| ←2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 → Off-year elections | |
| Election day | November 8 |
|---|---|
| Congressional special elections | |
| Seats contested | 4 |
| Net seat change | 0 |
 | |
| 2011 congressional special election results map Democratic hold Republican hold Democratic gain Republican gain | |
| Gubernatorial elections | |
| Seats contested | 4 |
| Net seat change | 0 |
 | |
| 2011 gubernatorial election results map Democratic hold Republican hold | |
Elections were held in the United States on (for the most part) November 8. This was anoff-year election, in which the only seats up for election in theUnited States Congress werespecial elections. There were also fourgubernatorial races, including a special election inWest Virginia. There were alsostate legislative elections in four states andjudicial elections in three states; as well as numerouscitizen initiatives,mayoral races, and a variety of other local offices on the ballot.
No regularly scheduled elections for theUnited States Congress occurred in 2011, and instead only four special elections were held. Eventually, there was no net seat changes by the political parties.
In addition, a primary election was held inOregon's 1st congressional district on November 8, for the seat left open after the resignation ofDavid Wu; thespecial election for this seat then occurred on January 31, 2012. DemocratSuzanne Bonamici was elected on that date to replace Wu.
There were three regularly scheduled elections and one special election forgovernorships in 2011. None of these four changed party hands.
In the first three of the aforementioned states, elections for state executive branch offices ofLieutenant Governor (in a separate election in Louisiana and Mississippi and on the same ticket as the gubernatorial nominee in Kentucky),Secretary of state,state Treasurer,state Auditor,state Attorney General, and Commissionersof Insurance and Agriculture were held. In addition, there were elections forKentucky andMississippi's state appellate courts, respectively.
Four states –Louisiana,Mississippi,New Jersey andVirginia – and oneU.S. territory, theNorthern Mariana Islands, elected their state or territorial legislators in 2011.
These were the first elections to be affected by redistricting after the 2010 census.[1] Additionally, the first wave ofrecall elections occurred in theWisconsin Senate; while Republicans lost seats, they maintained a narrow majority. A second wave would occur in2012.
Republicans flipped control of the Virginia Senate, thereby establishing a trifecta. In Mississippi, Republicans won the state House for the first time since 1876. After having gained control of the Mississippi Senate in February 2011 in the year due to party switching,[2] Republicans retained control of the chamber in the November election. Republicans thus obtained a trifecta in the state for the first time since 1876 as a result.
In Louisiana, Republicans gained control of the State House in December 2010 when a state representative switched parties,[3] and control of the State Senate by winning a February 2011 special election.[4] Republicans maintained control of both chambers in November, thereby giving Republicans control of Senate for the first time since 1877, and the state house and a trifecta for the first time since 1873.
Nine states,Arkansas,Colorado,Louisiana,Maine,Mississippi,New Jersey,Ohio,Texas, andWashington state, had measures certified for the 2011 ballot. Among those that attracted the most attention were an Ohioreferendum that repealed legislation that limits collective bargaining for public employees, and a failed constitutional amendment in Mississippi that would have defined "personhood" as beginning at the fertilization of an embryo.
Four states,Louisiana,New York,Pennsylvania andWisconsin, had judicial elections in 2011. Additional states such asArizona,Nevada andOhio had municipal judicial elections in 2011.
Nationwide, various cities, counties, school boards, special districts and others elected officers in 2011. Some were held on November 8 while others were held at other times throughout the year.
Some of the high-profile mayoral elections included the following:
These tables show the partisan results of the Congressional special elections and gubernatorial races in 2011.Bold indicates a change in control.
| Seat | Before 2011 elections | After 2011 elections |
|---|---|---|
| California 36th | Democratic | Democratic |
| Nevada 2nd | Republican | Republican |
| New York 9th | Democratic | Republican |
| New York 26th | Republican | Democratic |
| State | Before 2011 elections | After 2011 elections |
|---|---|---|
| Kentucky | Democratic | Democratic |
| Louisiana | Republican | Republican |
| Mississippi | Republican | Republican |
| West Virginia | Democratic | Democratic |
State legislation related to the administration of elections introduced in 2011 through this year