We are closing our live page coverage for the evening.

If you're just joining us, here's a quick recap of what happened today:

• US President Joe Biden delivered an evening speech near the US Capitol, where he warned that American democracy was under attack
• The US Federal Reserve hiked interest rates by 0.75% for the fourth consecutive time and sixth time overall this year in a continued effort to tackle inflation
• A court in the key state of Pennsylvania has ruled that ballots improperly dated should not be counted - a win for Republicans who filed the case and made election security a rallying cry. Some fear that this could throw out numerous votes in close races
• Donald Trump continues to loom large ahead of these midterms. He has weighed in on almost 200 races across the US, backing Republican candidates in Senate, House and top state offices - an unusual number for ex-presidents.

Thanks for following our live coverage.

Today's page was edited by Marianna Brady, Nathan Williams, Jessica Murphy and Sarah Fowler, with writing from Laura Gozzi, Nadine Yousif, Max Matza, Adam Durbin, Jack Burgess, George Wright, Oliver Slow, Sam Cabral, Brajesh Upadhyay, Nada Tawfik, Chloe Kim, Kayla Epstein, and Laura Trevelyan.

Join us again tomorrow for more breaking news, analysis and on the ground reporting from our BBC correspondents.

We're now getting some reaction on US president Joe Biden's speech, in which he said that American democracy is under threat.

Republican House minority leader Kevin McCarthy responded to Biden's remarks on Twitter, saying that the president is "trying to divide and deflect at a time when America needs to unite."

He accused Biden of fear-mongering and avoiding speaking on his policies, which McCarthy said "have driven up the cost of living".

"The American people are not buying it."

Biden has just wrapped up his remarks, in which he said "there is no place for voter intimidation or political violence in America, whether it is directed at Democrats or Republicans".

The president, who delivered his speech near the US Capitol, added that "democracy is under threat".

He blamed this on former president Donald Trump's refusal to accept the results of the 2020 US election, which he called "the most attacked" in the country's history.

As we've reported earlier, there are a number of candidates who have denied the validity of the 2020 election currently on the ballot.

"I appeal to all Americans, regardless of party, to meet this moment of national and generational importance," Biden said. "We must vote knowing what is at stake."

"We're facing a defining moment, an inflection point," he said.

Image source, Getty Images

Ahead of the midterms, state election officials have been sounding the alarm about a growing cohort of election observers - some of them 2020 election deniers or conspiracy theorists - who they say have the potential to cause disturbances during voting.

Poll watchers have been a part of US elections since the 18th Century - they’re recruited by political parties, and are subject to state-level regulations.

In recent months, however, officials in a number of states have pointed to multiple incidents of harassment, intimidation and disruption.

In Arizona, for example, Reuters reported that poll watchers had to be told to put away binoculars, were caught looking at private voter data, and were asked to stop making comments about “fraudulent elections”.

Election officials in North Carolina, Nevada and Colorado have reported similar concerns.

And in Michigan, a coalition of right-wing groups has set up the so-called Michigan Election Protection Team - recruiting thousands of inspectors, both for the primary election in early August and for the November midterms.

Image source, Getty Images

On 6 January 2021, a mob of pro-Trump supporters stormed the US Capitol complex in Washington DC as Congress was meeting to certify Joe Biden's victory in the 2020 presidential election.

A select panel of nine lawmakers in the House of Representatives has been investigating how and why the attack happened, recently accusing former President Trump of being the chief instigator of the attack and issuing a legal summons for his testimony.

But the Democrat-led committee's work has further divided a deeply disunited nation.

One CBS News poll conducted in September found about 40% of voters said the inquiry had made them more likely to vote for Democrats this year, while 31% said they were now more inclined toward Republicans.

Committee member Elaine Luria is learning that the hard way. The Virginia congresswoman is neck-and-neck with Republican challenger Jen Kiggans in her bid for re-election this year.

Kiggans told CBS that Luria's focus on the 6 January attack shows she's "out of touch" with voters - but the Democrat has shot back that the panel is about "being on the right side of history and getting to the facts".

Image source, Getty Images

US president Joe Biden is has begun his speech in Washington DC, opening by talking about last week's attack on Paul Pelosi - husband of Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi - who was sent to the hospital after a man broke-in to the couple's home in California and struck him with a hammer.

"The assailant entered the home asking, 'Where's Nancy?'" Biden said. "Those are the very same words used by the mob when they stormed the US Capitol on January 6th."

Biden then blamed Donald Trump and his false claims over the 2020 election for fuelling a "dangerous rise in political violence and voter intimidation over the past two years".

Kayla Epstein
Reporting from New York

There are lots of nail-biter elections for governor this year, but the one nobody predicted was New York state.

Kathy Hochul, a Democrat who rose to power after New York’s previous governor was ousted in a sexual harassment scandal, is running against Republican Representative Lee Zeldin, a staunch backer of Donald Trump who has failed to denounce his election conspiracies.

In this famously Democratic-leaning state, you’d expect a Republican to have zero chance. No Republican has held the governor’s mansion since 2007.

So why do polls show Zeldin doing so well, trailing Hochul by only a few points heading into the final days of the race?

It has a lot to do with the issue of crime.

Zeldin has been pummeling Hochul on crime throughout his campaign. The data around crime rates is complicated, especially in New York City where some crimes, like murder, are down year over year but others, like robbery and grand larceny, are up.

But Zeldin’s managed to tap in to a perception among suburban and rural voters that their state is less safe under Hochul.

It’s a smart stragy for Zeldin; a mid-October Quinnipiac Poll , externalshowed crime was the top issue for likely New York voters - ahead of even inflation.

It was far and away the top issue for Republican and independent voters, and second for Democrats. It’s still Hochul’s race to lose, and her lead has widened to 52% of likely voters to 44% who support Zeldin, according one recent poll., external

But the New York governor’s race will be an indicator of the effectiveness of Republicans’ strategy of relentlessly playing up crime was this year – and whether Democrats did enough to push back.

For now, big Democrat names are posed to support Hochul on the campaign trail. Vice-President Kamala Harris and Hillary Clinton will be joining Hochul at an event on Thursday, while Bill Clinton will lend his support on Saturday.

Image source, Getty Images

Illinois State Police have laid charges after a Chicago man left a voicemail to the state's Republican governor candidate Darren Bailey threatening to "mutilate and kill" him.

Scott Lennox, who lives in Chicago, was arrested and charged with threatening a public official, telephone harassment and harassment by electronic communications.

The arrest comes at the heels of an attack on Paul Pelosi - husband of Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi - by a man who broke into the couple's home last week.

Politicians and Capitol Police have warned of a rise in politically-motivated violent incidents ahead of the US midterm elections.

The threats made to Bailey were denounced by his Democratic challenger, Governor JB Pritzker, who tweeted that "the violent rhetoric and division we're seeing across the country is unacceptable".

Image source, Reuters

One Republican Senate candidate running in the midterms next week has attracted something of a cult following in recent years – not for his politics, but for his Twitter account.

Chuck Grassley is the 89-year-old seven-term Senator for Iowa, who's campaigning for an eighth successive term in the Hawkeye State.

Grassley is a veteran of the United States political scene, having first been elected to the state legislature as early as 1958 – when Dwight D Eisenhower was US President. He entered the House of Representatives in 1974, then the Senate in 1980.

Despite being one of the oldest candidates running in the midterms, he’s not shy about using technology, and he’s become particularly well-known for his use of Twitter.

Grassley's account is renowned for what one might call his quirky observations as he conducts his work, often replete with typos – or at least a creative use of short hand. There’s also a fair amount of humour.

A popular tweet came in 2014, when he said: "Staff has now informed me of what a Kardashian is. I'm only left with more questions."

For more than a decade, however, much of his online wrath has been directed towards the History Channel, with the senator criticising what he says is lack of history shows.

“Turned to history channel. No. HIstory again,” said one typo-laden 2012 tweet.

Image source, Getty Images

In a town hall hosted by Fox News on Tuesday night, the two men running to be the next senator for Ohio argued their case in an effort to woo moderate swing voters.

"We need a tax cut," said Republican JD Vance in his first response of the night.

He condemned the attack against Paul Pelosi, the husband of top Democrat Nancy Pelosi, and noted that the attacker is reportedly a Canadian citizen who had overstayed his visa in the US.

"My view, very simply, is that we need to deport violent illegal aliens," said Vance, a businessman and author.

"Crime is an issue," Democratic Congressman Tim Ryan said. "I don’t care what anybody says about that."

"I think we need more border patrol, not less," Ryan continued, speaking about immigration, a talking point more likely to be heard from a Republican than a Democrat.

Ryan's campaign pledge is that he will be an "ass kicker, not an ass kisser" in a reference to Trump's claim that Vance - who has a slight edge in the polls - begged the former president for an endorsement.

"JD is kissing my ass, he wants my support so much," Trump told a packed rally audience in September as Vance stood beside him at the podium.

Image source, Getty Images

Image source, .

President Biden is expected to make remarks later tonight about how "democracy's under assault", the White House has said.

We just brought you some early excerpts of those remarks.

But what do we know about candidates who have publicly raised doubts about the 2020 presidential election or repeated claims that it was stolen?

The BBC's US partner CBS has crunched some numbers and here is what they found.

• Out of 595 Republicans running for state-wide office, just over half - 306 - have raised doubts about the 2020 presidential election
• Among the candidates for governor, 20 of 36 have done so.
• Of those running for lieutenant governor, it's 9 of 31
• In the case of candidates for attorney general, it's 9 of 30
• For secretary of state candidates, it's 12 of 27
• Of those running for the US senate, it's 18 out of 25
• And lastly, 238 of 436 US House of Representatives candidates have done so
• Notably, only two states - Rhode Island and North Dakota - do not have election deniers running for office

As we've been reporting, President Biden will deliver a speech tonight to Democratic National Committee members in Washington DC in which, according to the White House, he will touch on the "threat to democratic integrity".

Here is some of what Biden is expected to say, according to early excerpts of his remarks.

"As I stand here today, there are candidates running for every level of office in America: for governor, for Congress, for Attorney General, for Secretary of State who won’t commit to accepting the results of the elections they’re in," he will say, according to released sections of the speech.

"That is the path to chaos in America. It’s unprecedented. It’s unlawful. And, it is un-American.

"As I’ve said before, you can’t love your country only when you win."

Nada Tawfik
BBC News, reporting from New Jersey

If Democrats have any shot at taking New Jersey's 7th District, they need to turn out as many voters as possible in places like Rahway.

The blue-collar city is strongly democratic, but it is new to the district for this election.

On the streets here, I don’t see many yard signs at all for any of the candidates.

Progressive activists like John Hsu have been out canvassing to introduce these new voters, who are accustomed to voting in an entirely different district, to the Democratic incumbent.

Hsu tells me winning here feels like “an uphill battle” and while he expects to lose this House seat to Republicans, you can never know what will happen.

He says he’s been honest with voters, even addressing the perceived downfalls of Democrat candidate Tom Malinowski, but stresses his view that Republican policies will “set the country back".

Hsu wishes Democrats spoke more about the economy and emphasised things like corporate price gouging more. He tells me a debate focused just on culture wars doesn’t benefit progressives, but a debate on economic policies to help working people does.

The former US president has criticised what he called "over the top rhetoric" from some politicians.

Speaking at a rally in Nevada, he said elected officials who encourage armed supporters to visit polling places will create an environment where "more people are going to get hurt".

Politicians and poll workers have reported an increase in threating messages and intimidation. Armed men were reported to be patrolling ballot drop boxes in Arizona, alarming people attempting to vote.

Image source, Getty Images

And now an update on last Friday's attack on the husband of House Speaker Nancy Pelosi.

Earlier, the Washington Post, external reported that the man who broke into a couple's California home and attacked Paul Pelosi was recorded on US Capitol Police CCTV cameras that were not being monitored at the time.

The US Capitol Police - tasked with protecting members of Congress - have since responded to the report, saying the cameras outside the San Francisco home were not actively monitored as Pelosi was in Washington DC at the time.

They added their Command Center in the US capital has access to roughly 1,800 cameras, and confirmed that a personnel noticed police activity at Pelosi's home and then moved to monitor the response and assist investigators.

Police said the incident has sparked an internal security review and that they are working to enhance the protection of Congress members outside of the capital.

The attack has led to warnings of a rise in politically-motivated violent incidents ahead of the US midterm elections.

In their statement, the US Capitol Police urged the public to "lower the temperature on political rhetoric before it’s too late."

...here is a recap of today's developments and key talking points:

• The US Federal Reserve has announced a 0.75% raise in interest rates as it attempts to tackle inflation, which reached 8.2% in the US in September, higher than analysts expected. Stocks on the New York Stock Exchange fell after the announcement
• A court in the key state of Pennsylvania has ruled that ballots improperly dated should not be counted. This could throw out numerous votes in close races and is a win for Republicans, who filed the case and have made election security a rallying cry
• Polls say that Democrat John Fetterman and Republican Mehmet Oz are neck-and-neck in the race for the Senate seat in that state
• Barack Obama's team have announced that he'll join the Democratic candidate for governor, John Fetterman, for a rally in Pittsburgh on Saturday
• Meanwhile, President Biden is set to deliver a major speech later about threats to democracy, with a focus on "the threat of election deniers"
• Donald Trump looms large on the midterms: he has weighed in on almost 200 races, backing Republican candidates in Senate, House and top state offices across the US - far above the typical number for ex-presidents

Chelsea Bailey
Digital producer, BBC News

Paxton Smith and Melanie Salazar met outside the Supreme Court moments before the decision to overturn Roe v Wade ended the constitutional right to abortion access in the United States.

They both say abortion will be the most important issue when they vote in the midterms next week - but for very different reasons.

Our new election series, The Other Side, brings Americans together to discuss the issues dividing the nation.

You can watch the video here:

Nada Tawfik
BBC News, reporting from New Jersey

I am still making my way through New Jersey and speaking to voters on the ground about issues that matter most to them.

Driving through the wealthy suburb of Watchung, the yard sign I’ve seen posted a fair amount says “choice is on the ballot.”

And speaking to people here, it’s clear some of them now define the Republican Party by Dobbs, the Supreme Court ruling that overturned Roe.

I ran into Nora Cole and her friend Theresa Beran. They said they will never again vote for a Republican on a national ticket given the party’s stance on abortion access.

Women’s rights shouldn’t be legislated, Nora said: “Shame on them…what will they take next from us next?”

It will be interesting to see how many women feel are driven to the ballot box in New Jersey over this specific concern, despite access to an abortion not being an issue in the state.

The First Lady, Jill Biden, has been out in Pennsylvania campaigning for the Democrats.

Speaking at a fundraiser, she touched upon the issue of abortion and shared the story of how at 17 she had to watch a friend get a psychiatric evaluation to declare her mentally unfit before she could get an abortion. At the time, the procedure was illegal in Pennsylvania.

Since the Supreme Court overturned nationwide abortion protections in June, the issue of abortion has been sent back to the states. That means governors and state legislatures have the power to decide the future of abortion access.

President Biden has promised that if the Democrats retain control of Congress he will back a bill that codifies abortion protection into law.

Abortion is one of the key issues being discussed as the midterms approach, with the Democrats wanting to focus on abortion protections as the Republicans are trying to turn attention to immigration, crime and inflation.

Image source, Reuters

With today’s interest rate hike to curb rising inflation, top Democrats have come out defending their economic record and their support for American families.

Inflation has been top of mind for many voters ahead of the US midterm elections.

Speaking at an event in Boston, vice-president Kamala Harris spoke in support of the recently-passed Inflation Reduction Act, which she says will reduce the cost of prescription drugs for many Americans - including seniors who rely on insulin.

"And we passed a tax cut, not for corporations, but for parents," Harris said, saying families can access up to $8,000 to help pay for day-to-day expenses.

Harris also said her government is doing "everything we can" to lower gas prices.

Earlier today, US president Joe Biden spoke in support of a recently-passed infrastructure bill that he says will create more jobs, adding that he remains "optimistic" about the future.