NBA Goes Dark on Election Day as League Clears Tuesday Schedule for the Midterm Vote

There was no NBA basketball on Tuesday night, and that was entirely by design. The league left November 3 clear of games for the 2026 midterm elections, the fourth time in five years it has gone dark on Election Day, in a deliberate push to encourage players, staff and fans to make a plan to vote and take part in the civic process. All 30 teams had played on Monday night instead, with players wearing "VOTE" warm-up shirts as part of the league's campaign, and the NBA published voting resources for fans checking polling places and registration. Election Day now joins Thanksgiving and Christmas Eve as one of the rare dates the league builds into its calendar with no games at all. The pause lasts only a day: the schedule resumes in full on Wednesday, November 4, with 14 games, including an ESPN doubleheader of Philadelphia at Detroit followed by Dallas at San Antonio. After a Monday slate that saw every team in action, Tuesday's empty scoreboard was a reminder that, for one night, the league wanted the ballot box to take priority over the box score.