Photo: Mike Peel / Wikimedia Commons
America votes on Tuesday, November 3, 2026, in midterm elections that will decide who controls Congress for the second half of President Donald Trump's term.
The president himself is not on the ballot. That is the whole point of a midterm: it falls halfway through a president's four-year term, and voters decide the Congress that will work with — or against — him for the next two years.
Searches for "is there school on election day", "voting near me" and "what time do polls open on election day" surged on Monday, November 2, as voters made their final plans. Here is the plain-English guide.
What is a midterm election?
A midterm election is the general election held two years into a president's term, between presidential elections.
In 2026, voters are filling every seat in the House of Representatives, about a third of the Senate, most governorships, and thousands of state and local offices. Many ballots also include judges, sheriffs, school boards and statewide ballot measures on issues such as taxes and constitutional amendments.
Federal law sets Election Day as the Tuesday after the first Monday in November in even-numbered years. In 2026, the first Monday of November is November 2, so Election Day is Tuesday, November 3.
What is on the ballot?
The headline contests are the ones that decide control of Washington.
All 435 voting seats in the House of Representatives are up for election, as they are every two years. A party needs 218 seats for a majority. Republicans currently hold a narrow majority in the House.
In the Senate, 35 seats are being contested. Thirty-three are regularly scheduled elections for Class II seats, whose senators serve six-year terms. Two are special elections, in Florida and Ohio, to fill the remainder of terms left vacant in early 2025.
The Senate currently stands at 53 Republicans, 45 Democrats and two independents who caucus with the Democrats. A party needs 51 seats for a majority, so Democrats would need a net gain of four seats to take control.
Thirty-six states are also electing a governor, and three territories are choosing governors too. State legislatures, attorneys general, secretaries of state and local offices fill out the rest of most ballots.
Why this midterm matters so much
Control of Congress decides what a president can actually get done.
The House and Senate write and pass laws, approve the federal budget, confirm senior appointees and run investigations. A president whose party loses either chamber faces a much harder second half of his term.
That is why midterms are often treated as a verdict on the sitting president, even though his name is not on the ballot. Affordability, inflation and borrowing costs have been prominent issues for voters in 2026, alongside the usual state and local concerns.
It is also why results night matters beyond Washington. The new Congress — the 120th Congress — takes office on January 3, 2027, and its shape will set the agenda for the remaining two years of Trump's term.
When do polls open and close?
Polling hours vary by state and sometimes by county, so there is no single national time.
Most polling places open between 6 a.m. and 7 a.m. and close between 7 p.m. and 8 p.m. local time. Some examples show how much the details differ: polls in Georgia and Florida are open from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m., Ohio's run from 6:30 a.m. to 7:30 p.m., Delaware's from 7 a.m. to 8 p.m., and New York City's from 6 a.m. to 9 p.m.
The safest rule is to check your own polling place before you go. Your state or county election website, Vote.gov and non-partisan tools such as Vote.org and VOTE411 all let you look up your assigned polling place by address.
One rule holds almost everywhere: if you are already in line when the polls close, stay in line. You are still entitled to vote.
What do you need to bring?
Voter identification rules differ by state, and this is where voters most often get caught out.
Thirty-six states ask for or require some form of identification at the polls, according to the National Conference of State Legislatures. Of those, 24 ask for a photo ID, such as a driver's licence, state ID card or passport, while the others also accept non-photo documents.
Fourteen states and Washington, D.C., verify identity in other ways and do not require ID at the polls. A few states changed their rules this year, so even regular voters should check their own state's current list rather than relying on what happened last time.
Forgetting your ID does not always mean you cannot vote. In many states you can cast a provisional ballot or sign an affidavit of identity, though you may need to take extra steps after Election Day for that ballot to count.
Your voter registration card is useful but is not usually required. If you are voting for the first time after registering by mail and did not provide identification when you registered, you may be asked to show ID.
Is there school on Election Day?
This is one of the most searched questions every election, and the honest answer is: it depends on your school district.
Election Day is not a national public holiday in the United States, and there is no single rule for schools. Many districts close schools that are used as polling places, while others stay open with voting taking place in a gym or hall away from classrooms.
Some districts treat Election Day as a staff development day or a holiday. Others run a normal school day. The only reliable check is your own school district's calendar or announcement, which is usually published on the district website.
Can you still vote if you have not voted yet?
In most states, early voting and mail voting have already been running for weeks. One election tracker put the number of early votes cast at about 50 million by November 1, 2026.
If you have not voted by Election Day itself, in-person voting on November 3 is the main route left. Twenty-one states and Washington, D.C., also allow same-day registration, meaning you can register and vote on Election Day itself in those places.
If you have a mail ballot, check your state's return deadline carefully. Some states require it to arrive by Election Day, while others accept ballots postmarked by Election Day that arrive later. Dropping it off in person at your county election office is the safest option this late.
What happens after the polls close?
Results on election night are unofficial. News organisations project winners as votes are counted, but states then canvass and certify their results over the following days and weeks.
Close races can take longer, and recounts are possible where the margin is very tight. That is normal, not a sign that something has gone wrong. Certified results, not election-night projections, are the official outcome.
The first polls close at 6 p.m. Eastern time on November 3. Counting then rolls west across the country through the evening, with the closest House and Senate races often deciding control.
Frequently asked questions
When is US Election Day 2026? Tuesday, November 3, 2026.
What is being decided? All 435 House seats, 35 Senate seats, 36 governorships and thousands of state and local offices.
Is the president on the ballot? No. Midterms fall halfway through a presidential term, and only Congress, governors and state and local offices are decided.
What time do polls open? It varies by state. Most open between 6 a.m. and 7 a.m. and close between 7 p.m. and 8 p.m. local time. Check your state election website for your exact polling place and hours.
Is there school on Election Day? It depends on your school district. Many schools used as polling places close, but there is no national rule, so check your district's calendar.
Read next: Israel Election 2026 Explained: Netanyahu Without a Majority — another election where the winner still could not form a government, and what happened next.
Sources
NDTV Profit 2026 midterm elections explainer, November 2026; The Sun polling-hours guide, November 2, 2026; NCSL voter ID and polling-place summaries cited in the 2026 Election Day guide; New York City Board of Elections 2026 general election information; Virginia Beach voter guide, October 26, 2026; Ballotpedia 2026 election data as cited in midterm guides.
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