our coverage is going to be helmed by the one and only wolf blitzer and anderson cooper. thanks for watching. that wolf blitzer starts right now. right now, an election showdown with big consequences for the commander in chief. >> i'm not on the ballot this fall. but make no mistake, these policies are on the ballot. >> republicans are fighting to take back control of the u.s. senate and the president's agenda is on the line. >> we're going to battle against the establishment of barack obama and the democratic party. >> it's the a day of bitter match-ups. >> she's called president obama a dictator. >> obamacare. this is his washington record. >> i'm nobody's yes-man, nobody's rubber stamp. >> we don't need to import a senator who will export american jobs. >> and the night will be a

nail-biter. >> the only thing that counts are those votes. >> this is cnn's coverage of election day in america, the fight for congress. the battles for governor and the issues that americans care about most. >> the midterms really matter. >> it is time to stand and fight like your country's future depends on it. >> the people are choosing, the world is watching. and anything is possible until the last vote. >> hello. i'm wolf blitzer. it's 1:00 p.m. here in washington. 6:00 p.m. in london, 8:00 p.m. in jerusalem, 9:00 p.m. in moscow. wherever you're watching from around the world, thanks very much for joining us. up first, high stakes and high drama as voters cast their ballots in these 2014 midterm elections. republicans seem to have some serious momentum right now.

but it all could come down to less than a dozen close races. why do these midterm elections matter and what's at stake? all 435 house seats are being decided, along with three dozen governors races and three dozen senate races. today's election will determine the balance of power here in washington. the big question is whether republicans take control of the u.s. senate. if they do, that will have a huge impact on president obama's final two years in office. the midterms will also tee off the 2016 race for the white house. we're covering election day as only cnn can. this hour, we'll take you live to our correspondents in key battleground states from iowa and kentucky, to north carolina and georgia. we'll also get the view from the white house and analysis from our top political insiders. in the battle for control of the u.s. senate, the magic number for republicans, remember this, it's six. they need a net gain of six seats to wrestle control from the democrats. and key races right now are considered too close to call.

our chief congressional correspondent dana bash reports on the final frenzied push for votes. >> reporter: ground troops from both parties. >> next house. >> reporter: with high-tech apps looking for every last possible voter behind every door. >> victory is in the air. we're going to bring it home tomorrow night. >> reporter: as candidates launch their closing arguments in nearly a dozen intense senate races. for republicans, it's all about president obama and distrust of government here in georgia. >> do you trust president obama and the washington politicians to deal with the problems we face? >> reporter: democrats who understand voter disgust with washington are trying to keep it local and personal, like senator jeanne shaheen in new hampshire. >> it's the 1,200 people who are in their homes because we worked with them when they were being foreclosured on. >> reporter: some democrats in trouble are attempting a last-minute course correction. >> what it takes to be successful -- >> reporter: colorado's mark udall is finally talking of his

own appeal after what some democrats call a failed strategy, an almost singular focus on women's issues. >> my opponent led a crusade to make birth control illegal. >> reporter: in iowa, bruce braley said the same about his gop opponent. >> she introduced a constitutional amendment in the iowa senate to ban all abortions. >> reporter: joni ernst called braley part of -- >> big washington bureaucracy. more government, more spending, more taxing. >> more than 30 years later -- >> reporter: appealing to undecided independents as they look to fill the seat of retiring democratic senator tom harkin who went very off script. >> joni ernst, she is really attractive. and she sounds nice. >> reporter: ernst was offended but also joked like taylor swift she would shake it off. ♪

>> dana bash reporting. dana ended her report with iowa. that's where we begin our live coverage this hour. iowa, one of the key states that could determine control of the senate. democratic congressman bruce braley, republican state senator joni ernst, locked in a fierce battle right now to replace the retiring senator tom harkin. stephanie elam joins us from altoona, iowa, right now. set the scene on this election day. >> reporter: when you take a look at how tight this election is, it's going to go down to the wire here. early on, people thought this election was going to go for braley. but as we've seen through this momentum, joni ernst has really gained some strength here and capitalized on other missteps, coming across as very relatable to a lot of people here in iowa. and iowans have shown they do not care about parties. they vote for who they want to vote for here in the state. taking a look at the vote so far here, there's been a steady

stream of people where we are here in altoona all day long. the weather is great. people have no reason not to make it out. when you look at the absentee ballots here in the state, for midterm elections, they just hit a new record. a lot of those ballots being requested by democrats more so than republicans. but it doesn't mean that's how they're going to vote. what comes out in the numbers will play a key part in this today as well. >> stephanie, thank you. to kentucky now, the senator minority leader, the top republican in the senate, mitch mcconnell, is hoping to get even more powerful, likely almost certainly become the majority leader if the republican party takes control of the united states senate. but first he has to get past the democratic challenger alison lundergan grimes. joe johns joins us from lexington, kentucky. stet the scene over there. this is still considered a very close race. >> reporter: yes, it was. but i have to tell you, over the weekend a lot of the polls we were seeing suggested that

mcconnell was beginning to pull away. look, there's a picture circulating right this morning, this afternoon, on social media that sort of says it all about senator mcconnell. he's voting in louisville, kentucky, behind him right over his shoulder is a man giving him the thumbs-down sign. that's kind of what we found here in the state of kentucky. we've talked to a lot of people who say they don't like senator mcconnell that well. he's not the guy people want to sit down and have a beer with. but they admire him and his political skills. and that's very much what counts, not so much in the population centers of lexington, of louisville, of frankfort. but out in the country, the rural areas, that's where mcconnell's support is so strong. alison lundergan grimes, the democrat, has been running uphill all week, all month, all campaign. it's been difficult for her. she also voted today in lexington, kentucky. she told our colleague here at

cnn, deborah feyerick, that turnout is higher than usual here. so they're hoping -- the democrats are, that higher turnout, new voters will get them closer to the finish line. we'll see, wolf. >> we'll see if there's a surprise in kentucky. thanks very much, joe. joe will be back later this hour. who will come out the victor, who will be left picking up the pieces? our special election coverage begins at 5:00 p.m. eastern for our viewers in north america. special "the situation room" for our international viewers, coverage begins at 7:00 p.m. eastern when the polls begin to close here in the united states. cnn's special coverage of these pivotal midterm elections continues with a closer look at the senate races in north carolina and georgia and why these races are so important. why one of them could delay who takes over the power in the united states senate. and we'll also be talking with reince priebus, the chairman of the republican national committee. we'll talk about the future of the gop, what's at stake, the importance of today's elections

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won't raise your rates due to your first accident. see car insurance in a whole new light. call liberty mutual insurance. and less saturated fat? it's eb. eggland's best. better eggs. it's eb. president obama has been mostly on the sidelines of midterm campaigns when it comes to the race for the senate. but he is certainly featured in 11th-hour ad for north carolina senator kay hagan. >> voting is easy, so stand with me, president obama, and take responsibility in moving north carolina forward, by voting for kay hagan on november 4th. >> i'm kay hagan, candidate for u.s. senate, and i approve this

message. >> hagan is trying to hold off a strong challenge from her republican opponent, thom tillis. north carolina is one of those close races that could determine who controls the senate. our correspondent miguel marquez is joining us live from winston-salem, north carolina. senator hagan shied away from getting the president to come to north carolina and work for her campaign, be visible there. what's her strategy with this literally last-minute endorsement? >> reporter: they think they can get more votes out. you look at the early voting and the absentee voting that came in, african-american participation in that was up enormously, 44.7% participation by african-americans in early voting. we're at a voting station here. want to take you inside in winston-salem. this is one of the top four places for votes. how are you? >> good. how are you? >> reporter: very good. this is where they are voting here. it's been long lines here in

forsyth and in wake county where there's a ton of votes and in meklenburg county. this is where they're checking in. we expect that by 7:30 tonight when polls close, the vast majority of those absentee and early ballots will come in and then very quickly thereafter, probably by 8:30 or 9:00, we'll have a very clear idea of which way north carolina is going. >> we'll be watching every step of the way. thanks very much. georgia also has emerged as a major battleground in the fight for control of the senate. michelle nunn, the daughter of the former georgia senator, sam nunn, is in a tight race against republican candidate david perd de period due. but the libertarian third-party candidate could throw a wrench into the mix. nick valencia joins us in lawrenceville, georgia, right now.

the possibility there could be a run-off this election, this race, won't be over tonight. will drag into january, that's very real, isn't it? >> reporter: yeah, it's certainly a scenario that people in georgia and beyond are preparing for. part of what's contributing to that is what you mentioned, that libertarian candidate, amanda swafford, taking away votes from the republican candidate, david perdue. the threshold number here in georgia is 50% plus one to avoid that january 6th run-off. at this point, polls haven't shown that either perdue or nunn have reached that number. also a contributing factor is early voting. i spoke to the georgia secretary of state's office and they told me since the last midterm in 2010, early voting in georgia is up 20%. what we don't know at this point is which candidate has benefited from that. but all indication is this senate race between nunn and perdue is going to be a very close one. >> could go into a run-off in january. if none of the candidates gets more than 50% of the vote, there

will be a run-off december 6th in louisiana. thanks very much, nick, for that report. much more politics coming up when we return. voters decide the fate of three dozen governors races today as well, as well as those key senate races. will there be a republican wave? we'll speak live with the chairman of the republican national committee, reince priebus. he's standing by. and where's president obama been during this entire campaign? i'll ask the head of the house democratic campaign committee about the president's low profile in these senate races. representative steve israel is standing by live as well. ♪ the mercedes-benz winter event is back,

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on the verge of a significant power shift here in washington possibly. republicans need a net gain of just six seats to take control of the senate. if they win, it will put both houses of congress, the house and the senate, in republican hands. the fate of 36 governors races across the country is also at stake tonight as voters head to the polls today. reince priebus is the chairman of the republican national committee joining us now from rnc headquarters here in washington. reince, thanks for joining us. i know you're very optimistic about the senate. but it's quickly talk about some governors races right now, especially in your home state of wisconsin. how much trouble is the governor there, scott walker, in? he's got a tough challenge from

democratic mary burke. >> i think he's going to win tonight. it is a tight race. that's why we need everyone to get out there and vote. but scott had a great week last week. i'm not sure how closely you follow in the weeds. but mary burke, the opponent, had a miserable ending to her campaign when it came out that her own family had fired her from her own job. not the way you want to go into a finish. it was an embarrassing conclusion. scott had momentum anyway. the marquette university poll, which is pretty good, showed that scott was seven points up. i don't know if it's that good. but i certainly think it's going to be close. but scott will survive tonight. >> what about two other incumbent republican governors, rick scott, he's in a very, very close race with former republican, now democrat charlie crist, in florida. and in pennsylvania, the republican governor, tom corbett, is in a close race, he could lose as well.

if the republicans start losing some of these gubernatorial races, what does that say? >> i think governors races are very local. you can look throughout the entire midwest. you have states that are almost completely dominated by republican governors, republican legislatures, wisconsin, michigan, ohio, pennsylvania. but then those are the same states two years later that go all for barack obama. so it's very different. analyzing national races and local races, which governors races are, are just very unique to the states. rick snyder is doing well. it's a close race. but rick snyder will win. he's turned michigan around. i think kasich is going to run away with it tonight. his opponent never really got out of the starting block. i think they're just local. but if you look at the senate races across the country, the candidates have done very poorly on the democrat side and they're linked to barack obama.

his ratings and approval are all in the ditch. so is the country. that's why i think you're going to see a very big win among the republicans tonight up and down the ticket. >> i don't know if the country's in a ditch right now. the economy, at least the macro picture, as far as unemployment, job growth, stuff like that, seems to be doing okay. i don't know if people in the middle class and the poorer people are feeling those gains. but i don't think it's fair to say the country's in a ditch right now, is it? >> well, wolf, if you peel back the onion a little bit and the layers, what you'll find is the labor participation rate is at some decades-long high. i don't want to put a number on it. but it's like 40, 50 years. it's worst case of people actually employed in this country. i don't think people back home in wisconsin, iowa and the middle of the country thinks this country is on the right track. i don't think they're impressed with barack obama's leadership. they don't like obamacare. the stimulus bill didn't stimulate anything.

all these democrats that were obama's loyal lieutenants are going down and don't even want to admit that they supported barack obama. so obviously we're lacking leadership in this country. i think people are tired of washington. i think that in many cases, they're tired of both republicans and democrats. but unfortunately for this president, he's not been the type of person that's led the way. and he is the head of the democrat party and these democrat senators followed him off the plank. so now they're going to pay the price. >> when rand paul, the republican senator, says the republican brand in his word "sucks," you say? >> you know what, he's a good friend. and actually we do a lot of the things together when he made those comments, he was actually making them from the black engagement office that we pay for at the rnc. he's not talking about the rnc. he's not talking about what we're doing here. he's actually part of our entire engagement effort in black,

hispanic and asian communities. i agree with him in the sense that unless we operate on a four-year basis in black and asian and hispanic communities, we're not going to get better. but the beauty is that's what we are doing. and we're doing better with black and hispanic voters across the country. colorado is an example of that and what cory gardner is doing there. in some ways, he's doing better with hispanic voters than any candidate in recent history. we're making gains and what rand paul is saying is an add-on to what our growth and opportunity report said 18 months ago, which is what we've turned around at the rnc in an historic way. >> reince priebus, chairman of the republican national committee, thanks very much for joining us. we'll check in with you obviously after the election tonight as well. appreciate it. >> thank you, wolf. up next, what is the obama factor in this election? i'll ask the head of the house

congressional campaign committee on the democratic side about the president's low profile overall in this campaign. representative steve israel is standing by live. also ahead, both parties are looking to a key demographic group to help them in the midterms. but are some of the persuasion tactics going on right now, shall we say, questionable? narrator: this is the storm sea captain: there's a storm comin narrator: that whipped through the turbine which poured... surplus energy into the plant which generously lowered its price and tipped off the house which used all that energy to stay warm through the storm. chipmunk: there's a bad storm comin! narrator: the internet of everything is changing how energy works. is your network ready?" hi, credit report site andour i have a problem. i need to speak with your fraud resolution department. ugh, we don't have that. what should i tell him? just make that super annoying modem noise...

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in the united states and around the world, i'm wolf blitzer reporting from washington. voters across the united states today are going to the polls and the outcome of this, the midterm election, will determine the balance of power here in washington. republicans, remember, need a net gain of six seats to take control of the u.s. senate. momentum appeared to be on the side of the gop clearly heading into today's elections. but many of the key races that will determine who controls the senate are still, as we say, too close to call. the outcome of today's election will have a tremendous impact on president obama in his final two years in office. let's go to the white house. athena jones is standing by over there. the president apparently no public events today. what's going on at the white house as far as the president is concerned, athena? >> reporter: hi, wolf. the president is spending the day behind closed door. he's going to have a meeting with the head of the imf, going to meet with his national security and public health teams to talk about the ebola response. but what he's not doing, as you know, is appearing on the campaign trail out with some of

these democrats running for reelection. he did do a radio ad for democrat kay hagan, the senator in a tough fight in north carolina. but the campaign is what let us know about it. right now, he's doing an interview with connecticut radio to support connecticut governor dan malloy. but that's all behind the scenes. the white house knows democrats in these tough and close races in red states haven't been eager to have the president come out and campaign with them. we've seen -- you could even say some of these democrats have been running away from the president. we saw it in louisiana and in kentucky. this is what the president is doing with his day, trying to help the folks he can behind the scenes and on radio, but not right out in front of the camera. >> athena, thanks very much. do the democrats have any leverage to make a last-minute appeal to voters? let's bring in new york congressman, steve israel. among his jobs is to get democrats elected to the house of representatives. thanks for joining us.

you expect any last-minute surprises tonight or does it look like the democrats aren't going to do well in the senate, certainly not going to regain the majority in the house of representatives? >> i do expect some surprises. it's very uncertain and turbulent. but the takeaway from this cycle, where we are now, only a few hours away from the polls closing. and still we have 20 districts that are too close to call. >> in the house? >> in the house. not one single democratic incumbent is down and out, in contrast to 2010 where most of our democratic incumbents were down and out in late september. i think there are going to be surprises on both sides of the aisle. >> "the new york times" in their analysis, your hometown newspaper, said this -- there are fewer than truly 50 competitive house races. the only mystery is whether the republicans increase their already sizable majority by more

or fewer than ten seats. is that analysis accurate? >> i think it is accurate. absent the strike of lightning, i do not believe we're going to pick up the house tonight. >> but lose maybe ten? >> republicans said early on that this was a 2010 tidal wave. and we were going to lose the historic average of 29. remember, the historic average of losses for a president's party in a midterm election, 29. we lost 62 -- 63 back in 2010. so the republicans kind of staked their claim at 20. then they dialed it back. they're saying 15 or so. it's almost impossible to predict how far north or south we're going to land because you still have 20 very unpredictable races around the country. >> was it a mistake for these democrats to run away from the president of the united states in their bid to get themselves reelected? talking about senate races? >> here's what i think the pundits have it wrong. i'm not an expert on the senate races. my lane is the house of representatives.

but here's where i think the pundits are misreading it. if you're running in a very red area, chances are most of the your voters don't want you agreeing with the president on anything. if you're running in a blue area, chances are your voters want you to agree with the president on everything. our competitive districts are purple, where people sometimes agree with the president, sometimes disagree with the president -- >> but the states where the president carried those states -- states like new hampshire or colorado or iowa, the president carried them in 2008, carried it in 2012. those candidates don't want to be seen with the president of the united states. they have stiff republican opponents. >> i think it's very important for you to level with your voters and tell them, here's where i agree with the president and here's where i disagree with the president. you shouldn't run away from your core values and most independent swing voters in those competitive districts feel the same way. agree sometimes, disagree other times. they want their candidates telling them where they agree and where they disagree. >> it almost seems a little

unseemly -- alison lundergan grimes in kentucky wouldn't even say if she voted for the president of the united states. that was a little awkward, wasn't it? >> i think people deserve to know where you stand. when you start to do that, i believe most voters understand what you're doing. it's best to be forthright. if you're going to vote against alison because who she voted for for president, chances are, you weren't going to vote for her to begin with. >> steve israel is trying to get democrats elected to the house of representatives. tough job. you're doing the best you can, i know. still ahead, race and politics with president obama largely on the sidelines in this election cycle. some democrats are targeting one key voting bloc to keep the majority in the senate. and with so many races that are so tight right now, there could be some surprises, some upsets. two of our political analysts are standing by to weigh in. will there be some major surprises to look out for? when it comes to medicare, everyone talks

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as we've been reporting, many key senate races are simply too close to call. voter turnout will be significant. as our joe johns reports, democrats are hoping minority voters, especially african-americans, will give them a boost at the polls today. critics say some of their tactics are divisive. >> reporter: with their biggest weapon in president obama mostly sidelined, some democrats went for the heartstrings in a desperate bid to get blacks in southern states to the polls. >> he made it harder for communities of color to vote. >> reporter: invoking the shooting death of teenager trayvon martin in florida as a reason to vote in north carolina. a radio ad generated by majority leader harry reid's super pac dedicates to maintaining control of the senate, hit the republican candidate for supporting the kind of

controversial state statute made infamous in the martin case, putting race at the center of the senate race. >> reporter: north carolina republicans responded with a tough radio ad of their own, calling out the democrats. >> you heard this race hustling kay hagan ad paid for by harry reid's super pac. >> reporter: there's more. in georgia, fliers encouraging african-americans to vote invoke images from ferguson, missouri, where another young black man was shot to death by a police officer. republican tara wall sees it as an attempt to inflame voters. >> race is a very real issue for us as black people. but it's disappointing when you have democrats that, number one, just take the issue of race and use it to incite without any fact or basis. >> reporter: democrats deny these tactics are about inciting racial anger but about localizing the election, making voters think less about the federal races and more about the judges, prosecutors and others

who actually allocate adjacent. atlanta city councilman says it's valid to talk about in the midterms. >> i would not use these in a campaign if it were my personal campaign. but i would want to make sure that we have dialogue and that we bring all parties to the table. >> reporter: still dialogue over race is tricky. louisiana incumbent democrat mary landrieu got tough criticism after an interview with nbc. >> the south hasn't always been the friendliest place for african-americans. it's been a difficult time for the president to present himself in a very positive light as a leader. >> reporter: the question is whether racial appeals, especially advertising, could backfire, revving up black voters who polls show still overwhelmingly support the president while turning off white voters. the same polls show do not. >> generally these appeals are very targeted.

they are fliers or mail in predominantly african-american neighborhoods or radio ads on predominantly african-american radio. so it's this sort of slicing and dicing the electorate. >> reporter: tough choices for democrats and only hours before we'll know whether they pulled the right strings to get one of their most critical voting blocs to the polls in a tough election cycle. joe johns, cnn, lexington, kentucky. still to come, control of the u.s. senate, republicans are pretty confident they can make that happen. democrats aren't throwing in the towel, though, just yet. our experts are standing by to take a look at some of the key races that could shift the balance of power here in washington, d.c. you do a lot of things great.

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or get liberty mutual insurance. for drivers with accident forgiveness, liberty mutual won't raise your rates due to your first accident. see car insurance in a whole new light. call liberty mutual insurance. the stakes are certainly high for this u.s. midterm election. the outcome could change the political landscape of the senate. and with so many tight races, every vote counts. joining us now, two of the best in the business, our senior political analyst david bergen and ron brownstein. david, i know what the conventional wisdom out there is, the democrats aren't going to do well tonight. republicans in the senate will do well. is there anything surprising development that you're looking for that could go against what the punditry are suggesting? >> we've seen surprises in every one of these elections. one or two states will certainly surprise us. the big surprise is if the

democrats actually win this thing. i think the republicans have allowed expectations to get too high. even if it's close, it's going to look like, well, they just pulled it off. when you're the out party, what you want is a wow factor after an election night. it's going to be hard for the republicans to get a wow factor. the other surprise could be if this thing goes into overtime. i think that doesn't help republicans in terms of psychology. someone wrote, they wanted to win by a couple of touchdowns. to win by a field goal -- >> certainly possible there could be elections in december and january in louisiana and georgia. you have to get a majority -- you have to get 50% plus one other vote there. ron, any surprises you think we'll see tonight? >> i'm having to grapple with the concept of an unexpected surprise. but if there's a downside surprise for the democrats it will be new hampshire or north carolina or both, states where they have embattled women incumbents who are ahead but narrowly.

the most likely surprise is in colorado. after that, you'd say iowa -- >> we just lost ron brownstein. we'll try to reconnect with him. >> that was a surprise. >> that was a surprise right there. the democrats normally -- at least in 2012, they had a terrific ground game. they brought out the vote and got the president of the united states reelected in 2012 even after he called it a shellacking in the midterm elections in 2010 when the democrats lost the house of representatives. is that ground game going to be effective in helping the democrats tonight? >> it could be. i think that's why we have to be prepared for some upsets because the democrats are better at getting voters out. they are much better with big data. they know how to use data in ways to encourage people to use psychology, in effect, behavioral psychology to get their voters out. and they normally sort of outbeat the polls by a point or

two in some key states. on the other hand, they have not done a very good job of mobilizing voters behind an agenda or behind the president's record. they sort of run away from the president's record. there hasn't been much positive they've been selling. that's been a surprise. >> is that highly vaulted democratic ground game -- got ron back with us. is that overrated in this midterm election? >> well, no question. the core challenge -- one of the core challenges democrats face in their modern coalition is heavily dependent on young people and minority voters who historically vote much less in midterms than in the presidential year. they are trying to offset that with an unprecedented investment in get out the vote. but when you have low approval rating for the president and you have a general sense of the country is on the wrong track, it's pushing on a string. we'll see how much tactics can overcome environment. i think colorado and north carolina probably are two places where -- maybe georgia, we'll get a very good look at that equation. >> we'll see how they do in this

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we're focusing on the u.s. midterm elections. voting under way right now. let's bring back our senior political analysts ron bernstein. a republican win tonight, would that help or hurt hilly clinton's chances of becoming the next president of the united states? >> interesting question. i think it depends on how the republicans interpret and act upon a victory. if they look on a victory in the electorate as a mandate for an unflinchingly conservative and confrontational agenda, they run the risk of setting a tone that would make it hard for their party to win. for example, if a republican congress votes to yoer turn any

executive order president obama pursuing on immigration, they could make it tougher for a republican to reach out to hispanics. i think there is a risk here of overinterpreting 2014 just as there was in 2010 that could affect the 2016 dynamic. but if republicans show they can goch and create for space for their nominee, then they may help him or her against the democrats in 2016. >> you remember in 2010 the president of the united states basically acknowledged the day after the republicans took control of the house of representatives in those midterm elections, it was a shellacking but two years later he went on to get himself reelected. >> abslaut r absolutely and that could easily happen again. if it's a hilly candidacy, she's going to be faired. she's got a blue wall, their 18 states plus district of columbia that's voted democrat in the last six consecutive

presidential elections. that starts you out with 242 and all you need is 270 in the electoral college. i think ron is right. if the republicans decide to go hard right after tonight, they're going to leave the middle wide open and that gives a big advantage, whoever is democrat nominee. if the republicans are willing to play across the aisle and look more like a goching party, that will help nem in 2016. >> what about the president of the united states? he's in the final two years of his presidency. is he going to make the kinds of compromises -- let's assume the republicans are the majority in the house and the senate. will he will able to wrk with the republican leadership and irritate the liberal democrat base? >> trade and taxes would be the best opportunities. i think mostly he's going to pursue the independent action, the executive order on immigration, as well as his climate change regulations. a larger point at the president, i think there's a clear lesson

here. it's a reminder to the democrats that no matter who else you unviet in the united states and whether you campaign with a president or not, the president of your own party on the ballot with you. and by 2016 democrats need a better answer to what they've established by the last six or by then, eight years to tell the voters. if voters have a negative verdict on the last eight years, it is going to be tougher. that is the biggest head win for a hillary clinton or anyone else. they did not solve this problem in the election. they didn't really confront it as david gur again noted a few minutes ago. they need a better way to talk about what they did get done over president obama's term. that issue is not going away in 2016 just because he won't be on the ballot. >> very good point. let he go back to the immigration point. i think that's a good example of where the president would show good faith in making one her run in working with the republicans after this is over, rath than going u down the unilateral

route. that will be highly controversy. it will hurt the capacity to get other things done together other the next two years. both sides have to be working together. >> i guess the question, david, i'll rephrase it. in the final two years, let's assume the republicans are the majority in the house and the senate. will barack obama, president of the united states, will he follow in the footsteps of bill clinton who worked with the then speaker newt gingrich were closely even fi they might have been fighting about impeachment, they would work on other issues collaboratively. will. president of the united states will willing to do that in his final two years even if it angers the democrat base? >> after tonight, after an exciting night, we're all waiting for it. but then the next big story is how do the republicans and the president come out of this. how do they frame the next two years. do they plan to work together? do they plan to throw spitballs

at each other? they'll both say they plan to work together in the first 24 hours. >> what do you think, ron? >> i think from both sides the answer will be more no than yes. i don't think this president is as inclined as bill clinton to try to find the agreements either. thank you for mentioning my blue wall. >> the blue wall is very important. the republicans even if they win, they're looking ahead already to 2016. they don't want to see what happened in 2012 repeat in 2016. they had a horrible midterm but they came back and got the white house. >> that's right. look. in 2016 if we follow the democrat friends they will be 30 prs of the vote. and the republican nominee will have to roughly equal ronald reagan's vote among whites in 1984. what you win with in 2014 is not necessarily enough to win with in 2016. that's a big adjustment for the republican congress to reach out

to a broader segment they've been able to rely on now. >> we will have a lot more to discuss. much more of our coverage. 5:00 p.m. eastern in "the situation room". for international viewers with 7:00 a.m. amanpour starts right now. brooke baldwin picks up our coverage for the north american viewers. right now it's america's choice. will republicans win the keys to the senate? >> we have to fix a few big things. >> or will democrats stay in charge? >> who's going to fight for you? that's what it boils down to. >> the president's record is an issue in some of the hottest contests. >> we need a senator who will stand up to barack obama. >> that's the biggest bunch of hogwash i have ever heard in my life. >> and the senate's top republican has a lot to win ore lose. >> the ratios across the country are about barack obama's