As we go into the 2026 election let’s recap some basic election knowledge and take a peek at which races we should pay attention to.

Election Resources:

Voter Guide Look up: https://www.vote411.org/ballot

State Primary Election Dates: https://www.ncsl.org/elections-and-campaigns/2026-state-primary-election-dates

Campaign Finance Information – https://www.opensecrets.org

Sources:

• Hartig, H., Keeter, S., Daniller, A., Green, T. V. (2026). Voter turnout, 2020-2024. Pew Research Center. https://www.pewresearch.org/politics/2025/06/26/voter-turnout-2020-2024/. Accessed January 3, 2026.
• Hartig, H., Daniller, A., Keeter, S., Green, T. V. (2023). Voter turnout, 2018-2022. Pew Research Center. https://www.pewresearch.org/politics/2023/07/12/voter-turnout-2018-2022/. Accessed Jan. 3, 2026.
• Knight, B., (2014). An econometric evaluation of competing explanations for the midterm gap. National Bureau of Economic Research. https://www.nber.org/papers/w20311. Accessed Jan. 5, 2026.
• The voting system that lets losers win. (2011). CGP Grey YouTube. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=s7tWHJfhiyo. Accessed Jan. 5, 2026.
• 2026 US Senate. (2026). Maine Morning Star. https://mainemorningstar.com/race-details/2026-us-senate/. Accessed Jan. 5, 2026.
• Michels, S. (2025). Field is set for NC 2026 elections as filing closes. Carolina Public Press. https://www.wunc.org/term/news/2025-12-19/field-set-nc-2026-elections. Accessed Jan. 5, 2026.
• Browning, K. (2026). The key senate races to watch in 2026. The New York Times. https://www.nytimes.com/2026/01/05/us/politics/the-key-senate-races-to-watch-in-2026.html. Accessed Jan. 5, 2026.
• 2026 CPR House Race Ratings. (2025). Cook Political Report. https://www.cookpolitical.com/ratings/house-race-ratings. Accessed Dec. 30, 2025.
• Wu, N. (2025). Elissa Slotkin wins Michigan Senate seat. Politico. https://www.politico.com/2024-election/results/michigan/senate/. Accessed Jan. 5, 2026.
• Cost of Election. (n.d.). Open Secrets. https://www.opensecrets.org/elections-overview/cost-of-election. Accessed Jan. 5, 2026.