While most of the national attention will be on Virginia's gubernatorial election next week, many other states will also be holding key elections on Nov. 2.
The tight race between Republican Glenn Youngkin and Democrat Terry McAuliffe, who is seeking a second, non-consecutive term in Virginia's Executive Mansion, is seen by many political prognosticators as a sign of what's to come in next year's midterm congressional elections. And the Democratic-led General Assembly could be up for grabs as well.
But there's also a governor's race in New Jersey. Democrat Phil Murphy is running for a second term against Republican Jack Ciattarelli, while down-ballot races will fill out the Legislature.
Here are other local and statewide elections taking place across the country next week:
- In Arizona, there will be votes on ballot initiatives in Chandler, Scottsdale and Gilbert, and a municipal election in Tucson.
- California has several localities with ballot measure elections, as well as candidate races in Los Angeles County and other jurisdictions.
- Colorado has elections for statewide ballot measures, as well as some local ballot initiatives.
- In Florida, there are municipal elections in Miami, St. Petersburg and Orlando, as well as a special primary for the state's 20th congressional district.
- Georgia's capital, Atlanta, has municipal elections and Fulton, the most populous county, has a ballot initiative election. There's also a special election for a state House seat.
- Iowa's capital, Des Moines, has municipal elections.
- Idaho has municipal elections in its capital, Boise, as well as local school board and ballot measure elections.
- In Kansas, Wichita and Topeka have municipal elections. Several other jurisdictions have school board elections.
- Kentucky has three special elections for seats in the General Assembly.
- Massachusetts' capital, Boston, has a municipal election and there's a special election for a state House seat.
- In Maryland, the cities of Annapolis and Greenbelt have municipal elections.
- In Maine, there are municipal elections in Portland and Bangor, as well as statewide initiatives on the ballot.
- In Michigan, Detroit and Lansing have municipal elections. There are also special elections for two state Senate seats.
- In Minnesota, there's a high-profile race for mayor of Minneapolis. Also, St. Paul has a municipal election and two other jurisdictions have school board contests.
- Mississippi has two special elections for state Senate seats.
- In Montana, there's a municipal election in Helena.
- Durham, N.C., has a municipal election.
- In New Hampshire, there's a municipal election in Concord and a school board election in Manchester.
- In New Mexico, there are municipal and school board elections in Albuquerque and municipal elections in Santa Fe.
- New York City has its general election for mayor and city council. Elsewhere in the state, there are local elections in Albany and Erie County.
- Ohio has a statewide ballot initiative election. The cities of Toledo, Cincinnati and Cleveland have municipal elections, and there are special elections to represent the 11th and 15th congressional districts. Several other jurisdictions have school board elections.
- Pennsylvania has statewide elections for district attorney, city controller and several judges, as well as ballot initiatives. There are also special elections in Philadelphia and for two state House seats.
- Rhode Island has a special election for a state Senate seat.
- Columbia, S.C., has municipal elections.
- Several jurisdictions in Texas have special elections for school districts and local measures on the ballot. There's also a runoff election for a state House seat.
- Salt Lake City, Utah, has municipal elections.
- Washington has municipal elections in Seattle and Tacoma, as well as a statewide ballot measure.
- Wyoming has local elections in Laramie County.
A golden tray sits on the Resolute Desk as President Donald Trump speaks during an announcement on American nuclear innovation in the Oval Office at the White House on July 24, 2026, in Washington, D.C. Trump is signing multiple executive orders targeting the nuclear energy sector and easing rules for new reactors and nuclear fuel supply chains.
Trump’s hubris rivals the fallen heroes of ancient Greek mythology
In January, the New York Times asked President Donald Trump if there were any limits on his global powers.
“Yeah,” the president responded, “there is one thing. My own morality. My own mind. It’s the only thing that can stop me.”
That was eight months ago, but fortunately Christopher Nolan’s blockbuster adaptation of “The Odyssey” has made ancient Greek literature newly relevant. Before that window closes, I’d like to talk about hubris.
Today, the term mostly means excessive pride or arrogance. That’s part of what the Greeks meant by it too, but the meaning was a bit richer and more specific. Hubris was an insolent or outrageous act that offended the gods, often because the transgressor was claiming abilities or authorities that solely belonged to supreme beings.
Nolan renamed and slightly modified the concept of xenia for the film, calling it “Zeus’ law.” In the director’s telling, mortals should follow the rules laid out by the gods, specifically the requirement to treat strangers with respect lest they be gods in disguise.
In a sense, hubris is the opposite, or at least the rejection, of xenia. The hubris of the suitors, and at times Odysseus himself, invites punishment by the gods and their mortal instruments.
Which brings me back to Donald Trump. His claim that there are no constraints on his personal power to dictate events on the global stage was one of the greatest expressions of hubris ever uttered by a political leader.
Trump’s claim was obviously false when he made it.
He vowed that he could end the Russia-Ukraine war in 24 hours. He’s proved powerless to make that happen. If he had divine powers to work his will, why would he have balked at implementing his tariffs so often that Wall Street adopted the “TACO trade” term for his deals? “TACO” stands for “Trump always chickens out.”
And why would Trump have made so many embarrassing concessions to China — from rescinding tariffs on Chinese goods to allowing them to buy crucial and incredibly valuable computer chips?
But Trump saw his success at capturing Venezuelan strongman Nicolas Maduro as proof of his ability to launch missiles to the same effect as Zeus’ lightning bolts. Trump believed he was the most powerful man who ever lived.
This is no exaggeration. In March, when the Iran invasion seemed successful, Trump gave a document penned by“Presidential Historian David King” to New York Times reporters Maggie Haberman and Jonathan Swan purporting to prove that Trump was “the most powerful person to have EVER walked this planet.” King was, in fact, a businessman and occasional caddy for legendary golfer Gary Player.
King compared Trump favorably to many of history’s most powerful, and often heinous, figures: Alexander the Great, Attila the Hun, William the Conqueror, Napoleon Bonaparte, Joseph Stalin, Genghis Khan, Mao Tse Tung, Adolf Hitler and Vladimir Lenin. Many of these men thought they were the most powerful person in the world, too. And many were defeated precisely because they believed it.
At least Napoleon and Hitler had a string of truly impressive victories before they learned the folly of hubris. The limits on Trump’s power have been exposed by far less august forces than the combined might of the allies in World War II or the fearsome Russian winter.
Iran is a comparatively middling power. But the regime’s ability to absorb punishment while imposing its will on the Strait of Hormuz has proved to be a greater constraint on Trump’s power than his morality or mind. We should note that, at least rhetorically, his morality has not proved much of a constraint. He has repeatedly promised to destroy Iranian “civilization” if the regime refuses to capitulate.
But they haven’t — and won’t anytime soon — because the regime’s tolerance for pain far outstrips Trump’s. The combined fear of skyrocketing oil prices, outrage of Gulf state potentates, diminishing weapon supplies and domestic unpopularity is doing the work that international law, congressional oversight and the collective opinion of foreign policy experts can’t or won’t do.
If I considered Trump more heroic than reason and facts could allow, I would say his Sisyphean predicament has the whiff of Greek tragedy to it. Trump is vexed by the fact that the Iranians won’t honor deals or ratify his countless premature claims of victory — giving new meaning to his vow that his presidency would make people tired of winning. It’s almost like they’re out-Trumping Trump.
Things might have gone better if he’d heeded that great Greek tragedian Sophocles: “For Zeus utterly abhors the boasts of a proud tongue.”
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Jonah Goldberg is editor-in-chief of The Dispatch and the host of The Remnant podcast. His Twitter handle is @JonahDispatch.