Voting has officially begun across the United States for the 2026 midterm elections, marking the first major national test for President Donald Trump since he returned to office. Polling stations opened early, starting in states like Vermont, as millions of Americans cast ballots to determine control of Congress for the remainder of Trump's second term.
The high-stakes elections feature contests across all 50 states. Voters are deciding the fate of all 435 seats in the House of Representatives, where Republicans are defending a narrow majority. In the Senate, 35 seats are being contested out of the 100-member chamber, alongside 39 governorships and thousands of state and local races.
Heading into Election Day, national polling and voter interviews highlighted prominent public anxieties regarding the economy, rising costs, and the direction of the administration. While roughly 50 million Americans already participated through a surge of early voting, millions more headed to the polls on Tuesday to cast their final ballots. The outcome will decide whether Democrats can capture majorities in the House and Senate to counter the White House, or if Republicans will retain legislative control.
