Natural disaster, mass protests, election administration, and the omnipresent coronavirus pandemic have cemented governors as an unmissable part of the American landscape. Last year, state chiefs stepped into the void left by the federal government. This year, the opportunity to exercise leadership and political power will likely come again.
With…
ALABAMA. Kay Ivey (R), assumed office 2017, elected 2018 (60%). Ivey, who took over for the scandal-plagued Robert Bentley in early 2017, will have served for nearly seven years by Election Day, but is eligible to seek a second consecutive full term under Alabama’s constitution. If she runs, her vulnerability…
IOWA. Kim Reynolds (R), assumed office 2017, elected 2018 (50.3%). Reynolds won a narrow victory in 2018 but is better situated this time around, despite Democrats’ displeasure with her hands-off attitude toward the coronavirus pandemic. Oft-cited as a potential Democratic candidate is state Auditor Rob Sand, who narrowly defeated the…
Last November, just 11 states elected a governor. And perhaps unsurprisingly given the slate of states, almost every race was uncompetitive, with all but one (North Carolina) decided by at least ten points. Despite such wide margins, though, it would be incorrect to say that 2020’s gubernatorial elections were boring.…
Not long ago, New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie was riding the wave of a re-election win into a top-tier presidential bid. A few years later, politics on the ground have shifted, and Garden State Republicans are grasping for power, just hoping to stay competitive in this year’s gubernatorial contest.
New…
It doesn’t have the same pomp and circumstance as the presidential inauguration, but the Virginia gubernatorial election is the next big political event on the docket. As one of only two states electing a governor in 2021 (New Jersey is the other), all eyes often turn to Virginia at the…
California Dreamin’
Senate. Soon to be vacant due to Kamala Harris’s election as vice president. Democratic Gov. Gavin Newsom will appoint a successor to Harris, and this seat was already scheduled for an election in 2022. Various constituencies are reportedly lobbying Newsom for their preferred candidates, in the hopes…
Missouri. Mike Parson (R) ascended to governorship June 2018. This race remains Democrats’ one legitimate pickup opportunity of the cycle. State Auditor Nicole Galloway has continued her streak of strong fundraising, matching or outraising Parson for the last several filing periods, though the outside PAC supporting Parson, backed by the…
By Nathan L. Gonzales & Jacob Rubashkin
While the race for the White House dominates the news, the fight for the Senate is closer.
The easiest thing to do after 2016 would be to declare every race with President Donald Trump on the ballot as a toss-up. But that would…
Delaware. John Carney (D), elected 2016 (58%). Georgetown, Del. attorney Julianne Murray won the GOP primary against 2016 nominee Colin Bonini and several other candidates, but she won’t win the general election against the incumbent. In 2016, Carney won by 19 points — between a better national environment and Delaware…
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