US Midterm Elections 2026: What Is Being Voted On on November 3 and What Determines Control of Congress

What happens on November 3

On Tuesday, November 3, 2026, the United States holds midterm elections to Congress. Americans will re-elect all 435 seats in the House of Representatives and decide the fate of 35 Senate seats: 33 in the regular Class II elections and two more in special elections in Florida and Ohio. There is no presidential ballot in these elections: Donald Trump began his second term in January 2025, and the next presidential election is scheduled for 2028. This is reported by Life.ru in its article, which is meant to be updated at a single URL — first as an explainer, then as a page with results, and finally as a final guide.

The situation before the vote

Before the elections, both chambers are controlled by Republicans, and their margin is extremely narrow. According to the House of Representatives clerk's office as of October 19, the current composition includes 218 Republicans, 214 Democrats, one independent, and two vacancies — a majority requires at least 218 seats, so a few districts that changed party could alter control of the chamber. In the Senate there are 53 Republicans, 45 Democrats, and two independents who vote with the Democrats; the Democratic bloc needs a net gain of at least four seats for an outright majority of 51 votes. In a 50:50 split, Vice President JD Vance could cast the deciding vote on many issues.

Key races and campaign themes

At the finish of the campaign, AP and other major outlets highlight several Senate states: Maine (Susan Collins vs. Troy Jackson), Michigan (Abdul El-Sayed vs. Mike Rogers), Texas (Ken Paxton vs. James Talarico), Kansas (Roger Marshall vs. Adam Hamilton), Alaska (Dan Sullivan vs. Mary Peltola), and Mississippi (Cindy Hyde-Smith vs. Scott Colom). The central campaign themes are the cost of living, inflation and energy prices, the administration's tariff policy, immigration, and foreign policy. Republicans call for preserving unified party control, while Democrats build their campaign around constraining the president through Congress; references to a 'referendum on Trump' are acceptable only as a political characterization, since the president's name is not on the ballot.

Early turnout and timing of results

According to the Associated Press, by November 2 more than 54 million people had voted early, and the pace was noticeably ahead of the 2022 midterms — especially in states with competitive races, including Texas, Maine, Michigan, and Kansas. However, high early turnout by itself does not indicate which party is winning. The first results for the Moscow audience will begin coming in on the night of November 3 to 4: in many East Coast states, polls close around 7:00–8:00 p.m. local time, which is roughly 3:00–4:00 a.m. Moscow time. Control of the chambers may be determined much later due to mail-in ballots, close results, possible recounts, and the specifics of the rules: Alaska, for example, uses ranked-choice voting. Before the polls close, there are no official results, and forecasts and polls cannot substitute for them. In addition to Congress, a number of states are electing governors, state legislatures, and local authorities, and referendums are also being held.