U S Midterm Elections 2026

Democrats win Senate

50 seats midpoint
Democrats. 54 seats. 7 seats gained.
Republicans. 44 seats. 7 seats lost.
33 out of 35 seats counted

Democrats win House

218 seats to win
Democrats. 228 seats. 25 seats gained.
Republicans. 139 seats. 25 seats lost.
367 out of 435 seats counted
Content closed.

Summary

  1. Kansas Senate and governor's races rated lean Democrat - CBSpublished at 02:46 GMT

    The BBC's US news partner CBS has just rated two state-wide races in Kansas.

    Both the Senate and the governor's race there are rated as lean Democrat.

    Kansas has not elected a Democratic senator since 1932.

  2. Analysis

    A victory for the Democrats in Texas would be an electoral earthquakepublished at 02:42 GMT

    Anthony Zurcher
    North America correspondent in Washington DC

    As we've just reported, the BBC's US news partner CBS has now moved the Texas Senate race to "lean Democratic".

    While James Talarico has held a small but stable lead in the race for months now, the prospect of a victory is now growing.

    It would represent an electoral earthquake, giving Democrats a breakthrough in the second-most populous US state where they have been locked out of statewide power for more than a generation.

  3. House races: Here's where things standpublished at 02:42 GMT

    CBS News has projected that Democrats will win at least 208 seats in the House of Representatives and Republicans will win at least 160.

    For a majority, 218 seats must be secured.

    All 435 seats in the House are up for election. Trump's Republican Party currently controls the House, and Democrats need a net gain of three seats to take the majority.

  4. Analysis

    South Carolina could signal a blue wave, but Democrats will need big numbers to pull it offpublished at 02:42 GMT

    Daniel Bush
    Washington correspondent

    Over in South Carolina, if Democrats can flip the Senate seat - which CBS has just rated as leaning Democratic - it would be one of the biggest upsets of the night.

    A win there would also point towards a likely blue wave across the country.

    Just weeks ago, this seemed like a safe seat for Republicans. South Carolina is a deep red state, where the late Senator Lindsey Graham was a popular figure for decades until his death earlier this year. He was replaced by his sister, Senator Darline Graham, who was immediately backed by the party establishment, including President Donald Trump.

    But Senator Graham has struggled on the campaign trail, and polls in the run-up to election day showed a surprisingly close race.

    As of now the full results aren’t in, with roughly 80 percent of the vote counted. But currently the Democratic candidate Annie Andrews is leading Graham by around six percentage points.

    To come from behind and win, Graham needs to run up big numbers in rural parts of the state, and hope she can do more to close the gap in cities where Andrews is currently leading by double digits.

    She very well might, in which case the Democrats hope of a shocking upset would fall by the way side and Republicans would breathe a sigh of relief.

    A Graham victory would give Republicans some hope that they'll turn things around tonight.

  5. Ecstatic cheers as Keisha Lance Bottoms projected to win governor's racepublished at 02:36 GMT

    Carl Nasman
    Reporting from Atlanta, Georgia

    BBC banner with the words Georgia on a purple background
    Supporters react to US Democratic gubernatorial nominee for Georgia Keisha Lance Bottoms's victory in the US midterm elections during an Election Night rally in Atlanta, Georgia,Image source, Reuters

    Georgia Senator Raphael Warnock, who is not up for re-election today, said earlier on Tuesday that he thought Democrats were "nauseously optimistic" about their chances in this election.

    After seeing their hopes dashed in several previous elections, maybe he was worried his party was a bit too optimistic.

    But with Keisha Lance Bottoms’ projected win in the governor's race, it seems their most optimistic dreams are coming true.

    There were more ecstatic cheers here at the Georgia Dems’ watch party as that race was projected blue.

    It’s likely enough to make Republicans nauseous.

  6. Texas Senate race leans Democrat - CBSpublished at 02:31 GMT

    The BBC's US news partner CBS has just updated its race rating for Texas's Senate race. The contest there now leans Democrat.

    Bar chart showing in the Senate race in Texas Democrat candidate James Talarico is on 59.4% and Republican candidate Ken Paxton is on 39.1% after 53% of the vote has been counted.
  7. Governors races rated in several statespublished at 02:28 GMT

    The BBC's US news partner CBS has just rated governors races in several states:

    • Arizona - Leans Democrat
    • Iowa - Leans Democrat
    • Kansas - Toss up
    • Michigan - Leans Democrat
    • Minnesota - Leans Democrat
    • Nebraska - Toss up
    • New Mexico - Leans Democrat
    • South Dakota - Likely Republican
    • Texas - Toss up
    • Wisconsin - Toss up

  8. Keisha Lance Bottoms makes history as first black woman to be elected governor in USpublished at 02:28 GMT

    Close up photo of Keisha Lance Bottoms who is smilingImage source, Getty Images

    As we just reported, Democrat Keisha Lance Bottoms is projected to be the winner in Georgia's gubernatorial election.

    She is making history as the first black woman elected as governor in US history.

    Her victory over Republican Rick Jackson means Democrats have flipped the governor's office.

    Bottoms previously served as mayor of Atlanta from 2018 to 2022 and went to work for the Biden administration.

  9. Postpublished at 02:25 GMT
    Breaking

    Results card showing that the Governor race in Georgia has been projected to have been flipped to the Democrat candidate Keisha Lance Bottoms.
The locator map on the card shows Georgia is in the southeastern region of the United States, large, with a short east coast coastline.
  10. BBC Verify

    What evidence is there of non-citizens voting?published at 02:22 GMT

    By Jake Horton, BBC Verify

    US Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) and the Department of Justice (DOJ) have been posting on social media about arrests they say have been made in several states of non-citizens illegally registering to vote and voting in this and past elections.

    This is in line with what we have seen in recent weeks, as the DOJ has announced similar charges against people it says are non-citizens - but, even if proven, these have been small numbers.

    For example, the DOJ requested that California not count 20,000 postal ballots it claimed are from "likely non-citizen registrants" - but charged 34 people, external out of those with illegally registering to vote and voting.

    Multiple studies suggest proven instances of non-citizens voting in past US elections are rare.

    A database kept by the Heritage Foundation, external - a conservative think tank - records cases of electoral fraud that resulted in a conviction. It identified 24 instances of non-citizens being convicted for voting between 2005 and 2025.

    A 2026 analysis by Reuters, external of non-citizen voting cases brought in federal courts found that over the last 30 years, 129 people had been criminally charged and 73 of those cases resulted in a conviction.

  11. As three more Senate races projected, here's a look at where things standpublished at 02:14 GMT

    CBS News and the Associated Press have just projected another three Senate seats:

    • John Hickenlooper, a Democrat, has won re-election in Colorado
    • Ben Ray Lujan, a Democrat, has won re-election in New Mexico
    • Harriet Hageman, a Republican, has won re-election in Wyoming
    Hemicycle chart showing the US Senate as it stands at 02:09 GMT (21:09 EST) 4 Nov with 43 Democrats, 2 Independents (sit with Democrats), 21 Awaiting results, 34 Republicans . 51 seats are needed for a majority.
  12. Five more key Senate races still toss ups - CBSpublished at 02:13 GMT

    The BBC's US news partner CBS has just rated several Senate races in states where polls have recently closed, but where a result is not yet clear.

    South Carolina: Leans Democrat

    Iowa: Toss up

    Kansas: Toss up

    Michigan: Toss up

    Nebraska: Toss up

    Texas: Toss up

    Media caption,

    BBC's Sarah Smith says it's still too early for Democrats to get excited

  13. Chris Pappas makes history as first openly gay man elected to US Senatepublished at 02:09 GMT

    Media caption,

    'I am ready to fight' - Senator-elect Chris Pappas celebrates New Hampshire win

    Democrat Chris Pappas is projected to win the New Hampshire Senate seat.

    In January, when he is sworn in, Pappas will make history as the first openly gay man elected to the US Senate.

    In 2013, Senator Tammy Baldwin of Wisconsin made history as the first openly gay person elected to the chamber.

    Speaking to supporters, Pappas says he is "ready to fight" for voters in the state.

    Rep. Chris Pappas, D-N.H., left, Democratic candidate for U.S. Senate, and his husband Vann Bentley, pose for a photo with a lush green field in the backgroundImage source, CQ-Roll Call, Inc via Getty Images
    Image caption,

    Chris Pappas, left, and husband Vann Bentley pictured at a campaign event in August

  14. Analysis

    'Bloodbath': Texas Republicans tell me they're worriedpublished at 02:07 GMT

    Daniel Bush
    Washington correspondent

    The night is still young, but a text message from one Republican source in Texas sums up the mood inside the party at the moment.

    Asked how Republicans feel about the state’s Senate race, the longtime Republican operative responded with one word: "Bloodbath."

    Only roughly 40% of the vote is in so far in that Senate race. James Talarico, the Democratic candidate, is leading his Republican opponent, Ken Paxton, by nearly 20 percentage points. The race will likely tighten as more votes get counted. But Republicans don't seem optimistic.

    Texas Senate race progress
  15. First Senate flip of the night tells voters in North Carolina 'you made your voices heard'published at 02:04 GMT

    Roy CooperImage source, AP

    Over to North Carolina, where Democrat Roy Cooper - the first Senate flip of the night - has been speaking.

    "You have made your voices heard and they were loud," Cooper says, addressing his supporters from the state capital of Raleigh.

    "For too many people in North Carolina, the middle class was feeling like a distant dream," while "the richest Americans were getting unimaginable wealth at our expense", he says.

    Cooper adds that "chaos and corruption in Washington" were "hurting our people".

    "Today you said this has to stop," the Democrat says.

    "As your new United States Senator, I am ready to take that message to Washington and work to do something about it."

  16. More polls close across US, including Iowa - a state with a key Senate racepublished at 02:00 GMT
    Breaking

    Polls have just closed in Arkansas, Iowa, Louisiana, Minnesota, Nebraska, New Mexico, New York, Wisconsin, Wyoming, Colorado and Arizona.

    The polls have now closed in almost all of the states with key Senate races - except for Alaska, which is still open.

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  17. Voting patterns broken down by race and educationpublished at 01:56 GMT

    Chris Jeavans
    Data journalist

    Here are some more details from the voter poll, suggesting how different groups cast their ballots in the elections for the House of Representatives.

    White voters have voted for Republican candidates by 51% to 47% for Democrats, according to these estimates.

    All other groups have voted more for Democratic candidates, with Hispanic and Latino voters breaking for them by an estimated 60% compared to 35% for Republicans.

    Voters without a college education have voted more for Republicans in this election, by 51% to 45%, the survey suggests.

    Those with a college degree have voted Democrat by 61% to 36%.

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  18. Postpublished at 01:53 GMT
    Breaking

    Results card showing that the Senate race in West Virginia has been projected to have been held by the Republican candidate Shelley Moore Capito.
The locator map on the card shows West Virginia is a small state in the Appalachian region of the United States.
  19. How voting patterns differ by age and genderpublished at 01:52 GMT

    Chris Jeavans
    Data journalist

    We’ve got our first look at how different groups say they have voted for candidates in the House of Representatives, according to updated national voter poll data.

    It suggests women have backed Democratic candidates by 57%, to 41% for Republicans.

    Men appear to be divided with 49% voting for Republican candidates and 48% for Democrats.

    By age, almost two-thirds under 45 said they have voted Democrat. The middle-aged group, 45-64, are split with 49% backing the Democrats and 48% voting Republican.

    Slightly more than half the over-65s (51%) said they voted Republican and 47% for Democratic candidates.

    These figures are from a wide-ranging survey of voters, carried out by pollsters SSRS.

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  20. In Maine, incumbent Senator Susan Collins is preparing for a long night aheadpublished at 01:49 GMT

    Helena Humphrey
    Reporting from Bangor, Maine

    "Maine" written in white font against purple background.

    Polls have closed in Maine, and Republican incumbent Senator Susan Collins has made an appearance at her campaign watch party in Bangor - where we are.

    Entering to Tina Turner’s The Best, she was greeted with raucous applause from her supporters.

    "I have the best federal and campaign staff of anybody anywhere," she told the crowd, many sporting red Susan Collins campaign sweatshirts.

    Reflecting on the campaign, Collins said she had travelled across the state, where, in her view, "the reception was warm, and the response could not have been better".

    But she acknowledged it could be a long night - Maine is one of the slowest states to count.

    "Have a wonderful evening. Let’s celebrate," she said, striking an upbeat tone - despite the fact that her race against Democrat Troy Jackson is seen as being extremely tight.

    Susan Collins