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(43)Key takeaways from today's events
• Republicans sound alarm: Speaker Mike Johnson is asking President Donald Trump for more midterm money as Republicans seek to avert disaster in House races. GOP donors and lawmakers are also pleading for a cash infusion as political conditions deteriorate for the party.
• Trump campaigns: The president spoke in Florida, where he urged supporters to look at their 401k retirement plans before voting, seeking again to paint a rosy picture of the US economy which polls show voters overwhelmingly view in a negative light.
• DOJ lawsuit: Trump said he told the Justice Department to preemptively file a lawsuit seeking to block certification of Alaska’s US Senate election if Republican Sen. Dan Sullivan loses. The lawsuit alleges a candidate named Daniel J. Sullivan could confuse voters.
• Ohio controversy: Earlier, both Trump and Vivek Ramaswamy doubled down on their defense of a controversial campaign ad featuring the estranged mother of the Ohio gubernatorial candidate’s Democratic opponent.
At rally in Florida, Trump pledges gift to voters and attacks rivals. Here's what he said
President Donald Trump rallied in Florida to support candidates as the US nears the final days of the midterms race.
The president covered an array of topics, including pledges to voters and attacks on Democratic opponents, and hinted at potential regime change in Cuba.
What to know about Trump’s remarks and other headlines:
- Nurse investment: Trump announced plans to invest $250 million to hire at least 5,000 new nurses in elder care facilities across the US, including in Florida. It’s the latest in a string of gifts Trump has offered while campaigning.
- Economic appeal: Trump urged voters to look at their 401k retirement plans, seeking to paint a rosy picture of the US economy. He pointed to economic statistics that experts have labeled as misleading.“Because when you have numbers like this, what do I have to keep doing this for?” Trump asked his supporters.
- Attacks on rivals: The president zeroed in on democratic socialist candidate Angie Nixon, who’s challenging GOP Sen. Ashley Moody, calling her a “Marxist maniac.” He also attacked Republican-turned-Democrat David Jolly, who is running for Florida governor against GOP Rep. Byron Donalds.
- On Cuba: Trump said the US would “take care of Cuba on our way back from Iran,” continuing to hint at possible regime change on the island. “We’ll do a little stopover,” Trump told the rally crowd in southwest Florida, home to a large population of Cuban Americans and Latinos.
- RFK Jr. appearance: Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. was also at the rally, announcing a plan to label all American-made seafood to distinguish it from seafood imported from other countries. Trump praised Kennedy’s appearance, saying the secretary has the “body of a 30-year-old.”
- DC renovations: Speaking at length about his projects in DC and the White House, Trump said he doesn’t “give a shit” about the various legal challenges because he gets “sued all the time.”
- Money woes: Speaker Mike Johnson asked Trump if he could spare more cash to help House Republicans, according to a person familiar with the exchange. It’s a reflection of the tough political climate for the GOP, as campaign operatives have been forced to abandon places where they usually go on offense and instead focus on protecting traditionally red turf.
- Election integrity: A bipartisan group of 17 lawmakers pledged to safeguard the integrity of the 2026 midterm elections in a letter to House leadership. Signees included Republican Rep. Don Bacon of Nebraska and Democratic Rep. Josh Gottheimer of New Jersey.
CNN’s Molly English, Logan Schiciano, Adam Cancryn, Sarah Ferris, David Wright and Elise Hammond contributed reporting.
El-Sayed says he has "never been a member of the Muslim Brotherhood" and "never will be"
Michigan Democratic Senate candidate Abdul El-Sayed said again tonight his loyalties lie with the US, and that he has never been a part of the Muslim Brotherhood — a transnational Middle Eastern Islamist organization.
“I have never been a member of the Muslim Brotherhood. I never will be,” he told Fox News’ Bret Baier during a tense exchange in an interview aired on Friday. “I’m interested in serving the United States. I’m interested in swearing an oath to the constitution that every senator has sworn an oath to.”
Throughout the Senate campaign, Republicans, including President Donald Trump and El-Sayed’s GOP opponent Mike Rogers, have sought to associate the Michigan-born son of Egyptian immigrants with Islamic extremism.
El-Sayed has often argued that the focus on his religion is an attempt to distract from rising public anger at GOP leadership of the country.
He told Baier that “if the question about my faith is the issue, which Mike Rogers wants it to be, I think it is sad and beneath him, and frankly beneath the president of the United States to make that an issue because under our constitution you’re guaranteed the right to pray as you choose to pray.”
CNN’s Harmeet Kaur contributed reporting.
This week at the White House: Trump holds midterm rallies as approval rating hits new low
President Donald Trump has had a busy week. He held rallies across multiple states ahead of the midterm elections as Republicans work to hang on to their congressional majorities.
Go behind the scenes with CNN’s Kaitlan Collins as she reports on the week at the White House:
What the early voting surge could mean in battleground North Carolina
Voter turnout is already high in North Carolina, where a key Senate seat is on the ballot.
CNN’s Dianne Gallagher explains why the high numbers could mean trouble for Republicans.
Voter turnout is already high in North Carolina, where a key Senate seat is on the ballot. CNN's Dianne Gallagher explains why the high numbers could mean trouble for Republicans. Discover more videos, including live streams and exclusive storytelling, on our Watch page.
Trump rails against democratic socialist Angie Nixon at Florida rally for GOP candidates
President Donald Trump traveled on Friday to reliably red southwest Florida, where he zeroed in on democratic socialist candidate Angie Nixon, who’s challenging GOP Sen. Ashley Moody.
“Why can’t I have a candidate like that to run against?” Trump mused, going on to say that “the Sunshine State is not going to send a Marxist maniac to the Senate on November 3.”
Nixon has stirred up excitement among the Democratic base in the state ever since her upset win in August’s primary, although she faces an uphill climb to beat the GOP incumbent.
Trump also attacked former Rep. David Jolly, a Republican-turned-Democrat, who’s running against GOP Rep. Byron Donalds in a more competitive-than-expected gubernatorial race in the state Trump won by 13 points.
“I never told Byron this, but I knew Jolly. I knew him as a Republican. I knew him, and he used to be a Republican. And he was thrown out of the party like a dog. We pulled him the hell out. He was terrible,” Trump told the crowd.
The rally was held in a college basketball arena with fewer than 5,000 seats. It was a far cry from the massive stadiums and large venues that typically housed his rallies during the 2024 campaign — and a sign of how extensively Trump is having to travel ahead of the midterms to try to juice Republican turnout.
Trump at one point acknowledged that he was playing to smaller crowds than in the past, telling attendees that he’d questioned why he couldn’t do his speech at a much bigger venue. Nevertheless, the capacity crowd began to trickle out well before Trump finished his speech, leaving a number of empty seats visible on the floor right in front of the dais.
Group of bipartisan lawmakers vow to oppose efforts to undermine election
A group of bipartisan lawmakers is pledging to safeguard the integrity of the 2026 midterm elections in a letter to House leadership.
“Through war and peace, through eras of bitter division and moments of national unity, one practice has held constant: those duly elected under the laws of their states take their seats, and the results of a free election are honored regardless of who prevails,” the 17 lawmakers said.
This includes defending state certification of votes, recognizing the winners and “opposing efforts to undermine free and fair elections or override the will of the voters,” the letter said.
Signees include Republican Rep. Don Bacon of Nebraska and Democratic Rep. Josh Gottheimer of New Jersey.
The letter comes as President Donald Trump today said he told the Department of Justice to preemptively file a lawsuit seeking to block certification of Alaska’s US Senate election if Republican Sen. Dan Sullivan loses. It’s a race that could decide who controls the chamber.
A federal judge this week also ordered the Department of Homeland Security to stop certain investigative actions in its hunt for noncitizen voters. DHS has been a driving force behind the administration’s efforts to bolster President Donald Trump’s unfounded claims of widespread voter fraud by noncitizens.
CNN’s Molly English, Holmes Lybrand and Tierney Sneed contributed reporting to this post.
Midterm Election Day is less than 2 weeks away. Get caught up here
Candidates across the nation are making their pitches and rallying voters to the polls as we head rapidly toward the midterm elections.
Get caught up on campaign news from the day so far:
- Advertisements: A new ad from Michigan Democratic Senate candidate Abdul El-Sayed features clips of many Republicans and conservative media figures saying nice or helpful things about him and his campaign, including Fox News hosts. And in Mississippi, Attorney General Lynn Fitch has called on Democratic Senate nominee Scott Colom to stop sharing a campaign video with AI-generated content. Colom’s campaign said it took down the content in question, a social media video depicting his GOP opponent, incumbent Sen. Cindy Hyde-Smith, dodging reporters.
- Trump on lawsuits: President Donald Trump at a midterm rally today said he doesn’t “give a shit” about the various legal challenges against his administration because he gets “sued all the time.” His comments came after he directed the Justice Department to preemptively file its own lawsuit seeking to block certification of Alaska’s US Senate election if Republican Sen. Dan Sullivan loses, claiming the presence of another candidate with the same name would confuse voters.
- Spending and fundraising: This year’s blockbuster US Senate race in Texas has become the most expensive non-presidential election of all time, according to data from the ad tracking firm AdImpact. And in New Jersey, Gov. Mikie Sherrill, a Democrat who has been growing her national profile in recent months, is flexing her fundraising power in two key governor’s races elsewhere: Over a recent 10-day period, Sherrill raised $500,000 for Gina Hinojosa in Texas and David Crowley in Wisconsin, according to a person familiar with her political activity.
- Trade war relief: Sen. Susan Collins said Friday that the Trump administration will exempt key products from its tariffs on Canada, giving the Maine Republican a political boost amid her difficult reelection fight against Democrat Troy Jackson.
- Obama on the trail: Former President Barack Obama is reprising his role as a closer on the campaign trail with stops for Democratic candidates in Ohio and Michigan on Saturday.
CNN’s David Wright, Ellis Kim, Patrick Svitek, Aaron Blake, Molly English and Arlette Saenz contributed reporting.
Why Mississippi's Democratic Senate candidate says Americans were "betrayed"
Mississippi Democratic Senate candidate Scott Colom said he believes this could be the year his party wins in the deep red state.
The Senate race in Mississippi has come into focus with a top GOP super PAC investing money there in the final weeks. It comes as Senate Democrats’ announced they’ll spend roughly $1 million on ads for the race.
President Donald Trump carried the state with more than 60% of the vote in 2024 and Mississippi hasn’t elected a Democratic senator since 1982 – and went blue in only one presidential election since the Civil Rights era.
“He’s got the body of a 30-year-old,” Trump of RFK Jr. at rally in Florida
President Donald Trump used part of his Friday rally to praise the appearance of Robert F. Kennedy Jr., saying his health and human services secretary has the “body of a 30-year-old.”
The president also lauded Kennedy as “the most important Kennedy in the Kennedy family by far,” admitting that “with that statement, I just caused him a little more problem.”
Kennedy has not shied away from showing off his physical attributes in the past, posting workout videos to his social media and turning a news conference with Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy earlier this year into a pull-up contest.
As for Trump, this is not the first time he has commented on a man’s looks, recently praising Ohio Sen. Jon Husted’s muscular physique during a rally in Kentucky.
“I examined his ass, and then I looked at his shoulders. I looked at his feet. I looked at his hand. I looked at his jawline,” Trump said of Husted last week. “I then patted him on the shoulder, and it was like a piece of steel. I’m still recovering.”
Trump announces plans at Florida rally to hire nurses and label seafood American-made
President Donald Trump on Friday said his administration is investing $250 million to hire at least 5,000 new nurses in elder care facilities across the US, including in Florida where he is campaigning for the state’s Republican nominee for governor Byron Donalds.
Separately, the president’s Heath and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. announced a plan to label all American-made seafood so that Americans can distinguish it from seafood imported from other countries.
Kennedy called Fort Myers, where Trump was speaking, the “greatest shrimpery in Florida,” adding that “they have to compete against criminal enterprise abroad.”
“We’re doing things for the seafood industry that they can’t even believe,” Trump added.
The two announcements are the latest in a string of gifts Trump has offered while campaigning ahead of the midterms, with the promises often being tailored to the states he visits and several funded by taxpayer money. Some promises he said would only be fulfilled if Republicans keep control of Congress.
Florida is the fifth oldest state by median age, according to the most recent census data.
Trump tells Florida crowd that "we'll take care of Cuba"
President Donald Trump said the US would “take care of Cuba on our way back from Iran,” continuing to hint at possible regime change on the island.
“We’ll take care of Cuba on our way back from Iran. We’ll do a little stopover,” Trump said to a South Florida midterm rally crowd, repeating a claim he’s made several times. “Actually, what we’re going to do with Cuba is we’re going to come back from Iran. Those beautiful ships. We’ll pass Cuba. We’ll have one of them stop about 50 yards off the coast. They’ll raise up their hands, and then we’re going to send Marco Rubio in to finish up the game.”
Trump said in May he can do “anything” he wants with the impoverished nation and may have “the honor of taking Cuba.” Trump drew parallels on Friday to the January military operation to capture Venezuelan leader Nicolás Maduro, which he has previously touted as a “perfect scenario.”
The site of Trump’s Friday rally, Fort Myers in southwest Florida, is home to a large population of Cuban Americans and Latinos, groups that could be essential to Republicans’ midterm hopes in the state and around the country. Polls have shown many Cuban Americans favor US military action against the island.
Latinos have emerged in recent years as perhaps the biggest group of swing voters in the United States. And if results next month mirror polls that suggest the nation’s 36 million Latino voters are shifting significantly in Democrats’ favor, those voters could be responsible for handing the party control of Congress for the final two years of Trump’s presidency.
Obama to "lay out the stakes of the race" when he campaigns tomorrow in Ohio and Michigan
Former President Barack Obama is reprising his role as a closer on the campaign trail with stops for Democratic candidates in Ohio and Michigan on Saturday.
Obama plans to discuss the candidates’ personal stories and their plans to help voters in their states.
“President Obama also knows that voters are sick of the news coming out of Washington and are hungry for something new,” the spokesperson added.
The former president kicks off his campaigning in Cleveland, Ohio, on Saturday afternoon with Democratic Senate candidate Sherrod Brown and gubernatorial candidate Amy Acton, who was pushed into the spotlight after her GOP opponent Vivek Ramaswamy released a controversial ad featuring her estranged mother. In Detroit later in the day, Obama will campaign with Democratic Senate candidate Abdul El-Sayed and gubernatorial candidate Jocelyn Benson.
Obama’s appearance in Michigan comes one day before President Donald Trump visits the state to campaign for Republicans, setting up a dueling presidential moment.
Trump asks voters to look at 401ks in latest attempt to shift negative economic views
President Donald Trump on Friday urged voters to look at their 401k retirement plans before voting, seeking again to paint a rosy picture of the US economy as Americans cast their ballots.
Many polls overwhelmingly show that voters view both the status of the economy and Trump’s handling of it negatively.
“Anybody going to the polls on November 3, or if you’re writing in, you have to do this. You have to look at your 401ks before you leave the house,” Trump said at a midterm rally in Fort Myers, Florida.
The president claimed that Americans’ 401ks are “about 60% higher than they were just a short while ago.”
“And then go and you can pull the trigger. You can pull the trigger for Byron (Donalds) because they’re 60%, in some cases much higher than that,” Trump said while stumping for the Republican nominee for Florida governor.
A recent CNN poll found that two-thirds of Americans say Trump has worsened economic conditions in the country, with just 20% approving of his handling of inflation.
Among Republicans, 50% said they disapproved of Trump’s handling of inflation and nearly half said he’s worsened or had no effect on economic conditions.
At his rally, Trump pointed to economic statistics that experts have repeatedly labeled as misleading.
“Because when you have numbers like this, what do I have to keep doing this for?” Trump asked his supporters.
Trump says he no longer cares about lawsuits because he gets "sued all the time"
President Donald Trump, speaking about his various projects in DC and at the White House at length at a midterm rally Friday, said that he doesn’t “give a shit” about the various legal challenges against them because he gets “sued all the time.”
“But I do it almost as a form of relaxation, like 10 minutes a day,” he said of renovations, going on to explain minute details of freshly painted doors, replaced doorknobs and locks, and new marble floors in the White House.
He touted updates to the Oval Office, saying he “made it beautiful” after it previously was “dingy.” And on the new helipad on the South Lawn, Trump said “everyone’s sorry” because “it is a beauty” that they’ve been looking to build “since helicopters” existed.
“It’s beautiful. Everyone’s sorry. They were going to sue us because I get sued for everything. If I walk outside, somebody sues me for something. So I get used to it,” he said.
Trump’s construction projects around Washington have spurred several lawsuits. The administration was sued over the construction of the massive White House ballroom, renovations to East Potomac Golf Course and threats to demolish the Kennedy Center, just to name a few.
El-Sayed appeals to Republicans in new campaign ad using Fox News stars
President Donald Trump has been upset about Fox News supposedly helping Michigan Democratic Senate candidate Abdul El-Sayed. And he’s probably not going to like El-Sayed’s new ad.
The ad features clips of many Republicans and conservative media figures saying nice or helpful things about El-Sayed and his campaign, including Fox News hosts.
El-Sayed’s campaign says the ad will run on Fox News and Newsmax as part of an effort to win over Trump voters.
Before those clips play, he lists issues where he suggests common cause with some in the MAGA movement, like releasing the Epstein files and combatting Washington corruption.
Trump earlier this month assailed Fox News for supposedly doing a “softball” interview with El-Sayed.
NJ Gov. Sherrill raises $500K for Democrats running for governor in Texas and Wisconsin
New Jersey Gov. Mikie Sherrill, a Democrat who has been growing her national profile in recent months, is flexing her fundraising power in two key governor’s races.
Over a recent 10-day period, Sherrill raised $500,000 for Gina Hinojosa in Texas and David Crowley in Wisconsin, according to a person familiar with her political activity. She did so through a fundraiser Wednesday in New York City and by personally reaching out to donors, the person said.
The person familiar with Sherrill’s political activity said she was especially drawn to the contests in Texas and Wisconsin because they involve key Democratic base voters — Hispanic voters in Texas and Black voters in Wisconsin. Sherrill prioritized earning back support from Hispanic voters in her 2025 campaign after President Donald Trump made inroads with the group a year earlier.
Sherrill, who launched a federal political action committee in March to support candidates nationwide, is expected to spend the final days of the midterms helping other candidates. She held a virtual fundraiser Thursday for Leela Gray, a fellow military veteran who is running against Florida Republican Rep. Anna Paulina Luna.
This post was updated to clarify the reason for Sherrill’s political activity as outlined by a person familiar.
Maine Sen. Susan Collins gets boost from Trump administration on tariffs
Sen. Susan Collins said Friday the Trump administration would exempt key products from its tariffs on Canada, giving the Maine Republican a political boost amid her difficult re-election fight against Democrat Troy Jackson.
The announcement suggests the administration recognizes the trade war with Maine’s northern neighbor hasn’t sat well with the state’s residents and has potentially hurt Collins’ reelection prospects as she seeks her sixth term. The exemptions could also benefit Republicans’ Senate nominee in Michigan, another state caught in the middle of the tariff fight and one where President Donald Trump is traveling this weekend.
According to a CNN survey last month, 70% of likely voters in Maine view the US tariffs on Canada negatively. In Michigan, it’s 64%. The White House confirmed the shift, saying: “The President is taking action in response to Canada’s continued discrimination against and additional retaliation targeting U.S. commerce, with the goal of protecting American farmers, manufacturers, and workers.”
Collins has repeatedly criticized the tariffs and boasted about her efforts to win exemptions from the Trump administration. But Jackson hasn’t relented in attacking Collins on the issue, accusing her of failing to do enough to oppose the tariffs and hammering her over high living costs. During one moment in an October debate that made waves, Collins touted scoring an exemption on road salt, prompting Jackson to reply, in part, “We can’t eat road salt.”
The GOP nominee in Michigan’s Senate race, former House congressman Mike Rogers, has also attempted to distance himself from Trump’s tariffs.
Friday’s exemptions cover nine categories of products, including blueberry, potato, apple, and seaweed producers. Collins said in a press release she would continue to press the administration for more relief.
Molly English contributed to this post.
Mississippi AG warns Democratic Senate candidate over AI-generated content
Mississippi’s attorney general has called on Democratic Senate nominee Scott Colom to take down a campaign video with AI-generated content.
“Recent AI-generated ads posted by the campaign on their social media platforms appear to violate State law against the use of ‘deepfakes’ to influence elections,” Attorney General Lynn Fitch said in a statement today.
Fitch’s office “asked that the ads be removed” by the campaign, or it could face an injunction, warning of “criminal penalties.”
Colom’s campaign said it had taken down the content in question, a social media video depicting his GOP opponent, incumbent Sen. Cindy Hyde-Smith, dodging reporters. A link to the campaign’s video on Facebook was no longer active.
“Cindy Hyde-Smith is clearly desperate, and she and her allies are once again trying to weaponize the justice system to distract from the real issues,” Colom said in a statement. “Clearly this was parody, maybe too close to home because she knows she does love to hide from her own constituents and reporters.”
AI-generated campaign content has proliferated in the 2026 midterms as the technology has developed and diffused. A CNN analysis earlier this fall found millions of dollars being spent on AI ads, oftentimes blurring the line between reality and fiction.
Texas Senate race becomes most expensive non-presidential election on record
This year’s blockbuster US Senate race in Texas has become the most expensive non-presidential election of all time, according to data from the ad tracking firm AdImpact.
President Trump made gains with Latino voters. But anger over immigration enforcement and high costs is fueling a desire for change. Could that shift flip Texas blue in the midterms? John King speaks with voters on the ground to find out.
The previous non-presidential record-holder was Ohio’s 2024 Senate race, which saw just under $543 million in ad spending. And number three on the list happens to be this year’s special Senate election in Ohio, currently sitting at just over $488 million.
The race in Texas has become a historic money pit, particularly for Republicans. Even before the competitive general election, the primary and runoff cost the GOP more than $100 million – most of which went to attacking their eventual nominee, Paxton, as national allies of Cornyn came to his defense.
Grassroots enthusiasm for Talarico’s campaign has also powered record-breaking fundraising on his side, punctuated by a blowout $64 million third-quarter haul.
And as the race in the historically red state showed clear signs of competitiveness deep into the fall, tech billionaire Elon Musk came to Republicans’ rescue, directing more than $150 million from his campaign contributions to the contest and fueling a pro-Paxton advertising blitz.
