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Will the 2026 midterms happen? Short answer: Yes.
Long answer: Elections happen because thousands of local officials follow state and local laws requiring them to happen — and history shows they’ve done so before, even under immense pressure. The greater danger isn’t no election, but one that’s chaotic, unfairly challenged, or deliberately cast as illegitimate after the fact.
Got more questions about the midterms? Email us at community@votebeat.org.
Votebeat is a nonprofit newsroom specialized in explaining how elections work. Each of our reporters and editors spend every day covering voting rules, election administration, misinformation, election lawsuits, local officials, and the systems that determine how ballots are cast and counted.
Watch the full event recording below:
Watch the recording of our previous Q&A event here.
Jessica Huseman is Votebeat’s Editorial Director. She runs big initiatives for Votebeat, like our experts desk, and manages our investigations. She was previously the lead elections reporter for ProPublica, and helped manage the Electionland project for three federal election cycles, sharing information and tips with hundreds of newsrooms across the United States.
Alexander Shur is Votebeat’s Wisconsin reporter. He previously covered politics, policy, and the fallout of the 2020 presidential election for the Wisconsin State Journal. Prior to that he covered the criminal justice system for the Jackson Hole News & Guide, where he investigated the impact of voting laws on people with felonies and how the criminal justice system treats people with mental illnesses. He is originally from Michigan, and has degrees from Northern Michigan University and Northwestern University.
Hayley Harding is Votebeat’s Michigan reporter. Hayley Harding is a Detroit-based reporter who has covered government and elections at all levels. Most recently, she was a data journalist on The Detroit News’ investigations team, where she covered population trends, social problems, and more. She has worked for the Idaho Statesman in Boise and for the Salisbury Daily Times in Salisbury, Maryland. A Michigander by birth, Hayley graduated from Ohio University.
Sasha Hupka is Votebeat’s Arizona reporter. She is based in Phoenix and has long covered politics, business, and democracy issues in the Southwest. Most recently, she was a watchdog reporter at The Arizona Republic, where her stories won several awards. She has also worked for The Los Angeles Times, Politifact, and other news outlets. She is originally from New York, and holds degrees from Binghamton University and the University of California, Berkeley.
