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Arts & Culture

Election Day 2026: Photos from around the country

By Meredith Nierman
Published November 3, 2026 at 4:00 PM PST

Against a backdrop of deep political division and with the control of Congress at stake, voters across the country are heading to the polls today to cast their ballots for the 2026 midterm elections. From lines at polling stations to the anticipation and reactions as the results come in, NPR station photographers are documenting the election in their communities.

Copyright 2026 NPR

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Voters fill out their ballots at Chicago's McKinley Park Library.
Anthony Vazquez
/
Sun-Times and WBEZ
Voters fill out their ballots at Chicago's McKinley Park Library.
An election official tapes "VOTE" signs to a wall to direct voters to the polling room in the Fairfax County Government Center in Fairfax, Va.
Tyrone Turner
/
WAMU
An election official tapes "VOTE" signs to a wall to direct voters to the polling room in the Fairfax County Government Center in Fairfax, Va.
Voters take to the polls at Wild Carrot, an event space in St. Louis' Shaw neighborhood.
Brian Munoz
/
St. Louis Public Radio
Voters take to the polls at Wild Carrot, an event space in St. Louis' Shaw neighborhood.
Tyler Prehn, 5 (right), inserts his father's ballot into the tabulating machine at Lutie Lewis Coates Elementary School in Herndon, Va. His brother, Levi Prehn, 3, looks on.
Tyrone Turner
/
WAMU
Tyler Prehn, 5 (right), inserts his father's ballot into the tabulating machine at Lutie Lewis Coates Elementary School in Herndon, Va. His brother, Levi Prehn, 3, looks on.
Diane Mitchell hands out Dutch Deli sandwiches and cookies from a food truck in Des Moines, Iowa.
Madeleine Charis King
/
Iowa Public Radio
Diane Mitchell hands out Dutch Deli sandwiches and cookies from a food truck in Des Moines, Iowa.
Peg Ihinger takes a photo as she leaves her early voting sticker at the memorial for Alex Pretti in Minneapolis. "I just want this nightmare to end for our city and our country," Ihinger said. "And damn it, they shouldn't have died." Pretti and Renée Good, both 37 and residents of Minneapolis, were killed in separate incidents by U.S. Customs and Border Protection officers and Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents during the Trump administration's Operation Metro Surge in January.
Ben Hovland
/
MPR News
Peg Ihinger takes a photo as she leaves her early voting sticker at the memorial for Alex Pretti in Minneapolis. "I just want this nightmare to end for our city and our country," Ihinger said. "And damn it, they shouldn't have died." Pretti and Renée Good, both 37 and residents of Minneapolis, were killed in separate incidents by U.S. Customs and Border Protection officers and Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents during the Trump administration's Operation Metro Surge in January.
Voters drop off ballots outside the City Hall Voting Center in San Francisco.
Beth LaBerge
/
KQED
Voters drop off ballots outside the City Hall Voting Center in San Francisco.
A large "VOTE" sign hangs from a balcony outside of Hartford City Hall in Hartford, Conn.
Raquel C. Zaldívar
/
New England News Collaborative
A large "VOTE" sign hangs from a balcony outside of Hartford City Hall in Hartford, Conn.
A voter collects their "I Voted" sticker after casting their ballot at Manchester High School in Manchester, Conn.
Tyler Russell
/
Connecticut Public
A voter collects their "I Voted" sticker after casting their ballot at Manchester High School in Manchester, Conn.
Voters cast their ballots at electronic voting stations at a polling station in Hastings City Hall in Hastings, Minn.
Kerem Yücel
/
MPR News
Voters cast their ballots at electronic voting stations at a polling station in Hastings City Hall in Hastings, Minn.
"NATL GUARD 50 FT BACK" is marked on a sidewalk in Washington, D.C.'s Columbia Heights neighborhood.
Ben Ackman
/
WAMU
"NATL GUARD 50 FT BACK" is marked on a sidewalk in Washington, D.C.'s Columbia Heights neighborhood.
Voters wait in line to cast their ballots at University Presbyterian Church in Austin, Texas.
Patricia Lim
/
KUT News
Voters wait in line to cast their ballots at University Presbyterian Church in Austin, Texas.
A "VOTE HERE" sign is posted at the entrance of the voting station at the Lyon Upper School in Boston's Allston neighborhood.
Robin Lubbock
/
WBUR
A "VOTE HERE" sign is posted at the entrance of the voting station at the Lyon Upper School in Boston's Allston neighborhood.

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Meredith Nierman
Meredith Nierman is the Senior Editor Network Visuals at NPR where she collaborates closely with NPR member stations nationwide to elevate photojournalism across the network. She brings over two decades of experience in visual media production and leadership for public media from her tenure at GBH (PBS and NPR Member organization) in Boston.
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California’s 2026 midterm elections will be held on Tuesday, Nov. 3, 2026. Get general information about the election, news coverage, an interactive ballot guide and results on election day.
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