With just a few days until Election Day on November 3, 2026, a new benchmark study conducted by Better Choices for Democracy finds that Virginians are confident in how elections are administered by local election officials, but there are broad concerns about how false information will impact people and about the potential for federal interference in elections.
Over the next week we will be rolling out in-depth insights from survey findings. This initial release focuses on where Virginians have concerns about elections and where they are confident as the final day of voting approaches. Better Choices intentionally focuses on going beyond the horserace to learn more about public perceptions of how politics and elections are working (or not).
The survey was fielded to 1,200 Virginia residents, including 1,050 registered voters, between October 15–24, 2026 using The Harris Poll’s online integrated panel.
Top-line Findings:
Virginians report strong intentions to participate in the midterm elections. Among registered voters, 91% say they have already voted (18%) or plan to vote (73%).
False information tops voters’ election concerns. Eight in ten registered voters (80%) are concerned that people will be misled by false information about candidates, and 78% express concern about AI-generated images, audio or videos. About two-thirds are concerned about election officials refusing to certify results (66%) and vote-counting machines being hacked (65%).
The majority of Virginians feel disconnected from the two major political parties. Only 32% believe the Republican Party cares a great deal or somewhat about people like them, while 44% say the same of the Democratic Party.
Confidence is high in voters’ own ballots and county election officials, but lower nationwide. 82% of registered Virginia voters are very or somewhat confident that their own vote will be counted as intended. 77% of voters are confident in their local election officials to carry out their responsibilities. Confidence is lower in election officials nationwide (63%).
Virginians give local elected officials higher ratings for caring about people like them. Among all adults, 53% say local elected officials care a great deal or somewhat, compared with 50% for state officials and 38% for their members of Congress.
Virginians’ political news and information sources differ sharply by age. Network broadcast news leads among all Virginia adults (36%). Younger adults ages 18–34 most frequently select YouTube (43%) and TikTok (41%), while adults 65 and older favor network broadcast news (49%) and local television (36%).
