A few days ago, I wrote about the storm before the storm: how free and fair elections have become a full-scale war between a president seeking to undermine and those of us fighting to protect them. So far, we have battled back the storm as we have won case after case in court.

If there is a pause, an eye in the storm, it will be today.

Election Day is as close to a sacred day as a secular democracy can have. The Supreme Court has described polling places as “an island of calm in which voters can peacefully contemplate their choices.”

As a lawyer, my job on Election Day is to watch that island and make sure that the tens of millions of voters who travel to the polls today can cast their ballots. Traditionally, this has meant ensuring polls open on time, voting lines do not grow too long, and addressing any problems that occur.

But this year is very different.

The federal government has turned into a voter suppression war machine. The Department of Justice is running a vast voter suppression effort. The Department of Homeland Security is creating faulty lists and intimidating voters. Even the U.S. Postal Service tried to join the voter suppression effort.

The Republican Party and its allies are filing litigation aimed at making voting more difficult. Their Election Day plans will undoubtedly follow a similar path.

While Democratic-controlled states will do their best to facilitate voting, their GOP counterparts make casting ballots more difficult and potentially threaten to refuse to certify Democrats who prevail.

The magic of Election Day is that it is impossible to know in advance what will happen. We can read polls, but we cannot know who will win or lose. We can predict turnout, but cannot know who will show up.

This year, we have the added uncertainty of what Donald Trump will do. Whatever it is, it will not be helpful.

That’s why my eyes are keener than ever. I am watching even more closely. My law firm has worked overtime to prepare for one single day. Here is what I will be watching for.

1. Do the DOJ monitors stay in their lanes?

The DOJ has been vocal about its ramped-up poll monitoring effort, which includes about 1,000 DOJ officials dispatched as poll monitors. In defense of its monitoring effort, the DOJ told a federal judge that the officers would not be acting in their law enforcement capacity. The judge was skeptical, warning the DOJ lawyers that there would be “hell to pay” if it turns out they were lying to the court.

We will find out today if the DOJ was telling the truth. If they were not, we will quickly hear reports of officers intimidating voters, acting aggressively toward poll workers, and blocking access to polling locations. Court action will follow. I hope that is not the case.

2. Does federal law enforcement violate criminal law?

That leads to the next thing I will be watching for: whether federal law enforcement — such as ICE agents or the FBI — interferes with voting. Legally, these agents cannot be stationed at polling locations, intimidate voters or interfere with voting.

We have been worried about this for some time. The Trump administration has been banging the drum of alleged noncitizen voting; they may use this pretext to send ICE near the polls even if not directly at them.

3. Does DOJ try any last-minute litigation?

The DOJ is 1-29 in voting and election cases — including the huge defeat they suffered yesterday in the Supreme Court. As the GOP’s loss becomes clear from exit polls, we will watch to see if DOJ goes to court again.

If the department tries to sue, my law firm is prepared to fight back. I have faith that we will beat them once again.

4. Does Trump try to seize ballots or election machines?

Donald Trump has had a circus of election deniers in his ear telling him one thing: seize the ballots and the election machines. He considered this in 2020 but did not follow through. This time there will be no one in the White House telling him no.

Should the election results go in Democrats' favor, I would not put it past Trump to launch an effort to seize ballots.

5. Does Trump blame Democratic fraud or GOP candidates for their defeats?

I am almost certain Trump will cry fraud if the GOP loses the midterms. He will claim Democrats cheated and promote outlandish conspiracy theories.

However, I am interested to see if Trump places any blame on the Republicans who failed to turn out voters or run competitive races. Trump will never take accountability for his own losses, and self-reflection is beyond him.

But will he place any blame on his own party, or will he just say Democrats ran another rigged election? Only time will tell.

We are now in the eye of the storm. As you read this, voters are making their way to their polling locations. Ballots are being cast.

By this evening, we will have answers to almost — if not all — of these questions. I am watching closely today, and I am sure you are watching, too.

I will check back in with you tomorrow.