The President is not on the ballot. Unlike India’s Election Commission, the United States’ federal Election Assistance Commission does not run elections, and voter registration, voting and counting are managed primarily by state and local authorities under a decentralised system. Each State has its own rules, and thousands of counties and towns print ballots, establish polling centres and count votes. Many Americans vote early, by post or in person, and counting can take days.
Because they fall midway through a President’s four-year term, with less than three weeks to go before Americans vote in the midterm elections on November 3, 2026; the polls are so called.
Voters will choose the Congress that shapes the President’s last two years. Indian readers would closely follow the race for Ohio Governor. He now trails the Democrat, Amy Acton, a former State Health director, by six points in one recent poll and nine in another. A poor national mood for Republicans explains much of this. Midterms usually serve as a verdict on the President, and the President’s party usually loses seats. In this case, President Donald Trump has made this election about himself, even if many Republican candidates would have preferred otherwise. In September, the Republicans held their first-ever midterm convention, in Dallas, built around Mr. Trump. Five issues dominate. The first is the cost of living, as groceries, housing and fuel grow dearer and tariffs push prices up. The third is immigration, where large deportation raids have cost the Republicans their old advantage. The fourth is health care, where cuts to Medicaid, the public insurance programme for low-income Americans, are among the administration’s least popular measures. The fifth, crime in America’s cities, is the Republicans’ strongest card, and the issue on which Mr. Trump polls best. He has not ruled out sending immigration agents or the National Guard to polling stations. Federal law bars armed agents from polling places, and officials say immigration agents will not patrol them, but the threat alone may keep some voters at home. Asked whether he would accept a defeat, Mr.
All 435 seats in the House of Representatives are due for election, since members serve two-year terms. In the Senate, where members serve six years, 35 of the 100 seats are up for election, including special elections in Ohio and Florida. Republicans hold a narrow majority in the House, where 218 seats are needed for control, and 53 seats in the Senate, so the Democrats need a net gain of four. Voters in States, including California, Texas and Florida, will also elect 39 Governors. Those elected now will be in office for the 2028 presidential election, and many will sign off on its results. Vivek Ramaswamy, who sought the Republican presidential nomination in 2024, would be the State’s first Indian-American Governor. His approval stands at about 30%, and registered voters prefer the Democrats for Congress by around eight points. The second is the war with Iran, launched with Israel in late February 2026, which is unpopular and has made fuel costlier.
He is now on a rally tour of at least 17 States, telling supporters to “pretend I’m on the ballot”. Trump said he would, if the elections are honest.
A recent study by the Takshashila Institution, based on 42 interviews in Washington, found that support for India in Congress is wide but shallow. Groups opposed to cheap imports, skilled migration, and Russian oil money are smaller, but they care more, and they vote. India had friends rather than costs: many members liked India but no member paid a price for harming it. A Democratic House could ease the treatment of Indian students and workers and press to end a war that has raised India’s oil bill. It is unlikely to change the tariffs or the Russia law. A President weakened at home may also look abroad for wins — either a trade deal with India or fresh pressure on it. New Delhi should expect the relationship to be decided in the White House, whoever controls Congress.
