When Is Election Day 2026? Midterm Ballot and Voting Guide
Election Day 2026 is Tuesday, November 3. Here is what is on the midterm ballot, from the House and Senate to governors and ballot measures, plus the basics of early and mail voting and how to find your polling place.
- Election Day 2026 is Tuesday, November 3, set by federal law as the Tuesday after the first Monday in November.
- All 435 House seats, 35 Senate seats including specials in Florida and Ohio, and governorships in 36 states are on the ballot, plus about 100 statewide measures.
- Early and mail voting rules vary by state; find your polling place through your state election office, the NASS Can I Vote tool or Vote.gov.
Election Day 2026 in the United States is Tuesday, November 3, 2026. Voters will choose all 435 members of the U.S. House, 35 U.S. senators and governors in 36 states, along with thousands of state and local officials and dozens of ballot measures. Early and mail voting are already under way in many states, and your state or local election office is the official place to confirm where and when you vote.
This guide covers what is on the ballot, how early and mail voting generally work, and how to find your polling place. Rules differ from state to state, so treat it as a starting point. The information is current as of October 26, 2026.
When is Election Day 2026?
Federal law sets congressional elections on “the Tuesday next after the 1st Monday in November” in even-numbered years. In 2026, that date is November 3. The members elected that day serve in the Congress that begins on January 3, 2027.
Polling hours are set by each state and vary. USAGov also notes that each state sets its own voter ID rules, and most require identification to vote in person. You cannot vote online in U.S. federal elections. For state-by-state election dates and deadlines, USAGov’s when-to-vote page points to a lookup tool run by the U.S. Vote Foundation.
What is on the ballot in the 2026 midterms
U.S. House
All 435 voting seats in the House are up, along with five of the six non-voting delegate seats, according to Wikipedia’s overview of the 2026 elections. A party needs 218 seats for a majority, and Republicans control the chamber going into the vote. Several states redrew their congressional maps in the middle of the decade, so district lines in some states differ from 2024.
U.S. Senate
Thirty-five Senate seats are on the ballot: 33 regular seats plus two special elections. The specials are in Florida, for the rest of Marco Rubio's term, and Ohio, for the rest of JD Vance's term, according to 270toWin. Republicans hold 53 seats and Democrats 45, with two independents who caucus with Democrats. Of the seats up this year, 22 are held by Republicans and 13 by Democrats.
Governors and state offices
Thirty-six states elect a governor this year, and each party is defending 18 of those seats, according to 270toWin’s governor tracker. Wikipedia also lists three territories with governor races. Its tally counts 88 state legislative chambers, attorney general races in 30 states and secretary of state races in 26 states.
Counting every level of government, BallotReady estimates there are more than 40,000 seats on the November 3 ballot, from Congress down to school boards and city councils.
Races drawing national attention
A few statewide contests show the range of what voters will decide. Candidates are listed as they appear in the cited voter guides, with party in parentheses.
- Ohio: an open governor's race between Amy Acton (D), Don Kissick (L) and Vivek Ramaswamy (R), plus a U.S. Senate special election featuring Sherrod Brown (D), Jon Husted (R), Greg Levy (I) and William B. Redpath (L), per WVXU’s voter guide. Our Ohio governor race explainer has the details.
- Michigan: open seats for governor and U.S. Senate. Votebeat lists Jocelyn Benson (D) and John James (R) for governor, and Abdul El-Sayed (D) and Mike Rogers (R) for Senate, alongside minor-party candidates.
- Texas: U.S. Senate, with Ken Paxton (R), James Talarico (D) and Ted Brown (L), and governor, with Greg Abbott (R), Gina Hinojosa (D) and Pat Dixon (L), according to ABC13 Houston.
Notable ballot measures
Wikipedia counts about 100 statewide ballot measures in 37 states this November. A few examples:
- Ohio Issue 3: a constitutional amendment requiring approved government-issued photo ID to vote, with limited exceptions. State law has already required photo ID since 2023, WVXU notes.
- Nevada Question 6: would add a right to abortion before fetal viability to the state constitution. Voters approved it in 2024, and Nevada requires a second approval, per Wikipedia’s Nevada elections page.
- Nevada Question 7: would require photo ID for in-person voting and an ID number for mail voting.
- Michigan Proposal 1: asks whether to call a convention to rewrite the state constitution, a question Michigan must ask every 16 years.
- Michigan Proposal 2: an initiated law that would limit political donations from regulated utilities and large state contractors and broaden disclosure rules.
Early voting and mail voting basics
Most states let you vote in person before Election Day, and in most of them you do not need an excuse, according to USAGov’s early voting page. Dates and locations are set locally, so check with your state or county election office. In some states, early voting is listed under absentee voting.
Mail voting rules vary more. Some states require an excuse to vote absentee and others do not, while a few mail a ballot to every registered voter, USAGov explains. If you vote by mail, check two things: the deadline to request a ballot, and whether the return deadline is based on the postmark or on when the ballot arrives. Many states also accept ballots at drop boxes or at the election office.
Turnout is already building. In Texas, early voting runs from October 19 to October 30, and ABC13 reported that 2,819,155 Texans had voted after the first four days. In Ohio, registration closed on October 5, and the Statehouse News Bureau cited state data showing more than 170,000 ballots cast early by October 9.
Military members, their families and U.S. citizens living abroad can register and request a ballot at the same time with the Federal Post Card Application at fvap.gov, USAGov notes. If you have moved, update your registration before requesting a mail ballot.
How to find your polling place
Your Election Day polling place is based on your home address, and it can change from one election to the next. USAGov advises checking with your state election office before you go, because voting at the wrong location may mean casting a provisional ballot that might not count.
These official tools can help:
- Can I Vote: run by the National Association of Secretaries of State, it links directly to your state's polling place lookup, registration status check, absentee and early voting pages and ID rules.
- Vote.gov: the federal site for registering or updating your registration, with links to every state.
- U.S. Election Assistance Commission: a state-by-state directory of election offices. The EAC says voters should confirm details with their state and local sources.
- Your state election website: for example, Texas voters can use the VoteTexas portal, and Michigan voters can use the Michigan Voter Information Center to preview a sample ballot.
If you need a disability accommodation, contact your election office ahead of time. Voters with disabilities have the right to vote at an accessible polling place, though some states ask you to request it in advance.
What to watch on election night
Control of both chambers of Congress is at stake. Democrats would need a net gain of four Senate seats to take control, according to 270toWin, while a House majority requires 218 seats. The 36 governor races will also decide who leads those state governments for their next terms.
Early numbers are not final. ABC13 noted that Harris County's early turnout figures stay unofficial until they are reconciled after Election Day, and the same caution applies to election-night tallies everywhere. Official results come from state and local election officials once counting and certification are complete.
Our take
The most useful step any voter can take is to confirm details with the official election office for their state rather than relying on social media posts or campaign mailers. Polling places, hours and mail deadlines differ by state and sometimes by county. With early voting already under way, checking now leaves time to sort out a registration or ballot problem before November 3.
Frequently asked questions
When is Election Day 2026?
Election Day is Tuesday, November 3, 2026. Federal law sets congressional elections on the Tuesday after the first Monday in November in even-numbered years. Polling hours are set by each state.
What is on the ballot in the 2026 midterm elections?
All 435 U.S. House seats and 35 Senate seats, including special elections in Florida and Ohio, are up. Thirty-six states elect a governor, and many states also vote on legislative seats, other statewide offices, local races and about 100 statewide ballot measures.
How do I find my polling place?
Contact your state or local election office, or use the National Association of Secretaries of State's Can I Vote tool, which links to each state's polling place lookup. Your polling place is based on your home address and can change between elections, so check before you go.
Can I still vote early in 2026?
Most states offer early in-person voting, usually without an excuse, but dates differ. In Texas, for example, early voting runs from October 19 to October 30. Check your state election office for local dates and locations.
Can I vote online in the 2026 election?
No. USAGov states that you cannot vote online in U.S. federal elections. You can vote in person on Election Day, vote early in person where available, or vote by mail under your state's rules.
Sources
- 2 U.S. Code § 7 - Time of election, Legal Information Institute, Cornell Law School
- Voting on Election Day, USAGov
- Find out when to vote, USAGov
- Find your polling place, USAGov
- Absentee voting or voting by mail, USAGov
- Early in-person voting, USAGov
- Can I Vote, National Association of Secretaries of State
- Register and Vote in Your State, U.S. Election Assistance Commission
- 2026 Midterm Election Calendar, BallotReady
- 2026 United States elections, Wikipedia
- 2026 Nevada elections, Wikipedia
- 2026 Senate Election Interactive Map, 270toWin
- 2026 Governor Election Interactive Map, 270toWin
- Voter guide: What's on the ballot in Michigan in the 2026 election?, Votebeat
- 2026 midterm election: Early voting underway until Oct. 30 in Texas, ABC13 Houston
- Your voter guide to Ohio's November 2026 election, WVXU
- Former President Obama adds Ohio rally in Cleveland for Brown, Acton, The Statehouse News Bureau
How we wrote this
GessyMorgan explainers are built from public reporting and official sources. This post draws on the 17 sources listed above, each linked where we use it. It was drafted with AI assistance and checked against those sources before publishing. We did not test products, attend events or interview anyone for this article. Facts are current as of October 26, 2026, and we update the post when they change.
