2026 Midterm Results Live: House, Senate Seat Tracker

Americans are voting today, Tuesday, November 3, 2026, in midterm elections that will decide who controls Congress for the second half of President Donald Trump’s term — and how much of his agenda can still become law. Every one of the 435 seats in the House of Representatives is up for election, along with 35 of the 100 Senate seats and 36 governorships.

This page is our live seat tracker. We will update the numbers below as races are called through the night, in the same format as the major networks’ results pages, and explain — in plain language — what each development means for the issues our readers care about most: Medicare, Social Security, health care costs and the federal budget.

🔴 LIVE Seat Tracker — 2026 Midterms

Last updated: Wednesday, November 4, 2026, 12:35 a.m. ET — FINAL: AP has now called 231 House races and 27 Senate races

HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES — 218 seats needed to control the House

Democrats: 144 seats won
Republicans: 87 seats won
Not yet called: 204

SENATE — Democrats need a net gain of 4 seats for a 51-seat majority

Democrats: 34 seats held (not up this year) + 18 won tonight
Republicans: 31 seats held (not up this year) + 9 won tonight
Races not yet called: 8

Going into Election Day, Republicans held the House 218–214 (with one independent and two vacancies) and the Senate 53–47, counting the two independents who vote with the Democrats. A 50–50 Senate would stay Republican, because Vice President JD Vance breaks ties — which is why Democrats need four net gains, not three.

Live updates

12:35 a.m. ET – FINAL: Democrats have won control of both chambers of Congress. The Associated Press has called the Senate for the Democrats, who now hold 52 seats including seats not up this year, with 8 races still uncalled, after flips in Iowa, Texas, Kansas, Ohio, North Carolina and South Carolina and a Democratic hold in Minnesota. NBC News projected a Democratic House majority earlier in the evening, estimating about 248 to 255 Democratic seats; the new Congress is sworn in on January 3, 2027.

11:06 p.m. ET – AP has now called 19 Senate races, including Annie Andrews (D) flipping South Carolina and Republican holds in Arkansas (Tom Cotton) and Oklahoma (Kevin Hern). NBC News projects Democrats will win control of the House, but AP has not called House control and no outlet has called the Senate. NBC has also projected Texas’s Senate race for Democrat James Talarico, but AP has not called it, so it is not counted in the tracker.

9:37 p.m. ET – AP has now called 15 Senate races: Democrats held Colorado and New Mexico and Republicans held Kentucky and Wyoming, leaving 20 Senate races uncalled, while the AP House count has reached 77 Democrats to 40 Republicans. Democrats also notched their first House flip of the night in North Carolina’s 11th District. Neither chamber’s control has been called.

8:50 p.m. ET – NBC News has now called North Carolina’s Senate race for Roy Cooper, the Democrats’ first Senate flip of the night, along with a Democratic hold in New Hampshire for Chris Pappas and Republican holds in Florida for Ashley Moody and in West Virginia for Shelley Moore Capito. Neither chamber’s control has been called.

8:16 p.m. ET – AP has now called Georgia’s Senate race for Jon Ossoff, along with Senate wins for Democrats in Delaware, Illinois, Massachusetts, New Jersey and Rhode Island, and House wins for Democrats Jared Moskowitz in Florida’s 25th District and Debbie Wasserman Schultz in Florida’s 20th. Neither chamber’s control has been called.

7:40 p.m. ET – AP has called its first races of the night, including Senator Mark Warner’s re-election in Virginia. The AP count stands at 6 House seats for Democrats and 2 for Republicans, with 427 still uncalled, and 1 Senate race won tonight for Democrats. NBC has also projected Georgia’s Senate race for Jon Ossoff, but AP has not yet called it, so it is not counted in the tracker, and neither chamber’s control has been called.

6:42 p.m. ET – The first polls have closed in parts of Indiana and Kentucky, but AP, NBC News and CNN have not yet called any House or Senate race. Early Kentucky returns show a lead in the Senate race, but that is a lead, not a call, so the tracker remains 0-0. The next major poll closings come at 7 p.m. ET.

6:00 p.m. ET — The first polls close in parts of Indiana and Kentucky. Most states close between 7 p.m. and 9 p.m. ET, and the last polls, in Alaska, close at 1 a.m. ET. No races have been called yet. Refresh this page through the night — the tracker above is updated as results come in.

What is at stake tonight

Right now, Republicans hold a governing “trifecta”: the White House, the House and the Senate. If Democrats take either chamber, the second half of Trump’s term changes character — the White House would face investigations and subpoenas from Democratic committees, and any new tax, spending or health care legislation would need Democratic votes to pass.

Final national polls pointed to a strong Democratic night. CNN’s Poll of Polls put the generic congressional ballot at 52% Democratic to 43% Republican, and NBC’s final poll had it 52–44. Election forecasters rated Democrats as heavy favourites to flip the House, with the Senate closer but in play. A Reuters/Ipsos poll in October put President Trump’s approval rating at 31%. Tens of millions of Americans voted before Election Day, with early turnout running ahead of the 2022 midterms.

History also leans against the president’s party: in 2018, Republicans lost 41 House seats in Trump’s first midterm, and in 2010 Democrats lost 63 under President Obama. The open question tonight is not only whether Democrats gain, but by how much — a narrow House majority governs very differently from a large one.

The Senate races that decide control

Democrats are defending 13 of the 35 Senate seats being contested; Republicans are defending 22. These are the races that will decide the chamber:

Texas — Democrat James Talarico against Republican Ken Paxton, in what has become one of the most expensive Senate races in US history. A Democratic win in Texas would signal a very big night.
Alaska — former Representative Mary Peltola (D) challenges Senator Dan Sullivan (R). Alaska’s late poll closing (1 a.m. ET) and slow counting may delay a call.
Maine, Michigan, North Carolina and Georgia — the core battlegrounds Democrats need for their net gain of four.
Ohio and Florida — special elections to fill unexpired terms, with appointed Republican Senators Jon Husted (Ohio) and Ashley Moody (Florida) trying to hold their seats.

In the House, early clues will come from competitive districts in Virginia — including VA-02 and VA-07 — and from Iowa and Kentucky, where results arrive relatively early in the evening. If Democrats are winning districts like those comfortably, a large House gain is likely; if they are close or flipping Republican, the night will be tighter than the polls suggested.

This is why tonight matters to our readers, whichever way it goes:

Your Social Security COLA does not depend on the election. The annual cost-of-living adjustment is set by a formula in law, not by Congress — the 2027 COLA of 3.6% proceeds regardless of who wins. No result tonight changes benefits already being paid.
Medicare’s direction could shift. A Democratic House or Senate would block any budget package that trims Medicare or Medicaid and would push instead to extend the enhanced ACA premium subsidies — the fight behind next year’s Part D premium increases. A Republican hold would keep the administration’s current health agenda, including the Medicare ACCESS model, on track.
Open Enrollment deadlines do not move. Whatever happens tonight, Medicare Open Enrollment still ends December 7 — check your doctors and drugs before you choose a plan, and read our Medigap explainer if you are comparing supplement coverage.
The new Congress is sworn in on January 3, 2027. Any legislation affecting retirement programs would be debated through 2027, and we will track it as it happens.

When will we know the results?

The House may be called by the major networks late tonight or in the early hours of Wednesday if the pattern is clear. The Senate could take longer — Alaska’s late close and close races in the east may push a final call into Wednesday or beyond. Some individual races, under US election law, may take days to finalize as mail ballots are counted. We will keep this page updated until both chambers are called.

Sources

NBC News, 2026 election House results
Associated Press and network race calls, as reported through the night
CNN Poll of Polls and NBC News final pre-election polling
Reuters/Ipsos October approval polling

FAQ

How many seats does each party need to control Congress in 2026?

A party needs 218 of the 435 House seats to control the House. In the Senate, Democrats need to reach 51 seats — a net gain of four — because a 50–50 tie is broken by Republican Vice President JD Vance.

When do polls close in the 2026 midterms?

The first polls close at 6 p.m. ET in parts of Indiana and Kentucky. Most states close between 7 p.m. and 9 p.m. ET, and the last polls, in Alaska, close at 1 a.m. ET.

Will the 2026 election change my Social Security or Medicare benefits?

No result tonight changes benefits already being paid, and the Social Security COLA is set by formula, not by the election. What can change is future legislation — funding, subsidies and program rules debated by the new Congress from January 2027.

When does the new Congress take office?

The 120th Congress is sworn in on January 3, 2027. Until then, the current Congress remains in place, including for any year-end funding votes.

Why is this called a midterm election?

Midterms fall halfway through a president’s four-year term. The president is not on the ballot, but all 435 House seats, a third of the Senate and most governorships are — making the election a national verdict on the administration.

Rana — Editor, Elite Era Trends

Rana is the editor of Elite Era Trends, where he explains Medicare, Social Security and AI news for US readers in plain language — costs, deadlines and plan choices, checked against official sources.