Story perspectives

AP to run 100,000-voter poll ahead of 2026 elections

By Drooid · Oct 30, 2026 · How we work

Read the story

Story summary

Summary

AP will partner with networks to run a Voter Poll before the 2026 elections.
The poll will interview 75,000 voters before Election Day and 25,000 at polling places on Nov. 3.
AP will tabulate 7,000 races using 4,000 journalists and 1,000 clerks.
AP will broadcast video in 19 languages such as Spanish, Portuguese, French, Chinese.

Summary

DOJ will deploy more than 1,000 federal election monitors nationwide, double the 2022 count.
Six Washington counties accepted Governor Ferguson’s offer to station unarmed plain-clothes National Guard members at polls.
Monitors must follow state law and report any federal voting-law breaches to DOJ after Election Day.
Trump administration issued over 100 subpoenas to a dozen states for voter-roll data on alleged non-citizen voting.

Summary

Republicans maintain a 53-47 Senate majority while Democrats target four pickups to reach 51 seats.
More than 70 House districts receive six-figure ad purchases in the final campaign week.
Michigan’s 7th and North Carolina’s 1st districts each attract over $12 million in late-stage spending.
The Supreme Court rolled back parts of the Voting Rights Act, permitting Republicans to add conservative voters.

History

The Supreme Court’s June 25, 2013, 5-4 decision in Shelby County v. Holder struck down Section 4(b)’s coverage formula, ending federal preclearance for 19 Southern jurisdictions. Without that oversight, states closed nearly 1,000 polling places and passed voter-ID laws, prompting the Department of Justice and an AP-commissioned 75,000-voter poll to monitor elections.

1 of 4

The Supreme Court’s June 25, 2013, 5-4 decision in Shelby County v. Holder struck down Section 4(b)’s coverage formula, ending federal preclearance for 19 Southern jurisdictions. Without that oversight, states closed nearly 1,000 polling places and passed voter-ID laws, prompting the Department of Justice and an AP-commissioned 75,000-voter poll to monitor elections.

1 / 4