State executive official elections, 2019
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State executive offices up for election in 2019 included threegubernatorial seats,lieutenant gubernatorial seats,attorney general seats, andsecretary of state seats.Kentucky andMississippi held elections on November 5, 2019.Louisiana held elections October 12, and general elections for some races took place November 16. Includingdown-ballot races, there were 36 state executive offices up for election across three states in 2019.
Republicans gained two attorney general offices and one secretary of state's office, while Democrats gained one governorship.
Highlights:
- Gubernatorial elections: Republicans heldMississippi's governorship, and Democrats held Louisiana's. Democrats picked upKentucky's governorship.
- Attorney general elections: Republicans won all three of 2019's attorney general races. The wins marked partisan changes inKentucky andMississippi, where the 2019 incumbents were Democrats. Both were open-seat races. InLouisiana, incumbentJeff Landry (R) won re-election. This means Republicans gained a net two attorney general offices, giving the party control of an overall majority of attorney general offices nationwide.
- Secretary of state elections: Republicans won the secretary of state elections inKentucky andMississippi. Kentucky's seat changed party hands as the secretary of state heading into the election was a Democrat. InLouisiana's election, Republicans retained the seat.
Astate government trifecta exists when one party controls the governorship and both state legislative chambers.Tate Reeves's (R) win in the Mississippi gubernatorial election maintained the state's Republican trifecta status. In Kentucky,Andy Beshear's (D) victory broke the state's Republican trifecta. Louisiana maintained a divided government with Gov.John Bel Edwards's (D) re-election.
A state governmenttriplex is defined as one political party holding the offices of governor, attorney general, and secretary of state. Mississippi became a Republican triplex as a result of 2019's elections; it had previously been under divided triplex control. Kentucky and Louisiana remained divided triplexes.
This page provides the following:
- 2019 election results: Highlights gubernatorial, lieutenant gubernatorial, attorney general, and secretary of state race results
- Battleground elections: Links to more information on key races
- 2019 state government trifecta results summary: Analysis of trifecta statuses
- 2019 state government triplex results summary: Analysis of triplex statuses
- Offices up for election: List of elections, including down-ballot state executive races
- Total executive officials by party: Partisan breakdown of the 36 offices that were on the ballot in 2019
- Competitiveness: Data such as the number of races with one major party candidate
- Outside race ratings: Ratings for gubernatorial elections
- Important dates and deadlines: Dates and deadlines for the 2019 elections
- Historical election data: Data on incumbency and partisanship in state executive elections from 2011 to 2018
- The offices: Describes state executive offices
- Analysis of state elections: Links to further state election coverage on Ballotpedia
2019 election results
- See also:Election results, 2019
| State | Before | After |
|---|---|---|
| Kentucky |  Matt Bevin |  Andy Beshear |
| Mississippi | Phil Bryant | Tate Reeves |
| Louisiana | John Bel Edwards | John Bel Edwards |
| State | Before | After |
|---|---|---|
| Kentucky | Jenean M. Hampton | Jacqueline Coleman |
| Mississippi | Tate Reeves | Delbert Hosemann |
| Louisiana | Billy Nungesser | Billy Nungesser |
| State | Before | After |
|---|---|---|
| Kentucky | Andy Beshear | Daniel Cameron |
| Mississippi | Jim Hood | Lynn Fitch |
| Louisiana | Jeff Landry | Jeff Landry |
| State | Before | After |
|---|---|---|
| Kentucky | Alison Lundergan Grimes | Michael Adams |
| Mississippi | Delbert Hosemann | Michael Watson |
| Louisiana | Kyle Ardoin | Kyle Ardoin |
Battleground elections
Ballotpedia designated certain 2019 elections asbattleground races, due to those races being either particularly competitive, interesting, or meaningful to the future balance of power in that jurisdiction.
Of the36 state executive official seats up for election in 2019, Ballotpedia identifiedfour races as battlegrounds, including all three gubernatorial elections and one of the three attorney general elections:
Attorney General of Kentucky
General election
General election for Attorney General of Kentucky
Daniel Cameron defeatedGregory Stumbo in the general election for Attorney General of Kentucky on November 5, 2019.
Candidate | % | Votes | ||
| ✔ |  | Daniel Cameron (R) | 57.8 | 823,346 |
 | Gregory Stumbo (D) | 42.2 | 602,272 | |
| There were noincumbents in this race. The results have been certified. Source | Total votes: 1,425,618 | ||
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Governor of Kentucky
General election
General election for Governor of Kentucky
Andy Beshear defeated incumbentMatt Bevin andJohn Hicks in the general election for Governor of Kentucky on November 5, 2019.
Candidate | % | Votes | ||
| ✔ |  | Andy Beshear (D) | 49.2 | 709,890 |
 | Matt Bevin (R) | 48.8 | 704,754 | |
 | John Hicks (L) | 2.0 | 28,433 | |
| Other/Write-in votes | 0.0 | 46 | ||
| Incumbents arebolded and underlined. The results have been certified. Source | Total votes: 1,443,123 (100.00% precincts reporting) | ||
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Governor of Louisiana
Louisiana elections use themajority-vote system. All candidates compete in the same primary, and a candidate can win the election outright by receiving more than 50 percent of the vote. If no candidate does, the top two vote recipients from the primary advance to the general election, regardless of their partisan affiliation.
General election
General election for Governor of Louisiana
IncumbentJohn Bel Edwards defeatedEddie Rispone in the general election for Governor of Louisiana on November 16, 2019.
Candidate | % | Votes | ||
| ✔ |  | John Bel Edwards (D) | 51.3 | 774,498 |
 | Eddie Rispone (R) | 48.7 | 734,286 | |
| Incumbents arebolded and underlined. The results have been certified. Source | Total votes: 1,508,784 (100.00% precincts reporting) | ||
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Governor of Mississippi
General election
General election for Governor of Mississippi
Tate Reeves defeatedJim Hood,David Singletary, andBob Hickingbottom in the general election for Governor of Mississippi on November 5, 2019.
Candidate | % | Votes | ||
| ✔ |  | Tate Reeves (R) | 51.9 | 459,396 |
 | Jim Hood (D) | 46.8 | 414,368 | |
 | David Singletary (Independent) | 1.0 | 8,522 | |
 | Bob Hickingbottom (Constitution Party) | 0.3 | 2,625 | |
| There were noincumbents in this race. The results have been certified. Source | Total votes: 884,911 (100.00% precincts reporting) | ||
| = candidate completed theBallotpedia Candidate Connection survey. | ||||
| If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you,complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey. | ||||
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Offices that changed party control
 | |
Seven state executive offices changed partisan control. Republicans gained four offices from Democrats and Democrats gained three from Republicans.
Incumbents defeated
One state executive lost re-election in 2019: Kentucky Gov.Matt Bevin (R)lost toAndy Beshear (D).
Offices up for election
Governor
There werethree gubernatorial seats on the ballot in 2019.
Out of all the state executive offices, only the governor is elected in all 50 states. As the chief executive officer, the governor is among the most powerful figures in state government. Other executive offices ordinarily report to him or her.
Lieutenant Governor
There werethree lieutenant gubernatorial seats on the ballot in 2019.
In 45 states, thelieutenant governor is the second-highest executive office, behind thegovernor. Although the powers and duties of the lieutenant governor vary from state to state, lieutenant governors are responsible for filling vacancies in the office of governor. In many states, lieutenant governors often sit on boards or commissions, and they are often involved in the proceedings of the state Senate.
- Kentucky (on the gubernatorial ballot)
- Louisiana
- Mississippi
Attorney General
There werethree attorney general seats on the ballot in 2019.
As the state's chief legal officer, the attorney general is responsible for enforcing state law and advising the state government on legal matters. In many states, attorneys general play a large role in the law enforcement process.
Secretary of State
There werethree secretary of state seats on the ballot in 2019.
Although the duties and powers of the secretary of state vary from state to state, a common responsibility is management and oversight of elections and voter rolls, which are assigned to the secretary of state in 41 states. Other common responsibilities include registration of businesses, maintenance of state records, and certification of official documents.
Down-ballot
There were 24 down-ballot state executive seats on the ballot in 2019.
Agriculture Commissioner
Auditor
Insurance Commissioner
Public Service Commissioner
State Board of Education
Transportation Commissioner
Treasurer
Total executive officials by party
Of the 36 state executive positions up in 2019, eight were held by Democrats and 28 were held by Republicans. The chart below shows how many officials of both parties were serving in each position.
Competitiveness
Races with one major party candidate
Ballotpedia tracked state executive races without a Democratic or Republican candidate in the2019 elections. Eight state executive races did not have a Democratic candidate, and three state executive races did not have a Republican candidate.
Races without Democratic candidates
- Louisiana Insurance Commissioner
- Louisiana Board of Elementary and Secondary Education District 1
- Louisiana Board of Elementary and Secondary Education District 3
- Louisiana Board of Elementary and Secondary Education District 4
- Louisiana Board of Elementary and Secondary Education District 5
- Louisiana Board of Elementary and Secondary Education District 7
- Mississippi State Auditor
- Mississippi Transportation Commissioner Southern District
Races without Republican candidates
- Louisiana Board of Elementary and Secondary Education District 2
- Louisiana Board of Elementary and Secondary Education District 8
- Mississippi Public Service Commission Northern District
Primary competitiveness
A contested primary is one in which voters have a choice on the ballot. Most commonly, this means that there is more than one candidate from the same political party in the race. Exceptions to this include states with multi-member state legislative districts and states featuring atop-two primary system, such asCalifornia andWashington.
The following chart compares the number of open seats, incumbents with primary competition, contested partisan primaries, total seats, and total candidates in 2019 versus 2015 and 2017:
2019 state government trifecta results summary
Updated November 18, 2019
This content is part of Ballotpedia's analysis of the 2019 elections. For comprehensive election results,click here.
As a result of the 2019 elections,Democrats gained onestate government trifecta in Virginia. A state government trifecta exists when one political party controls thegovernorship, a majority in thestate senate, and a majority in thestate house in a state's government.Republicans also lost a trifecta following incumbent Gov.Matt Bevin's (R) defeat in Kentucky. The new trifecta count stands at 15 Democratic trifectas, 21 Republican trifectas, and 14 divided governments.
Prior to the 2019 elections, Republicans had eight more state government trifectas than Democrats: of36 states with trifectas, 22 were Republican and 14 were Democratic. Democrats saw a net gain of one trifecta and Republicans lost one trifecta. The number of states with divided government (i.e. no trifecta for either major party) remained at 14.
For comparison, following the 2017 elections, Republicans controlled 26 trifectas to Democrats' eight, leaving 16 states without a trifecta. Following the 2014 midterm election, Republicans had 24 trifectas, Democrats had 13, and 13 states had no trifecta advantage for either major party. After the 2010 midterms, 25 states had no trifectas, Republicans had nine, and Democrats had 16.
The new Democratic trifecta inVirginia was formed after the party won majorities in thestate Senate andstate House. Heading into the election, Republicans held a 20-19 majority with one vacancy in the Senate and a 51-48 majority with one vacancy in the House. Democrats won a 21-19 majority in the state Senate and a 55-45 majority in the state House.
The total number of trifectas—36—is the highest number since 2014, when there were 37 trifectas.
| Change in state government trifectas, 2019 elections | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Trifecta status | Before | After | Net | |
| Democratic trifectas | 14 | 15 | +1 | |
| Republican trifectas | 22 | 21 | -1 | |
| Divided government | 14 | 14 | -- | |
The maps and charts below show the pre- and post-2019 election state government trifectas and the percentage of the population living under trifecta control.
| Percent of the U.S. population living under trifectas as of Election Day 2019 | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Total | Democratic trifectas | Republican trifectas | Divided governments | ||
| Population | 326,464,979[1] | 111,656,588 | 137,380,514 | 77,427,877 | |
| Proportion (%) | 100% | 34.2% | 42.1% | 23.7% | |
| Source:U.S. Census Bureau | |||||
| Percent of the U.S. population living under trifectas following the 2019 elections | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Total | Democratic trifectas | Republican trifectas | Divided governments | ||
| Population | 326,464,979[2] | 120,174,273 | 132,912,112 | 73,378,594 | |
| Proportion (%) | 100% | 36.8% | 40.7% | 22.5% | |
| Source:U.S. Census Bureau | |||||
2019 state government triplex results summary
Updated 1:00 p.m. EST, November 18, 2019
This content is part of Ballotpedia's analysis of the 2019 elections. For comprehensive election results,click here.
As a result of the 2019 elections,Republicans gained onestate government triplex in Mississippi while Kentucky and Louisiana remained divided triplexes. Heading into the election, the triplex count stood at 18 Republican, 17 Democratic, and 15 divided triplexes. The new triplex count will be 19 Republican, 17 Democratic, and 14 divided triplexes.
The states holding triplex office elections on November 5, 2019, were:
- Kentucky: Kentucky remained a divided triplex. Kentucky Attorney GeneralAndy Beshear (D) defeated Gov.Matt Bevin (R) in the gubernatorial election.Daniel Cameron (R) won the attorney general election for the position held byAndy Beshear (D), whileMichael Adams (R) won the secretary of state election for the position held byAlison Lundergan Grimes (D). Kentucky was most recently a triplex in 2015 when Democrats held all three positions.
- Mississippi: The state became a Republican triplex as a result of the election.Tate Reeves (R) won the race for term-limited Gov.Phil Bryant's (R) position.Lynn Fitch (R) won the attorney general position held byJim Hood (D), andMichael Watson (R) won the secretary of state position held byDelbert Hosemann (R). Mississippi was most recently a triplex in 2004 when Democrats held all three positions.
One other state held elections for triplex offices on November 16, 2019:
- Louisiana: Louisiana remained a divided triplex. In the gubernatorial election, Gov.John Bel Edwards (D) defeatedEddie Rispone (R). In the secretary of state election, incumbentKyle Ardoin (R) defeatedGwen Collins-Greenup (D). State Attorney GeneralJeff Landry (R) won re-election in the primary election. Louisiana was most recently a triplex in 2015 when Republicans held all three positions.
| Change in state government triplexes, 2019 elections | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Triplex status | Before | After | Net | |
| Democratic triplexes | 17 | 17 | -- | |
| Republican triplexes | 18 | 19 | +1 | |
| Divided triplexes | 15 | 14 | -1 | |
In2015, when all three states last held elections for triplex offices, two states lost triplexes while one remained under a divided triplex. Democrats lost their triplex in Kentucky when Bevin defeatedJack Conway (D) in the gubernatorial election. Republicans lost their triplex in Louisiana when Edwards picked up the seat held by term-limited Gov.Bobby Jindal (R). Mississippi remained a divided triplex because all three incumbents (Bryant, Hood, and Hosemann) each won re-election.
Outside ratings
The following table compared gubernatorial race ratings fromThe Cook Political Report,Sabato's Crystal Ball, andInside Elections prior to the November 2020 elections.
Important dates and deadlines
This section will provide important dates throughout the 2019 election cycle, including filing deadlines, primaries, and campaign finance reporting deadlines, when available. These dates are divided by state.
Kentucky
Primary election
- January 29, 2019: Filing deadline in Kentucky
- April 22, 2019: Voter registration deadline
- May 14, 2019: Absentee application deadline
- May 21, 2019: Primary election in Kentucky
General election
- October 7, 2019: Voter registration deadline
- October 29, 2019: Absentee application deadline
- November 5, 2019: General election in Kentucky
Louisiana
Primary election
- August 8, 2019: Filing deadline in Louisiana
- September 11, 2019: In-person voter registration deadline
- September 21, 2019: Online voter registration deadline
- September 28, 2019: Early voting begins
- October 5, 2019: Early voting ends
- October 8, 2019: Deadline to request a mail ballot
- October 12, 2019: Primary election in Louisiana
General election
- October 16, 2019: In-person voter registration deadline
- October 26, 2019: Online voter registration deadline
- November 2, 2019: Early voting begins
- November 9, 2019: Early voting ends
- November 12, 2019: Deadline to request a mail ballot
- November 16, 2019: General election in Louisiana
Mississippi
Primary election
- March 1, 2019: Filing deadline in Mississippi
- July 8, 2019: Voter registration deadline (primary)
- July 29, 2019: Voter registration deadline (primary runoff)
- August 5, 2019: Absentee ballot return deadline (primary)
- August 6, 2019: Primary election in Mississippi
- August 26, 2019: Absentee ballot return deadline (primary runoff)
- August 27, 2019: Primary runoff election in Mississippi
General election
- October 7, 2019: Voter registration deadline
- November 4, 2019: Absentee ballot return deadline
- November 5, 2019: General election in Mississippi
Historical election data
Ballotpedia coversAmerica's 748 state executive seats across all 50 states. The following sections look at incumbency and partisanship in state executive elections from 2011 to 2018.
Incumbency
From 2011 to 2018, 63.6% of incumbents sought re-election. Of the incumbents who sought re-election during that period, 85.9% were successful. The first chart below shows the number of incumbents who sought election each year compared to the number of seats up for election. The second chart shows the number of incumbents who were re-elected compared to the number of incumbents who ran for re-election.
The table below is organized by year and includes the total number of offices up for election, the number and percentage of incumbents who sought re-election, and the number and percentage of incumbents who won another term.
| State executive incumbents who sought re-election, 2011-2018 | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Year | Total seats | Incumbents who sought re-election | % incumbents who sought re-election | Incumbents who were re-elected | % incumbents who were re-elected |
Partisanship
The table below details how many state executive seats changed parties from 2011 to 2018. The largest single-year gain by a party was in 2018, when Democrats gained 41 net seats. That year also had the highest number of seats up for election, with 303. The lowest net change was in 2011, when no parties gained or lost any seats. Twenty-six seats were on the ballot that year. The table is organized by year and shows the number of seats held by each party before the election and after the election and the net change each party saw.
| State executive partisanship, 2011-2018 | ||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Year | Total seats | Before election | After election | Net change | ||||||
Democrats | Republicans |  Other | Democrats | Republicans | Other | Democrats | Republicans | Other | ||
Partisan control of governorships
The chart below looks at the number of governorships held by the Democratic and Republican parties between 1977 and 2018. The biggest difference between the number of seats held by Democrats compared to those held by Republicans was in 1977 and 1978, when Democrats held 37 seats and Republicans held 12. The lowest difference between the number of seats held by Democrats compared to those held by Republicans was in both 1987 and 2003. In 1987, Democrats held 26 governorships and Republicans held 24; in 2003, Democrats held 24 governorships and Republicans held 26.
The offices
State executives act in many capacities according to the powers granted to them by their state's constitution. They are also charged with implementing and enforcing laws made by state legislatures. There are 748executive seats spread across13 distinct types of offices in the United States.[3] Of the 13 executive offices, only seven exist in all 50 states:governor,attorney general,superintendent of schools,insurance commissioner,agriculture commissioner,labor commissioner, andpublic service commissioner.
Othercommon offices includelieutenant governor,secretary of state,treasurer,controller,auditor, andnatural resources commissioner.
Analysis of state elections
In 2019, eight states held elections for executive, legislative, or judicial seats, including elections for seven of the nation's 99 state legislative chambers and for three gubernatorial seats.
See also
2019 elections: | Previous elections: | Ballotpedia exclusives: |
Footnotes
- ↑Excludes the 702,455 inhabitants of Washington, D.C.
- ↑Excludes the 702,455 inhabitants of Washington, D.C.
- ↑There are 13 state executive offices as Ballotpediadefines the term; however, there are other executive offices in some states that are not covered by Ballotpedia.
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