One year after Barack Obama's landslide victory in the 2008 presidential elections, his party is faced up with another test on Tuesday as a handful of local elections are held in states and cities.
Starting early morning, registered voters began casting their ballots in Virginia and New Jersey, where Democrats and Republicans are intensely wrestling in the gubernatorial elections.
A voting guide is posted outside a polling station in New York Nov. 3, 2009. Citizens of New York City went to polls on Tuesday for the general election of the city. Mayor Michael Bloomberg is seeking for his third term.
Tuesday is also marked in some major cities that are electing mayors, including New York, Boston, Atlanta and Houston.
Although Obama's name is not on the ballots, the elections are portrayed by Republicans as "referendums" on his presidency and Democratic administration, which have been featured by economic stimulus measures, health care reform and withdrawal from the Iraq war.
KEY BATTLEFIELDS
On Nov. 4, 2008, Obama made history not only as the first African-American president but also the first Democrat to win a presidential race in Virginia since the 1960s.
However, Democrats are less likely to keep the state blue on Tuesday, as earlier polls showed Republican candidate for governor Bob McDonnell had a double-digit lead over his Democratic rival Creigh Deeds.
