Planning

2026 Midterm Elections: 35 Senate Seats, 435 House Seats and 36 Governors on the Ballot Nov. 3, Plus a Tracker

The Nov. 3, 2026 midterms decide 35 Senate seats, all 435 House seats and 36 governors. Every race by state, dates after Election Day and a printable tracker.

Published 3 min read

2026 midterm elections: the U.S. Capitol dome at night beside a checklist, with a card reading 35 Senate and 435 House seats
The 2026 midterm elections on Tuesday, Nov. 3 decide 35 Senate seats, all 435 House seats, 36 governorships and most state legislative seats. Illustration: Fresh Calendars

1 free printable below ↓

In this article
  1. The Senate: 35 seats
  2. The House: 435 seats
  3. Governors: 36 states
  4. Down the ballot
  5. Election night and after
  6. Use the tracker

The 2026 midterm elections on Tuesday, Nov. 3 will decide 35 of the 100 seats in the U.S. Senate, all 435 seats in the House of Representatives and 36 governorships. Voters will also elect thousands of state legislators and decide 145 statewide ballot measures. Here is what is on the ballot nationwide, when the results become official and a free printable tracker for election night.

The Senate: 35 seats

Thirty-three seats are up on the regular six-year schedule (the Class 2 seats), and two more are special elections:

  • Ohio: JD Vance resigned in January 2025 to become vice president.
  • Florida: Marco Rubio resigned in January 2025 to become secretary of state.

In both states the governor appointed a senator to serve until voters choose someone for the rest of the term, which ends in January 2029.

The full list of states with a Senate race: Alabama, Alaska, Arkansas, Colorado, Delaware, Florida (special), Georgia, Idaho, Illinois, Iowa, Kansas, Kentucky, Louisiana, Maine, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Mississippi, Montana, Nebraska, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New Mexico, North Carolina, Ohio (special), Oklahoma, Oregon, Rhode Island, South Carolina, South Dakota, Tennessee, Texas, Virginia, West Virginia and Wyoming.

The Senate now has 53 Republicans and 47 members who are Democrats or independents who caucus with Democrats, according to the Senate’s party division page. Some large states have no Senate race this year, including California, Pennsylvania, Arizona and New York.

The House: 435 seats

Every House seat is elected every two years. Voters in the District of Columbia and five territories also elect nonvoting delegates. Party counts in the House shift during a term as members resign or die, so check the Clerk of the House for the current breakdown.

Ten states have changed their congressional maps since summer 2025, according to the redistricting tracker of the National Conference of State Legislatures (NCSL): Alabama, California, Florida, Louisiana, Missouri, North Carolina, Ohio, Tennessee, Texas and Utah. California’s new districts came from Proposition 50, approved by voters in a special election in November 2025, and Missouri’s new map faces a veto referendum on the November 2026 ballot.

Governors: 36 states

The states electing a governor are Alabama, Alaska, Arizona, Arkansas, California, Colorado, Connecticut, Florida, Georgia, Hawaii, Idaho, Illinois, Iowa, Kansas, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Nebraska, Nevada, New Hampshire, New Mexico, New York, Ohio, Oklahoma, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, South Carolina, South Dakota, Tennessee, Texas, Vermont, Wisconsin and Wyoming. Several, including California, Michigan, Florida, Georgia and Ohio, have open seats because the governor is term-limited.

Down the ballot

  • State legislatures: 88 of 99 chambers in 46 states, about 6,100 seats, according to NCSL. Louisiana, Mississippi, New Jersey and Virginia hold legislative elections in odd years.
  • Ballot measures: 145 statewide measures are on Nov. 3 ballots, out of 164 certified in 2026, according to Ballotpedia.
  • State offices and courts: attorneys general, secretaries of state and state supreme court seats are on many ballots.

For what is on specific state ballots, see our guides to California’s 14 propositions, Florida’s amendments and Senate special, Georgia, Michigan, Pennsylvania and Arizona. To see your own ballot, use our guide to finding your sample ballot by ZIP code.

Election night and after

Polls close from 6 p.m. Eastern in parts of Indiana and Kentucky to 1 a.m. Eastern in Alaska’s Aleutian Islands; see poll closing times by state. Some states count faster than others. Pennsylvania may not begin processing mail ballots until 7 a.m. on Election Day, and California counties have up to 30 days to complete their count, with the state certifying results after that.

DateWhat happens
Tue., Nov. 3Election Day
Nov. 4-17Late-arriving postmarked ballots counted in grace-period states
Late November-DecemberStates certify results
Tue., Dec. 1Georgia runoffs, if no candidate won a majority
Sun., Jan. 3, 2027120th Congress convenes, unless Congress sets another day by law
January 2027Most new governors take office

Use the tracker

The free two-page printable below lists every Senate and governor’s race with the time the state’s polls close in Eastern Time, plus blank columns to write in the winner and when the race was called. Keep it next to the TV or your phone on election night, and use our November and December printable calendars for the dates that follow.

Free printable downloads

Every template is free, needs no sign-up and prints on US Letter paper. Choose PDF for printing or PNG for screens and documents.

Election 2026 printables

  • Election night tracker 2026 printable with 35 Senate races, poll closing times and blank winner columns

    Election Night Tracker 2026

    Two pages: all 35 Senate races and all 36 governor's races with poll closing times in Eastern Time and space to note each winner.

    PDF · 2 pages · US Letter

Back to top ↑

Frequently asked questions

When is the 2026 midterm election?

Tuesday, Nov. 3, 2026. Many states have already opened early voting, and mail ballots are out in all-mail states.

How many Senate seats are up in 2026?

Thirty-five: the 33 regularly scheduled Class 2 seats plus special elections in Ohio and Florida. The Senate currently has 53 Republicans and 47 Democrats and independents who caucus with them.

Which states have governor races in 2026?

Thirty-six: Alabama, Alaska, Arizona, Arkansas, California, Colorado, Connecticut, Florida, Georgia, Hawaii, Idaho, Illinois, Iowa, Kansas, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Nebraska, Nevada, New Hampshire, New Mexico, New York, Ohio, Oklahoma, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, South Carolina, South Dakota, Tennessee, Texas, Vermont, Wisconsin and Wyoming.

Why are there special Senate elections in Ohio and Florida?

JD Vance resigned his Ohio seat to become vice president, and Marco Rubio resigned his Florida seat to become secretary of state, both in January 2025. Appointed senators hold the seats until voters choose someone to serve the rest of each term, which ends in January 2029.

When will we know who won?

Many races are called on election night, but close races and states with slow mail-ballot counts can take days. California counties have up to 30 days to finish counting, and Pennsylvania cannot start processing mail ballots until Election Day morning.

When does the new Congress start?

The 20th Amendment sets noon on Jan. 3 for the new Congress to convene unless Congress picks another day by law; Jan. 3, 2027 is a Sunday. Most new governors take office in January 2027, on dates set by each state.

Sources

  1. Party Division (U.S. Senate)
  2. 2026 State Legislative Races by State and Chamber (National Conference of State Legislatures)
  3. Changing the Maps: Tracking Mid-Decade Redistricting (National Conference of State Legislatures)
  4. Three measures certified, bringing the 2026 statewide total to 164 (Ballotpedia News)
  5. California's vote counting process (California Secretary of State)