Trump faces midterm verdict, Democrats close in on US Congress

WASHINGTON, Oct 5: A month before the US midterms, Democrats are eyeing control of Congress -- and the power to put President Donald Trump on the defensive for the rest of his term by investigating his administration and stalling his agenda.
The November 3 vote is shaping up as a verdict on one of the most turbulent presidencies in US history -- and, by several measures, Trump goes into it less popular than any predecessor facing midterms in modern polling.
Americans will elect all 435 members of the House of Representatives and 35 of the 100 senators, alongside governors in 36 states. The election decides who controls the legislature -- which passes laws, sets the budget and polices the White House.
Forecaster Decision Desk HQ gives Democrats a 75 percent chance of winning the House, projecting a 234-201 majority. It rates the Senate a near coin flip, with Democrats narrowly favored to take it 51-49.
Control of the House alone would hand Democrats powerful committees and subpoena authority.
House Democratic leader Hakeem Jeffries has vowed to "hold the crooks accountable" and says that, in the majority, his party would move to reverse Trump's tariffs, end US involvement in the Iran war and restore health insurance subsidies.
He has left the door open to a third Trump impeachment.
A Senate win would go further, letting Democrats block Trump's judicial and cabinet nominees.
Trump has chosen to make the election about his record -- a risky bet given polling showing his approval rating in the mid-to-low 30s, the lowest of his political career, with just 17 percent backing his handling of the cost of living.
A Wall Street Journal survey found no president heading into the midterms had polled worse in its surveys dating to 1990.�" AFP