2024 State Races

In 2024, there are 10 contests for attorney general, 7 for secretary of state, and 5 for lieutenant governorships that are elected on their own rather than as part of a ticket with the gubernatorial nominee. Only two states have genuinely competitive races for any of these offices — North Carolina for all 3 offices, and Pennsylvania for attorney general.

In our second and most likely final pre-election handicapping of state legislature control of the 2024 cycle, we find 13 chambers that are competitive: either Leans Republican, Toss-up, or Leans Democratic.

States will ask voters to decide on many key ballot issues this year, dealing with high-profile issues such as reproductive rights, elections, criminal justice, and much more

Battleground states North Carolina and Pennsylvania stand out for hosting competitive statewide down-ballot races this year as we survey Attorney General, Secretary of State, and Lieutenant Governor races.

Since the Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade in June 2022, voters have faced a steady stream of state ballot measures on abortion. Several more are lined up for this November.

In our first handicapping of state legislature control of the 2024 cycle, we find 12 chambers that are competitive: either Leans Republican, Toss-up, or Leans Democratic. Compared to recent election cycles, that's a medium number of competitive chambers.

State supreme court elections are often ignored by the public and the media, but they can have a dramatic impact on public policy, especially in the post-Roe v. Wade era, when abortion policy is being sent back to the states. Numerically, 2024 is a very big year for such elections: They will be held in 33 states. And in several of those states, ideological control of the court could shift depending on the results.

The once low-profile contests for attorney general and secretary of state continue to be important for driving policy outcomes in the states, particularly in setting the rules for how elections are run. But for these races, the 2024 election cycle is looking to be relatively drama-free. In all, 13 out of the 17 races rate as either Safe Republican or Safe Democratic in our rankings, even though a whopping 9 of them involve open seats.

KEY POINTS FROM THIS ARTICLE — In six states this November, voters will be asked to weigh in on statewide ballot measures. — Four states contributed to our list of key measures this year: Colorado, Ohio, Maine, and Texas. More limited measures are on the ballot in Louisiana and New York. — The key issues on the ballot in these states include abortion, recreational marijuana, taxes, and energy. Key 2023 ballot issues Voters in a handful of states across the country will find a range of ballot measures to vote on in 2023. What follows is our rundown of the key measures on voters’ ballots this year based on tracking by Ballotpedia, our own research, and interviews with political experts in many of these states. This roundup does not address every single issue on state ballots this year, but it does cover many of them (and the ones we found to be the most interesting from a national perspective). We’ve grouped them by topic. The key issues on the ballot in these states include abortion, recreational marijuana, taxes, and energy. In Texas, voters will be asked to approve big, new investments in broadband, water infrastructure, and parkland. As an off-year

Dear Readers: This is Part Two of our series previewing the races for the Virginia state legislature. In Part One, we looked at the big-picture stakes and trends. Today, we go through the districts that we think will decide the chamber, including 10 in the House and 6 in the Senate. We would like to recognize the co-author of this piece, Jackson Hamilton, who interned with us over the summer and did important background research for this article. For more on the race for the Virginia legislature, check out our latest episode of the “Politics is Everything” podcast, which is now available wherever you get your podcasts. — The Editors KEY POINTS FROM THIS ARTICLE — Because of new, court-drawn maps, the 2023 Virginia election cycle has been defined by a high rate of attrition — and this is before the general election has even taken place. — Though he is not on the ballot himself, Gov. Glenn Youngkin (R-VA) has emerged as a visible player, using his platform to boost Republican nominees as he aims to win a GOP trifecta. — In the Democratic-held state Senate, Sens. Monty Mason (D) and Siobhan Dunnavant (R) are in competitive races, while the

Dear Readers: This is the first of a two-part Crystal Ball series on this November’s state legislative elections in Virginia. Today’s piece looks at the overall electoral picture, and Part Two will identify and analyze the key districts that will decide the majorities. — The Editors KEY POINTS FROM THIS ARTICLE — In this year’s state legislative races in Virginia, Republicans are trying to do something that has become rare: forge a state government trifecta in a state that voted for the other party for president. — At first blush, Democrats would appear to have a clear edge on the map, but in an off-year election, the key districts’ presidential voting patterns overstate how Democratic they are in these legislative races. — While President Biden’s approval rating is actually worse than it was in November 2021, when Republicans scored victories in that year’s Virginia races, the political environment is likely better for Democrats now than it was back then. Virginia 2023 The stakes for this November’s state legislative elections in Virginia are probably the highest of any state-level election being conducted this year, because the election has the potential to create something that is relatively unusual in today’s nationalized politics: