"Your vote is your voice": A look at why voting matters

Key points

• Early voting is underway for the 2026 midterms, with Election Day on Tuesday, Nov. 3.
• All 435 House seats are on the ballot, and voters in 35 states will elect senators.
• In 2022, 46% of eligible voters cast ballots, compared to 65% in 2024.

Early voting is underway across the country for the 2026 midterm elections, with Election Day set for Tuesday, Nov. 3. All 435 House seats are on the ballot, and voters in 35 states will elect senators, 36 states will vote in governor's races and there are more than 150 ballot measures across 40 states.

The people and policies elected will shape the future of the Iran War, AI regulation and other issues. Midterm elections tend to draw millions fewer voters than presidential elections, even though they are "arguably more opportune moments for voters to get what they want," according to Columbia University political scientist Donald Green, because small shifts in the overall vote can lead to dramatic shifts in policy.

Why voting matters

Voting decides who writes the rules communities live under. At the national level, which party controls the House and Senate is at stake, and the outcome will determine whether Congress acts as a check or an enabler on presidential power for the final two years of Donald Trump's presidency. Locally, down-ballot candidates help decide taxes, the price of a doctor's visit, school funding and who sits on the bench in a local court.

A CBS News/YouGov poll found that most voters don't believe either party has a plan to make people better off. Some voters are considering sitting this election out. "I just don't trust anybody at this point enough to vote for them, Republican [or] Democrat," said Kansas farmer Mandy Sieren. "I think they're all crooked." Green argued that although voters might be dissatisfied with both parties, it typically comes down to the candidates themselves and voters have to make an informed choice.

Your vote is your voice

— Kansas voter Tracy Preisser

Midterm turnout and impact

By some metrics, midterm elections are when a person's vote can matter the most because fewer people participate. In the 2022 midterms, 46% of eligible voters cast ballots, compared to 65% in the 2024 presidential elections. The smaller the electorate, the more weight each ballot carries. In 2022, Republican Rep. Lauren Boebert held her Colorado seat by 546 votes. In 2024, Democrat Adam Gray won California's 13th Congressional District by just 187 votes. In 2020, Republican Mariannette Miller-Meeks won her Iowa House race by just six votes.

Green said what matters is who shows up as a group. "It may be surprising to them how attentive politicians are… to which groups vote at high rates and which groups don't," he said. He said candidates tend to pay more attention to older voters, who are most likely to vote, while issues important to young and poor people, who vote less frequently, "are often devalued."

Control of Congress at stake

Control of both chambers of Congress is in play, and the margins are slim. In the House, Republicans currently hold a narrow majority, and Democrats need a net gain of just three seats to win control. In the Senate, Democrats need a net gain of four seats to flip the chamber. Whoever controls Congress will decide whether more funding for the Iran War is approved or if AI regulation is proposed, among other legislation.

More than 30 states are electing governors, with competitive races from Georgia to Ohio. Governors have power over the data center buildout because they can approve moratoriums, decide on tax breaks and appoint utility commissioners. There are 41 ballot initiatives on data centers across 13 states. In New York City, poll worker Sandra Strother said voting is personal for her. Her uncle was killed trying to vote in Alabama in the 1950s because he was an African American. "That's my great motivator," she said.