NPR station photographers document Election Day across the country

Control of Congress is at stake as voters cast 2026 midterm ballots

Voters across the United States headed to polling stations on November 3, 2026, to cast ballots in the 2026 midterm elections. NPR reported that control of Congress was at stake as the election unfolded.

Deep political division was the backdrop NPR identified for the voting. The report paired that context with the practical act of voting as people across the country went to the polls.

NPR station photographers documented the election in their communities. Their coverage included both the lines at polling stations and the responses surrounding election results as those results came in.

The polling-station photographs focused on the act of voting. Voters headed to the polls to cast ballots in the 2026 midterms, and station photographers documented the lines and activity at those polling places.

As results came in, the photographers documented anticipation and reactions. That phase of the coverage extended beyond the voting itself to the response surrounding incoming election results.

Meredith Nierman wrote NPR’s report, Election Day 2026: Photos from around the country. NPR published the report on Election Day and said station photographers were documenting the election in their communities.

The scope of the project was national, but the photographers worked in individual communities. NPR’s description paired voters heading to polls across the country with station photographers documenting the election in their own communities.

Together, the photo report covers the progression NPR described: voters casting ballots in the 2026 midterms, followed by anticipation and reactions as results came in. The project placed that visual record against deep political division and an election with control of Congress at stake.