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Democrats Seek to Flip Pennsylvania Seat; President Biden Campaigns for New York Governor; Zelenskyy Holds Iran Responsible for 'Prolonging War'; 36% of Active Voters Have Already Cast Ballots in Georgia Elections; 435 House Seats, 35 Senate Seats Up for Grabs; Concerns Grow Over MAGA-Influenced 'Poll Watchers' on Election Day. Aired 12-1a ET

Aired November 07, 2022 - 00:00   ET

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.

MICHAEL HOLMES, CNN INTERNATIONAL ANCHOR: Hello and welcome to our viewers here in the United States and all around the world. I'm Michael Holmes. Appreciate your company.

[00:00:45]

Coming up this hour on the program, the home stretch. Candidates making their final pitch to voters ahead of the U.S. midterms. We are following all the key races that could tip the balance of power in Washington.

But the shadow of 2020 still hanging over the ballot box in some parts of the U.S. Why there are growing fears some candidates might not accept the election results.

Plus, Ukraine bracing for a bitter winter as Russian strikes hammered the power grid, leaving millions in the cold and the dark.

ANNOUNCER: Live from CNN Center, this is CNN NEWSROOM with Michael Holmes.

HOLMES: And we are now just one day from the critical midterm elections in the United States, and the stakes could be higher. The candidates now making their final pitches ahead of election day.

Up for grabs, all 435 House seats and 35 of the 100 Senate seats. The outcome of this election will determine who controls Congress.

And while Democrats currently hold a slim majority, it remains unclear if they'll be able to hang onto power, especially in the House. That's where race ratings by Inside Elections shows Republicans appear to have the advantage heading into Tuesday. A party needs 218 seats to control the chamber, and with 20 seats rated as toss-up, Republicans would only need to win a few of those to take back control.

But in the Senate, control still appears up for grabs. Of the 35 seats on the ballot, only three are considered toss-ups, and those key races in Nevada, Georgia, and Pennsylvania may end up determining which party will lead the Senate.

CNN's Athena Jones is live in Allentown, Pennsylvania. She joins me now.

Good to see you, Athena. Now, one of those crucial races, where you are. John Fetterman, he was well ahead. He then had a stroke. Dr. Oz caught up. He has his own baggage. What are the trend lines you're seeing?

ATHENA JONES, CNN NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Hi, Michael. Good to see you, too.

This is a race that has seen a lot of ups and downs and really interesting developments in the last several months and days.

Pennsylvania is, of course, Democrats' biggest opportunity to pick a Senate seat. Republican Senator Pat Toomey is retiring. That is why the seat is open. It is now one of the most expensive races in the country.

Pennsylvania's also been one of the few states where we've seen a lot of President Biden. He was born in Scranton. He has visited the state some 20 times as of Saturday.

And this is a state that he flipped from President Trump back in 2020. It was a close race then, and this is always a close state where you see a lot of activity and campaigning toward the end of each race.

There's a challenging climate, of course, for Democrats, given all of the concerns of voters about the economy and inflation. And voters who disapprove of President Biden's performance.

But the polls suggest the race is close, that Fetterman's a bit ahead. Here is some of the message we heard from John Fetterman and from Dr. Mehmet Oz on the campaign trail the last couple of days. Take a listen.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

LT. GOV. JOHN FETTERMAN (D-PA), PENNSYLVANIA SENATORIAL NOMINEE: Dr. Oz wants to try to portray himself now a moderate after, you know, going very right, right right, far-right during the primary. Now he's trying to pretend that -- you know, there's no moderate -- no moderate if you're willing to share a stage with somebody like Doug Mastriano.

MEHMET OZ (R), PENNSYLVANIA SENATORIAL NOMINEE: I'm not a politician. I'm a surgeon. And what surgeons do is tackle big problems. And we do it successfully -- in my case, fixing broken hearts -- by working with everybody, by making sure we unify people in the operating room. Not divide them.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

JONES: So some imaging messages from -- from both of the candidates there.

You heard from Lieutenant Governor John Fetterman, and you heard him having a little bit of trouble speaking. That is because of the stroke he had back in May. And that is one of the things that has kind of muddled the end of this race; led to Democrats being concerned that people who saw him perform in the debate a couple of weeks ago, at the end of October, and saw him struggling. Worrying that fence-sitters might move over to Oz, concerned that Fetterman won't be able to do the job.

[00:05:17]

Fetterman's message there, though, saying that Oz is not a moderate, the moderate he's painting himself to be. He's pointing to him campaigning with Doug Mastriano, with former president, Donald Trump.

And he's also pointed to his stance on abortion rights. In that October debate, Dr. Oz said abortion should be left to women, doctors and political leaders.

Meanwhile Dr. Oz, you heard him kind of say, I'm not really a politician. He, in recent days, has been trying to get his voters to try to attract voters beyond the Republican Party. He said on the stump, We already have Republicans who are in our column. There are conservative Democrats. There are independents out there who may not realize yet that they are Oz supporters.

So he's urging his voters to go out and talk to people beyond their immediate community of Republicans. And so that is part of the message we're seeing in these final days -- Michael.

HOLMES: All right. Good to have you there, Athena. Thanks. Athena Jones there for us.

Well, it is not just control of Congress that's on the ballot. Thirty- six states are also holding gubernatorial elections. President Joe Biden was in New York on Sunday to rally for Democratic Governor Kathy Hochul, who's in an unexpectedly close race with Republican Lee Zeldin.

Mr. Biden urged New Yorkers to vote, warning that U.S. democracy is at stake. CNN's Jeremy Diamond with more from Yonkers, New York.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

JEREMY DIAMOND, CNN WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: Two days before election day, President Biden campaigning in the deep-blue state of New York. The president here to try and energize voters ahead of election day, hoping to drive up Democratic turnout in a governor's race that has gotten a little bit closer than Democrats would like to see right now.

Governor Kathy Hochul stumping alongside the president. And what we heard from President Biden, really trying to drive those contrasts, as he had with Republicans. But, specifically here, talking about Hochul's opponent, Congressman Lee Zeldin.

President Biden drove that contrast as it relates to issues like crime, which has become one of the central issues in this governor's race. President Biden saying that he believes Zeldin is all talk, as it relates to that issue. Talking about his policies on guns. Also, contrasting the issue of abortion. Talking about Kathy Hochul

taking action on day one after that Dobbs decision to protect patients.

But what was interesting was also to hear the president talk about this issue of democracy. We know that President Biden in the final week of this campaign has been sounding the alarm about the stakes of this election as it relates to democracy and the number of election deniers on the ballot.

One of those, the president said, was Lee Zeldin.

JOE BIDEN, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: Kathy's opponent is one of those -- those election deniers. These deniers are not only trying to deny your right to vote, they're trying to deny your right to have your vote counted. No, I'm serious, think about it.

But let me tell you something. You can't only love the country when you win.

DIAMOND: And that's a contrast that we expect President Biden to drive once again in his final election-eve rally on Monday night in the state of Maryland.

The Republican nominee for governor also an election denier. So we expect that that's something the president will bring up once again.

But his final stops ahead of these midterm elections really, when you look at the map, he's going in deep-blue states, like New York; a Democratic state like Maryland. He was in Illinois, as well as California.

All a sign of what the president's trying to accomplish in these final days, which is to drive up Democratic turnout. But it's also a sign, of course, of his inability to go to some of these more contested battleground states.

With the one exception of Pennsylvania, where the president was over the weekend, a lot of Democrats in these tightest races really don't want the president alongside of him -- or alongside of him, because of his underwater approval ratings.

But nonetheless, the president with this closing message, encouraging voters to view this election as a choice, rather than a referendum on himself and the Democratic Party.

Jeremy Diamond, CNN, traveling with the president in Yonkers, New York.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

HOLMES: Meanwhile, in Florida, a clash of two political rivals as former president, Donald Trump and Florida Governor Ron DeSantis held competing rallies. Trump, who was stumping for Senator Marco Rubio, once again pushing his false election claims.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DONALD TRUMP, FORMER PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: The election was rigged and stolen, and now our country's being destroyed. I ran twice. I won twice, and I did much better the second time than I did the first. Getting millions and millions more votes in 2020 than we got in 2016. And now, in order to make our country successful, safe, and glorious, I will probably have to do it again. But stay tuned.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

[00:10:03]

HOLMES: Trump and DeSantis are both eyeing a possible presidential run in 2024, and the rallies might be a preview of the potential GOP presidential primary showdown.

Meanwhile, many Republicans are already casting doubt on the credibility of the midterm elections, and the vote hasn't even been held, or counted.

A big concern heading into the election is whether they will accept the results. Here's what the Republican National Committee chairwoman had to say.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

RONNA MCDANIEL, CHAIRWOMAN, REPUBLICAN NATIONAL COMMITTEE: You should have a recount; you should have a canvas; and it will go to the courts. And then everybody should accept the results. That's what it should be.

But I'm also not going to say, if there's problems, that we shouldn't be able to address that.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

HOLMES: And Jessica Levinson is a professor of law at Loyola School. She joins me now from Los Angeles. Good to see you, Professor. Have you -- how have you seen the tempo and the direction of the GOP and Democrat campaigns change as the election has loomed?

JESSICA LEVINSON, PROFESSOR, LOYOLA SCHOOL: It's a great question. I think the GOP understands that they have picked up momentum. And I think Democrats are really worried, frankly, that they peaked a little bit too early.

When it comes to the big issues of reproductive rights, that people cared a lot about it after the Dobbs decision. But now, that interest, I think, Democrats feel maybe has ebbed.

And they're trying to run, not just on that, of course, but also on the economy. Also on the fight for our country, the fight for democracy and the right to vote.

But I -- does feel like it's become an upward battle for a lot of Democrats, whereas Republicans, again, I think they do feel the wind at their sails a little bit.

And it does seem like they're hammering on this message of the economy, the economy, the economy. Not necessarily with a detailed plan to fix it, but with a detailed statement of why it's a problem.

HOLMES: Yes. There was a CNN poll published this week that found a pretty staggering 62 percent of Republicans continue to say Joe Biden wasn't the legitimate winner in 2020.

Nearly 300 Republicans on the ballot have disputed the 2020 election results. Now, given the total lack of any evidence of significant election fraud, what does that say about the state of democracy in the U.S.; the threat to it?

LEVINSON: That it's huge. I mean, there's no other way to read that. When people are fed a diet of disinformation and misinformation. And you just played that clip of the former president saying, I won the election.

There's no evidence he won the election. Let's be honest. He did not win the election.

But when he says it over and over, and the Republican Party allows him to be their standard-bearer, then, of course, people are going to believe it.

We also live in a situation where we really are in echo chambers. And people are not getting their news from the same place. They're not reading from the same page. And I think, we're really seeing that play out.

You know, it's interesting, with respect to all of the election deniers on the ballot. I have not heard them say, But if I win --

HOLMES: Right.

LEVINSON: -- we should also question that. It's, if I win in, then this was fair. But if I lose, then there might have been some fraud.

We really have to look at these claims that there's problems with our election systems, but seemingly only when certain people win and lose.

HOLMES: Yes. Yes. No Republican who won in 2020 disputed the -- the counted in their own vote.

But, meanwhile, you've got election officials in several states literally warning that efforts to intimidate voters and undermine public conference -- confidence in the electoral process are actually being intensified.

What does that, again, say about the precarious nature of American democracy, with those threats out there, and very open, in many cases?

LEVINSON: I mean, it's hard to overstate how disturbing it is. We have people whose jobs are just to facilitate the ability of people to exercise their right to vote, and then to count those votes, truly in fear of their safety.

And we have -- you know, this idea of people watching the election. That's fine. Neutral election observers is fine. People who are armed and staring you down while you put your ballot in a mailbox or a drop box, or walk into a polling place, that's intimidation. We all know it. Nobody should feel that way when they walk into a polling place.

That's why we recognize, and the Supreme Court has recognized, that it should be this oasis when you exercise your right to vote, not the opposite, where people who facilitate that machinery, as we said, really are in fear of their safety. It's astounding that we're here.

HOLMES: It is extraordinary.

I mean, we've literally only got a minute left. But how much does Donald Trump's pointing to another presidential run play into the overall dynamic.? And could the midterm results influence what he does? How much is Trump factoring into, also, possible pending indictments?

LEVINSON: So I think that's largely part of the reason that he will run.

HOLMES: Yes.

LEVINSON: Because even though these investigations are ongoing, once he becomes a candidate, he can say, Well, look, they're just after me because I'm a political opponent; and this is just a witch hunt. And there's no "there" there.

[00:15:08]

So becoming a candidate doesn't change anything legally, but it does change things politically.

Now, of course, all of these investigations, as we've said, they started far before any announcement occurred. But I think we will hear over and over again from future candidate Trump, the Biden Department of Justice is after me. Or Democrats are after me, because I'm on the ballot.

HOLMES: Yes. Always good to get your analysis. Jessica Levinson, professor, thanks so much.

LEVINSON: Thank you.

HOLMES: Now, an envelope containing what's being described as a suspicious white powder was sent to the campaign headquarters of Kari Lake, the Republican nominee for Arizona government -- governor.

A staffer apparently opened the envelope on Saturday; is now under what's being described as medical supervision, though no reports of actual injuries yet.

That envelope was one of two that were confiscated by law enforcement and sent to professionals for examination, according to a campaign spokesperson.

Lake is condemning the incident, saying, quote, "We are living in dangerous times." Her team said it was taking the threat incredibly seriously and thanked authorities for investigating the incident.

And do join us Tuesday for in-depth special coverage of the crucial U.S. midterm elections that will determine the control of Congress. That coverage starts, 4 p.m. Eastern.

Meanwhile, stay with us. Still to come on the program. Ukraine's president says Russian forces are attempting to knock out power across the country. The weapons he says they're using to do it, coming up.

Also, more on the midterms, including the tight races right here in Georgia. We'll break down what's at stake for the state and the country when we come back.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[00:20:30]

HOLMES: Welcome back. Ukraine's president warns Russian forces might try to disable the country's infrastructure through the use of missiles obtained from Iran.

President Volodymyr Zelenskyy making that claim during his nightly address on Sunday.

Millions of people in cities like Kyiv have reduced access to electricity and water already, due to Russian air strikes over the last few weeks.

Kyiv's mayor says Russia means to make them suffer, so they're preparing for the worst: a complete loss of all utilities.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

VITALI KLITSCHKO, MAYOR OF KYIV (through translator): This is not a war; this is terrorism. This is genocide. Putin doesn't need us Ukrainians. He needs territory. He needs Ukraine without us. That's why everything that is happening now is genocide.

His task is for us to die: to freeze or to make us flee our land so that he can have it. That's what the aggressor wants to achieve.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

HOLMES: Further South in Kherson, residents are also without power and electricity. Major power lines in the area have been heavily damaged, with both Ukrainian and Russian forces blaming each other for the outages.

Several buildings are also reportedly on fire in the Russian-held city of Donetsk after claims of Ukrainian strikes early Monday morning.

Meanwhile, President Zelenskyy says the two sides would be closer to peace, if it weren't for weapons provided by Iran.

CNN's Salma Abdelaziz with more from Kyiv.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

SALMA ABDELAZIZ, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: President Zelenskyy is accusing Iran of lying. That came after Iran admitted that it had provided a number of drones to Russia but that those drones were given prior to the conflict in Ukraine, and that Tehran had no knowledge that Iranian-made drones were being used here during this war.

President Zelenskyy saying that's absolutely not true; that Ukrainian forces are shooting down these Iranian-made drones all the time. Almost daily.

This is very significant, Iran's involvement in this war. Russia's arsenal, weapons arsenal has been depleted on the battlefield. And Iran is preparing to send hundreds more weapons to Russia, according to Western intelligence officials, including more drones and ballistic missiles.

And all of this coming ahead of a potential fight for the region of Kherson, an area that is now Russian-occupied but that President Zelenskyy has vowed to win back for his country.

Ukraine also accusing Russia of muddying the waters, of sending disinformation by making it seem that Russian forces may be pulling back from Kherson. Kyiv saying that's absolutely not true. It's the opposite. Russian forces are actually digging in, creating a buffer zone around the Dnipro River, kicking people -- forcibly evicting people out of their homes and using those homes as bases for Russian troops. And even using irrigation canals as trenches.

One final note here. President Putin signed a law that I think just shows how desperate Russia is to get more troops on the ground after it's lost tens of thousands on the battlefield, according to Western officials. President Putin signed a law on Friday that allows hard- core criminals to be conscripted into the army and potentially used here in the fight in Ukraine, including those who have committed murder, larceny, drug crimes. Really concerning development there.

Salma Abdelaziz, CNN, Kyiv.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

HOLMES: Meanwhile, Russia responding to calls from the Czech Republic to prosecute leaders in Moscow for alleged war crimes.

Over the weekend, the Czech foreign minister called for a special tribunal to be formed to investigate Russia for war crimes, adding that his country regarded the invasion of Ukraine as an act of terror.

A spokesperson for Russia's foreign ministry deflected, saying Czech officials needed to first hold themselves responsible for alleged wrongdoing in other countries before pointing a finger at Moscow. And a Russian mercenary force known as the Wagner Group plans to open

militia-training centers in two Russian regions that border Ukraine. The organization's founder, Yevgeny Prigozhin, who is close to Russia's president, Vladimir Putin, said he would fully fund the new centers without Russian government funding.

The Wagner Group also opened a military technology center in St. Petersburg on Friday to generate new ideas for shaping defense policy.

All right. Coming up here on CNN NEWSROOM, as we head into the final hours before the critical U.S. midterm elections, a record number of people have already voted, particularly in the state of Georgia.

[00:25:09]

We'll have details and discuss in just a few moments.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

HOLMES: The midterm elections looming large in the U.S., with just one day to go until voters across the country cast their ballots. The vote will determine who controls Congress, and who will lead more than two dozen states.

All 445 House seats and 35 of the 100 Senate seats are up for grabs. While Democrats currently hold a slim majority, it remains unclear if they'll be able to hang onto power in either house.

In addition, 36 states will be electing governors.

Now candidates in crucial contests have ramped up their campaigning, of course, as you might expect in the lead-up to Tuesday's election, in an effort to sway undecided voters, whoever are left, and get their base to the polls.

And they've been getting help, as President Joe Biden and former president, Donald Trump, both hit the campaign trail in a final push ahead of the critical vote.

Now, already, some states have seen a huge turnout in early voting. According to data from election officials, more than 40 million preelection ballots have been cast in 47 states.

[00:30:07]

Georgia's secretary of state says more than one in three active voters in the state, 36 percent, have already cast their ballots. That sets a new record. And here's why.

The high-profile rematch in the governor's race between Democrat Stacey Abrams and Republican incumbent Governor Brian Kemp has recaptured national attention. And of course, Senator Raphael Warnock trying to hold onto his Senate seat against Republican challenger Herschel Walker, in a contest that could determine which party controls the Senate next year.

Let's talk about some of the Georgia races. Let's bring in Riley Bunch, public policy reporter for Georgia Public Broadcasting and NPR.

Good to see you, Riley. Thanks for making the time.

The race between Raphael Warnock and -- and Trump-endorsed Herschel Walker could decide the Senate majority. You've been on the trail constantly. How close is it going to be?

RILEY BUNCH, PUBLIC POLICY REPORTER, GEORGIA PUBLIC BROADCASTING: Well, recent polls are showing that this is going to be a very tight race. And this is the second time that this race could potentially weigh in on the balance of power in Congress. And that would shape Biden's administration going forward.

And we have two very, very different candidates, right? We have U.S. Senator Raphael Warnock, who is a famed pastor. On the trail, he talks about Medicaid expansion and voting rights and lowering the cost of prescription drugs.

And he is, you know, against, like you said, Herschel Walker, who is the Trump-endorsed candidate, who is actually a close personal friend of the former president. And he talks -- you know, he mainly bashes Joe Biden's administration, Democrats at the federal level, on the campaign trail.

But the polls that we have leading into election day show Warnock with a very, very slim lead or a deadlock. So we might have a runoff in this race.

HOLMES: Yes. The thing with this race, too, there aren't many nonpartisans who view Herschel Walker as a qualified Senate candidate. And yet, as you point out, he could win against Raphael Warnock.

Other than his local football hero status, what was the GOP thinking in having him run? And has that hurt -- choice hurt Republican chances? What they have been better off with a different candidate?

BUNCH: You know, I think that for a while, the litmus test for Republicans candidates has been the endorsement of President John [SIC] -- Donald Trump.

HOLMES: Yes.

BUNCH: The former president. And we saw that in the primaries, as well. But as we're seeing it play out in Georgia, that's not always the best candidate to put up to voters.

You know, Herschel Walker does have this hometown hero kind of aesthetic about him, but his campaign has been riddled with scandal and controversy.

The most recent abortion-related allegations against him by two women. Now, it's been two women.

And I think that it's caused some Republicans in public, like our lieutenant governor, Jeff Duncan -- but many Republicans in private to really think about how they elect and nominate candidates and what they look for in candidates.

HOLMES: Well, and yet, here he is.

You mentioned Donald Trump. There's word that he might declare a presidential run in the next week or two. And the thing is, with -- with the Warnock/Walker contest, there could be a runoff for that seat. There is a third candidate involved.

And that would be -- what would happen if the Trump declaration came before the runoff? Because let's remember: Many think it was the stain of Trump among Georgia voters that got Warnock over the line in the last election.

BUNCH: Yes, absolutely. If no candidate gets 50 percent plus one of the votes, we will have a four-week runoff. So Georgians will go back in December. And that is plenty of time for the former president to announce another presidential bid.

But I think one thing that Republicans have learned from the 2020 election, as you mentioned, is that it's not always successful to have Trump linked to the campaigns. It's much, much different now. You barely hear his name mentioned on the trail at all, not even by Herschel Walker, who is a longtime friend of his.

So I think they took some cues from the 2020 election. But an announcement during that runoff period would absolutely impact this race.

HOLMES: Yes. Yes. You'd think, wouldn't you?

I wondered, before we go, I want to ask you about the governor's race. Stacey Abrams lagging the incumbent, Brian Kemp. Why do you think that is? Abrams has a big profile, particularly in Georgia. Kemp benefiting from the incumbency.

Or are people saying that Abrams just hasn't run a strong enough campaign to attract moderate Republicans and independents?

BUNCH: Well, I think you touched on one of the reasons why she's struggling, which is this national profile that she has now. She is so inextricably tied to the federal level Democrats and particularly, the Biden administration. She was even a contender for vice president. Right?

So this -- with this national profile comes this tie to federal-level Democrats. And I think that's something she's been struggling to get over in this campaign.

[00:35:03]

On the flip side of things, Republican Brian Kemp, he has been running on his incumbency and his -- specifically, his decisions to keep Georgia open during the pandemic. So he did not fully shutter businesses, which kept the state's economy very, very strong.

And that is what he hammers home to voters on the campaign trail. And I think it -- it, you know, also transcends to moderate and swing voters, who feel kind of more stable than other parts of the country right now.

HOLMES: Great to get the analysis, Riley Bunch. Appreciate it. Thanks so much.

BUNCH: Thank you.

HOLMES: All right. And we will be right back with more.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

HOLMES: Nineteen people are dead after a Tanzanian commercial flight crashed into Lake Victoria on Sunday. The airline says there are 24 survivors, though.

Officials say the plane plunged into the lake as it was preparing to land, and bad weather might have played a role in the accident, as the area was under heavy rainfall and strong winds at the time.

The airline says the names of those killed will not be released until all next of kin have been notified.

North Korea defending a recent series of missile launches that have sparked international condemnation. The country says last week's tests were in response to a military drill that the U.S. and South Korea have been holding.

[00:40:06]

Pyongyang claiming to have fired more than 80 missiles to counter the exercise, or protest at it, which it called an intolerable provocation. It's also threatening more action if Washington and Seoul hold future drills.

Now, in Egypt, global leaders are meeting for the U.N.'s annual climate summit. Researchers, advocates, and the United Nations itself warning that the world is nowhere near its goal of keeping global warming under 1.5 degrees Celsius.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

ALOK SHARMA, COP26 PRESIDENT: Friends, we are not currently on a pathway that keeps 1.5 in reach. And whilst I do understand that leaders around the world have faced competing priorities this year, we must be clear. As challenging as our current moment is, inaction is myopic, and can only defer climate catastrophe.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

HOLMES: Reports from the U.N. and the World Meteorological Association show carbon and methane emissions hit record levels in 2021. And plans that countries have submitted to slash those emissions are beyond insufficient.

All right. I'm Michael Holmes. For our international viewers, WORLD SPORT is next. Everyone else, do stick around. I'll be back with more news after the break.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[00:45:31]

HOLMES: Voters across the United States will be casting their ballots in the high-stakes midterm elections taking place just a day from now.

All 435 House seats, 35 of the Senate seats, and 36 governors' offices are all up for grabs. Control of Congress at stake, of course. And so is President Joe Biden's agenda.

CNN's John King and Dana Bash take a closer look at what to expect on Tuesday.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

DANA BASH, CNN CHIEF POLITICAL CORRESPONDENT/ANCHOR: Let's start in the House.

JOHN KING, CNN ANCHOR, "INSIDE POLITICS": Well, 135 races in all under new lines because of the census two years ago, the redistricting process. As you know better than anybody, they're not all competitive.

So what we've done is we've identified, working with our partners at Inside Elections, 82 competitive seats heading into election day. And as you can see, they are coast-to-coast.

Another way to look at it, look at this just to understand. Democrats are on defense. It's a Democratic president's first midterm. It's a tough climate. Just look down here at the key --

BASH: Yes.

KING: -- of these seats. Fifty-seven of the competitive seats have Democratic incumbents. Almost three times as many, almost three times as many of Republicans. There are three new seats here too as you look at the map. So Democrats are on their heels, defending much more territory in a tough year.

That's one way to look at it. Now let's bring it up.

The big question is who can get to 218, right? And in our rankings right now, we already have Republicans favored in 216 seats. Now some of those are just barely favored. You see the lighter red on the map. But Republicans have a huge advantage going into election day.

And if you look, Dana, you know the races very well. These toss-up races go coast-to-coast. And one of them you focused on in the show, if you bring it up here, I'll show it to you here. Virginia 2.

BASH: And I'll say that Elaine Luria, who's as you see, the incumbent Democrat, she told me when we travelled there and did sort of a look at this race that she considers herself and this race to a team. It will be the clincher, the decider as to who gets the majority.

KING: If that's the case, given that you're in the Eastern time zone.

BASH: That's what happened.

KING: So this is one of the races we will look at on election night for a key clue. Are Democrats -- there are three competitive Democratic districts in the commonwealth of Virginia. Can she hold on?

If she's losing, that gives a big sign. She right about how important and how competitive that district is. But again, they go coast-to- coast.

You go from Virginia 2 on the East Coast all the way across the country. And you have tilting Democrat still. Elaine Luria's district is tilting Republican. Tilting Democrat still, a very well-known progressive.

BASH: Very well-known.

KING: Katie Porter. So the challenges for the Democrats, they go from Maine to Southern California and everywhere in between when it comes to the House, and they're back on defense.

BASH: And it's going to take a while before we learn, obviously, what these races look like, because it's California. It's three hours earlier.

KING: But remember 2018. It was days. It was literally days, a week, more than a week in some cases before we knew the final number. We'll have a good sense on election night. Are Republicans taking the House? Is it a red ripple? Is it a red wave? But the final details will take days.

BASH: Let's look at the Senate. Because this is obviously right now 50-50.

KING: Right.

BASH: It could go so many different ways.

KING: The chess game here, you can game it out reasonably. Democrats winning here, Republicans winning there. But 35 elections in all.

Again, you work with -- we worked with our partners here to identify the competitive seats. Eight elections of the Senate we view as competitive. It could be more. Republicans think they could surprise us in some places.

Of these eight, they're evenly divided now between held by Democrats or held by Republicans.

Best way to look at this is to come into the balance of power, as you come into the control right now. Again, Democrats enter the election 50-50. The vice president of the United States breaks the ties. So Democrats can't afford to lose, essentially.

And so you have the states on the map, if you come in now to how we rank them, the gold are the toss-up states. One is a Republican-held state right now. No incumbent, Pennsylvania. Democratic incumbent in Georgia. Probably the most vulnerable Democratic incumbent, you were just out there in Nevada.

BASH: Yes.

KING: This is where the chess gets fascinating.

BASH: Catherine Cortez Masto, yes. And so many -- I mean, you're saying that these yellow are maybe the tightest. But that might belie what we're actually seeing on the ground, which is a wider swath of really, really tight races.

KING: But it is possible. Again, we know these races are competitive. Right? But we still tilt New Hampshire Democratic. Republicans think they can pick up that seat. We still tilt Arizona Democratic. Republicans think that one is within their reach. They say watch.

We still have this as likely Dem up in Washington state, in Colorado. Republicans say keep an eye on everything.

So you conceivably could get Republicans to 52 or 53. You can also get the Democrats to 51 or stay status quo at 50. Again, this race could decide the Senate in the end. Anybody get above 50? Or are going another month?

BASH: Or are we going to be standing here in December?

KING: Yes. On December 6th. But you were just out here. This is what Democrats worry about most. They view Catherine Cortez Masto as the most vulnerable Democrat.

And again, think about the math. Right? We won't know that one, because it's out West. Right? The Democrats would love to pick up Pennsylvania as a safety valve, an insurance policy against maybe losing out in Nevada.

[00:50:10]

BASH: It is going to be a long and very exciting night.

KING: Week.

BASH: Maybe week. John King, thank you.

KING: Thank you.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

HOLMES: Meanwhile, in some U.S. states, there's rising concern about violence at the polls, like in Arizona, where a federal judge imposed new restrictions against a right-wing group after voters complained about aggressive patrols at ballot drop boxes.

But the Republican National Committee chairwoman says the act of poll watching does not equal intimidation. (BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

MCDANIEL: Nobody should be intimidating or breaking the law. Nobody should. But poll watching is not intimidating. If you've been at a poll place, you see they're just simply observing. And it helps us at the end to give assurance to the voters, say, Listen, we were there. We watched it. It went well.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

HOLMES: Poll watchers are also busy in Pennsylvania, where some of the most closely-watched races are taking place. CNN's Elle Reeve reports on why ordinary Americans have decided it is their civic duty to patrol these ballot boxes.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

ELLE REEVE, CNN CORRESPONDENT: So what are they training you to do, then, when you're watching?

JOHN P. CHILD, POLL WATCHER: Observe.

REEVE: Well, what are you looking for exactly?

CHILD: Observing. We're looking for oddball stuff, I guess.

REEVE (voice-over): John P. Child is training to be a poll watcher, part of a wave of organizing among people who believe the 2020 election was stolen.

CLETA MITCHELL, CONSERVATIVE ACTIVIST: All over the country, we're deploying people to be poll watchers to watch everything that's happening.

REEVE (voice-over): Generally, it's a good thing when more people get engaged in their local government. But some of this engagement is motivated by lies.

CHILD: Especially the mail-in ballots. That's -- that's where the big issue was in 2020. Because in Pennsylvania, there were 1.8 million mail-in ballots went out; 2.5 million come back. There's a -- hello, a question, maybe?

REEVE: Are you sure about that?

CHILD: Yes. Look it up. Sure.

REEVE: Can we Google it?

CHILD: Google, I wouldn't. But yes, you -- It's everywhere.

REEVE: OK. So first result is from the A.P.

CHILD: There you go.

REEVE: A.P.'s assessment, false. In the weeks before the November 2020 election, more than three million Pennsylvania voters requested vote by mail.

REEVE (voice-over): We met John at a poll-watcher training put on by Delaware County conservatives. The organizer wouldn't let us in, but John agreed to an interview, and he brought the training materials.

CHILD: My head was spinning at the end of it. I -- it's a rabbit hole.

REEVE: Well, so tell me about --

CHILD: I liked it better when I didn't know any of this, honestly.

REEVE: Tell me about what was so mind-blowing in this.

CHILD: Well, the whole chain of custody thing of V-drives. That was astounding.

REEVE (voice-over): The documents go through many technical and procedural details of how votes are counted after polls close and question whether each is an avenue for cheating. It casts an enormous cloud of suspicion over the vote without any proof.

STEVE BANNON, TRUMP ALLY/RADIO TALK SHOW HOST: And we're going to prove it to you.

REEVE (voice-over): It's part of a real nationwide movement led by MAGA influencers, who circulate false information of election fraud in podcasts and in tours across the country.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: You notice how mail-in votes will occasionally switch with in-person votes.

REEVE (voice-over): They've inspired citizens to get involved at the local level, to hunt for proof of fraud, and to prevent it from happening on election day. They have not found proof or fraudsters. What election officials are worried about is that these efforts could intimidate voters.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: You have to get into the ring. You cannot fight this on social media.

REEVE: I have watched like many of these different presentations, Steve Bannon, like, this guy calls himself the Professor, presenting this evidence. But none of that stuff adds up to the millions of votes between Trump and Biden.

CHILD: So you're not convinced, and we're -- we're a bunch of crazy people, then.

REEVE: I didn't say you're crazy.

CHILD: Well, sure you are.

REEVE: I didn't say you're crazy.

CHILD: No. We're deluded. We're misled.

REEVE: Maybe misled.

CHILD: I don't see it that way.

REEVE: I know you don't see that. I know you don't see it that way. But I guess one of the reasons why it's important to talk to people like you is to see if there's a place where there could be a reconciliation.

CHILD: Yes, go back to same-day voting and paper ballots.

CHRISTINE REUTHER, COUNTY COUNCILWOMAN, DELAWARE COUNTY, PA: We get these comments. People come to us at county council meetings. We need to use paper ballots. I'm like, we do use paper ballots. Do you understand? We use paper ballots.

REEVE (voice-over): Dealing with election misinformation has become a big part of the county council's job.

REUTHER: So the votes are cast on a paper ballot, and then they're scanned. And the results of that vote are tabulated on the scanner. But we're not really voting on the scanner. You're voting on the paper ballot. And that paper ballot is maintained as a record of the voter's vote.

REEVE (voice-over): Delaware County in Pennsylvania has fought 15 election lawsuits against 2020 election deniers and won all of them. But it cost more than $250,000. And officials are worried about how much more time and money this movement will drain with the midterms.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Mail-in ballots are susceptible to fraud --

REEVE (voice-over): At the biweekly county council meeting, most of the public comments falsely suggested that something sketchy is going on with elections.

REUTHER: Somebody can stand up at one of our meetings, and they get three minutes to say whatever they want. Spout off lies about the election. There's not much I can do about it.

[00:55:08]

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: We're talking about electronic digital devices. Every one of those is providing a gateway for outside intervention, or in-house intervention, as it may be.

REUTHER: I guess I would just say to them, Do you really think all of us want to go to jail? Do you really think everybody in government and everybody who works in our election department wants to go to jail? Because we'd be doing something really illegal.

And I'll tell you something, if I thought somebody was doing that, they should go to jail.

KEVIN M. MADDEN, DELAWARE COUNTY COUNCILMAN: There has to be some degree of trust in those who serve the public that they're doing something for the public good. And that we have lost. I don't know our way out, but this is the world we live in right now.

REUTHER: There's some kind of cognitive dissonance out there where people are saying, Well, we've got to save democracy by overturning an election. That's more of a dictatorship than it is a democracy.

CHILD: I'm open to put my eyes on things.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Will you accept the results of these midterm elections? Even if it's not the results you wanted?

CHILD: Accept it? What what? Am I going to start a revolt? No. Accept it?

REEVE: Yes.

CHILD: Have to accept it. What else are you going to do?

REEVE: Elle Reeve, CNN, Delaware County, Pennsylvania.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

HOLMES: Thanks for spending part of your day with me. I'm Michael Holmes. Laila Harrak will pick up our coverage after a quick break. Stick around.

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