Learn / What Are Midterms?
What Are Midterm Elections?
Midterm elections happen halfway through a president's four-year term. They're called "midterms" because they fall in the middle of the presidential cycle. The next midterms are on November 3, 2026.
The Election Cycle
What's on the Ballot?
- All 435 House seats — every Representative is up because they serve two-year terms
- About a third of the Senate — 33 or 34 seats, depending on the cycle
- 36 governor races in most midterm years
- State legislature seats — thousands of them
- Ballot measures on things like marijuana legalization, minimum wage, or abortion access
The Midterm Effect
The president's party almost always loses seats in midterms. It's happened in all but two midterm cycles since 1934.
Recent Midterm Results
Why Do Fewer People Vote in Midterms?
About 155 million people voted in 2020. Two years later, for the midterms, that number dropped to 113 million. A lot of people don't know midterms are happening, or figure they don't matter.
Congress writes the tax code, funds schools, and sets healthcare policy. Midterms decide who controls Congress.
Guide 1 of 21
Next up: The Three Branches of Government — Legislative, executive, and judicial — how the system prevents any one branch from having all the power.
Glossary
2 terms on this page
A proposed law or policy that voters decide directly — yes or no — instead of electing a person.
Elections held halfway through a president's 4-year term.
Glossary
2 terms on this page
A proposed law or policy that voters decide directly — yes or no — instead of electing a person.
Elections held halfway through a president's 4-year term.