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Election results, 2024: State government trifectas
As a result of the 2024 elections, Democrats lost trifectas in two states. Republicans gained a majority in the Michigan House and at least a tie in the Minnesota House, breaking the Democratic trifectas in those states. Republicans neither gained nor lost trifectas. As a result, there were 23 Republican trifectas, 15 Democratic trifectas, and 12 divided governments after the 2024 elections.
The two total trifecta status changes in 2024 was lower than the six average trifecta status changes produced in even-year elections from 1992 to 2022. The net change of two was also lower than the three net changes produced in even-year elections from 1992 to 2022. Click here for more about historical trifecta status changes.
A state government trifecta describes when one political party holds the governorship and majorities in both chambers of the state legislature. There were 35 state government trifectas—15 Democratic and 20 Republican—with at least one of the three trifecta offices (governorship, state house, and state senate) on the ballot in 2024. There were nine divided governments, where neither party held trifecta control, with at least one trifecta office on the ballot.
Heading into the 2024 elections, there were 23 Republican trifectas and 17 Democratic trifectas in total, a historical high in the number of trifectas. There were 10 divided governments heading into the 2024 elections. The average number of divided governments each year from 1992 to 2023 was 23. The most trifectas for each party during that period was 18 for Democrats (1993) and 26 for Republicans (2018).
After the 2024 elections, three of the 12 divided governments had split legislatures where neither party had a majority in both chambers—Minnesota, Michigan, and Pennsylvania. Eight had legislatures of one party and a governor of the opposing party—Arizona, Kansas, Kentucky, Nevada, North Carolina, Vermont, Virginia, and Wisconsin. Alaska's legislative chambers were organized under a power-sharing agreement.
Results summary
In 2024, there were 35 trifectas—15 Democratic and 20 Republican—with at least one trifecta office on the Nov. 5 ballot. There were nine divided governments with at least one trifecta office on the ballot on Nov. 5. Democratic trifectas were lost in Michigan and Minnesota. Republicans won majority control in the Michigan House and at least a tie in the Minnesota House. The table below highlights the partisan balance of the trifectas on the ballot before and after the 2024 election.
| Trifectas partisan breakdown (trifectas on the ballot) | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Party | As of the 2024 elections | Net change | After the 2024 elections | |||
| 15 | -2 | 13 | ||||
| 20 | 0 | 20 | ||||
| 9 | +2 | 11 | ||||
Heading into the 2024 election, there were 23 Republican trifectas, 17 Democratic trifectas, and 10 divided governments where neither party held trifecta control. After the 2024 elections, there are 23 Republican trifectas, 15 Democratic trifectas, and 12 divided governments. The table below highlights the trifecta status of all 50 states before and after the 2024 elections.
| Trifectas partisan breakdown (all trifectas) | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Party | As of the 2024 elections | Net change | After the 2024 elections | |||
| 17 | -2 | 15 | ||||
| 23 | 0 | 23 | ||||
| 10 | +2 | 12 | ||||
Changes in partisan control
The map below highlights states that held gubernatorial and/or legislative elections in 2024 by trifecta status.
The table below shows the changes in trifectas each year since 1992.
| Changes in trifectas by year, 1992-2025 | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Year | Total trifectas | Democratic trifectas | Republican trifectas | Change |
| 2025 | 38 | 15 | 23 | -2 D |
| 2024 | 40 | 17 | 23 | +1 R |
| 2023 | 39 | 17 | 22 | +3 D, -1 R |
| 2022 | 37 | 14 | 23 | -1 D |
| 2021 | 38 | 15 | 23 | +2 R |
| 2020 | 36 | 15 | 21 | +1 D, -1 R |
| 2019 | 36 | 14 | 22 | +6 D, -4 R |
| 2018 | 34 | 8 | 26 | +2 D, +1 R |
| 2017 | 31 | 6 | 25 | -1 D, +2 R |
| 2016 | 30 | 7 | 23 | -1 R |
| 2015 | 31 | 7 | 24 | -6 D |
| 2014 | 37 | 13 | 24 | +1 D, -1 R |
| 2013 | 37 | 12 | 25 | +1 D, +2 R |
| 2012 | 34 | 11 | 23 | +1 R |
| 2011 | 33 | 11 | 22 | -5 D, +13 R |
| 2010 | 25 | 16 | 9 | -1 D, -1 R |
| 2009 | 27 | 17 | 10 | +3 D |
| 2008 | 24 | 14 | 10 | -1 D |
| 2007 | 25 | 15 | 10 | +7 D, -3 R |
| 2006 | 21 | 8 | 13 | No change |
| 2005 | 21 | 8 | 13 | -1 D |
| 2004 | 22 | 9 | 13 | +1 D |
| 2003 | 21 | 8 | 13 | +1 R |
| 2002 | 20 | 8 | 12 | -2 R |
| 2001 | 22 | 8 | 14 | -1 D, -2 R |
| 2000 | 25 | 9 | 16 | +1 R |
| 1999 | 24 | 9 | 15 | +2 D, +2 R |
| 1998 | 20 | 7 | 13 | +1 R |
| 1997 | 19 | 7 | 12 | -1 D, -2 R |
| 1996 | 22 | 8 | 14 | -1 D, -1 R |
| 1995 | 24 | 9 | 15 | -8 D, +11 R |
| 1994 | 21 | 17 | 4 | -1 D, +1 R |
| 1993 | 21 | 18 | 3 | +2 D |
| 1992 | 19 | 16 | 3 | N/A |
The chart below shows the change in number of trifectas of each party from the previous year.
In the U.S. Territories, seven legislative chambers held regularly scheduled elections for 169 seats in 2024. Elections were held for the American Samoa House of Representatives, the Guam Legislature, the Puerto Rico Senate and House of Representatives, the Northern Mariana Islands Senate and House of Representatives, and the U.S. Virgin Islands Legislature.
As of September 10th, 2025, Republicans controlled 55.5% of all state legislative seats nationally, while Democrats held 43.68%. Republicans held a majority in 57 chambers, and Democrats held the majority in 39 chambers. Two chambers (Alaska House and Alaska Senate) were organized under multipartisan, power-sharing coalitions. One chamber (Minnesota House of Representatives) was split evenly between both parties.
| Partisan balance of all 7,386 state legislative seats | ||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Legislative chamber | Vacant | |||||||
| State senates | 834 | 1,122 | 5 | 12 | ||||
| State houses | 2,392 | 2,977 | 20 | 24 | ||||
| Total: | 3,226
|
4,099
|
25
|
36 | ||||
Featured analysis
- State legislative seats that changed party control in 2024: As a result of the Nov. 5, 2024, elections, partisan composition of all 7,386 state legislative seats changed by 0.7 percentage points. Democrats had a net loss of 54 seats, representing 0.7% of all state legislative seats. Republicans had a net gain of 55 seats, representing 0.7% of all state legislative seats. Independents and minor party officeholders had a net loss of one seat, representing 0.01% of all state legislative seats.
- Annual State Legislative Competitiveness Report: Vol. 12, 2022: Competitiveness refers to the presence of choice throughout the election cycle. A greater level of competitiveness means voters have the ability to make more decisions. A lower level of competitiveness equals fewer choices. State legislative competitiveness in 2022 reached its highest level compared to all even-year election cycles since 2010. In 2022, the nationwide State Legislative Competitiveness Index is 36.2, beating out 2018 (36.1) and the 2012 post-redistricting cycle (35.2).
Tap the box below to show more analysis articles related to the 2024 state legislative elections.
- Annual Competitiveness Report
- State legislative special elections
- Primary election competitiveness in state and federal government, 2024
- Impact of term limits
- Open seats
- Contested primaries
- Incumbents in contested primaries
- Data on incumbents defeated in 2024
- Major party competition
- Unconstested incumbents
- Trifecta vulnerability in the 2024 elections
- Candidates with the same last names, 2024
- Rematches in 2024 general elections
- Ballotpedia's Top 15 Elections to Watch, 2024
- Trends in the margins of victory for incumbents of three or more terms, 2018-2024
- Election results, 2024: State legislative veto-proof majorities
- Wave election analysis
- Election results, 2024: Incumbent win rates by state
- Election results, 2024: Uncontested races by state
- Incumbents who won primaries by five percentage points or fewer or with a plurality, 2024
- Margin of victory analysis for the 2024 state legislative elections
- Election results, 2024: State legislative races decided by fewer than 100 votes
State executive elections
- See also: State executive official elections, 2024
State executive offices up for election in 2024 included 11 gubernatorial seats, nine lieutenant gubernatorial seats, 10 attorney general seats, and seven secretary of state seats. Including down-ballot races, there were 167 state executive seats up for election across 30 states in 2024.[13]
In 2022, 307 state executive offices were up for election across 44 states. Twenty offices changed party control, including two previously held Republican lieutenant governorships that changed parties because the governor and lieutenant governor ran on a joint ticket. Of the 18 offices which changed partisan control due to direct election, 10 switched from Democrat to Republican, seven switched from Republican to Democrat, and one nonpartisan official was succeeded by a Republican. A total of 26 incumbents seeking re-election to state executive offices were defeated, with 10 of those losing in the general election and 16 losing in their party's primary or nominating convention.
Featured analysis (from 2022)
- Trifecta vulnerability in the 2022 elections: Thirteen state government trifectas were vulnerable in the 2022 elections, according to Ballotpedia's annual trifecta vulnerability ratings. Democrats defended seven vulnerable trifectas and Republicans defended six. A state government trifecta occurs when one party holds the governorship and majorities in both chambers of the state legislature. At the time of the 2022 elections, there were 37 state government trifectas: 23 Republican trifectas and 14 Democratic trifectas. The remaining 13 states had a divided government where neither party had a trifecta.
- State government triplexes: Heading into the November 8 elections, there were 23 Republican triplexes, 18 Democratic triplexes, and 9 divided governments where neither party held triplex control. A state government triplex is a term to describe when one political party holds the following three positions in a state's government: governor, attorney general, and secretary of state.[14] In states where the attorney general or secretary of state are appointed by the governor, Ballotpedia considers the office to be held by the governor's party for the purposes of defining triplexes.[15]
- Annual State Executive Competitiveness Report: Ballotpedia's 2022 study of competitiveness in state executive official elections found that 37.1% of incumbents did not seek re-election, leaving those offices open. This was higher than in 2020 (35.6%) and 2014 (32.7%) but lower than in 2018 (38.6%) and 2016 (45.2%). The decade average for open offices was 37.8%.
Tap the box below to show more analysis articles related to the 2024 state executive elections.
- State executive official elections overview
- State executive officials election results
- Primary election competitiveness in state and federal government, 2024
- Gubernatorial elections
- Split-ticket states in the 2024 presidential and gubernatorial elections
- Secretary of State elections
- Attorney General elections
- Historical and potential changes in trifectas
- State government trifectas
- Endorsements of school board members by state executive officeholders and candidates, 2024
- Impact of term limits on state executive elections
- Rematches in 2024 general elections
- Veto-proof state legislatures and opposing party governors
- Trends in the margins of victory for incumbents of three or more terms, 2018-2024
- Ballotpedia's Top 15 Elections to Watch, 2024
- Wave election analysis
- Incumbents who won primaries by five percentage points or fewer or with a plurality, 2024
State judicial elections
- See also: State judicial elections, 2024
A total of 306 appellate court seats were up for election in 2024. The seats included:
- 83 supreme court seats.
- 223 intermediate appellate court seats.
Ballotpedia provided coverage of supreme court and intermediate appellate court elections, as well as local trial court elections for judges within the 100 largest cities in the United States as measured by population.
In addition, in the U.S. Territories, four judges were on the ballot in retention elections in 2024. One judge on the Guam Supreme Court, two on the Guam Superior Court, and one on the Northern Mariana Islands Superior Court stood for retention to remain on the bench.
Featured analysis
- Partisanship of state supreme court judges: In June 2020, Ballotpedia conducted a study into the partisanship of state supreme court justices. The study placed each justice into one of five categories indicating confidence in their affiliations with either the Democratic or Republican Parties. These categories were Strong Democratic, Mild Democratic, Indeterminate, Mild Republican, and Strong Republican.
Tap the box below to show more analysis articles related to the 2024 state judicial elections.
See also
- Election results, 2024
- Election results, 2024: Governors
- Election results, 2024: State executive officials
- State legislative elections, 2024
- State government triplexes
Footnotes
- ↑ Nebraska has a unicameral (one-chamber) legislature.
- ↑ New York Times, "Utah Election Results," accessed November 7, 2024
- ↑ New York Times, "Nebraska Election Results," accessed November 7, 2024
- ↑ New York Times, "Washington Election Results," accessed November 7, 2024
- ↑ New York Times, "Pennsylvania Election Results," accessed November 7, 2024
- ↑ New York Times, "Connecticut Election Results," accessed November 6, 2024
- ↑ New York Times, "Iowa Election Results," accessed November 6, 2024
- ↑ New York Times, "Maine Election Results," accessed November 6, 2024
- ↑ NHPR, "NH Republicans claim big State House wins and strengthen majorities in House and Senate," November 6, 2024
- ↑ New York Times, "Texas Election Results," accessed November 6, 2024
- ↑ New York Times, "Delaware Election Results," accessed November 5, 2024
- ↑ New York Times, "Georgia Election Results," accessed November 5, 2024
- ↑ Ballotpedia describes the offices of governor, lieutenant governor, attorney general, and secretary of state as top-ballot state executive offices. Down-ballot state executive offices that exist in all 50 states include superintendent of schools, insurance commissioner, agriculture commissioner, labor commissioner, and public service commissioner. Examples of other down-ballot state executive offices include treasurer, auditor, and comptroller.
- ↑ Ballotpedia chose to highlight these offices because they are typically the most visible positions in states and serve important administrative functions.
- ↑ This is because it is very uncommon for an attorney general or secretary of state appointed by a governor to often be in direct conflict with that governor.
