, I'm only kidding.”
“I'm only kidding,” he added. “Please don't report it.”
Gavin Newsom has 'grave concerns' about election interference in California
Monday 2 November 2026 18:51 , Rhian LubinMeanwhile in California, Democratic Gov. Gavin Newsom said he has “grave concerns” that the Trump administration may try to seize ballots. He shared his concerns in a letter to federal judges in the state.
“I have grave concerns federal agents will seek search warrants to seize ballots and ballot materials before the election results are certified,” Newsom wrote Saturday.
“The tactics and rhetoric federal officials are using strongly suggest that,having lost repeatedly in federal civil proceedings thus far, they will quickly pivot to thecriminal forum.”
'Back and more beautiful than ever'
Monday 2 November 2026 18:40 , Rhian LubinThe stage is set for Trump’s 2 p.m. address, and a sign touting his administration’s renovation work on the Reflecting Pool has given a glimpse of what’s to come.
A sign beside the lectern says, “Back, and more beautiful than ever!”
It follows months of disruption at the iconic Washington, D.C. landmark after a botched repair job to the pool’s surface.
Trump lashes out over court's decision in Alaska Senate race
Monday 2 November 2026 18:20 , Rhian Lubin, Andrew FeinbergPresident Donald Trump lashed out with a monosyllabic Truth Social post decrying the federal court decision tossing out a lawsuit intended to block the certification of Alaska’s U.S. Senate race should Republican incumbent Dan Sullivan lose.
The Senate contest in the Last Frontier pits GOP incumbent Dan Sullivan against Mary Peltola, who previously held Alaska’s lone at-large House seat.
Polls have shown Peltola with a narrow lead over Sullivan, and Trump has spent days railing against the conduct of that race over the presence of a second candidate on the ballot who shares the incumbent senator’s name.
Andrew Feinberg reports
Trump sees red in one-word all-caps rage post after Alaska ballot ruling
Bruce Springsteen endorses Abdul El-Sayed amid Haley Stevens controversy
Monday 2 November 2026 18:06 , Rhian LubinBruce Springsteen has endorsed Abdul El-Sayed and hailed him “a fighter for our American Democracy” in Michigan’s Senate race after.
The endorsement follows the controversy with Democratic Rep. Haley Stevens, who officially backed Republican candidate Mike Rogers instead.
Springsteen shared his endorsement on social media.
Dr. El-Sayed is a fighter for our American Constitution, he’s a fighter for our American Democracy, and he’s a fighter against the corrupt, lawless, and anti-American leadership currently in the White House. That’s why I’m in his corner 100%.
— Bruce Springsteen (@springsteen) November 2, 2026
Bruce Springsteen pic.twitter.com/pYNOZt2cdF
In pictures: Reflection Pool protests, fences and algae blooms
Monday 2 November 2026 17:40 , Rhian LubinPresident Donald Trump has claimed that work on the Reflecting Pool is now complete. But the landmark has endured months of repair work, protests from the public and was then sealed off so it could be drained again.
White House releases list of '127 promises made, promises kept' by Trump
Monday 2 November 2026 17:10 , Rhian LubinIn a last ditch attempt to appeal to voters, the White House has released a list of what it claims are “127 promises made, promises kept” from President Donald Trump’s second term.
Affordability and financial concerns have consistently ranked as the most pressing concerns for voters in this election.
On the campaign trail, Trump promised: “I will rapidly drive prices down and we will make America affordable again.”
The White House claims he achieved this, touting lower prices for prescription drugs, car insurance and groceries.
“President Trump is the only President to actually lower prescription drug prices, which just saw their sharpest drop in 63 years,” the White House said in a release. “Car insurance costs have also fallen since February and grocery prices declined in September — with the year-over-year increase in grocery prices now lower than the Fed’s target rate.”
But that doesn’t appear to be resonating with Americans. A majority of U.S. adults, 65 percent, now blame Trump's policies for persistently high costs more than factors outside of his control, according to a recent poll from The Associated Press-NORC Center for Public Affairs Research.
In the poll, 73 percent of voters said their cost of living was heading in the wrong direction. About 7 in 10 Americans say Trump's handling of the cost of living has been “worse than expected.”
Americans don't approve of Trump's renovation efforts
Monday 2 November 2026 16:40 , Rhian LubinTrump has made it his mission to remodel landmarks in Washington, D.C., putting his own stamp on the nation’s capital.
But his renovation projects have not gone down well with Americans.
At the height of the Reflecting Pool controversy in the summer, a Washington Post/Ipsos poll revealed that 65 percent of respondents reacted to his plans negatively.
The poll asked about the Reflecting Pool, the construction on the White House ballroom, and Trump’s 250ft archway near the Arlington National Cemetery.
Of those, 65 percent, 38 percent were “upset” by the projects.
51 percent thought the president had a “different goal” other than making the city more beautiful, with 42 percent saying it was to “glorify himself,” and 22 percent saying it was to “leave his mark.”
Inside Haley Stevens’ last-minute endorsement switch
Monday 2 November 2026 16:10 , Rhian LubinDemocratic Rep. Haley Stevens’ stunning last-minute endorsement of Republican Mike Rogers in Michigan’s Senate race blindsided some of her closest friends, rocked her party two days out from Election Day and left the GOP feeling “euphoric.”
But Stevens’ anger at Abdul El-Sayed, the progressive Democratic nominee who beat her in the primary by less than 1 percentage point, had been simmering away for months, according to friends and people close to her.
Their opposing views on Israel, and Stevens feeling shut out of El-Sayed’s campaign, are at the heart of the “deeply personal” conflict between the two Democrats, which has overshadowed the final few days of the campaign in Michigan.
Read more below
Inside Democrat Haley Stevens’ stunning last-minute endorsement switch
Pictured: Secret Service gathers at sunrise ahead of Trump's final midterms' pitch
Monday 2 November 2026 15:50 , Rhian LubinSecret Service agents were pictured at the Lincoln Memorial Reflecting Pool Monday morning, to a magnificent sunrise, to prepare for President Donald Trump’s address.
Trump claims Reflecting Pool 'hasn't worked ever'
Monday 2 November 2026 15:26 , Rhian LubinTrump has complained about the drama surrounding the Reflecting Pool renovation on the campaign trail - even standing by his claim that vandals destroyed it, despite federal prosecutors telling a court a botched installation of the lining was responsible.
“Even the Reflecting Pool, you hear the fake news. So much fake news. It was built in 1922, and it hasn’t worked ever,” Trump claimed at a campaign event in Perry, Georgia, last week. “It’s the longest swimming pool in history. It goes all the way from Lincoln to George Washington, covers the whole territory and it always leaked.”
“And we had tremendous vandalism. And we had it pretty well, but we’re gonna undo it anyway because we had to the pipes. We wanted to get it done for July 4 temporarily.”
You’ll have to tune in at 2 p.m. ET / 7 p.m. GMT to find out if he brings it up again.
Trump's Election Eve schedule
Monday 2 November 2026 14:45 , Rhian LubinIt’s Election Eve and President Donald Trump’s schedule is packed with nine telerallies and an in-person speech at the Lincoln Memorial Reflecting Pool.
Trump is due to deliver his final pitch to voters at the iconic Washington, D.C. site at 2 p.m. ET.
The Reflecting Pool has been chosen because the president plans to address his efforts to renovate landmarks across the nation’s capital, a White House official told Axios.
It has been the scene of controversy this year after a $14 million botched repair job resulted in the “American flag blue” coating to peel off the bottom of the pool. Algae blooms also turned the water green.
Trump made baseless claims of vandalism that didn’t hold up in court.
The pool has been largely sealed off from the public this year.
