PITTSBURGH, Nov  8, 2022 (AFP) - Millions of Americans voted Tuesday in

midterm elections that will decide the balance of power in Congress, determine
the future of President Joe Biden's agenda and test the viability of another
White House run by Donald Trump.

Biden's Democrats are facing a gargantuan struggle to hang on to Congress,
after a race the president has cast as a "defining" moment for US democracy --
while Trump's Republicans campaigned hard on kitchen-table issues like
inflation and crime.

"It's Election Day, America," the 79-year-old Biden tweeted. "Make your
voice heard today. Vote."

Casting his ballot in Florida, Trump again teased a potential announcement
next week of a 2024 presidential run, telling reporters that November 15 "will
be a very exciting day for a lot of people."

At stake in Tuesday's election are all 435 seats in the House of
Representatives, one-third of the Senate and a slew of state and local posts.
Five states are holding referendums on abortion.

Democrats currently hold a slim majority in the House and control of the
evenly split Senate thanks to the vote of Vice President Kamala Harris.
But Republicans are heavily favored to win the House and possibly also flip
the Senate.

First results will begin trickling in after 7:00 pm (0000 GMT) but, with
razor-thin margins in key races, a full picture may not be available for days
or even weeks, setting the stage for acrimonious challenges.

The bitter political divide in the country was on the minds of many voters
as they cast their ballots.

"Politicians, a lot of them, are playing games to keep us fighting amongst
ourselves, the little people," said Kay Georgopolous, who recently retired from
her sales job, as she cast her vote in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.

For others, it was abortion or the state of the economy.

"Abortion is probably the biggest issue for me," said Alexandra Ashley, a
30-year-old lawyer as she voted in Pittsburgh. "I want to make sure it's
available for everybody and safe."

Voting in Phoenix, Arizona, Kenneth Bellows, a 32-year-old law student,
said the chilly economy is "hurting Americans who are just trying to get by."

- 'Giant red wave' -

On election eve, Biden made a final appeal to Democrats to turn out en
masse.

"The power's in your hands," Biden told a rally near Washington. "We know
in our bones that our democracy is at risk and we know that this is your moment
to defend it."

Biden said he believed Democrats would hold on to the Senate but it would
be "tough" to retain the House and his life may become "more difficult."

If both the House and Senate flip, Biden would be left as little more than
a lame duck and his legislative agenda would be paralyzed as Republicans launch
aggressive investigations and oppose his spending plans.

That would raise questions over everything from climate policies, which the
president will be laying out at the COP27 conference in Egypt this week, to
Ukraine, where some Republicans are reluctant to maintain the current rate of
US military support.

An influx of far-right Trump backers in Congress would also accelerate a
shift inside the Republican Party since the former real estate tycoon stunned
the world by defeating Hillary Clinton for the presidency in 2016.

Despite facing criminal probes over taking top secret documents from the
White House and trying to overturn the 2020 election, Trump has used the
midterms to cement his status as the de facto Republican leader.

In a typically dark, rambling speech to supporters in Dayton, Ohio, the
76-year-old Trump said, "if you support the decline and fall of America, then
you must, you absolutely must vote for the radical left, crazy people."

"If you want to stop the destruction of our country, then tomorrow you must
vote Republican in a giant red wave," he said.

- 44 million early votes -

More than 44 million ballots have been cast through early voting options,
meaning the midterms outcome had already begun to take shape before election
day.

Senate races in Pennsylvania, Nevada, Arizona, Georgia, Wisconsin, New
Hampshire and Ohio are expected to be close and any one of them could swing the
balance of power in the chamber.

Trump has already claimed -- baselessly -- that swing state Pennsylvania
"rigged" the midterms -- reprising his playbook from the 2020 election which he
falsely asserted was stolen by Biden.

Citing growing support for voter conspiracy theories among Trump and his
Republicans, as well as their push to curb abortion access, Biden has warned
that basic rights are at stake on Tuesday.

Republicans have countered that a vote for Democrats means more soaring
inflation, rising violent crime and loose border controls.

The outcome will likely determine whether Biden, who turns 80 this month
and is the oldest president ever, will seek a second term in 2024 -- or step
aside.