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Election results, 2023: State financial officers
In November 2023, voters elected five of the 69 directly-elected state financial officers (SFOs) nationwide (7.2%). After the November elections, Republicans retained control of all five of these positions—three state treasurers and two state auditors. Before and after the November 2023 elections, Democrats held 25 directly-elected SFO offices and Republicans held 44.
Of the 106 SFOs throughout the country, 37 are appointed positions. The appointment authority for one of these 37 positions (2.7%) was on the ballot in 2023. Heading into the November elections, the Virginia State Auditor was appointed by a Democratic authority. Voters elected Democratic majorities to the Virginia General Assembly, which has the power to appoint the Virginia Auditor of Public Accounts, meaning Democrats retained the appointment authority for the Virginia Auditor. Before and after the November 2023 elections, Democrats held 14 appointed SFO positions, Republicans held 17, and 6 had indeterminate partisan control.
Overall, the 2023 elections determined partisan control of 6 of the 106 SFO positions throughout the country (5.7%). Following the November elections, 39 of these positions were held by Democrats, 61 by Republicans, and 6 had indeterminate partisan control. No SFO positions changed partisan control.
Different states have different names for state financial officers (SFOs), but they all fall into three groups: treasurers, auditors, and controllers. Broadly, these officials are responsible for things like auditing other government offices, managing payroll, and overseeing pensions. In some states, certain SFOs are also responsible for investing state retirement and trust funds, meaning they get to decide where that public money goes.
Offices on the ballot in 2023
In 2023, there were five state financial officers directly on the ballot and one state financial officer whose appointment was determined by other elections on the ballot. The table below highlights the partisan balance of those six positions before and after the election.
| State financial officer seats up in 2023 (direct elections and appointed positions) | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Party | As of the 2023 elections | After the 2023 elections | |
| Democratic Party | |||
| Republican Party | |||
| Indeterminate | |||
| Total | 6 | 6 | |
| State financial officer seats up in 2023 (direct elections) | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Party | As of the 2023 elections | After the 2023 elections | |
| Democratic Party | |||
| Republican Party | |||
| Indeterminate | |||
| Total | 5 | 5 | |
| State financial officer seats up in 2023 (appointed positions) | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Party | As of the 2023 elections | After the 2023 elections | |
| Democratic Party | |||
| Republican Party | |||
| Indeterminate | |||
| Total | 1 | 1 | |
The map below highlights states that held state financial officer elections in 2023 by the party of the winning candidate. Click the blue links above the color key to switch the view between treasurer and auditor election results.
Partisan balance of all state financial officers
Heading into the 2023 elections, there were 39 Democratic state financial officers, 61 Republican state financial officers, and 6 state financial officers with indeterminate partisan affiliation. The table below highlights the partisan balance of all 106 state financial officers before and after the 2023 elections.
| State financial officers partisan breakdown (direct elections and appointed positions) | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Party | As of the 2023 elections | After the 2023 elections | |
| Democratic Party | |||
| Republican Party | |||
| Indeterminate | |||
| Total | 106 | 106 | |
| State financial officers partisan breakdown (direct elections) | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Party | As of the 2023 elections | After the 2023 elections | |
| Democratic Party | |||
| Republican Party | |||
| Indeterminate | |||
| Total | 68 | 68 | |
| State financial officers partisan breakdown (appointed positions) | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Party | As of the 2023 elections | After the 2023 elections | |
| Democratic Party | |||
| Republican Party | |||
| Indeterminate | |||
| Total | 37 | 37 | |
The map below highlights each state by the party of its state financial officers once candidates elected in the 2023 elections are sworn in. Click the blue links above the map to switch the view between all state financial officers, treasurers, auditors, and comptrollers.
List of state financial officer elections
- See also: State executive official elections, 2023
Auditor
There were two state auditor positions up for election in 2023. Both were held by Republicans.
| Auditor elections, 2023 | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Office | Incumbent | Year assumed office | MOV in previous election |
| Kentucky Auditor of Public Accounts |  Mike Harmon |
2016 | R+14.7 |
| Mississippi State Auditor | Shad White |
2018 | R+100 |
Treasurer
There were three state treasurer positions up for election in 2023. All were held by Republicans.
| Treasurer elections, 2023 | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Office | Incumbent | Year assumed office | MOV in previous election |
| Kentucky State Treasurer | Allison Ball |
2016 | R+21.4 |
| Louisiana State Treasurer | John Schroder |
2017 | R+25.5 |
| Mississippi Treasurer | David McRae |
2020 | R+21.6 |
Log of state financial officer election results
November 18
- John Fleming (R) won the Louisiana Treasurer election.
November 7
- 11:02 p.m.: Democrats retained control of the Virginia State Senate and gained control of the Virginia House of Delegates, meaning Democrats would control the appointment authority for the Virginia Auditor of Public Accounts.
- 9:45 p.m.: Mississippi Treasurer David McRae (R) won re-election.
- 9:30 p.m.: Mississippi Auditor Shad White (R) won re-election.
- 9:15 p.m.: Mark Metcalf (R) won the Kentucky Treasurer election.
- 8:00 p.m.: Allison Ball (R) won the Kentucky Auditor election.
About the offices
- See also: State executive officials
Auditor
- See also: Auditor (state executive office)
The auditor is a state-level position in 48 states that supervises and has administrative rights over the accounting and financial functions of the state. Additionally, auditors act as watchdogs over other state agencies, performing internal government audits and investigating fraud allegations.
The state auditor belongs to either the executive or legislative branch, depending on state. While both offices are similar in function, a legislative auditor functions primarily under the state legislature and is not considered a state executive office.
The auditor may be elected or appointed, depending on the state. Terms of office range from four to 10 years and may be indefinite, served at the pleasure of the appointing body. In instances where the auditor is an appointee, appointment is usually done through some form of nomination in a subcommittee of the legislature and a confirmatory vote before the General Assembly.
Some states assign the same portfolio to another state level financial officer, such as the treasurer or the comptroller.
There are a total of 23 legislative auditor offices and 33 state executive auditor offices. A total of eight states have both auditor offices.
Comptroller
- See also: Controller (state executive office)
Controller, also known as comptroller, is a state-level position in 19 states. Most controllers and comptrollers share duties similar to state treasurers, exercising varying powers related to budgetary and management matters.
The controller is popularly elected in nine states, appointed by the governor in another nine, and appointed by the state legislature in Tennessee. In 2017, controller salaries ranged from $92,007 in South Carolina to $195,972 in Tennessee.
Treasurer
- See also: Treasurer (state executive office)
In the United States, the treasurer of a state is the official charged with overseeing revenue and finances and generally acting as the state's chief banker. Every state in the United States has a treasurer, though some have a different official title for the office. In New York and Texas there is no treasurer -- instead, those duties are performed by the controller.
Most states elect the treasurer; of those states, it is common for treasurer to be a constitutional executive office. Some states, however, treat the position as a member of the governor's cabinet, thus making the position a gubernatorial appointment.
The position of state treasurer exists in 48 states; it is elected in 36 and appointed in 12. Of the 12 states to appoint state treasurers, the governor is responsible for appointment in eight while the legislature is responsible in the other four. In 2017, state treasurer salaries ranged from $195,972 in Tennessee to $68,500 in Colorado.
As opposed to treasurers in the corporate world, state treasurers are often elected partisan offices who administer various programs and have control over financial decisions without being involved in the highly detailed day-to-day bookkeeping and accounting.
In some states, the treasurer may share financial duties with a comptroller, a chief financial officer or an auditor. Areas that often fall under a treasurer's job description include:
- Debt management and debt policy
- Disaster preparation
- Pension fund administration
- Oversight to prevent fraud with public money
- Payroll matters for public employees
- Investing public funds and managing portfolios
Analysis of state elections, 2023
State legislative elections
- See also: State legislative elections, 2023
Eight of the country's 99 state legislative chambers held regularly-scheduled elections in 2023. Elections in those eight chambers represented 578 of the country's 7,386 state legislative seats (7.8%). This was the most seats up for election in an odd-numbered year since 2011.
General elections in Mississippi, New Jersey, and Virginia took place on November 7, 2023. General elections in Louisiana took place on November 18, 2023.
- Democrats gained one state legislative chamber by winning partisan control of the Virginia House of Delegates. Democrats maintained control of the state Senate. Virginia's trifecta status remained divided.
- Republicans were guaranteed simple majorities in both Mississippi's House and Senate and Louisiana's House and Senate due to the number of districts where candidates from only one political party ran.
- Democrats maintained partisan control of both chambers of the New Jersey state legislature.
Analysis
- State legislative special elections
- Impact of term limits
- Primary competitiveness
- Incumbents defeated
- Contested primaries
- Open seats
- Incumbents in contested primaries
- Major party competition
- Annual report
- Veto-proof state legislatures and opposing party governors
- Rematches in 2023 general elections
- Ballotpedia's Top 15 Elections to Watch, 2023
- Election results, 2023: State legislative veto-proof majorities
- Uncontested races by state
- Incumbent win rates by state
- Results of elected officials seeking other offices
- Minor-party candidates who won more than the margin of victory
- State legislative seats that changed party control
- State legislative races decided by fewer than 100 votes
- State legislative elections without a Democratic or Republican candidate, 2023
- Margin of victory analysis
- Candidates with the same last names
- Trends in the margins of victory for incumbents of three or more terms, 2018-2024
State executive elections
- See also: State executive official elections, 2023
Analysis
- State executive official elections overview
- Gubernatorial elections
- Secretary of State elections
- Attorney General elections
- Historical and potential changes in trifectas
- Trifecta vulnerability
- State government trifectas
- States with multiple statewide offices up for election
- State executive official elections without a Democratic or Republican candidate, 2023
- Impact of term limits
- Annual State Executive Competitiveness Report, 2023
- Ballotpedia's Top 15 Elections to Watch, 2023
- Uncontested races by state
- Incumbent win rates by state
- Trends in the margins of victory for incumbents of three or more terms, 2018-2024
State judicial elections
- See also: State judicial elections, 2023
A total of 15 state appellate court seats were up for election in 2023. This includes:
- 2 supreme court seats
- 13 intermediate appellate court seats.
The number of state supreme court and intermediate court elections is subject to change if judges retire or are appointed.
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.
Analysis
- State supreme court elections, 2023
- State judicial elections, 2023
- Ballotpedia's Top 15 Elections to Watch, 2023
- Uncontested races by state
- Incumbent win rates by state
- Trends in the margins of victory for incumbents of three or more terms, 2018-2024
See also
- State executive official elections, 2023
- Auditor (state executive office)
- Controller (state executive office)
- Treasurer (state executive office)
Footnotes
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