Abortion bans, right-to-work laws, voting restrictions — for years, a lot of the major legislation coming out of state capitols has been conservative. But after Democrats’ clear victory in state-level elections last week, landmark liberal policies could be coming to a state near you.
For the first time in years, more Americans will live in a state fully controlled by Democrats than in one fully controlled by Republicans.1
Using the population of the 50 states (according to the 2020 census) as the denominator, 42.3 percent of the population lives in the former and 41.5 percent lives in the latter. This assumes New Hampshire stays under GOP control and Alaska stays divided.
Thanks to their wins in gubernatorial or state-legislative elections, Democrats2
And, in Vermont, with help from their allies the Progressives.
took complete control of three new state governments in the 2022 elections: Michigan, Minnesota and Vermont. They broke the GOP monopoly on power in Arizona and, potentially, New Hampshire.3
As of Wednesday at 5:30 p.m. Eastern, we are still waiting for recounts in several New Hampshire state House districts, which could swing the balance of power in the chamber.
They also kept full control of state government in four of the five states where they were in danger of losing it. And they prevented Republicans from taking full control of North Carolina, Wisconsin and maybe even Alaska.
Republicans, on the other hand, didn’t flip a single legislative chamber from blue to red. This is the first midterm election since at least 1934 that the president’s party hasn’t lost a state-legislative chamber, according to Democratic Legislative Campaign Committee President Jessica Post. And though it didn’t affect who controlled state government, Democrats flipped the Maryland and Massachusetts governorships and maybe the Pennsylvania state House.4
As of Wednesday at 5:30 p.m. Eastern, the final two seats, which will determine which party controls the chamber, have not been projected.
Democrats’ most significant win was probably Michigan. Democratic Gov. Gretchen Whitmer was reelected, and Democrats took control of the state House for the first time since 2011 and the state Senate for the first time since 1984. Democrats won the popular vote for the Michigan state House in 2012, 2014, 2018 and 2020 but fell short of a majority each time because of state-legislative maps that favored Republicans.
This year, though, Michigan’s new independent redistricting commission drew legislative maps that were pretty fair. In the state Senate, Democrats won the popular vote 50 percent to 49 percent and a 20-18 majority; in the state House, they won the popular vote 51 percent to 49 percent and a 56-54 majority.
The new Democratic trifecta could lead to many new progressive policies in Michigan. Democrats say they want to repeal the state law banning union membership as a condition of employment, strengthen laws against LGBT discrimination and repeal the retirement tax.
In Minnesota, Democrats kept the governor’s office and state House and flipped the state Senate from red to blue, gaining complete control of state government for the first time since 2013. As a result, Democrats hope to codify abortion rights into state law and legalize marijuana. Minnesota currently has multiple small political parties whose raison d’être is marijuana legalization and often siphon votes away from Democrats. With the issue no longer on the table, the parties may fade from existence, giving Democrats a small boost in future elections.
And in Vermont, Democrats and Progressives, a liberal third party, now control a supermajority of votes in the state House. They already had a supermajority in the state Senate, so they can now override vetoes from Republican Gov. Phil Scott. Last term, legislation to reduce carbon emissions and ban evictions in Burlington without “just cause” failed to pass because they didn’t have the votes to override his veto.
Democrats didn’t take complete control of state government in Pennsylvania (as expected, they fell short in the state Senate). Still, they set themselves up to do so in 2024 by gaining at least 11 seats in the state House — which they are on the verge of flipping. As of Nov. 16 at 4 p.m. Eastern, Democrats had won 101 House seats, and Republicans had won 100. Control of the chamber will be determined by the outcomes of the two races that are still too close.
Democrats lost total control of just one state government this year. In Nevada, Republican Joe Lombardo defeated Democratic Gov. Steve Sisolak in the gubernatorial race. But, notably, Democrats kept their grip on Colorado, Maine, New Mexico and Oregon after winning the governorship and state legislature in each. Though these aren’t new trifectas, none was guaranteed to stay in Democratic hands.
Democrats also already enjoyed complete control of the Maryland and Massachusetts governments despite their Republican governors because Democrats had veto-proof majorities in the state legislature. But with the election of Maura Healey in Massachusetts and Wes Moore in Maryland, the executive branch in each state will also be Democratic-controlled. That is still important in terms of agenda-setting and implementing laws. For example, Moore has said he wants to prioritize raising the minimum wage and establishing an optional public-service year for high school graduates.
In Colorado and Oregon, too, Democrats will have an easier time governing than before. Colorado Democrats gained so many seats in the state Senate that, according to the Colorado Sun’s Jesse Aaron Paul, they struggled to find enough chairs for them in the committee room where they gathered to pick their caucus’ leaders. And in Oregon, though Republicans gained seats, voters in the state passed a ballot measure that would penalize legislators for walking out of the Legislature to stop legislative business — a tactic that Republicans have used to block the Democratic agenda.
For the first time in years, more Americans will live in a state fully controlled by Democrats than in one fully controlled by Republicans.1
Using the population of the 50 states (according to the 2020 census) as the denominator, 42.3 percent of the population lives in the former and 41.5 percent lives in the latter. This assumes New Hampshire stays under GOP control and Alaska stays divided.
Thanks to their wins in gubernatorial or state-legislative elections, Democrats2
And, in Vermont, with help from their allies the Progressives.
took complete control of three new state governments in the 2022 elections: Michigan, Minnesota and Vermont. They broke the GOP monopoly on power in Arizona and, potentially, New Hampshire.3
As of Wednesday at 5:30 p.m. Eastern, we are still waiting for recounts in several New Hampshire state House districts, which could swing the balance of power in the chamber.
They also kept full control of state government in four of the five states where they were in danger of losing it. And they prevented Republicans from taking full control of North Carolina, Wisconsin and maybe even Alaska.
Republicans, on the other hand, didn’t flip a single legislative chamber from blue to red. This is the first midterm election since at least 1934 that the president’s party hasn’t lost a state-legislative chamber, according to Democratic Legislative Campaign Committee President Jessica Post. And though it didn’t affect who controlled state government, Democrats flipped the Maryland and Massachusetts governorships and maybe the Pennsylvania state House.4
As of Wednesday at 5:30 p.m. Eastern, the final two seats, which will determine which party controls the chamber, have not been projected.
Democrats’ most significant win was probably Michigan. Democratic Gov. Gretchen Whitmer was reelected, and Democrats took control of the state House for the first time since 2011 and the state Senate for the first time since 1984. Democrats won the popular vote for the Michigan state House in 2012, 2014, 2018 and 2020 but fell short of a majority each time because of state-legislative maps that favored Republicans.
This year, though, Michigan’s new independent redistricting commission drew legislative maps that were pretty fair. In the state Senate, Democrats won the popular vote 50 percent to 49 percent and a 20-18 majority; in the state House, they won the popular vote 51 percent to 49 percent and a 56-54 majority.
The new Democratic trifecta could lead to many new progressive policies in Michigan. Democrats say they want to repeal the state law banning union membership as a condition of employment, strengthen laws against LGBT discrimination and repeal the retirement tax.
In Minnesota, Democrats kept the governor’s office and state House and flipped the state Senate from red to blue, gaining complete control of state government for the first time since 2013. As a result, Democrats hope to codify abortion rights into state law and legalize marijuana. Minnesota currently has multiple small political parties whose raison d’être is marijuana legalization and often siphon votes away from Democrats. With the issue no longer on the table, the parties may fade from existence, giving Democrats a small boost in future elections.
And in Vermont, Democrats and Progressives, a liberal third party, now control a supermajority of votes in the state House. They already had a supermajority in the state Senate, so they can now override vetoes from Republican Gov. Phil Scott. Last term, legislation to reduce carbon emissions and ban evictions in Burlington without “just cause” failed to pass because they didn’t have the votes to override his veto.
Democrats didn’t take complete control of state government in Pennsylvania (as expected, they fell short in the state Senate). Still, they set themselves up to do so in 2024 by gaining at least 11 seats in the state House — which they are on the verge of flipping. As of Nov. 16 at 4 p.m. Eastern, Democrats had won 101 House seats, and Republicans had won 100. Control of the chamber will be determined by the outcomes of the two races that are still too close.
Democrats lost total control of just one state government this year. In Nevada, Republican Joe Lombardo defeated Democratic Gov. Steve Sisolak in the gubernatorial race. But, notably, Democrats kept their grip on Colorado, Maine, New Mexico and Oregon after winning the governorship and state legislature in each. Though these aren’t new trifectas, none was guaranteed to stay in Democratic hands.
Democrats also already enjoyed complete control of the Maryland and Massachusetts governments despite their Republican governors because Democrats had veto-proof majorities in the state legislature. But with the election of Maura Healey in Massachusetts and Wes Moore in Maryland, the executive branch in each state will also be Democratic-controlled. That is still important in terms of agenda-setting and implementing laws. For example, Moore has said he wants to prioritize raising the minimum wage and establishing an optional public-service year for high school graduates.
In Colorado and Oregon, too, Democrats will have an easier time governing than before. Colorado Democrats gained so many seats in the state Senate that, according to the Colorado Sun’s Jesse Aaron Paul, they struggled to find enough chairs for them in the committee room where they gathered to pick their caucus’ leaders. And in Oregon, though Republicans gained seats, voters in the state passed a ballot measure that would penalize legislators for walking out of the Legislature to stop legislative business — a tactic that Republicans have used to block the Democratic agenda.