General Hospital Wins Best Daytime Drama at the 2026 Daytime Emmy Awards

General Hospital claimed the top prize of best daytime drama at the 2026 Daytime Emmy Awards ceremony held on Friday night. The long-running ABC series went into the event leading with 13 nominations and ultimately secured four total trophies during the evening.

In addition to winning the primary category for daytime drama, General Hospital celebrated a major milestone when its star Genie Francis received the lifetime achievement award. The series was joined in the winner's circle by Beyond the Gates, which captured four awards overall. Among those wins was a victory for Tamara Tunie, who was named best actress in a daytime drama series for her role as Anita Williams Dupree.

Tunie delivered a memorable acceptance speech, paying tribute to the historical group of Black actresses who paved the way for her career, beginning with legendary performer Cicely Tyson. In the male acting categories, Scott Clifton of The Bold and the Beautiful was named best actor in a daytime drama series. Meanwhile, The Young and the Restless, which led the entire field with 18 nominations, secured three wins, including supporting performer honors for Roger Howarth as best supporting actor and Beth Maitland as best supporting actress.

The Kelly Clarkson Show dominated the talk categories by winning a leading five awards, including best daytime talk series. However, the program's singer-host did not appear to be in attendance at the ceremony. Clarkson did not win the individual award for best daytime talk series host, as that honor instead went to Sherri Shepherd for her eponymous talk show. Additional winners across various categories included Tracee Ellis Ross, who won for best travel and adventure program with Solo Traveling, Keke Palmer, who won for her executive producing work on Glam Through the Ages, and Ina Garten, who secured the trophy for best culinary host.

Midway through the event, NATAS chair Terry O'Reilly delivered a timely and political speech addressing the upcoming midterm elections and freedom of the press. Comparing modern conditions to historical attempts to control speech, O'Reilly urged attendees in Hollywood to resist efforts to suppress creative expression and media. The evening also featured traditional industry inductions, honoring new members into the Gold Circle, including Byron Allen, Patrika Darbo, Francesca James, and Meredith Vieira, alongside Silver Circle inductees Stephen Brown and Rubin Ervin.

The 53rd annual ceremony highlighted achievements across broadcast and streaming television, with various media outlets also sharing in the recognition. Publications including The Hollywood Reporter and IndieWire secured wins for their respective roundtable series and craft programming as the industry celebrated another year of daytime television.