The first election returns of the 2026 US midterms delivered a split verdict on Guam: Republicans gained the governor’s office, while Democrats led the contest for the island’s nonvoting delegate to the US House. The results arrived hours before the major congressional races on the mainland began reporting — and they offer a reminder of the distinction between a political headline and a change in control of Congress.
What the Guam results show
According to final unofficial figures from the Guam Election Commission, as reported by local and international outlets, Republican Tony Ada and running mate E.J. Calvo received 15,945 votes (51.45%) in the gubernatorial contest. Democratic opponents Therese Terlaje and Sabina Perez received 14,925 votes (48.15%) — a margin of 1,020 votes. The Democratic ticket conceded.
In the congressional delegate race, the picture was reversed. Democrat Alicia Garrido Limtiaco, a former Guam attorney general, led incumbent Republican James Moylan by 15,645 votes to 14,983, or approximately 51.0% to 48.84%. The difference was 662 votes. All 59 precincts were included in the unofficial tabulation, though the outcome remains subject to formal certification and any outstanding ballots.
Two different political stories on one ballot
Ada’s lead marks a Republican gain in the governor’s office after eight years under Democratic Governor Lou Leon Guerrero, who was term-limited. But the delegate race moved in the opposite direction: Moylan, the Republican incumbent, won reelection in 2024 with 52.7% of the vote and now trails his Democratic challenger in the preliminary 2026 tally.
The territory’s 15-member legislature also retained a narrow Republican majority, with eight Republican seats and seven Democratic seats reported by Public Radio Guam. That matters for the territory’s own governance, but it should not be confused with control of the US Senate. Guam has a unicameral territorial legislature, not a US state senate.
Why Guam does not change the House majority
Guam is a US territory, not a state. Its elected delegate can introduce legislation and participate in House committee work, but cannot vote on final passage of legislation on the House floor. That means a change in Guam’s delegate does not add or remove a voting seat from the 435-member House, where the fight for a majority will be decided.
The Democratic lead is therefore meaningful as a change in Guam’s representation and potentially as a point of comparison with the 2024 vote. It is not the first voting House seat gained by either party in the battle for congressional control.
Trump welcomed the governor result — but the picture is mixed
President Donald Trump congratulated Ada in a Truth Social post and expressed hope that the Republican performance would foreshadow results elsewhere in the country. The same Guam returns, however, showed a Democratic lead in the federal delegate race. Those contrasting outcomes offer no straightforward national partisan signal.
Guam’s electorate, local candidate dynamics, territorial status and unusually early reporting time also limit the value of treating its result as a forecast for competitive House districts and Senate races thousands of miles away. A split result is especially hard to reduce to a single narrative.
The national verdict is still ahead
Guam’s early count is a useful starting point for the election night, not an answer to the central question: which party will control the House and Senate for the final two years of Trump’s presidency? The meaningful congressional picture will emerge as mainland polling places close and individual voting-seat contests report.
Follow Votendi’s 2026 US midterm live results for the House, Senate and selected key races.
Data note: Guam figures are unofficial election returns available on November 3, 2026 (US Eastern time), and may change before certification.
Sources: Public Radio Guam; Guam Election Commission; US House of Representatives; Anadolu Agency; Wall Street Journal election live coverage.
