The White House has insisted that President Donald Trump was visiting Georgia to promote the economy. But in the opening minutes of his first stop at a local restaurant, the president raised the prospect of voter fraud without evidence and talked up his plan to require voters to show identification before casting ballots. He was visiting the congressional district previously represented by Marjorie Taylor Greene, a former supporter who resigned in January after feuding with Trump. The White House has long said Trump would focus more on the economy, but recent months have been dominated by other issues, including deportation efforts in Minneapolis, military action in Iran, and his false claims about the 2020 election.

Bomb threats to New Jersey polling stations, a voter roll mishap in Pennsylvania potentially affecting thousands of voters and warnings by President Donald Trump against California's mail balloting system is marking the final day of voting in an off-year election with several nationally prominent races. Voting otherwise appeared to be going smoothly Tuesday across the U.S., as voters cast ballots in the first significant election since Trump won the White House for a second time. Trump often warns of election rigging, and that was the case Tuesday when he posted to social media about voting in California's congressional redistricting measure. He said without providing evidence of any widespread problems that the process was "under very serious legal and criminal review."

A new poll shows President Donald Trump's favorability has fallen among Hispanic adults since the beginning of the year, a potential warning sign from a key constituency that helped secure his victory in the 2024 election. The October AP-NORC survey finds 25% of Hispanic adults have a "somewhat" or "very" favorable view of Trump, down from 44% in January. The shift could spell trouble for Republicans looking to cement support with this group in future elections. Hispanic voters were motivated by economic concerns last November. The new poll shows that despite Trump's promises of economic revitalization, Hispanic adults continue to feel higher financial stress than Americans overall.

California Gov. Gavin Newsom begins a two-day tour of South Carolina, meeting voters in rural and Republican-leaning areas. The trip over the course of Tuesday and Wednesday includes eight stops at coffee shops, small businesses, and churches. Newsom's visit to this early-voting state signals potential interest in a 2028 presidential run. On Wednesday, he plans to visit Seneca, a conservative town in a county where Donald Trump won over 75% of votes in 2024. South Carolina holds significant influence in Democratic primaries due to its diverse electorate. Newsom's efforts reflect a strategy to broaden his appeal beyond his liberal California image.

Kentucky Republicans are considering the race for the U.S. Senate seat being opened by Mitch McConnell's announcement he's retiring. McConnell is ending a decadeslong tenure as a power broker who championed conservative causes but ultimately ceded ground to the fierce populism of President Donald Trump. McConnell chose his 83rd birthday on Thursday to share his decision to retire when his current term ends in 2027. U.S. Rep. Andy Barr says he'll make a decision soon about his future. Former state Attorney General Daniel Cameron says "it's time for a new generation of leadership" in the Senate. Another looming GOP candidate is businessman Nate Morris. Barr, Cameron and Morris have professed loyalty to Trump.

The nation's deep partisan divisions extend to trust in the vote tallies for this year's election. A new poll finds that Republicans are much more skeptical than Democrats that ballots will be counted accurately. The AP-NORC Center for Public Affairs Research survey found that voters generally show more distrust toward nationwide voting results compared to the tallies done by their own local election offices. The survey also found older voters have more faith in the vote count at all levels than younger voters. This year's election marks the first presidential race since former President Donald Trump began a campaign of lies about a stolen 2020 election. Election experts warn that Trump may be laying the groundwork to once again challenge the election if he loses.

Donald Trump says that if wins the White House, he'll fire special counsel Jack Smith "within two seconds" of taking office. Smith has charged Trump over his efforts to overturn the 2020 election and his mishandling of classified documents. Trump told conservative radio host Hugh Hewitt on Thursday that the decision would be "so easy." Trump, if elected, could order the Justice Department to remove Smith, But Trump probably would not be able to do it on his own because Smith isn't a presidential appointee. When Trump, while president, was investigated by special counsel Robert Mueller, Trump urged his then-White House counsel, Don McGahn, to press the Justice Department to terminate Mueller. McGahn refused.

With Donald Trump's encouragement, Republicans are joining Democrats at the polls to cast their ballots early this year. The surge of GOP voters has helped break records for early voting in certain swing states such as Georgia and Nevada. At least 17 million early votes had been cast as of Tuesday. Campaigns typically try to get their voters to cast ballots early, either in person of by mail, so they can focus on turning out marginal voters on Election Day. But when Trump condemned early voting in 2020 and 2022, many Republicans stopped doing it. It's unclear what the early turnout means for the presidential election because it only factors in a voter's registration, not their actual vote.