Election results, 2020: State trifectas and the 2020 presidential vote
Updated February 16, 2021.
After the 2020 elections, Republicans had 23 trifectas (a net gain of two), Democrats had 15 trifectas, and 12 states had divided governments (a net loss of two). A trifecta occurs when one political party holds the governorship and majorities in both chambers of the state legislature.
On this page, you will find:
- An overview of trifecta status changes and presidential election results
- A table showing trifecta status and presidential election results for each state
- Historical trifecta information for states with Democratic trifectas, Republican trifectas, and divided government
Overview
New trifectas after the 2020 elections
Republicans gained trifectas in Montana and New Hampshire, which both had divided government heading into the election. Biden won New Hampshire, which gained a Republican trifecta when Republicans won majorities in the state legislature. Trump won Montana, which gained a Republican trifecta when Greg Gianforte (R) won the governorship.
Besides New Hampshire, Biden also carried the Republican trifecta states of Arizona and Georgia. Republicans have had a trifecta in Arizona since 2009 and in Georgia since 2005. Both Maine and Nebraska also allocated some of their electoral votes to candidates not matching their trifecta's party. Trump won Maine's 2nd Congressional District and Biden won Nebraska's 2nd Congressional District.
Presidential state wins by trifecta type in 2020 and 2016
Biden won three states Donald Trump (R) won in 2016 that have divided governments. Wisconsin, Michigan, and Pennsylvania all went to Trump in 2016 and Biden in 2020. All three states have Democratic governors and Republican majorities in both chambers of the state legislature. All three states previously had Republican trifectas; Michigan's and Wisconsin's were broken in the 2018 elections, while Pennsylvania's was broken in the 2014 election.
Joe Biden won four states with divided government that Hillary Clinton (D) also won in 2016: Maryland, Massachusetts, Minnesota, and Vermont. In Minnesota, Democrats control the governorship and a majority in the state House while Republicans have a majority in the state Senate. The other three states have Republican governors and Democratic state legislatures.
Trump won five divided government states that he also won in 2016: Alaska, Kansas, Kentucky, Louisiana, and North Carolina. Except for Alaska, these states all gained divided trifecta status after electing Democratic governors. Louisiana elected a Democratic governor in 2015, followed by North Carolina in 2016, Kansas in 2018, and Kentucky in 2019.
Below are tables showing state trifecta information for Democratic trifecta, Republican trifecta, and divided government states organized by 2020 presidential result.
- For more information about historical and potential changes in trifectas, click here.
Trifecta status and presidential election results by state
The table below lists the trifecta status for each state, along with their 2020 presidential election results and most recent gubernatorial election results.
| State trifectas and the 2020 presidential vote | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| State | Trifecta status | Last trifecta status change | 2020 presidential vote margin | Most recent gubernatorial vote margin |
| Alabama | Republican trifecta | 2011 | R+10 | R+19.1 |
| Alaska | Divided government | 2015 | R+17.8 | R+7 |
| Arizona | Republican trifecta | 2009 | D+0.3 | R+14.2 |
| Arkansas | Republican trifecta | 2015 | R+27.6 | R+33.5 |
| California | Democratic trifecta | 2011 | D+29.2 | D+23.8 |
| Colorado | Democratic trifecta | 2019 | D+13.5 | D+10.6 |
| Connecticut | Democratic trifecta | 2011 | D+20 | D+3.2 |
| Delaware | Democratic trifecta | 2009 | D+18.9 | D+20.9 |
| Florida | Republican trifecta | 2011 | R+3.3 | R+0.4 |
| Georgia | Republican trifecta | 2005 | D+0.2 | R+1.4 |
| Hawaii | Democratic trifecta | 2011 | D+29.4 | D+29 |
| Idaho | Republican trifecta | 1995 | R+30.7 | R+21.6 |
| Illinois | Democratic trifecta | 2019 | D+17 | D+15.7 |
| Indiana | Republican trifecta | 2011 | R+16 | R+28.6 |
| Iowa | Republican trifecta | 2017 | R+8.2 | R+2.8 |
| Kansas | Divided government | 2019 | R+14.6 | D+5 |
| Kentucky | Divided government | 2019 | R+25.9 | D+0.4 |
| Louisiana | Divided government | 2016 | R+18.6 | D+2.6 |
| Maine | Democratic trifecta | 2019 | D+9.1 | D+7.7 |
| Maryland | Divided government | 2015 | D+33.2 | R+11.9 |
| Massachusetts | Divided government | 2015 | D+33.5 | R+32.5 |
| Michigan | Divided government | 2019 | D+2.8 | D+9.6 |
| Minnesota | Divided government | 2015 | D+7.1 | D+11.4 |
| Mississippi | Republican trifecta | 2012 | R+16.5 | R+5.1 |
| Missouri | Republican trifecta | 2017 | R+15.4 | R+24.9 |
| Montana | Republican trifecta | 2021 | R+16.4 | R+12.8 |
| Nebraska | Republican trifecta | 1999 | R+19.1 | R+18 |
| Nevada | Democratic trifecta | 2019 | D+2.4 | D+4.1 |
| New Hampshire | Republican trifecta | 2021 | D+7.3 | R+7 |
| New Jersey | Democratic trifecta | 2018 | D+15.9 | D+13.4 |
| New Mexico | Democratic trifecta | 2019 | D+10.8 | D+14.4 |
| New York | Democratic trifecta | 2019 | D+23.1 | D+23.3 |
| North Carolina | Divided government | 2017 | R+1.3 | D+4.5 |
| North Dakota | Republican trifecta | 1995 | R+33.3 | R+40.5 |
| Ohio | Republican trifecta | 2011 | R+8.1 | R+3.7 |
| Oklahoma | Republican trifecta | 2011 | R+33.1 | R+12.1 |
| Oregon | Democratic trifecta | 2013 | D+16.1 | D+6.4 |
| Pennsylvania | Divided government | 2015 | D+1.2 | D+17.1 |
| Rhode Island | Democratic trifecta | 2013 | D+20.8 | D+15.4 |
| South Carolina | Republican trifecta | 2003 | R+11.7 | R+8.1 |
| South Dakota | Republican trifecta | 2003 | R+26.2 | R+3.4 |
| Tennessee | Republican trifecta | 2011 | R+23.2 | R+21 |
| Texas | Republican trifecta | 2003 | R+5.6 | R+13.3 |
| Utah | Republican trifecta | 1985 | R+20.5 | R+33.3 |
| Vermont | Divided government | 2017 | D+35.1 | R+41.1 |
| Virginia | Democratic trifecta | 2020 | D+10.1 | D+8.9 |
| Washington | Democratic trifecta | 2017 | D+19.2 | D+18.9 |
| West Virginia | Republican trifecta | 2017 | R+38.9 | R+33.8 |
| Wisconsin | Divided government | 2019 | D+0.6 | D+1.1 |
| Wyoming | Republican trifecta | 2011 | R+43.1 | R+39.6 |
Democratic trifectas after 2020
Republican trifectas after 2020
Divided governments after 2020
See also
- Election results, 2020
- Presidential election, 2020
- Election results, 2020: Split-ticket states in the 2020 presidential and gubernatorial elections
- Historical and potential changes in trifectas
- State government trifectas
- Election results, 2020: State government trifectas
Footnotes
- ↑ Democrats gained full control of the state Senate after a special election on November 7, 2017.
- ↑ Gov. Jim Justice switched his registration to Republican on August 4, 2017.
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