On November 3, when voters across the US go to the polls, almost 200 election deniers will be on the ballot. Many of them have repeatedly undermined the very process they are participating in, and they will be looking to win some of the most powerful elected positions in the country—positions that would help determine how voting goes in future elections.
Following the primaries, there will be 197 election deniers on the ballot for congressional and statewide races in the midterms across 43 states, according to new data shared exclusively with WIRED by States United Action, a nonpartisan nonprofit that supports state officials in protecting elections.
These numbers include a sitting US congressman who voted against certifying the 2020 election results; a former state representative who integrated QAnon conspiracy theories into election denialism; and local election officials who have actively sought to undermine election results by pushing baseless conspiracy theories about noncitizen voting.
But for election experts and officials, one of the biggest concerns ahead of the midterms is the possibility that these election deniers could obtain oversight of the 2028 presidential election process. The data shows there are already 27 election deniers in 20 states who hold a statewide office with election oversight, like secretary of state or attorney general—positions that allow the holder to set voting rules or prosecute those they believe are cheating at the ballots. In November, 33 election deniers will seek to secure similar positions in states across the country.
“All Americans should be concerned if people who are trying to undermine trust in elections and trying to interfere in the election process are taking positions of responsibility over elections,” Wendy Weiser, vice president for democracy at the nonprofit Brennan Center for Justice, tells WIRED. “We've seen in recent years an increasing number of election deniers taking some positions of public trust. As the numbers increase, it just increases the risk to our election system. This really is an attempt to corrode the system from within.”
The huge roster of election deniers on the ballot in November has also been emboldened by a groundswell of local groups and individuals who have been working for years to promote baseless claims about mail-in voting, noncitizen voter fraud, and rigged voting machines.
And from the top, President Donald Trump has increasingly pushed election-denial conspiracy theories, according to data gathered by States United Action. The group’s data shows that 60 percent of Trump’s statements referencing elections since the 2024 election include an explicit claim of fraud, rigging, or theft. That percentage has risen to 84 percent in the second quarter of 2026.
"The election-denial movement is more powerful than ever, and it's a direct threat to our freedom to vote,” Joanna Lydgate, CEO of States United Action, tells WIRED. “Election deniers are embedded at every level of government, pushing conspiracy theories from positions of real power.”
WIRED is keeping a close eye on many of these impactful races featuring election deniers. Here are five of the midterm races featuring election deniers that WIRED and States United Action are tracking:
In the wake of the 2020 election, former US representative Mike Rogers slammed Trump’s efforts to persuade Georgia’s secretary of state to change the election results as “more gangster than presidential.” He was also unequivocal in his assessment of Trump’s role in the attack on the Capitol on January 6, 2021: “You’re damn right you had responsibility for this,” Rogers said at the time.
But now, seeking a return to Congress as the Republican nominee for Senate in Michigan, Rogers appears to see election denialism as a winning campaign strategy. “I am thankful for President Trump’s commitment to transparency. The news coming out of the White House tonight is deeply troubling—especially that of a voter fraud scheme right here in Michigan,” Rogers wrote on X moments after Trump delivered a conspiracy-filled speech about election fraud, including a long-debunked claim about fraud in Michigan.
Polls show Rogers in a dead heat with Democratic nominee Abdul El-Sayed.
In December 2020, as a member of Congress, Tom Tiffany signed up for a Texas lawsuit seeking to invalidate President Joe Biden’s victory. Tiffany also voted against certifying the results in Pennsylvania and Arizona on January 6, 2021, after the attack on the Capitol and has suggested he would have overturned Wisconsin’s results too. This year, Tiffany has warmly welcomed the FBI’s baseless investigation into the state’s elections.
As governor, Tiffany would have the power to appoint some of the state’s top election officials on the Wisconsin Elections Commission, giving him the ability to install election deniers to oversee voting for the 2028 presidential election.
Initial polls show Tiffany slightly trailing his Democrat opponent, David Crowley.
Billionaire Vivek Ramaswamy has long questioned the 2020 electron results and has baselessly claimed that it was stolen by “big tech.” Ramaswamy has also called the January 6 attack on the Capitol an “inside job” and “entrapment.” He has provided no evidence to back up any of these claims.
As part of his campaign for governor, Ramaswamy has supported voter-suppression measures that enshrine restrictive voter ID law into the state’s constitution. If Ramaswamy becomes Ohio governor, he would be in a position to have much more power over forcing such measures through and could deeply impact the 2028 presidential election.
Polling suggests the race is extremely tight.
Former Nevada state representative Jim Marchant says being called an election denier is a “badge of honor.” Marchant was among the most ardent boosters of election denial in the wake of the 2020 election, going so far as to help arrange a QAnon coalition of candidates for the 2022 midterms.
November’s race will be a rerun of the 2022 race, when Marchant lost to current secretary of state Cisco Aguilar. While he won the GOP primary in June, Marchant lacks support from much of the Republican establishment and has struggled to raise money. (Filings from July show Marchant had just $13. 86 in his campaign war chest, compared to over $1 million for his opponent.)
Marchant has radical plans to overhaul Nevada’s voting system if he wins, including deregistering every single voter in the state, moving to paper ballots, and requiring all votes to be counted by hand. As secretary of state, Marchant would be able to change election procedures and advise county election officials, and he would help certify statewide results for the 2028 presidential election.
No public polling is available for the race.
In Colorado, the Republican candidate for secretary of state is avowed election denier James Wiley. Wiley says the 2020 election was stolen and that, if victorious, his first act would be to delete Colorado’s voter lists and force every citizen to reregister. (This is illegal on both a federal and state level.) He also wants to do away with all voting machines but at the same time place all public records on the blockchain, according to his campaign website.
Wiley, who calls himself “the red flame of liberty” due to his red hair, has admitted using the ELLY tool to back up his claims that up to 25 percent of registered voters in Colorado have issues with their voter registration. The ELLY tool was developed by the creators of EagleAI, a tool created by a former doctor which was used ahead of the 2024 election by conservative activists to challenge voter roll registrations, often based on inaccurate data.
His opponent, Amanda Gonzalez, is the current Jefferson County clerk and previously ran Common Cause Colorado, a nonpartisan, good-government advocacy group.
No public polling is available for the race.