Live election updates on critical Senate races as polls close

As polls began to close in parts of the U.S. on Tuesday, some results are beginning to roll in some states like South Carolina and Kentucky, where

The race for control of the Senate is a toss-up, with key seats in Georgia, Nevada, Pennsylvania and Arizona and more at stake.

The Senate is split 50-50, with Vice President Kamala Harris’ tie-breaking vote giving Democrats control.

The party that controls the Senate will have the power to facilitate – or block – President Biden’s legislative agenda in the last two years of his term.

The USA TODAY Network is on the ground in key battleground states across the country as voters head to the polls.

Here’s what you need to know on Election Day:

Here’s the latest on the battle for control of the Senate on Election Day.

State-by-state election results

What are the closest Senate races?

Republicans need to gain just a single Senate seat to gain control of the upper chamber of Congress. There are 34 seats in the 2022 election, and several remain on a knife’s edge, according to polls.

Here are some of the critical races, closest in polls:

Sen. Catherine Cortez Masto, D-Nev., vs. Republican Adam Laxalt;
Sen. Mark Kelly, D-Ariz., vs. Republican Blake Masters;
Sen. Maggie Hassan, D-N.H., vs. Republican Don Bolduc;
Sen. Raphael Warnock, D-Ga., vs Republican Herschel Walker;
Sen. Ron Johnson, R-Wis., vs. Democratic Lt. Gov. Mandela Barnes;
Rep. Ted Budd, R-N.C., vs. Democrat Cheri Beasley for retiring Sen. Richard Burr’s North Carolina Senate seat;
Rep. Tim Ryan, D-Ohio, vs. Republican J.D. Vance for retiring Sen. Rob Portman’s Ohio Senate seat;
Pennsylvania’s Democratic Lt. Gov. John Fetterman vs. Republican Mehmet Oz for retiring Sen. Pat Toomey’s Senate seat.

Which party will control the Senate?:Here’s every seat up for grabs in the 2022 midterms

Republican Sen. Scott wins South Carolina Senate seat

Incumbent Republican Sen. Tim Scott won the South Carolina Senate seat in the race against Democrat Krystle Matthews. Scott will now serve his second full term.

Scott has made repeated trips to Iowa, creating speculation he may be laying the groundwork for a 2024 presidential bid.

Matthews serves as a member of the South Carolina House of Representatives.

– Rachel Looker

Kentucky Republican Sen. Rand Paul easily wins reelection

U.S. Sen. Rand Paul, R-Ky., sailed to reelection Tuesday night, crushing Democrat Charles Booker’s hopes that he’d pull off a massive upset and become not only the first Democratic senator elected in Kentucky since 1992 but also the commonwealth’s first Black senator.

Paul won a third six-year term in Congress, scoring a victory called relatively early Tuesday evening as election results rolled in.

The libertarian-leaning senator ran on a staunchly conservative platform.

-Morgan Watkins, Louisville Courier Journal

‘Heating and eating’ turns out Republican voters in New Hampshire

GOFFSTOWN, N.H. – In Goffstown, Jackie Beck, 44, said she wants to see a Republican Congress to finish out Biden’s last two years in his term, which means voting for Republican Don Bolduc over Democratic Sen. Maggie Hassan.

Bolduc’s campaign has banked on high inflation turning out Republican voters, or as Bolduc himself puts it, “heating and eating.”

That message works for Beck, who said she’s seen enough of a Democratic Congress. “I have no reason to vote for a Democrat,” Beck said. “I can’t buy groceries for my family because it’s so expensive. It’s crazy.”

— Ken Tran

For some New Hampshire voters, Biden’s speech on democracy gets through

BEDFORD, N.H. – For some in New Hampshire, where presidential candidates flock to every four years, President Joe Biden’s message that democracy is at stake made it through for some voters.

Jonathan French says it’s why he’s voting for Democratic Sen. Maggie Hassan over Republican Don Bolduc, who has denied the results of the 2020 election.

“I believe in democracy. Don Bolduc denies the election results from 2020,” French simply put.

But at the same time, French isn’t sure if he wants to see Biden run again in 2024. “We’ll wait and see,” said French.

– Ken Tran

Ted Budd is the betting favorite over Cheri Beasley

WINSTON-SALEM, N.C. – North Carolina has never elected a woman of color to the U.S. Senate, and many voters don’t expect that to change Tuesday.

Supporters of Democrat Cheri Beasley say they are not exactly confident, but some remain hopeful: “Some of the underdogs come out on top!” said Jannet Blue, 58, a Department of Motor Vehicles supervisor who voted in Winston-Salem.

Backers of Republican Ted Budd are more confident; his poll lead has grown in recent weeks, and voters said it just feels like a Republican year in the Tar Heel State. “We need to keep working people working,” said James Wilcox, 61, a Winston-Salem businessman.

– David Jackson

Val Demings talks abortion rights, crime on The View

Florida Senate challenger Val Demings appeared on an Election Day edition of “The View,” referencing her career in law enforcement in response to the notion that Democrats aren’t tough on crime.

“I really don’t know how gullible (Sen. Marco Rubio) thinks Florida voters are, but if they’re really interested in someone who has demonstrated an ability to reduce crime and keep communities safe, I am their candidate,” Demings said, pointing to incumbent Rubio’s comparison of the FBI to “Marxist dictatorships.”

Demings also discussed her views on abortion, which she believes should be legal up until viability. While Rubio supports a federal ban on abortion with no exceptions, Demings said she believes the decision is between a woman, her family, doctor and her faith.

– Clare Mulroy

For some, Walker’s candidacy is about ‘grace and forgiveness’

KENNESAW, Ga. – Former football player Herschel Walker’s personal controversies have made his Senate campaign a target for Democrats, but many Georgia voters think differently.

“Herschel is real, he’s one of us,” voter Tricia Choi, 55, told USA TODAY. Choi said for many Walker’s story is about the redemptive power of Jesus Christ, which she said appeals to faith-based voters.

Republican candidate Walker, who is running to unseat Democratic Sen. Raphael Warnock, has been accused of domestic abuse by his ex-wife. Most recently, allegations surfaced that he pressured former girlfriends to have abortions, which he has denied.

– Phillip M. Bailey

Thune looks for decisive election win in bid for 4th term

SIOUX FALLS, S.D. – Republican U.S. Sen. John Thune of South Dakota sought a decisive reelection win Tuesday over his Democratic challenger for a fourth term that could feature a bid to eventually become his party’s leader in the Senate.

The 61-year-old Republican held a large fundraising advantage over Democrat Brian Bengs, an Air Force veteran and university professor. Thune is the second-ranking Senate Republican and is seen as a potential pick to succeed Sen. Mitch McConnell once he steps down from leadership.

– Associated Press

Kelly and Masters make final push to Arizona voters

ARIZONA – Sen. Mark Kelly, D-Ariz., and Republican challenger Blake Masters are making their final appeals to voters Tuesday in a close race that could determine the party balance of the U.S. Senate.

Kelly and Masters, a first-time candidate, are locked in what’s become an increasingly tight race, with Kelly’s initial advantage in the polls narrowing to a dead heat.

Kelly planned to spend Election Day at get-out-the-vote events in west Phoenix and Tucson before the campaign’s election night event in Tucson.

Masters planned to spend election night at the Arizona Republican Party’s watch event in Scottsdale.

– Alison Steinbach, The Arizona Republic

Voting begins smoothly in contested Nevada Senate race

LAS VEGAS, Nev. – At the Desert Breeze Community Center outside Las Vegas, approximately 100 people waited in line as the polls opened at 7 a.m. Robert Streat, 73, was among the first to cast a ballot, a personal in-person voting tradition he said dates back decades.

Streat said he opposes Biden’s agenda and worries the country is changing too fast from the values he helped defend in Vietnam. He said he supported Republican candidates in the election.

“This country is going to hell if we don’t change it. We’ve got too many people who hate it,” he said. “We should control the government but we’ve lost it.”

But Jonathan Copeland, 55, said he worries that Republican control of the House and Senate would mean further erosion of abortion rights, which he supports. Copeland said he voted to help defend the seat of U.S. Sen. Catherine Cortez Masto, a Democrat in danger of losing to Republican challenger Adam Laxalt. A Laxalt victory would help flip the Senate to Republican control.

“What politician has the right to tell a woman what to do?” Copeland said.

– Trevor Hughes

Voting rights in the United States:A state-by-state analysis

Warnock says he’s focused on today, not runoff

At a canvass event in Atlanta, Democratic Sen. Raphael Warnock referenced the late Rep. John Lewis and encouraged supporters to keep working and “get into some good trouble.”

With a heated Senate race between incumbent Warnock and GOP challenger Herschel Walker, tight polling suggests its possible neither opponent will clinch more than 50% of the vote. Warnock commented on the possibility of a runoff, saying he’s focused only on the race at hand.

“We will do whatever we need to do to bring this home for the people of Georgia because failure is not an option,” he told reporters.

– Clare Mulroy

Bolduc says he will accept Election results if he loses to Hassan

NEW HAMPSHIRE – Republican U.S. Senate candidate Don Bolduc said Tuesday his opponent, Democratic Sen. Maggie Hassan, is out of touch in accusing him of being “extreme” and an “election-denier,” saying he will concede the election Tuesday if he loses.

“That’s a big ‘if’ right now,” said Bolduc, who before September’s primary said the 2020 election was stolen from Donald Trump. He has since said he believes Biden won the election, but has changed that position multiple times. Hassan said Tuesday morning Bolduc had been “working to cast doubt” on the election process during the campaign.

“I don’t know why she’s worried about it. She feels the elections are safe and secure, so why is she worrying about something she already believes in?” Bolduc said. “I’m not going to lose. I’m going to win. She has no worries there.”

Bolduc, a retired Army brigadier general, made those remarks after voting at the Stratham Memorial School in the town where he lives.

– Max Sullivan

Pennsylvania Senate candidates vote

Both candidates vying for Pennsylvania’s open Senate seat have cast their ballots. Fetterman and Oz tweeted photos earlier this morning with their wives.

After voting in Montgomery County, Oz told reporters that “Pennsylvania is going to send a message to Washington.”

Oz did not answer whether he would accept election results “no matter what” or comment on the recent federal lawsuit to have mail-in ballots counted regardless of date discrepancies.

– Clare Mulroy

In Pennsylvania Senate race, debate erodes Fetterman’s lead

A rocky debate performance has eroded Democrat John Fetterman’s lead over Republican Mehmet Oz in Pennsylvania’s pivotal Senate race, an exclusive USA TODAY/Suffolk University Poll finds.

The contest is up for grabs, the survey shows, with an unusually high 19% of independents undecided, even as early voting has opened.

Fetterman is at 47% and Oz is at 45%. In a USA TODAY Network poll taken in late September, Fetterman had led 46%-40%.

The only debate between the candidates cost support for Fetterman, who sometimes struggled with words in the aftermath of a stroke he suffered in May. More than half of those surveyed watched last week’s debate, and they overwhelmingly judged Oz as the winner, 62%-17%.

Read the whole story here:Rocky debate erodes Fetterman’s lead over Oz in pivotal Pennsylvania Senate race

– Susan Page

Poll near Election Day shows Budd leading Beasley in North Carolina

A new survey shows three-term Republican Rep. Ted Budd is leading opponent Cheri Beasley in the North Carolina Senate race.

Half of voters said they will be backing Budd for the Senate seat, according to a poll from Emerson College Polling and The Hill. Forty-five percent of voters said they support North Carolina state Supreme Court Justice Cheri Beasley, giving Budd a five-point lead.

The poll found 2% of voters remain undecided.

– Rachel Looker

When do the polls close in my state?:A complete breakdown for Election Day 2022.

Which races will determine control of the Senate?

Analysts originally projected November to be a blowout victory for Republicans across the board in the face of low approval ratings for Biden and voter concerns about the economy and inflation.

But the Supreme Court’s decision overturning Roe v. Wade, a series of legislative wins for Democrats on Capitol Hill, and primary victories by Trump-backed GOP candidates in battleground states gave Democrats momentum.

Now, amid the seats up for grabs in 2022, eight races in particular are key to both parties’ hopes for controlling the upper chamber: Pennsylvania, Nevada, Georgia, Ohio, Arizona, New Hampshire, Wisconsin and North Carolina.

Eight to watch:These midterm election races will determine who controls the Senate

– Ken Tran, Sarah Elbeshbishi

Live election updates on critical Senate races as polls close

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