Primaries in five states set the stage for the 2026 midterm elections

Voters in five states cast ballots in primary contests to select candidates for the November midterm elections, with Michigan's Senate race drawing the most attention among hundreds of contests on the ballot. The elections, scheduled largely for November 3, 2026, will determine the composition of the 120th United States Congress. All 435 seats in the House of Representatives and 35 of the 100 Senate seats are up for grabs. The vote falls near the midpoint of Donald Trump's nonconsecutive second term as president, when control of Congress often shifts against the party in the White House. The stakes are narrow and clear. Democrats need a net gain of three seats to take the House and four to take the Senate, meaning a handful of races like Michigan's could decide who holds power in Washington for the rest of Trump's term. With the election 99 days away as of late July, these primaries mark the point where the fight for Congress begins in earnest.

Five states vote in primaries, with Michigan's Senate race in the spotlight

Voters in five states went to the polls to pick their parties' candidates for the November midterm elections, with hundreds of contests on the primary ballot. Among them, the Michigan Senate race drew the most attention, standing out as the main focus of the day's voting.

The primaries mark an early test of the campaign ahead. As of late July, the midterms were 99 days away, with the general election scheduled largely for November 3, 2026. The contests will shape the fight for control of Congress during Donald Trump's nonconsecutive second term as president.

Midterm elections are held near the midpoint of a president's four-year term, on the Tuesday after the first Monday in November. This year, all 435 seats in the House of Representatives and 35 of the 100 Senate seats will be contested, determining the makeup of the 120th United States Congress.

What is at stake for control of the 120th Congress

Every seat in the House of Representatives is up for grabs on November 3, 2026 — all 435 of them. In the Senate, 35 of the 100 seats will be contested. Together, the results will determine the composition of the 120th United States Congress and, with it, the balance of power in Washington for the second half of Donald Trump's nonconsecutive second term as president.

The arithmetic facing the Democratic Party is steep but not impossible. Democrats need a net gain of three seats to take a majority in the House. In the Senate, where fewer seats change hands in any given cycle, they require a net gain of four. Either chamber flipping would give the party a foothold to check the White House; losing both would leave Republicans in full control of the legislative agenda.

As of late July 2026, the midterms were 99 days away. Primary contests like those held this week are winnowing the fields that will decide those margins in November.

Trump's election claims shadow the campaign

The shadow of Donald Trump's long-running election claims hangs over the midterm campaign. According to reports, in a July 16 speech the president repeated his assertion that the 2020 election was stolen from him, saying he had documents showing a broken election system.

Critics say such rhetoric is already shaping the 2026 contest. An opinion piece in the Bangor Daily News argued that Trump is undermining the midterm elections, contending that the power to structure congressional elections belongs to state and federal legislatures, not to the president. That constitutional question — who sets the rules for how Americans vote — has become a live issue as both parties position themselves for November, with the president's continued focus on 2020 ensuring that the integrity of the vote itself remains a central theme of the campaign season.

Senate moves to avert a pre-election shutdown

Congressional leaders moved to take a government shutdown off the table ahead of November's vote. According to reports, the Senate voted 90-6 early on a Saturday to pass a short-term funding bill, extending government funding to December 11 and removing the threat of a shutdown before the midterm elections. The vote, if confirmed as reported, would push any spending fight past polling day, sparing candidates from campaigning against the backdrop of closed federal agencies and furloughed workers. Stopgap measures of this kind have become a recurring feature of pre-election Washington, allowing lawmakers to defer contentious budget negotiations until after voters have cast their ballots. Details of the bill's provisions beyond the December 11 deadline were not immediately reported.

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