There will be 35 US Senate seats in 2026, with at least four battlefield states expected to determine the balance of power. And whether Republicans remain in control of all three branches of the government during the second half of President Donald Trump's term.
In 2025, Republicans control Senate 53-47, which includes two independent senators with Democrats and Caucus. Republicans Tom Tillis, Susan Collins, John Husted, John Cornyn and Bill Cassidy could face a fierce battle to maintain their US Senate seats next year.
The Democratic Senators Campaign Committee (DSCC) announced in January that DN.Y. Senator Kristen Gillibrand will chair the DSCC as a secondary chair with Mark Kelly, Adam Schiff and Lisa Blunt Rochester during the 2026 election cycle. DSCC has yet to announce next year's target race.
“The Democrats have a map of the Senate ripe for offensive opportunities, coupled with the building's middling backlash against Republicans, especially those who have more seats to protect.
GOP won 2% to challenge Sen. Dem of Georgia in Trump, state
Republicans Tom Tillis and Susan Collins could face tough challenges to maintain their US Senate seats in 2026. (Getty)
As administration parties tend to struggle more during midterm elections, Democrats have already identified “offensive opportunities” to regain Republican Senate seats.
“I am confident that we are aiming to protect Democrat seats, bring strong challenges in battlefield races, and expand our efforts to unexpected states. In my career, I have won the red and purple places.
“We're Bull”: House GOP is aiming for these 26 Dem seats in the mid-term
North Carolina
Sen. Tom Tillis was criticized in 2023 by North Carolina Republicans as reportedly changed from Republican ideologies on gun control policies, LGBTQ+ and immigration rights.
Tillis is considered a moderate Republican for his commitment to fundraising in Ukraine, expanding background checks, supporting gun control laws that implemented the Red Flag Act, voting to codify same-sex marriages, and legal pathways for postponed action for early childhood arrivals.
The bipartisan senator was first elected in 2014 and re-elected in 2020. He opposed his more conservative colleagues by voting to prove former President Joe Biden's victory over Trump in 2020.
Sen. Tom Tillis (RN.C.) will speak at a press conference on the U.S. Capitol Supreme Court in Washington, D.C. on July 19, 2023 (Photo: Anna Money Maker/Getty Images)
Tillis lined up with Republicans by voting to confirm Trump's cabinet candidate in 2025, even as he expressed concern over his more controversial pick. But that doesn't mean Tillis could escape the rage of Trump's orbit.
“Tom Tillis is 20 points behind the DJT in North Carolina, and North Carolina will need a new Senate candidate. I said in x Early this month.
Chef's political reporta nonpartisan, nonpartisan handicapper who rated Tillis' 2026 re-election bid as “Lean Republican.”
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Maine has long been a political outlier as one of two states that divide the votes in presidential elections. Former Vice President Kamala Harris won Maine in 2024, but Trump still won one election vote that won Congressional District 2.
Republican Sen. Susan Collins is considered another moderate Republican.
Sen. Susan Collins (R-ME) speaks to members of the US Capitol Press in Washington, DC on June 9, 2022 (Alex Wong/Getty Images)
Collins voted against the Senate confirmation of Trump's candidate against Secretary of Defense Pete Hegses and FBI Director Kash Patel. She didn't avoid criticizing Trump. He condemned his January 6 pardon and proposed a National Institutes of Health grant.
Collins has been a US Senator since 1996 and has overcome many major and general election challenges from both sides of the political aisle. She became the first Republican woman to win a fifth term in the Senate in 2020.
She is already facing two 2026 challengers, Democrat Natasha Alcala and independent Philip Wrench. Maine's Democratic government, Janet Mills, has been waiting for Trump to be a transgender athlete who plays in women's sports, but has not ruled out Collins' Senate seat run.
Chef's political report Collins' race “Lean Republicans” was also praised.
Ohio
Ohio Republican Sen. John Husted finds himself in a unique position heading into the mid-term 2026. He was appointed Governor Mike DeWine on January 17, 2025, filling the vacancy left by Vice President J.D. Vance.
Husted is the former lieutenant governor of Ohio. He also served as Ohio Secretary of State and as a state legislator.
Gov. Mike DeWine has announced John Husted's Center as Senate election. (Reuters)
Husted was not elected to the US Senate and will need to campaign for a special election in 2026. If he wins, Husted will hold his seat and complete the remaining term of Vance until 2029.
Rumors have swirled that Dewine could choose Trump-All Vivek Ramaswamy to replace Vance this year, but the moderate Republican governor ultimately chose his politically similar allies. Meanwhile, Ramaswamy has launched his own bid for the governor of Ohio.
The race is rated “probably a Republican.” Chef's political report.
Texas
Senator John Cornyn has been a Texas Senator since 2002. Cornyn is certainly conservative and supports Trump, but he has expressed private discrepancies with the president on issues such as fiscal deficits and border security.
It will be seen at the U.S. Capitol on Wednesday, February 7, 2024, after the Senate voted against the Senate's advance border security contract. (Tom Williams/CQ-Roll Call, Inc, Getty Images)
Cornyn is already preparing for tough potential major challenges from President Trump Rep. Wesley Hunt and conservative Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton.
Both Hunt and Paxton have not officially announced a campaign to primaryize longtime Texas Senators, but both candidates have set up a competitive race for Cornyn to keep his seat.
The race ranks as “Solid Republicans.” Chef's political report If Hunt or Paxton announces a Senate campaign, it is expected in and out of some GOPs.
Louisiana
Louisiana Senator Bill Cassidy is expected to face tough major challenges in 2026. Louisiana treasurer and former president John Fleming has declared his Senate bid.
Rep. Clay Higgins, who was also expected to challenge Cassidy, announced Thursday that he would not pursue a Senate campaign in 2026.
Cassidy voted to convict Trump at the 2021 Munition Each Trial, alienating him from the party's Trump Loyalists.
Sen. Bill Cassidy, a Louisiana Republican and ranking member of the Senate Health, Labor and Pensions Committee, will speak at a hearing in Washington, D.C. on Thursday, September 12, 2024. (Ting Shen/Bloomberg via Getty Images)
The former doctor raised concerns about Trump's candidate for Robert F. Kennedy Jr., the Department of Human Services Secretary of the Department of Health and Human Services during the confirmation hearing. He ultimately voted to confirm Kennedy, but Cassidy questioned Kennedy's vaccine skepticism as it contradicted his own medical background.
Cassidy has been in the Senate since 2015 after beginning his political career in the US House of Representatives and the Louisiana Senate.
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Republicans work to maintain their incumbent Senate seats, but the National Republican Senate Committee (NRSC) identified four battlefield states in 2026 as opportunities to pick up seats in the U.S. Senate and expand their slim majority.
“All battlefield states (Georgia, Michigan, New Hampshire and Minnesota) are playing, so we're playing to win,” NRSC Regional Press Secretary Nick Puglia said in a statement last week in FOX News Digital.
