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Outbyte Driver Updater FREEScan for outdated or missing drivers - takes under a minuteDriver Scan →Outbyte PC Repair FREEClear out junk files and repair common Windows errorsFree Scan →A U.S. midterm election is the even-numbered-year federal election held halfway through a president’s four-year term. Every House seat is contested, about one-third of Senate seats are up, and state races depend on each state’s calendar. Midterms do not elect the president.
What is a midterm election?
“Midterm” describes an election’s place in the presidential cycle, not a single, uniform national ballot. The president is elected every four years; congressional elections occur every two years. A midterm is the congressional general election between presidential elections. The federal House election date is the Tuesday after the first Monday in November of every even-numbered year, under 2 U.S.C. § 7.
Federal congressional contests follow nationwide constitutional and statutory schedules. State and local offices follow their own schedules, so a midterm ballot’s other races vary by location.
Which federal offices are on the ballot?
All House seats
Every seat in the U.S. House of Representatives is contested in each regular federal election, including midterms. The Constitution sets House terms at two years; the Senate’s constitutional reference reproduces Article I, Section 2: “The House of Representatives shall be composed of Members chosen every second Year by the People of the several States.” See the U.S. Senate’s Constitution reference.
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Some Senate seats
Senators serve six-year terms, divided into three classes that run on different two-year cycles. As a result, approximately one-third of Senate seats are regularly contested in each federal election year. A state may have a Senate race in a midterm, but not every state does. The Senate’s terms-of-service overview explains the six-year terms and three classes.
Congressional terms begin January 3
The Twentieth Amendment sets the start of congressional terms at noon on January 3. That start date is distinct from Election Day, which takes place in November.
Are governors and state legislators elected during midterms?
Sometimes. State constitutions and laws set the regular election schedules for governors and legislators. Most state-official elections coincide with federal elections, but regular statewide elections in Louisiana, Mississippi, New Jersey, and Virginia take place in November of odd-numbered years. Special elections may also take place outside a regular cycle to fill vacancies. The U.S. Election Assistance Commission and NCSL’s 2025 guide to election administration describes these differences and special elections.
State legislative terms are two or four years, and chambers do not all use the same schedule. For example, the National Conference of State Legislatures’ 2026 schedule, updated June 25, 2026, lists regular legislative races in 46 states and 88 of the country’s 99 chambers. It lists 6,139 of 7,386 state legislative seats—83%—as regularly scheduled for election that year; those figures exclude special elections. Louisiana, Mississippi, New Jersey, and Virginia had no regular legislative races in 2026 because their elections were held in 2025.
These figures describe the 2026 schedule; they are not a rule that every midterm has the same races. Check the election authority for your state or locality to see which offices are on a particular ballot.
What else might appear on a midterm ballot?
A ballot may include state executive or legislative races, local offices, or special elections, in addition to federal contests. The exact mix depends on the state and locality and on whether a vacancy election is scheduled. To understand a specific ballot, distinguish the government level and the type of contest:
- Federal: House races occur every two years; Senate races follow the staggered class schedule.
- State: Governor and legislative races depend on state calendars and terms.
- Local: Local offices may have their own election schedules.
- Special: A vacancy can prompt an election outside the regular cycle.
How to check your state’s deadlines and ballot
Registration deadlines and voting procedures are not uniform across the country. USAGov’s voter registration deadline guide, updated February 23, 2026, says every state except North Dakota requires voter registration and notes that a state deadline can be as much as a month before an election. Confirm the current deadline and requirements with your official state or territory election office.
- Visit your state or territory election office to check registration status and deadlines.
- Use the state or local election office to confirm the offices and candidates on your ballot, voting options, polling location, and relevant dates.
- For local election questions, follow the instructions of the local authority responsible for your area.
Election administration is shared across levels of government. The U.S. Election Assistance Commission’s overview of federal election laws, dated December 23, 2025, states: “While state law primarily determines how elections are conducted, federal law also sets standards that all states must follow.” The EAC and NCSL’s 2025 guide describes an administrative landscape spanning more than 8,000 jurisdictions, which helps explain why local election details can differ even within a state.
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