Obama faces electoral backlash

As polling stations open for crucial midterm elections in the US, the Democratic party of Barack Obama, the country's president, is widely expected to lose its majority in the House of Representatives.

Such a result would be a dramatic reversal for Obama following his sweeping path to victory in 2008.

A series of events, from a global economic downturn to the BP oil disaster, has engulfed the president, and the uphill task looks set to continue during his next two years in power.

David Foster reports from Washington.