Americans Vote in 2026 Midterms as Control of Congress Hangs on Battleground Seats

Americans voted Tuesday, November 3, in midterm elections for all 435 House seats, a slate of Senate seats and some governorships, with control of Congress at stake. Republicans are defending a narrow House majority, though the sources differ on the split: one put it at 218-214, another said Democrats hold 212 seats and need 218. Under Cook Political Report ratings, Republicans are favored in 195 House seats, while Democrats are favored in enough seats to win the chamber without any of the 18 tossups. Cook rated seven Senate races as true tossups, and Democrats need at least four of them plus their other expected wins. President Donald Trump's approval ratings are at a record low, and analyst J. Miles Coleman has said midterms are often a referendum on the president's party. In Texas, Republicans redrew districts after Trump's gains with Latino voters, but a Pew survey found 24% of Hispanic voters now approve of his performance, down from 38%. In Texas' 15th District, Democrat Bobby Pulido, a Latin Grammy-winning singer, is a candidate.

The Guardian US, on the left, ran a live-results page built around Cook ratings, charts and the path to 218, framing the night as a referendum on Trump's agenda and showing Democrats favored. NPR's pitch was a guide to four types of House races that would explain how the night unfolds. The Daily Wire, on the right, instead listed 12 races to watch and said Republicans are clinging to a majority that forecasters expect them to lose. It stressed Texas redistricting, cost-of-living frustration and immigration enforcement among Hispanic voters, with the Pew figures. Both sides center on the House and the battleground seats. The left focuses on seat ratings and results; the right focuses on the risks to Republicans. Deutsche Welle offered an explainer on why the vote matters, and NewsNation focused on when control of Congress will be known.