There are 35 U.S. Senate seats in 2026, with at least 4 battlefields states that can decide the balance of power – whether Republicans control all three government branches in the second half President Donald Trumpterm for .
In 2025, Republicans controlled the Senate 53-47, which included two independent senators on the caucus with the Democrats. Republicans Thom Tillis, Susan Collins, Jon Husted, John Cornyn and Bill Cassidy are all likely to face a fierce battle to maintain next year’s U.S. Senate seat.
The Democratic Senator Campaign Committee (DSCC) announced in January that Senator Kristen Gillibrand, DN.Y. Will chair the DSCC, with Mark Kelly, Adam Schiff and Lisa Blunt Rochester as VICE chairs during the 2026 election cycle. DSCC has not announced a target game for next year.
“The Senate map for Democrats is already mature, especially when buildings are strongly opposed to Republicans in the midterm. Republicans have more seats in a hostile political environment,” DSCC spokesman David Bergstein said in a statement to Fox News Digital.
Republicans win 2% for Georgia DEM senator challenging Georgia Trump
Republican Thom Tillis and Susan Collins may face tough challenges in 2026 to maintain their Senate seats. (Getty)
As those in power tend to struggle during the midterm elections, Democrats are already determining “offensive opportunities” to restore Republican Senate seats.
“I believe we will protect our Democratic seats, face strong challenges in battle games and hope to expand our efforts to some unexpected states. I have won the red and purple places in my career and I look forward to the next generation of Senate candidates doing the same,” Gillibrand named DSCC Cake.
“We’re optimistic”: Housing Republicans target 26 DEM seats in the mid-term
North Carolina
Senator Thom Tillis was condemned by Republicans in North Carolina in 2023 It is reportedly turned From the Republican ideology about gun control policy, LGBTQ+ and immigration rights.
Tillis’s promise is considered a moderate Republican Ukrainian fundssupports gun control legislation, expands background checks and implements red flag laws, votes to codify same-sex marriages, and supports legal avenues for delayed actions against recipients arriving in children.
Senators from both parties were first elected in 2014 and re-elected in 2020. Former President Joe BidenDefeat Trump in 2020.
Senator Tom Tillis (RN.C.) speaks at a press conference at the U.S. Capitol Supreme Court in Washington, DC on July 19, 2023 (Photo by Anna Moneymaker/Getty Images)
Tillis passes vote confirmation with Republicans in 2025 Trump’s Cabinet Nomineeeven if some expressed concerns about his more controversial choice. However, that doesn’t mean that Tillis has been able to get rid of the anger of Trump’s track.
“Thom Tillis is 20 points behind DJT in North Carolina. Unless we want to hand the gavel to Schumer, we will need a new Senate candidate.” Say on X Earlier this month.
Cook’s Political Reportthe most nonpartisan political obstacle, named Tillis’s 2026 reelection as a “Lean Republican”.
Maine
Maine has long been a political outlier, one of only two of the electoral elections in only two states. Former Vice President Kamala Harris Winning Maine in 2024, but Trump still won the election vote for Congressional District 2.
Republican Senator Susan Collins is considered another moderate Republican, which could serve her again politically.
Senator Susan Collins (R-ME) talks with media members at the U.S. Capitol in Washington, DC on June 9, 2022 (Alex Wong/Getty Images)
Collins voted on Senate nominee Pete Hegseth and FBI Director Kash Patel. She also did not shy away from criticizing Trump, blasting his January 6 pardon and proposed cuts to the NIH.
Collins has been a U.S. Senator since 1996, having lived through many major and election challenges from both sides of the political aisle. She became the first Republican woman in the Senate to win a fifth term in the Senate in 2020.
She has faced two 2026 challengers – Democrat Natasha Alcala and independent Phillip Rench. Maine Democratic Gov. Janet Mills quarreled with Trump’s trans athletes who competed in the women’s sports, but did not rule out the Collins Senate seat.
Cook’s Political Report It was also named Collins’ race “Lean Republican”.
Ohio
Republican Senator Jon Husted of Ohio finds himself in a unique position in mid-2026. He was appointed by Governor Mike Dewine on January 17, 2025 to fill the Vice President JD Vance.
Husted is the former deputy governor of Ohio. He also served as Ohio Secretary of State and State Representative.
Gov. Mike Dewine announced Jon Husted as the Senate choice. (Reuters)
Since Husted is not elected to the U.S. Senate, he needs to run for the special election in 2026. If he wins, Husted will retain his seat and complete the rest of Vance’s term-until 2029.
Rumor has it that Devin could choose to replace Vance with Trump’s Vivek Ramaswamy, but the moderate Republican governor ended up choosing his politically similar allies. Meanwhile, Ramaswamy made his own bid to the governor of Ohio.
The competition was named “Possible Republican” Cook’s political report.
Texas
Senator John Cornyn has been a Texas senator since 2002. Although Cornyn is firmly conservative and supportive of Trump, he has expressed his private differences on issues such as budget deficits and border security.
Senator John Cornyn was seen at the U.S. Capitol after the Senate voted against a moving forward border security agreement on Wednesday, February 7, 2024. (Tom Williams/CQ-Roll Call, Inc, via Getty Images)
Cornyn has prepared for the difficult potential major challenges facing Trump’s representatives. Wesley Hunter and conservative Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton.
Neither Hunt nor Paxton officially announced as the main campaign for long-time Texas Senator, but both candidates will set up a competitive game for Cornyn to maintain their seats.
The competition was named “Republican” Cook’s Political Report Infighting from the Republican Party is expected if Hunter or Paxton announces a Senate campaign.
Louisiana
Louisiana Senator Bill Cassidy is also expected to face tough major challenges in 2026. Louisiana Treasurer and former Representative John Fleming announced a Senate bid.
Rep. Clay Higgins is also expected to challenge Cassidy, who announced Thursday that he will not run a Senate campaign in 2026.
Cassidy voted against Trump’s conviction in the 2021 improper trial, alienating him from the party’s Trump loyalists.
Senator Bill Cassidy is a Louisiana Republican and a ranking member of the Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pension Committee addressed Thursday, September 12, 2024, at a hearing in Washington, D.C. (Ting Shen/Bloomberg via Getty Images)
The former doctor raised concerns about Trump’s Secretary of Health and Human Services Robert F. Kennedy Jr. during the confirmation hearing. When he finally voted to confirm Kennedy, Cassidy questioned Kennedy’s vaccine as it contradicted his own medical background.
Cassidy has served in the Senate since 2015, after his political career in the U.S. House and Louisiana Senate began.
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Despite Republicans’ efforts to maintain the incumbent Senate seat, the National Republican Senate Committee (NRSC) identified four battlefield states in 2026 as an opportunity to seize seats and expand its slim majority in the U.S. Senate.
“Every battlefield state – Georgia, Michigan, New Hampshire and Minnesota – is playing, and we will win,” NRSC Regional Press Secretary Nick Nick Puglia said in a statement to Fox News Digital last week.
