Elections are scheduled to be held in the United States, in large part, on November 3, 2026. In this midterm elections, scheduled to occur during Republican president Donald Trump's nonconsecutive second term, all 435 seats in the U.S. House of Representatives and 35 of the 100 seats in the U.S. Senate will be contested to determine the 120th United States Congress. 39 state and territorial U.S. gubernatorial elections, attorney general elections, and numerous state and local elections, will also be contested.
The 2026 midterm elections are the first since 1894 to take place during a non-consecutive second term of the President of the United States.
Incumbent Republican Donald Trump won the 2024 presidential election against Democrat Kamala Harris in part due to campaign promises such as economic renewal from the 2021âÂÂ2023 inflation surge, and American domestication away from foreign entanglements such as the Gaza war and the Russo-Ukrainian war.
The second Trump administration has imposed tariffs on much of the world with the intent to re-industrialize America, a decision that received mixed reception. It was criticized by experts and global leaders for worsening inflation rather than fighting it. The administrationâÂÂs immigration policies, including deportations by ICE due to strengthened funding via the One Big Beautiful Bill Act, were also scrutinized by experts and activists.
The 2026 elections will be the first federal elections since the 2016 presidential contest where ABC News, CNN, CBS News, NBC News, the Associated Press and Fox News will use one election survey, the Voter Poll by SSRS, to measure voters' opinions and preferences. From 2018 to 2024, the former four news networks continued to use data from the National Election Pool while the Associated Press and Fox News relied on AP VoteCast.
Although Trump will not be listed as a candidate on any state ballot in 2026, voters' views of his presidency will likely be a factor in the election. During the 2025 off year elections, exit polls found that many voted in opposition to Trump or said that he was not a factor. Surveys released in late 2025 and early 2026 find that many view Trump's handling of the economy and immigration, two issues that propelled him to victory in the 2024 election, negatively. During elections held in his first term, Trump was on the minds of many who voted.
The Republican Party performed worse than expected in the November 2025 general elections. Democratic candidates Abigail Spanberger of Virginia and Mikie Sherrill of New Jersey won their gubernatorial races over their Republican opponents by larger than expected margins. Democrats performed strongly in the concurrent state legislative elections, winning a supermajority in the New Jersey General Assembly and expanding their majority in the Virginia House of Delegates. In New York City, Democrat Zohran Mamdani, a self-identified democratic socialist, was elected mayor in a three-way race against independent former governor Andrew Cuomo and Republican Curtis Sliwa. The main theme of the elections was affordability.
In January 2026, The Washington Post reported that the second Trump administration had undertaken several tactics, including mid-decade redrawing of congressional districts for partisan gain, prosecution of political opponents, and a push to change voting methods and rules, that were meant to undermine confidence in the midterm elections.
Trump floated the idea of canceling the elections, citing an expected loss in the elections and a distrust in democratic systems. White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt later claimed Trump was "speaking facetiously," and was "simply joking".
In February, Trump stated that the elections should be nationalized to prevent voter fraud. A day later, Steve Bannon said the federal government was planning to send ICE to patrol polling stations in an attempt to prevent a Democratic victory, vowing to "never again allow an election to be stolen." That month, the House of Representatives passed the SAVE America Act, an amended version of the previously proposed Safeguard American Voter Eligibility Act. The bill, if approved by the Senate and signed into law by Trump, would require registering voters to provide proof of citizenship in order to obtain or renew their voter registration. Voting rights activists allege that such provisions would disenfranchise married women, racial minorities, low-income groups, and people who legally changed their name, among others.
On February 27, it was revealed that several right-wing activists are working with the Trump administration to draft an executive order which, if signed, would effectively instate a national emergency and give Trump extended powers over the elections. Trump denied the existence of the executive order.
In March, Stateline reported that legislation to "restrict immigration enforcement or the presence of federal forces" near polling places and other election sites has been offered or announced in California, Connecticut, New Mexico, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, Virginia and Washington. The same month, the Associated Press reported that several Democratic-led states including Connecticut, New Mexico and Virginia are taking steps to counter potential tactics to intimidate voters. New Mexico has barred armed agents from election sites in response to Trump's immigration crackdown. In Connecticut, a state bill seeks to establish a 250-foot buffer from federal agents at local polls.
35 seats in the United States Senate will be up for election, including all 33 Class 2 seats. Republicans gained majority control of the Senate in the 2024 elections by flipping four Democratic seats. Two Democratic-held seats, Georgia and Michigan, are in states won by Donald Trump in the previous presidential election, while Maine is the only Republican-held seat in a state won by Kamala Harris.
Two special elections will be held to fill the unexpired terms of senators who vacated their seats during the :
All 435 voting seats in the United States House of Representatives will be up for election. Additionally, elections will be held to select the non-voting delegate for the District of Columbia and the non-voting delegates from 4 of the 5 U.S. territories, excluding Puerto Rico due to its non-voting delegate serving a 4 year term. There are 16 Democratic incumbents in districts Donald Trump won, while only 8 Republican incumbents are in seats won by Harris.
The House map features a number of new congressional maps: Ohio and Utah will have new, court-mandated congressional districts this cycle; Missouri, North Carolina, and Texas redrew their maps mid-cycle; and the district map was changed in California following the passage of Prop 50.
At least four special elections to the House of Representatives will be held in 2026.
36 states and three territories will be holding regularly scheduled gubernatorial elections. The governors of 15 states and two territories will be term-limited.
Nine states will be holding regularly scheduled lieutenant gubernatorial elections.
30 states, two territories, and one federal district will be holding regularly scheduled attorney general elections.
26 states will be holding regularly scheduled secretary of state elections.
27 states will be holding regularly scheduled treasurer elections.
23 states will be holding regularly scheduled auditor elections.
88 state legislative chambers and 5 territorial chambers will be holding regularly scheduled elections.
Elections are scheduled to be held in 2026, in various states across the country, including supreme courts and appellate courts.
80 ballot measures in 33 states will be held in the November election.
A number of major cities will hold mayoral elections in 2026.
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