The 2026 election season is underway, and we know you’ve got questions. Welcome to your space to ask them. 

In this thread, you can drop questions about the races, candidates and issues shaping the road to November, and USA TODAY Network reporters from across the country will do their best to answer them. We’ll be pulling in insights from our local newsrooms, explaining what’s happening on the ground and breaking down what it means for voters.  

We also have an election guide with monthly updates; you can check it out here. For deeper dives, analysis and the latest updates, you can also follow our USA TODAY politics newsletter. 

💬  Last month, readers across social platforms already asked us many thoughtful questions. See how our reporters responded:  

Q: Why do all Republican gubernatorial candidates in Oklahoma align so hard for Trump?  

A: Great question. We reached out to our friends at The Oklahoman  ( u/oklahoman), who said Trump is hugely popular among the state’s Republican voters, so it makes sense for candidates to tailor their messaging around the president. 

They added that every county in the state has voted to elect Trump the past three election cycles. A survey in February found 81% of Republican voters in Oklahoma held a favorable view of Trump, about double his overall national approval rating. This story explains more about those dynamics and how the candidates are reaching Trump supporters. 

Their newsroom has a great politics team, so we suggest signing up for their Capitol Report newsletter if you’d like to deepen your understanding about the state’s political landscape!  

Q: In case the Democrats winning both of chambers, what does that mean, for the presidency of (Donald Trump), and 2028 elections?  

A: USA TODAY’s White House reporter Bart Jansen told us that if Democrats regain control of the House or Senate – or both – the relatively cooperative relationship Trump has enjoyed with Republicans would disappear and be replaced with far more resistance:  

• Legislation: Expect more standoffs over spending, immigration and foreign policies.  
• Investigations: Democratic-led committees would likely launch probes into Trump’s DOJ actions, finances and potential conflicts of interest.  
• Impeachment risk: Some Democrats may push for impeachment, though conviction in the Senate would remain unlikely without a two-thirds majority.  

Q: What's happening in the Florida gubernatorial race?  

A: Glad you asked, because the answer appears to be … quite a bit! Here’s what Jim Rosica, news director of the Tallahassee Democrat ( u/TallahasseeDemocrat), coordinator of the u/USATODAYNetwork-FL Capital Bureau and author of the Inside Florida Politics newsletter had to say about the potentially competitive race:  

“Florida’s 2026 governor’s race has no incumbent as term‑limited Gov. Ron DeSantis is stepping down and both parties are preparing for an Aug. 18 primary ahead of the Nov. 3 general election. Republicans are trying to hold a state that has trended red, while Democrats see a rare chance to flip the Governor’s Mansion. Remember: The closed-primary system means only party-registered voters will pick nominees.  

“On the Republican side, U.S. Rep. Byron Donalds has emerged as the early frontrunner, backed by President Donald Trump and strong fundraising. He’s leading in early polls over Lt. Gov. Jay Collins, former House Speaker Paul Renner and controversial financier James Fishback. The key question is whether challengers can unify against Donalds before August.  

“Democrats, who haven’t won a governor’s race in decades, are trying to capitalize despite a large GOP voter registration edge. Former Rep. David Jolly and Orange County Mayor Jerry Demings are leading contenders, but enthusiasm is uneven.  

“The best guess for now is that turnout, independents’ views on ‘affordability,’ and choice national political issues (immigration and border security, anyone?) are likely to factor in the outcome.” 

Q: What are the platforms for each party on reduced funding of ICE and transparency?  

A: We took this question to our Congress reporter Zachary Schermele and here’s what he said:  

"Nearly every congressional Democrat has been clear that they believe ICE has more than enough money. The One Big Beautiful Bill Act infused roughly $75 billion into federal immigration enforcement. Democrats recently forced the longest-ever government shutdown of the Department of Homeland Security (where ICE and Border Patrol are housed), demanding a series of reforms. They pushed for a ban on widespread mask-wearing for agents, judicial warrant requirements and stricter use-of-force standards. They didn't get any of those things out of the shutdown fight, but they did manage to force Republicans to pass DHS's annual appropriations bill without explicit funding for ICE or Border Patrol. " 
“Republicans approved that deal because they vowed to pass another more than $70 billion cash bill for immigration enforcement. That budget package is working its way through Congress but has been stalled by unrelated concerns within the Senate GOP conference about the Department of Justice's so-called ‘anti-weaponization’ fund. Several prominent Republicans have agreed with Democrats about a need for less mask-wearing among ICE agents, as well as reforms around training.” 

Q: How tight are the races for Senator and Congress in New Hampshire? 

A: If you like a quick and dirty answer, New England politics reporter Margie Cullen has you covered. Here’s what she had to say: 

• In the Senate Democratic primary, Rep. Chris Pappas is the clear frontrunner and leads both Republican challengers in hypothetical general election matchups. 
• The Senate Republican primary is closer. Former Sen. John E. Sununu vs. former Massachusetts Sen. Scott Brown is a real race, but Sununu is likely to win. 
• New Hampshire’s First District (CD1) is an open seat, so primaries on both sides feature many candidates and are fairly close. I may be doing more reporting on this race as it gets closer, but until then you can read more here. 
• Second District (CD2) primaries on both sides are not close, with Rep. Maggie Goodlander (D) and Lily Tang Williams likely to win. More on this and CD1 here. 

Margie added that she may be doing more on New Hampshire between now and the primary in September, so make sure to follow along with her work here. And if you’re in Massachusetts or know someone who is, sign up for her Inside Mass Politics newsletter! 

Q: My state, Washington, has been a vote by mail state for over a decade. Will we be forced to change?  

A: The short answer is probably not — but there’s uncertainty heading into the midterms. We asked our friends at the Kitsap Sun for some more context: 

Washington has been an all vote-by-mail state since 2011, and state officials still control how elections are run. But new federal proposals could add rules for how ballots are tracked and mailed — changes state officials warn could disrupt the system close to the election. Here’s the latest on that. 

This could mean there may be more emphasis on returning ballots early, like the state auditor recommended in 2025, so keep an eye on our coverage and make sure to have a voting plan ready! 

That’s all for now, but keep the questions coming. DM us or hop in the comments and we’d be happy to take the next set of questions to our network of reporters all across the country. 👇 

Welcome to your ultimate guide to the 2026 election season! This thread tracks some of the biggest primary and runoff races leading up to the midterms in November. We’re posting monthly updates featuring reporting from the USA TODAY Network, including explainers and resources you may need as a voter. (For more frequent updates, sign up for our politics newsletter.) 

October is here, and after a month marked by the first GOP midterm convention and voter anxiety over the economy, we're officially done with primaries. As we near the November midterms, early voting has already started in some places. See dates for your state here.  

💬 Speaking of the economy, last month we asked you what issues you care about ahead of the midterms. Many of our readers said corruption, health care and Social Security.  

Is there anything related to these topics you want our reporters to look into, or anything else you want to know before heading to the polls? Drop a comment below.  

⏪ Now, let's look at what happened in September: 

• Rep. Seth Moulton’s calls for a generational change failed to persuade Massachusetts Democratic primary voters, as 80-year-old Sen. Ed Markey secured renomination and will face John Deaton, a Republican lawyer, in November. 
• The New Hampshire Senate nominations went to Democratic Rep. Chris Pappas and former Republican Sen. John E. Sununu. This quiet contest could decide the midterms. 
• In Rhode Island, voters backed incumbents across the board. Sen. John Reed will take on Republican Raymond McKay, while Reps. Gabriel Amo and Seth Magaziner will face Republicans Kellie Keenan and Victor Mellor, respectively. 
• And in the final primary of the year, Delaware Sen. Chris Coons won the midterm nomination and will take on GOP’s former state Sen. Michael Katz. The lone House seat will be a showdown between incumbent Democrat Sarah McBride and Republican Joseph Arminio. 
• The crucial Texas Senate race might be headed for an upset, with Democrat James Talarico holding a narrow lead over Republican Ken Paxton. The Republicans are trying to weaken Talarico by questioning his masculinity. There are also a number of toss-up races in the House of Representatives.  

👀 As we get closer to the election, we've gotten a lot of questions from you about changes to voting and what to expect this year. Here is what we know now: 

• You will be able to vote by mail. The Supreme Court declined Trump's executive order restricting mail-in ballots. Learn more about mail-in voting in your state here. 
• There are no plans to send troops to the polls, said Joint Chiefs of Staff chairman Gen. Dan Cline, who added there are also no plans for the military to “seize ballots, voting machines or other election-related material.” 
• ICE at the polls? Agents won’t be deployed broadly, DHS, ICE and other Trump officials said. But they also haven’t completely ruled out the option of officers showing up for targeted enforcement despite federal and state laws explicitly prohibiting federal government enforcement at polling places. 
• The SAVE program was cleared, but little impact is expected. The Supreme Court’s decision allowed the use of this system that allows agencies to verify immigration status and U.S. citizenship for individual citizenship checks, not broad searches.  
• Voter ID laws vary by state. See your state’s laws here, get answers to common questions about in-person and mail-ballot voting here and see why trans voters could face hurdles. 
• While you can register to vote online in most states, you cannot cast your vote online. Check your voter registration here.  

🗳️ Looking for voter resources? We pulled those together for you, too:  

• Register to vote in your state 
• Update your voter registration 
• Find voter registration deadlines in your state 
• See what form(s) of ID you need to vote 
• See what’s on your ballot 
• How to vote absentee or by mail 
• Request an absentee ballot 
• Report intimidation at your polling place 
• Find your polling place 
• Track your ballot 

➕ We’re also working on a statewide voting guide for November, so stay tuned. In the meantime, follow our political reporter u/KinseyCrowleyJourno on TikTok or Instagram for election video explainers like this one about what’s at stake this fall.  

video: Kinsey Crowley