Americans vote in the midterm elections on Tuesday 3 November 2026. For people applying for US citizenship, the vote matters because several questions on the civics test ask who holds an office now, and USCIS says the answer must be the official serving at the time of your naturalization interview.
Key facts
- Election day Tuesday 3 November 2026
- Questions affected Senator, Representative, Speaker, Governor
- USCIS rule Name the official serving on your interview day
- New Congress Sworn in on 3 January 2027
The questions to watch
On the 2025 civics test, for applications filed on or after 20 October 2025, four questions depend on election results:
- Question 23: Who is one of your state’s U.S. Senators now?
- Question 29: Name your U.S. Representative.
- Question 30: What is the name of the Speaker of the House of Representatives now?
- Question 61: Who is the Governor of your state now?
The same questions appear on the 2008 test (numbers 20, 23, 47 and 43) for people who filed earlier. The answers about the President, the Vice President and the Chief Justice do not change with this election.
When the answers change
Election day itself changes nothing. Winners take office later: the new Congress is sworn in on 3 January 2027, when the House also chooses its Speaker, and new governors take office on dates set by each state. Until then, the people in office now remain the correct answers. USCIS lists the current answers on its test updates page, which currently gives Mike Johnson as Speaker.
What this means
If your interview is before January 2027, learn the names of the officials serving now. If it is in January or later, check your own Senators, Representative and Governor again after the new terms begin, using senate.gov, house.gov and usa.gov, and look at the USCIS test updates page shortly before your interview. Your Representative depends on your home address, so make sure you know your own district.