Nebraska Senate 2026: Who Will Win the Seat

Project 50, a political group founded by Illinois abortion-rights veterans including former state Sen. Heather Steans and ex-HHS Secretary Kathleen Sebelius, is working to replicate Illinois' decades-old shift toward abortion access by targeting state legislative races in conservative states with bans or heavy restrictions. After early setbacks in Arizona, the group refocused on culturally conservative states in 2023, winning three races in its first three years and four more in 2025, including in Virginia. It has raised over $3.7 million from donors such as Michael Bloomberg and Gov. JB Pritzker. Organizers say the strategy targets voters uneasy with total abortion bans, not broad support for unrestricted access. Abortion-rights opponents call its electoral impact limited so far.

Rep. Suhas Subramanyam, D-Va., became the latest lawmaker to report a suspicious white powder mailed to his Leesburg office, which was evacuated Monday as local hazmat teams and Capitol Police responded. He joins a growing list of officials targeted in recent weeks, including Reps. Seth Moulton and Eugene Vindman, and Sens. Adam Schiff, Pete Ricketts, Ted Cruz, and Mike Rounds. Moulton noted his letter carried a return address linked to the Democratic Socialists of America, which denies any involvement. The incidents began last week with letters sent to Louisiana's and Oklahoma's election offices. The FBI, Capitol Police, Senate Sergeant at Arms, and Postal Inspection Service are investigating the apparent coordinated intimidation campaign.

A group of 15 Texas Republican House members, led by Rep. August Pfluger, is threatening to derail the more than $1 trillion farm bill over a Senate provision expanding ethanol blending requirements. The lawmakers argue the measure, backed by Midwestern senators and corn-state interests, would raise costs for Texas oil refineries and push fuel prices higher. The dispute revives a long-running fight between the agriculture and oil industries over federal ethanol mandates dating to 2005. The House already passed its version of the farm bill in April; the Senate has yet to act before the current congressional session ends in January, and Texas farm groups worry the ethanol dispute could further delay final passage.

Early voting began Tuesday in Ohio, a state hosting some of the most competitive contests in the November 3 midterms, including a Senate special election and two House races rated toss-ups by the Cook Political Report. The results could help decide which party controls Congress for the next two years.

Republican Senator Jon Husted faces a challenge from Democrat Sherrod Brown, who previously held the seat for 18 years before losing it to Bernie Moreno. In the House, Republican Representative Max Miller is fighting for a third term in the 7th district amid domestic violence allegations he denies, challenged by Democrat Brian Poindexter. In the 9th district, longtime Democratic Representative Marcy Kaptur faces a rematch against Republican Derek Merrin. Voters are weighing inflation, rising living costs and the ongoing US war with Iran against President Trump's record-low approval rating, with both parties watching Ohio for signs of whether disaffected voters are shifting allegiance ahead of the broader fight for House and Senate majorities.

President Trump rallied in Sioux City, Iowa, backing Senate candidate Rep. Ashley Hinson, Rep. Zach Nunn, and Rep. Randy Feenstra, telling supporters to "pretend I'm on the ballot" and warning that Democratic gains would threaten GOP wins on tariffs, trade and farm policy. Hinson, running against Democratic state Rep. Josh Turek in a tight contest that could decide Senate control, has distanced herself from Trump on issues like his Russia diesel deal, the Iran war's economic fallout, and tariffs, even as she campaigned alongside him. Polls show the race within a few points either way, with early voting already underway in Iowa.

Early voting opens Wednesday in Iowa, a state hosting competitive races for governor and seats in the U.S. Senate and House. Voters cite cost of living as a top concern, with Midwest grocery prices up 2.2% year-over-year as of July. Tariffs and agriculture are also prominent issues, as Iowa importers have paid an estimated $1.7 billion in tariffs through June while farmers face high input costs and trade uncertainty.

Other key issues include health care, with Iowa facing Medicaid budget pressures and upcoming eligibility changes such as work requirements, and water quality, which a poll commissioned by the Johns Hopkins Center for a Livable Future found ranks among the top five concerns for 60% of likely voters, including 64% of independents. School funding, particularly Iowa's expanding private-school tuition program, remains another dividing line. Mail ballot requests must reach county auditors by 5 p.m. Monday, Oct. 19, with early voting locations varying by county.

Alaska's U.S. House primary has narrowed to a general-election contest between Republican incumbent Nick Begich, independent Bill Hill, an incarcerated New York Democrat, and a Fairbanks Libertarian, after several Democratic contenders dropped out. Certified results showed Begich winning the primary with 44.6% to Hill's 32.5%, a 12-point gap. Anchorage Democrat Matt Schultz, the party's former front-runner, suspended his campaign in July, citing weak institutional support, and endorsed Hill; other Democratic candidates also withdrew to consolidate anti-Begich votes.

Hill, a Dena'ina Athabascan educator and fisherman, is campaigning on healthcare costs and inflation while also backing oil and gas development alongside renewables. Begich, part of a prominent Alaska political family who unseated Mary Peltola in 2024, is running on legislative wins including energy development measures and the Trump-backed tax and spending law. Begich holds a large fundraising edge. Political analysts are split: some see a plausible path for Hill given Alaska's heavy independent registration and a national climate favoring Democrats and independents, while others call Begich's reelection all but certain under Alaska's ranked-choice general election system.

Republicans have spent heavily — about $19 million through mid-October — on ads in competitive Ohio races promoting the tax law dubbed the "One Big Beautiful Bill," the largest such ad push of any state this cycle. The pitch aims to boost vulnerable GOP candidates, including Sen. Jon Husted, who faces Democrat Sherrod Brown in a tight Senate race, by highlighting tax cuts on tips, overtime, and Social Security. But polling shows the message struggling against voter frustration over tariffs, inflation, and gas prices; a New York Times/Siena poll found 79 percent of likely Ohio voters disapprove of President Trump's handling of gas prices, complicating Republicans' efforts in a once reliably red state.

Barack Obama rallied Democrats in Cleveland, campaigning with Senate candidate Sherrod Brown and gubernatorial candidate Amy Acton days before the midterms. He condemned Republican gubernatorial nominee Vivek Ramaswamy's ad featuring Acton's estranged mother, which attacks her over childhood abuse and homelessness, calling it a sign of declining political decency. Trump and JD Vance have defended the ad despite criticism from Ohio Republicans including Gov. Mike DeWine. Obama also faulted Trump for rising costs and White House renovations. He later campaigned in Detroit for Abdul El-Sayed against Mike Rogers, with Michigan's governor, attorney general, and secretary of state races also on the ballot. Obama is next slated to campaign in Georgia for Jon Ossoff and Keisha Lance Bottoms.