On Tuesday the third of November, Americans will head to the polls for the midterms. Every one of the 435 seats in the House of Representatives, 35 seats in the Senate, and a raft of governorships and state legislatures are up for election.

The midterms are never only about Congress. They are a chance for voters to deliver a verdict on a sitting president, and history is usually unkind to the party in the White House.

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