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The November 2026 midterms could give Congress more power to scrutinize federal science agencies and shape their next budgets, but they cannot by themselves reverse agency actions or restore disrupted grants. As of October 7, the election result and its effect on science funding remain unknown.
What the elections can—and cannot—change
Congress can influence funding and oversight
The November 2026 vote is a midterm election: voters will choose members of Congress, not a president. The results could change which party controls the House or Senate, affecting congressional oversight and negotiations over future federal appropriations, including the next round of science funding.
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Congress’s ability to set funding levels is consequential, but appropriations are only one part of how researchers receive support. Agencies also decide how to implement programs, select awards and schedule payments. A larger budget does not automatically mean faster awards, the same number of projects or an end to restrictions.
An election is not an immediate reversal
Changing congressional control cannot, on its own, undo actions already being carried out by federal agencies. Nor does an election settle future budget negotiations: the outcome, subsequent oversight decisions and FY 2027 appropriations are not yet known. Any relief would depend on concrete decisions after the vote, as well as how agencies put those decisions into practice.
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What researchers have faced
Grant cancellations, freezes and delayed awards
Nature’s January 2026 analysis counted more than 7,800 research grants cancelled or frozen during 2025: 5,843 NIH grants and 1,996 NSF grants in its accounting. Court orders led to thousands being reinstated, and some universities reached settlements to unfreeze funding. Nature estimated that roughly 2,600 grants, representing $1.4 billion in unspent funding, remained unrestored or unfrozen in its analysis. These are figures from that January review, not a real-time count; the sources do not establish how many affected researchers ultimately received the funds or how much of the disruption can be reversed.
Fewer new awards than the agencies’ past averages
Nature also compared new awards in 2025 with each agency’s average over the preceding ten years. These are not year-over-year comparisons:
| Agency | 2025 new awards compared with prior ten-year average |
|---|---|
| NSF | 25% fewer, according to Nature’s 2026 analysis |
| NIH | 24% fewer, according to Nature’s 2026 analysis |
Nature reported that uncertainty and the use of multi-year funding helped explain the reductions. An award count does not by itself show how funding was distributed among fields or how many researchers were affected.
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Random freezes, missing sound and display glitches usually trace back to one bad driver. Find and replace yours safely.Free scan · under a minuteWhy a higher NIH budget did not settle the funding question
The administration proposed a 40% cut to NIH, but Congress rejected that proposal. Axios reported that Congress increased NIH’s FY 2026 budget by $415 million, to $48.7 billion. That enacted topline is different from the administration’s request—and from the timing and structure of actual awards.
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Axios also reported concern about slower awards and “forward funding,” in which more money is committed up front across multiple years. Committing funds this way can mean fewer projects receive support, even when the agency’s overall budget rises. The NIH appropriation therefore does not, on its own, establish how quickly grants will be made or how many researchers will receive them.
Other pressures shape the federal science landscape
Science advisory committees
In an April 2026 analysis, Nature reported that the administration terminated more than 100 advisory committees to science agencies and reduced the transparency and independence of committees that remained. The figure does not mean every science advisory committee was terminated, but it points to a separate issue from grant budgets: the capacity and independence of advice available to agencies.
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NSF’s stated priorities
NSF’s FY 2026–2030 plan emphasizes critical and emerging technologies, research infrastructure, STEM talent, research security, and economic and societal impact. The agency says the plan was coordinated with the administration, Congress and the science and technology community. It describes NSF’s stated direction, not a guarantee that Congress will appropriate the requested resources or that every field will receive support.
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Brian Stone, NSF Chief of Staff performing the duties of the director, wrote: “I look forward to working with the administration, Congress and the science and technology community to advance NSF’s mission — ‘to promote the progress of science; to advance the national health, prosperity, and welfare; and to secure the national defense’ — through the goals outlined in this plan.” This is an official statement of the agency’s approach, not a prediction of the next Congress’s actions or of how money will be distributed.
Independent reader supportYour contribution helps us test, update, and keep practical guides available for everyone.Federal grants are central, but they are not the whole research system
The National Center for Science and Engineering Statistics’ 2026 indicators report describes a long-term shift in who funds basic research. The business share rose from 19% in 2000 to 34% in 2024, while the federal share fell from 58% to 40%. The 2024 figures are estimates that may be revised. They describe changes across decades and should not be attributed to the 2026 election or solely to the current administration.
Federal support remains concentrated among a relatively small number of agencies: six—DOD, HHS, NSF, DOE, NASA and USDA—accounted for 95% of federal R&D obligations in 2024, according to the same NCSES report. These figures concern federal R&D obligations, not the full mix of research funding or the outlook for any one discipline. Agencies have different missions and award systems, so changes at NIH or NSF do not tell the whole story for every researcher.
What to watch after November
The election will matter most through the decisions that follow it, rather than as an instant remedy. For a clearer picture of whether conditions are changing, watch for:
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1Scan for outdated or missing drivers - takes under a minute2Repair Windows errors before they cause bigger problems3Fix the driver behind crashes, sound loss and screen glitches- Congressional oversight actions concerning agency implementation, grant delays and advisory committees.
- FY 2027 appropriations and whether enacted funding differs from administration proposals.
- Agency-level information about award schedules, selection practices and how available funds are committed across years.
- Evidence that reinstated or unfrozen grants have actually reached researchers.
Until those actions and outcomes are known, the most defensible answer is that the midterms could alter congressional oversight and future funding decisions, but they offer no assurance of immediate or comprehensive relief.
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