President Barack Obama made a last-ditch effort to encourage Democrats to vote on election day, even as polls showed that Republicans were on the verge of a sweeping victory that would give them control of the House of Representatives.
In campaign stops in Connecticut, Pennsylvania, Ohio and his home state of Illinois, Mr Obama said a vote for Republicans would mean tax cuts for the rich, favours for special interests and more economic hardship for the struggling middle class.
“We have tried what they are selling right now. We tried it for eight years. It did not work. We are not going back to that. That is the choice in this election,” Mr Obama said.