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Incumbents defeated in state legislative elections, 2017

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There were 220 state legislative seats up for election on November 7, 2017, in two states. This page analyzes incumbents defeated in those elections. An incumbent may be defeated at two points in an election cycle: during a primary and during a general election.[1]

In 2017, 14 incumbents lost their re-election bids, all of them in general elections and none in primaries. This was the first year where no incumbents were defeated in primaries since Ballotpedia began gathering data in 2011.

On this page, you will find:

Incumbents defeated in general elections

In state legislative general elections, 14 incumbents lost to challengers, 7.0% of incumbents running for re-election. This was the highest percentage in an odd election year since Ballotpedia began gathering data in 2011.

In 2017 general elections:

  • One Democratic incumbent lost, 1.0% of the 105 Democratic incumbents who ran and 1.3% of the 80 contested Democratic incumbents.
  • 13 Republican incumbents lost, 13.5% of the 96 Republican incumbents who ran and 15.1% of the 86 contested Republican incumbents.
  • The total number of incumbents defeated in general elections—14—was the highest in an odd election year since 2013 and represented a 180% increase from 2011, the last time New Jersey and Virginia held elections.

    • In 2017

    See also

    Footnotes

    1. ↑ Incumbents may also be defeated in other nominating contests such as conventions. Ballotpedia counts an incumbent defeat in a convention as a defeat in a primary.
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