#2026 midterms

[hansilw]

Eligible voters of the United States!

The NPR voter registration guide has been updated to help get you ready for the 2026 primary elections.

You can find deadlines and the links you need to register and check your registration status at npr.org/vote

How to register to vote and check your registration status

For the 2026 primary elections, NPR has collected deadlines and information on how to register to vote — online, in person or by mail — in e

[socialjusticeinamerica]

[breelandwalker]

2026 Midterm Elections Are Coming!

Go to Ballotpedia for information on upcoming elections, including the midterms, state and local elections, who the candidates are, where they stand, and when and where to vote. You can also check your registration status, make sure you’re registered to vote, and explore options for mail-in ballots if you need them.

Here's how things are shaping up ahead of the 2026 midterms:

In the 119th Congress, the current party alignments as of August 4, 2025, are as follows: (Congress.gov)

House of Representatives: 219 Republicans (plus 3 Delegates) 212 Democrats (plus 2 Delegates and the Resident Commissioner of Puerto Rico) 4 vacant seats

Senate: 53 Republicans 45 Democrats 2 Independents (both caucus with the Democrats)

Elections to the U.S. Congress will take place on November 3, 2026. All 435 districts in the U.S. House of Representatives and 33 seats in the U.S. Senate are up for election. Five of the Senate's six non-voting members are also up for election.

Looking ahead to the 2026 general elections, Democrats need to gain a net of four seats to win a majority in the Senate. Meanwhile, Republicans can lose no more than two seats to retain a majority in the chamber. (Ballotpedia)

In the November 2025 elections, voters flipped the governorships of several states blue, as well as electing dozens of Democratic delegates and mayors in key local elections, dislodging many GOP incumbents. There was a record turnout of young voters and younger candidates for political office.

If we can do this again in 2026, we stand a SIGNIFICANT chance of not only mitigating the damage done by the current administration, but perhaps even steering things back toward recovery. It will still take a long time. A lot can happen by next November, nothing is immediate or guaranteed, and NO ONE running for office is perfect. But it's clear to see that letting things continue to slide toward the right is not an acceptable path forward if we want to retain our rights and secure a better future for those who will come after us.

So make sure you educate yourself on your state and local elections, check on your polling place and voter registration, help out with a campaign, or try running for something yourself if you're so inclined. Vote whenever and wherever you can, because every election MATTERS.

Ballotpedia | Run For Something

In a battle of inches, never let your opponent think they’re a ruler.

Make your voice heard!

[republicansaredomesticterrorists]

If democrats take control of the House of Reps and the Senate they can impeach Trump, Vance, the illegitimate SCOTUS, and all the Nazi henchmen.

Register to vote and then vote for every Democrat on the ballot so we can end this nightmare. The 2026 midterm elections are crucial and we either win or lose everything we stand for.

[captainxtra]

This Regime is a threat to all life.

[liberalsarecool]

More illegal Trump policies shut down in court.

Texas Republicans, yet again, try to skirt the law. They wanted to rob Democrats of their voice.

Of course, Trump fascists will continue to attack the legitimacy of the courts.

[oneofthosecrazycatladies]

Issues that are super important but don’t often get talked about during election cycles but you should, nonetheless, keep in mind when you vote:

Ending gerrymandering

Ending/reforming the electoral college

Term limits for the Supreme Court

Binding code of ethics for the Supreme Court

Reforming the party system

Campaign finance reform

Ending Congressional insider trading

Repealing the Reapportionment Act of 1929

Too often people only vote for short-term issues and short-term solutions so I want to remind you to think long-term

[contemplatingoutlander]

‘When You Think of It, We Shouldn’t Even Have an Election’

The New York Times | Opinion | Thomas B. Edsall | May 5, 2026

President Trump hates to lose. Heading into the 2026 midterm elections, you can’t say that the president hasn’t warned us, over and over, that he will do all he can to prevent the congressional contests from turning into a humiliating Republican rout. “It’s some deep psychological thing, but when you win the presidency, you don’t win the midterms,” Trump told Reuters in an interview at the beginning of the year. He claimed that his presidency had been so successful that “when you think of it, we shouldn’t even have an election.”

Be afraid. Be very afraid.

Video source for GIF

This is one of the most frightening articles I've read this year. Edsall outlines the steps Trump will likely take to interfere with the 2026 midterm election to ensure that Republicans continue to hold power.

USING THE NSPM-7: Edsall warns that Trump can use the Sept. 25, 2025 National Security Presidential Memorandum 7 (NSPM-7), in which Trump "grants the Department of Justice, the Treasury, the I.R.S. ... a license to label left-wing groups as domestic terrorist organizations and directs the Department of Justice to prosecute them 'to the maximum extent permissible by law.'” [emphasis added]

A NATIONAL EMERGENCY DECLARATION: Trump could also declare a national emergency. According to the Brennan Center's Elizabeth Goitein, "A declaration of national emergency by the president unlocks statutory authorities contained in 137 different provisions of law." [emphasis added]

[See more under the cut.]

INVOKING PEADs: Edsall also notes the "secretive creation of presidential emergency action documents [i.e., PEADs]" could be used by Trump. According to Keep Our Republic's Joel McCleary, PEADs can be used "to suspend fundamental constitutional rights, detain civilians, seize property, impose martial law and censor communications. They require only a presidential signature."

A "LAYERED," SELF-NORMALIZING SYSTEM: According to McCleary, "The three [NSPM-7, national emergency declaration & PEADs] together form a layered system: NSPM-7 operates day-to-day, building the infrastructure and the target lists. National emergency declarations provide the escalation mechanism — broadening executive power under statutory cover. And PEADs sit at the top of the pyramid, ready for the moment when the constitutional order itself is suspended. Each layer normalizes the next."

NSPM-7 + PEADs = DETAINING PROTESTERS: According to former Clinton administration deputy assistant secretary of state Jonathan Winer, if protests happen because of Trump's actions, Trump could, "direct the attorney general to treat coordinated demonstrations as organized political violence. He could instruct the F.B.I. and Joint Terrorism Task Force to identify organizers, map funding sources and examine any connections — real or alleged — to foreign actors. Federal agents would then make arrests. They would arrest individuals at protests, whether or not violence has occurred."

DETAINING PROTESTORS IN DHS DETENTION CENTERS: The DHS is building huge detention centers that McCleary believes are "being built for a purpose or scale beyond what immigration enforcement alone would justify." In other words, these detention centers are likely being built not only to detain immigrants but also to detain protest organizers and protesters.

NO HELP FROM SCOTUS OR CONGRESSIONAL REPUBLICANS: Edsall does believe that the Supreme Court would likely interfere too much, given The Six's support of the "unitary executive" theory, and the supine Republicans in Congress are likely to go along with Trump's plans. [ All emphasis above added ]

I highly recommend taking the time to read this article using the above gift 🎁 link, which bypasses the paywall.

[edited]