2022 midterm election results

Maricopa County, Arizona — the most populous county in the state — says there are an estimated 400,000-410,000 remaining ballots to count as of Wednesday night. 

Here's the breakdown according to Maricopa County:

More background: Election workers are tabulating ballots in key states that will determine the balance of power in Congress as well as more than three dozen statehouses. Because of differing laws, some states have tallied nearly all their ballots – while others may not finish for several days.

Even before the polls had closed Tuesday, former President Donald Trump and his allies were spreading baseless claims of voter fraud, a repeat of Trump’s lies about the 2020 election being stolen. Yet, elections officials from coast to coast reported few problems at the polls on Tuesday, saying that the election went smoothly beyond isolated and mostly minor problems.

Many eyes are now on Arizona, given the hotly contested Senate and governor races.

In addition to the outstanding count in Maricopa, Pima County officials said they have about 159,000 ballots still to be counted and don’t expect to complete their count until Nov. 14 or 15. Pima County, home to Tucson, is the state’s second most-populous county.

Counting is also expected to continue Wednesday in Nevada.

Both states feature competitive Senate and gubernatorial races — and have been a hub of conspiracy theories since the 2020 election.

Republican state Sen. Zach Nunn will defeat Rep. Cindy Axne, Iowa's only Democrat in Congress, CNN projects, winning a seat that former President Donald Trump would have narrowly carried in 2020.

In his campaign for Iowa’s 3rd Congressional District, which got more favorable for Republicans in the post-2020 redistricting process, the Air Force combat veteran vigorously attacked the “Biden-Pelosi-Axne” agenda, especially on the economy, crime and immigration.

Michigan voters approved a new amendment to the state constitution that will add several voting and election policies, CNN projects.

It will now require nine days of in-person early voting and state-funded absentee drop boxes. It will also form canvass boards to certify results based only on the official records of votes cast and provide that only election officials could conduct post-election audits, among other changes.

Voters in Montana rejected on Tuesday a ballot referendum that would have imposed criminal penalties on health care providers who do not act to preserve the life of infants born during the course of an abortion, CNN projects. 

Democrat Eric Sorensen will win in Illinois’ 17th Congressional District, CNN projects.  

This is a Democratic hold.

Sorensen will be the first out gay person elected to Congress from Illinois, CNN projects. Sorensen, a former Rockford and Quad Cities meteorologist, will defeat Republican Esther Joy King in the race to succeed retiring Democratic Rep. Cheri Bustos. 

Where things stand in the House: Democrats now have 188 out of 218 seats needed to control the House, CNN projects.

More votes are expected to be posted from Colorado's Pueblo County at 9 p.m. ET, Gilbert Ortiz, the county's clerk and recorder, told CNN — they then will call it a night and pick back up tomorrow morning at 11 a.m. ET.

Why this county is key: The county is located in GOP Rep. Lauren Boebert's district, where she is facing a very tight race against Democrat Adam Frisch.

The county is at approximately 57,000 votes right now out of a total of about 61,000 (Note: the numbers are subject to change a little because some votes are being cured, and there’s eight days to do that after Election Day in Colorado).

At 9 p.m. ET, the county is expected to post approximately 2,000 more votes which would get them to about 59,000 out of the roughly 61,000 total. 

A Democratic Senate campaign aide involved in strategy for the likely Georgia runoff says the attacks raising questions about GOP candidate Herschel Walker’s character are expected to remain front and center ahead of voting on Dec. 6.

There will also be a continuation of a massive field effort in urban areas like Atlanta and the Atlanta suburbs and direct voter contact in other areas across the state.

Other Democratic strategists say the ground game will be pivotal. 

Some background: CNN projects the hotly contested Senate contest between Walker and Democratic Sen. Raphael Warnock will face a runoff on Dec. 6.

Neither candidate surpassed the 50% threshold to win the race outright on Tuesday. Depending on the outcome of Senate races in Arizona and Nevada, voters in Georgia could then – for the second consecutive election cycle – have the Senate majority in their hands.

President Joe Biden spoke by phone this evening with House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy, according to the media pool.

The White House offered no other details on the call.

For background: Biden said earlier Wednesday he planned to speak with McCarthy, who could be poised to become the next House speaker. CNN has not yet made a call on GOP control of the House. 

Asked to describe his relationship with McCarthy, who is moving swiftly to lock down the votes to claim the speaker’s gavel, Biden offered minimal detail, saying:

During the 2022 primary season, Democrats actively meddled in a number of Republican races – hoping to boost GOP candidates who they viewed as too extreme (especially on the issue of election denialism) to win general elections.

All told, Democrats spent millions of dollars interfering in Republican primaries for Senate, House and governor around the country.

The debate at the time was whether this was dirty pool by Democrats. After all, they – and President Joe Biden in particular – had made the defense of democracy from those who would question it the centerpiece of the 2020 campaign and beyond.

If Democrats truly believed that sowing doubt about free and fair elections was a deep and serious threat to democracy, then how could they justify spending money to elevate candidates who espoused those very views?

That remains a worthwhile debate. But what is beyond debate is that Democratic meddling in Republican primaries was very effective.

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