STORY: U.S. stocks ended higher Monday on the eve of the Nov. 8 midterm elections, with Republicans favored to win a majority in the House of Representatives ushering in a divided government - a scenario often favored by investors.

The Dow ended 1.3% higher, while the S&P 500 and Nasdaq finished up just shy of a percent.

Michael Jones, chairman & CEO of Caravel Concepts, explains why some Wall Street love gridlock in Washington.

"Generally speaking, the times historically where I've lived through this, where the market has done the best, is when there is the potential for stalemate. Because the great thing about stalemate is it's predictable. Nothing's going to happen. And, you know, I think right now, if I were to try and balance between, is it uncertainty about the Fed or uncertainty on the election? I think investors are much more worried about the Fed than the election because the election is almost certain to lead to stalemate. You know, the odds of the House (of Representatives) flipping back to the Republicans are overwhelming based on the polls, the betting houses, all of the various standard things that you look. And all you have to have is one of the Congress's houses flip and you get stalemate."

Share of Meta Platforms jumped following a report saying the company was planning to begin large-scale layoffs this week. The stock has slumped more than 70% so far this year.

Recently beaten-down shares of Microsoft and Google-parent Alphabet also rallied, contributing heavily to the S&P 500's gain for the session.

Soaring on the eve of the election were shares of Digital World Acquisition Corp - the special-purpose acquisition company that agreed to take Donald Trump's Truth Social startup public - after the former U.S. president hinted at announcing another run for the White House soon.