CNN 5 Things 11/08/22 in News stories

The 2022 midterm elections are here. Your vote today – combined with the millions already cast in pre-election voting – will decide which party controls the chambers of Congress for the next two years. Dozens of key races are on the ballot, including governorships, secretaries of states and attorneys general that will impact your communities. Check this guide to see when polls close in your area tonight so you can make plans to submit your vote on time. Here’s what else you need to know to Get Up to Speed and On With Your Day.

By Alexandra Meeks

Election Day

Americans will head to the polls today to vote in the high-stakes midterm elections. Democrats are playing defense in blue-state strongholds as they aim to hold on to the House of Representatives. Republicans only need a net gain of five seats to win back control of the House. A handful of swing-state showdowns will decide the future of the Senate, which is currently split 50-50. The political world is closely watching six states – Arizona, Georgia, Michigan, Pennsylvania, Wisconsin, and Nevada – where multiple critical races could shift the balance of power. What happens in these states will also impact issues like abortion rights, economic policy, education and the climate crisis both inside their borders and across the country. The elections will also decide numerous state officials and ballot measures.

Twitter

Twitter’s new owner, billionaire Elon Musk, promised not to alter any of the platform’s content policies until after the midterm elections. Days ago, he also pushed back his $8 “blue check” verification plan. However, some analysts say the changes he has already made at the company have left it in a state of disarray at a very critical time. Officials overseeing the elections say there is no evidence so far of any specific or credible threats to election infrastructure but made clear that private platforms such as Twitter are solely responsible for managing any misinformation that may appear on their sites. This has sparked concerns as Musk laid off thousands of employees across the company last week, including cuts to specific teams which help elevate reliable information on the platform about elections and other news events.

Storm watch

Subtropical Storm Nicole is on track to strengthen into a Category 1 hurricane this week as it approaches Florida. The storm is packing torrential rain and damaging winds that could lead to dangerous storm surges beginning Wednesday, the National Hurricane Center said. More than 20 million people are under tropical storm alerts from Florida to Georgia. Additionally, more than 13 million others are under storm surge warnings or hurricane watches in the region. Forecasts show Nicole is not expected to intensify rapidly as Hurricane Ian did in late September when it killed at least 120 people in its path. However, it is expected to impact some of the same Florida communities that are still reeling from Ian’s destruction.

Ukraine

Ukrainian officials say that newly arrived Western air defense systems will help deal with the threat of Iranian ballistic missiles reportedly being purchased by Russia. But Ukraine’s Air Force might need to target the Iranian missiles at their launch sites – which would probably be well inside Russia. “They must somehow be destroyed, probably from where they are launched. Because we have no effective means of fighting ballistic [missiles], except for their physical destruction at the launch stage,” Ukrainian Air Force spokesperson Yurii Ihnat said. CNN has previously reported that Iran is preparing to send about 1,000 additional weapons – including short-range ballistic missiles and attack drones – to Russia to assist their war efforts.

Uvalde

A Texas judge in Uvalde has sealed autopsy reports of the victims killed during the Robb Elementary School mass shooting in May. In a motion to seal the records, prosecutors had argued the autopsies could reveal information that authorities need to preserve until the investigation into the shooting is completed. It is unclear how long the records will remain sealed. The decision comes six months after a gunman stormed into the school and killed 19 children and two teachers inside two adjoining classrooms. Law enforcement officers from across the state arrived at the school within minutes, but the gunman remained alive in the classrooms for 77 minutes before a tactical unit finally forced its way and killed him, according to a timeline from authorities.