| ←2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 → Off-year elections | |
| Election day | November 6 |
|---|---|
| Congressional special elections | |
| Seats contested | 5 |
| Net seat change | 0 |
| Gubernatorial elections | |
| Seats contested | 3 |
| Net seat change | 0 |
 | |
| 2007 gubernatorial election results map Republican hold Democratic gain Republican gain | |
Elections were held in the United States on November 6, 2007. During thisoff-year election, the only seats up for election in theUnited States Congress werespecial elections held throughout the year. None of these congressional seats changed party hands. There were also severalgubernatorial races andstate legislative elections, and numerouscitizen initiatives,mayoral races in several major cities, and several types of local offices on the ballot.
Despite a favorable environment for theDemocratic Party, especially after the2006 midterms which saw Democrats take control ofCongress andstate governments,Louisiana is a notable exception due to the deep unpopularity of the state's Democratic governorKathleen Blanco over her handling of the aftermath ofHurricane Katrina.
There were five special elections to the United States House of Representatives in 2007. Four of them were held after the death of the prior incumbent, while the seat inMassachusetts's 5th congressional district opened up afterMarty Meehan resigned to become the Chancellor of theUniversity of Massachusetts Lowell. In each of these special elections, the incumbent party won.[1][2][3][4][5]
Three states electedgovernors in 2007, although only two of them voted on November 6, namelyKentucky andMississippi. Louisiana's election date did not coincide with that of most states; itsopen primary was held on October 20.
The final results were a net change of zero between the political parties. TheDemocrats picked up the governorship in Kentucky, but theRepublicans picked up the one in Louisiana. The Republicans maintained control of the governorship in Mississippi.[6][7]
Elections tostate legislatures were held on November 6, 2007. Seven legislative chambers in four states held regularly scheduled elections. Theseoff-year elections coincided with other state and local elections, includinggubernatorial elections in three states.[8] Both chambers of theNorthern Mariana Islands were up as well.
Democrats held control of both chambers of the New Jersey and Louisiana legislatures, and held control of theMississippi House of Representatives. Meanwhile, Republicans held control of theVirginia House of Delegates. Meanwhile, Democrats gained control of the Virginia Senate and the Mississippi Senate, however, Democrats had only lost control of the latter chamber at the beginning of the year when Senators James Walley and Tommy Gollott switched parties from Democratic to Republican. Thus, Republicans briefly controlled the chamber for the first time since 1876.[9]
Additionally, Republicans lost control of the Tennessee Senate when Republican SenatorMichael R. Williams became an Independent and the chamber became evenly divided with no one party in control.[10]
Nationwide, there were cities, counties, school boards, special districts and others that elected members in 2007. Among the high-profile mayoral elections were the following:
