Midterm polls open in Vermont
Vermont leads voting at 5 a.m. Tuesday, with more than 230 million eligible voters deciding Congress and state leadership.
By Jonathan Reed ·
Voting begins at 5 a.m. Tuesday in Vermont, marking the start of the 2026 midterm elections across the United States. More than 230 million eligible voters will cast ballots to determine the composition of the federal government and state leadership.
All 435 seats in the House of Representatives and 35 of the 100 Senate seats are up for election. Voters in 36 states will also select new governors. Republicans currently hold majorities in both chambers of Congress.
Polls open in waves across the country. New Jersey, Virginia, Connecticut, and Kentucky begin voting at 6 a.m. local time. Georgia, Florida, Pennsylvania, and New York start between 6 a.m. and 7 a.m. Ohio and North Carolina open at 6:30 a.m. Michigan follows at 7 a.m.
Closures occur in reverse order, with Indiana and Kentucky finishing earliest at 6 p.m. local time. Kansas closes at 7 p.m., while Michigan and Iowa end voting at 8 p.m. Alaska is the final state to close, with polls shutting down around 1 a.m. Eastern Time on Wednesday.
Election officials will release initial results as ballots are processed, but final tallies may take days or weeks due to mail and provisional votes. The Associated Press and other news organizations will analyze the data to call races, which can remain undecided for extended periods in close contests.
Democrats need a net gain of four Senate seats to secure a majority and three additional House seats to take control of the lower chamber. Key Senate races include Abdul El-Sayed versus Mike Rogers in Michigan, Angie Nixon versus Ashley Moody in Florida, and Jon Ossoff versus Mike Collins in Georgia. In Maine, Susan Collins faces Troy Jackson, while Chris Pappas competes against John Sununu in New Hampshire. Roy Cooper and Michael Whatley are on the ballot in North Carolina.
The outcome of these elections will determine which party controls the legislative agenda for the next two years. Republicans retain the advantage of incumbency in both chambers heading into Tuesday's vote.
