US midterm exit polls: Voters deciding if GOP holds Congress

Polls have closed in a number of US states as Americans vote in midterm congressional elections, with deficiencies in the election process and infrastructure reported across the country.

American voters headed to the polls on Tuesday to elect candidates for the 435-seat US House of Representatives and a third of the 100-seat US Senate. In addition, 39 state and territorial governorship as well as numerous other state and local elections will be contested.

Early results have begun to come in as the decisive campaign comes to an end but it would take hours before a full picture emerges.

A Democratic victory in either chamber would pave the way for potentially launching a probe into President Donald Trump as well as affording them more scope to oppose his policies.

Democratic Senators Bob Menendez of New Jersey, Elizabeth Warren of Massachusetts, Chris Murphy of  Connecticut, Benjamin Cardin of Maryland, Tom Carper of Delaware, and Sheldon Whitehouse of Rhode Island have all been re-elected for another six-year term, according to the Associated Press.

Democrats have seized a House seat in Virginia with Jennifer Wexton predictably defeating incumbent Republican Barbara Comstock.

Former Democratic presidential nominee Bernie Sanders, who ran as an Independent, has beaten Republican Lawrence Zupan in a race for a US Senate seat in Vermont.

Arizona, Nevada, Texas and Tennessee were seen as four potential pick up opportunities for Democrats.

Republicans scored a major victory with businessman Mike Braun unseating Senator Joe Donnelly in the state of Indiana.

In Florida, Republican Governor Rick Scott has a razor-thin lead over Democratic Senator Bill Nelson, with 90 percent of votes counted.

According to opinion polls and nonpartisan forecasters, Democrats are generally favored to win the 23 seats they need to wrest the majority from Republicans in the US House of Representatives for the first time since 2010.

US midterm elections beset by deficiencies

US media said authorities have urged voters in South Carolina’s Richland County to review their selections on “glitch” touch-screen machines before submitting final ballots amid reports that their votes were changed.

The final voting submission page is said to have failed to reflect the intended vote and "flipped" to a different candidate.

In the state of New York, two local officials said wet ballots have caused scanners to fail at polling places in New York City’s boroughs of Manhattan and Brooklyn, resulting in long lines of voters, Politico reported.

In the state of Georgia, voters at only four precincts in Gwinnett County are casting paper ballots because of technical issues with voting machines, the New York Times reported.

The media also reported "issues" at three polling locations in the state of Arizona, one of the key states in the US Senate race, but the issues have been resolved.

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