Brody Saner, a college student in Kansas says he believes it's his duty to vote.
asserted
it → say → Kansas
"If there's something you're not happy with, go out and vote.
asserted
you → be → ?
All 435 seats in the House are on the ballot, and voters in 35 states will be electing senators, 36 states will be voting in governor's races and there are more than 150 ballot measures across 40 states.
asserted
states → elect → states
The people and policies elected will shape the future of the Iran War, AI regulation and so much more.
asserted
people → elect → War
However, midterm elections tend to draw millions fewer voters than presidential, despite being "arguably more opportune moments for voters to get what they want," according to Professor Donald Green, a Columbia University political scientist who has spent three decades studying voting, "because relatively small shifts in the overall vote can lead to dramatic shifts in policy.
uncertain
shifts → tend → policy
"
Here's what's at stake and why the experts say showing up matters:
Why is voting important in general?
asserted
voting → say → stake
"Your vote is your voice," said Kansas voter Tracy Preisser when asked why she thinks it's important to vote.
asserted
it → say → ?
Voting decides who writes the rules communities live under.
asserted
communities → decide → rules
At the national level, which party controls the House and the Senate is at stake.
asserted
controls → control → stake
And whether the Democrats or the Republicans win will determine whether Congress acts as a check or an enabler on presidential power for the final two years of Donald Trump's presidency.
asserted
Congress → win → presidency
Locally, candidates down the ballot vote play a part in deciding taxes, the price of a doctor's visit, school funding, or who sits on the bench in a local court.
asserted
who → play → court
But a
poll conducted found that most voters don't believe that either party has a plan to make people better off.
asserted
people → conduct → plan
The majority of voters believed that they wouldn't be better off financially regardless of which party wins the electorate.
asserted
party → believe → electorate
This sentiment is leading some voters to consider sitting this election out.
asserted
sentiment → lead → election
"I just don't trust anybody at this point enough to vote for them, Republican [or] Democrat," says Kansas farmer Mandy Sieren.
asserted
Sieren → trust → them
"I think they're all crooked."
asserted
they → think → ?
To that, Green would argue that "although they might be dissatisfied with both parties, typically it comes down to the candidates themselves, and [voters] have to make an informed choice one way or the other," he said.
uncertain
he → argue → choice
Why does your vote in midterm elections matter?
asserted
vote → matter → elections
By some metrics, midterm elections are when a person's vote can matter the most, because less people participate in them.
asserted
people → matter → them
In the 2022 midterms, 46% of eligible voters cast ballots, compared to 65% in the 2024 presidential elections.
asserted
% → cast → elections
The smaller the electorate, the more weight each ballot carries.
asserted
ballot → carry → weight
In Republican Rep. Lauren Boebert race in the 2022 midterm election, she held onto her Colorado seat by 546 votes.
asserted
she → hold → votes
In 2024, Democrat Adam Gray won California's 13th Congressional District by just 187 votes.
asserted
Gray → win → votes
And in 2020, Republican Mariannette Miller-Meeks won her Iowa House race by just six votes.
asserted
Meeks → win → votes
This round of elections is expected to have some equally contentious races.
asserted
round → expect → races
But Green says voting isn't only about an individual's ballot.
asserted
voting → say → ballot
What matters, he said, is who shows up as a group.
asserted
who → matter → group
"It may be surprising to them how attentive politicians are… to which groups vote at high rates and which groups don't," says Green.
uncertain
Green → vote → rates
He says that this is the reason that candidates tend to pay more attention to older voters, who are most likely to vote, and issues important to young and poor people, who vote less frequently, "are often devalued."
asserted
who → say → people
How could votes in the 2026 midterm elections impact our country?
uncertain
votes → impact → country
Midterm elections are when voters most often change the course in Washington, and are a check on the president's power halfway through a term.
asserted
voters → change → term
The president's party has lost seats in 37 of the past 41 midterm elections
And this time around, control of both chambers of Congress is in play, and the margins couldn't be slimmer.
asserted
margins → lose → play
In the house, Republicans currently hold a narrow majority.
asserted
Republicans → hold → majority
Democrats need a net gain of just three seats to win control.
asserted
Democrats → need → control
In the Senate, Democrats need a net gain of four seats to flip the chamber.
asserted
Democrats → need → chamber
Whoever controls Congress will decide whether more funding for the Iran War is approved or if AI regulation is proposed, amongst countless other pieces of potential legislation.
asserted
regulation → control → legislation
Meanwhile, more than 30 states are electing governors, with competitive races from Georgia to Ohio.
asserted
states → elect → Ohio
Governors have immense power over the fate of the data center buildout, because of their power to approve moratoriums, decide on tax breaks, and appoint utility commissioners.
asserted
Governors → have → commissioners
She says her uncle was killed trying to vote in Alabama in the 1950s because he was an African American.
asserted
he → say → 1950s
"That's my great motivator" she says for why she makes time not just to vote herself, but to ensure others can too.
asserted
others → say → time
The Aporia
