Dancing With the Stars Voting: How It Works After Taylor Hanson’s Week 3 Elimination
The latest Dancing With the Stars voting results are putting the spotlight back on how viewer votes are counted after Season 35’s “Yacht Rock Night” ended with another surprise elimination.
On Tuesday, September 29, Taylor Hanson and professional partner Britt Stewart were eliminated from Season 35 after performing a foxtrot to The Doobie Brothers’ “What a Fool Believes.” ABC News confirmed the elimination following the Week 3 episode.
The result means 12 couples remain in the competition as fans turn their attention to how voting can affect who stays in the ballroom.
Taylor Hanson and Britt Stewart Eliminated in Week 3
Hanson and Stewart received 18 out of 30 from judges Carrie Ann Inaba, Derek Hough and Bruno Tonioli for their foxtrot.
Their elimination came after 13 couples performed during “Yacht Rock Night,” which featured songs from artists including Toto, Fleetwood Mac, Hall & Oates and The Doobie Brothers.
Hanson and Stewart became the fourth couple eliminated from Season 35.
The season began with a two-night premiere on September 15 and 16. Conner Leavitt and Adele Zaikman were eliminated on the first night, followed by Sarah Jane Nader and Hailey Bills on the second. Giada De Laurentiis and Alan Bersten were then eliminated during “Viral Hits Night” on September 22.
How Does Dancing With the Stars Voting Work?
Viewer votes are combined with the judges’ scores to determine which couples are in danger of elimination.
ABC’s official voting rules say eligible viewers can vote online or by SMS during the live voting window. Voting opens at 8 p.m. ET/7 p.m. CT and closes shortly after the final competitive dance of the episode. Votes are not available later during on-demand viewing.
Online voting is available to eligible viewers who are at least 18 years old and physically located in the United States, its territories or Canada. SMS voting is limited to viewers in the U.S. and its territories with participating wireless carriers.
There is also a limit of 10 votes per couple through each voting method, meaning an eligible voter can cast up to 20 votes for one couple when using both online and SMS voting. Viewers can distribute their votes among multiple couples.
Do Judges’ Scores and Viewer Votes Count Equally?
The exact current calculation is not fully detailed in ABC’s public voting FAQ, which says that live viewer votes are combined with judges’ scores.
A September 2026 explanation from Cosmopolitan, citing previous comments from executive producer Conrad Green, describes the system as a 50/50 combination of judges’ rankings and public-vote rankings. Under that explanation, couples receive ranking points based on their position in the judges’ results and separately based on their public votes. Those points are then combined.
ABC does not publish the raw number of votes received by each couple, so viewers cannot see exactly how many votes separated one team from another.
That is important when looking back at an elimination such as Hanson’s. A lower judges’ score does not automatically tell viewers how much public support a couple received.
Why Dancing With the Stars Voting Is Trending
The search interest comes immediately after the September 29 elimination, when viewers who watched “Yacht Rock Night” are looking for both the result and an explanation of how their votes affected it.
The timing also matters because voting happens during the live episode, rather than after viewers watch the episode later on demand. ABC says voting is available during the initial simulcast in the Eastern and Central time zones and closes shortly after the final competitive dance.
That means viewers who want their votes considered have to participate during the designated live window.
With Hanson and Stewart now out, the remaining couples face another round of live voting when Dancing With the Stars returns next Tuesday.
Who Is Still Competing on DWTS Season 35?
Following the Week 3 elimination, ABC lists these 12 couples as still in the competition:
- Julia Stiles and Ezra Sosa
- Jenna Dewan and Val Chmerkovskiy
- Tatyana Ali and Jan Ravnik
- Ezra Frech and Daniella Karagach
- Amber Glenn and Pasha Pashkov
- Connor Wood and Rylee Arnold
- Tyler Cameron and Sharna Burgess
- Harry Shum Jr. and Jenna Johnson
- Guillermo Rodriguez and Witney Carson
- Maura Higgins and Mark Ballas
- Ciara Miller and Brandon Armstrong
- Jackson Olson and Emma Slater
The competition continues Tuesdays at 8 p.m. ET on ABC and Disney+, with episodes available on Hulu the following day.
FAQs
1. Who was eliminated from Dancing With the Stars in Week 3?
Taylor Hanson and Britt Stewart were eliminated on September 29 during “Yacht Rock Night.”
2. How does Dancing With the Stars voting work?
Eligible viewers can vote online or by SMS during the live voting window. Viewer votes are combined with judges’ scores to determine elimination results.
3. How many votes can I cast on DWTS?
ABC allows up to 10 votes per couple through each voting method, for a maximum of 20 votes per couple when both online and SMS voting are used.
4. Can I vote after the Dancing With the Stars episode ends?
No. ABC says voting closes shortly after the final competitive dance and is unavailable during later broadcasts or on-demand streaming.
5. Who is still on Dancing With the Stars Season 35?
Twelve couples remain after Taylor Hanson and Britt Stewart’s elimination, including Jenna Dewan and Val Chmerkovskiy, Amber Glenn and Pasha Pashkov, Harry Shum Jr. and Jenna Johnson, and Julia Stiles and Ezra Sosa.
