What's At Stake in the 2026 Midterms?

Summary

• São Tomé’s vanilla ambitions: The island nation is known for cocoa, but it hopes to build a small vanilla industry and sell its beans to upscale restaurants and spice shops in Europe. Vanilla can be highly valuable, but growing and processing it takes years and intensive work. Producers say São Tomé’s climate and the beans’ distinctive flavors may help them find a market.

• What’s at stake in the 2026 U.S. midterms: The president is not on the ballot, but voters will choose all 435 House members, 35 senators, 36 governors, and numerous state and local officials, as well as decide ballot measures. Republicans currently control both chambers of Congress. The program explains that congressional control affects spending, legislation, war authorizations, and confirmation of Cabinet and Supreme Court nominees. Midterms often benefit the party opposing the president. If Democrats win one or both chambers, negotiations with the Republican administration would be needed to avoid legislative gridlock.

• Amelia Earhart search: Researchers from Purdue University and other American archaeologists examined a suspicious shape on Nikumaroro Island that some had thought might be Earhart’s plane. The team concluded it was likely fallen trees, mostly washed away by the time they arrived. They recovered other artifacts for analysis, but the expedition did not solve the disappearance of Earhart and navigator Fred Noonan.

• Other reports and features: Helga Duck, aged 99, was recognized as the world’s oldest wingwalker after a flight arranged with help from Wiltshire and Bath Air Ambulance. In Iraq, homing pigeons compete in long-distance races; one event began with 830 birds on a course of nearly 450 kilometers. A Najaf center trains pigeons, gradually building their endurance, and uses electronic rings to track results. The segment also marked the October 20 anniversaries of the U.S. Senate’s approval of the Louisiana Purchase in 1803, the Sydney Opera House’s opening in 1973, and Muammar Gaddafi’s capture and death in 2011.

• Other segments: A civics and social-studies games resource, Mr. Harms’ website, was promoted. The program closed with a lighthearted report about a loose emu that Santa Cruz police corralled after it caused a stir in California traffic.

Presenters and Contributors

• Carl Azuz — presenter and narrator.
• Mr. Harms — contributor featured for his interactive civics and social-studies games.
• Helga Duck — featured wingwalker.
• Purdue University researchers and other expedition archaeologists — contributors to the Nikumaroro investigation; no individual names were given.
• Najaf International Racing Center staff and pigeon breeders — contributors to the pigeon-racing report; no individual names were given.