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Impact of term limits on state executive elections in 2020
Of the 171 state executive offices on the ballot in 2020, 47 of them were represented by incumbents who were subject to term limits. Eleven of those incumbents were ineligible to run for re-election in 2020 due to term limits. This represented 6.4 percent of the total seats up for election in 2020.
Term-limited state executives by state
The map below displays the 36 states that had laws limiting the number of terms state executive officials could serve as of 2020. Of those states, only 22 states held elections in 2020.
- Montana had the most state executive officials term-limited in the 2020 elections with four officials. Seven states—Arizona, Colorado, Nevada, New Mexico, North Carolina, Ohio, and Pennsylvania—had one term-limited official each.
- Fourteen states with state executive term limits had no officials term-limited in 2020. This included the following states: Alabama, Delaware, Georgia, Hawaii, Indiana, Kansas, Louisiana, Michigan, Missouri, Nebraska, Oklahoma, Oregon, South Dakota, and West Virginia.
Term-limited state executives by position
The 11 termed-out incumbents in 2020 held nine different offices: governor, lieutenant governor, attorney general, auditor, public service commissioner, corporation commissioner, board of education member, board of regents member, and public regulation commissioner.
The 11 termed-out incumbents were from eight states. Three states were controlled by a Democratic trifecta, two by a Republican trifecta, and three states were under a divided government. A state government trifecta exists when one political party holds the governor's office and majority control in both chambers of the state legislature. As of July 2020, there were 21 states with Republican trifectas, 15 states with Democratic trifectas, and 14 states under divided government.
| 2020 breakdown by position | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Position | Number of term-limited officeholders |  Democrats
|
 Republicans
|
 Other
|
| Agriculture Commissioner | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Attorney General | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 |
| Auditor | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| Board of Education | 2 | 1 | 0 | 1 |
| Board of Equalization | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Board of Regents | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
| Comptroller/Controller | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Corporation Commissioner | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 |
| Governor | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| Insurance Commissioner | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Labor Commissioner | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Land Commissioner | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Lieutenant Governor | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 |
| Public Service/Regulation Commissioner | 3 | 1 | 2 | 0 |
| Secretary of State | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Superintendent of Schools | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Transportation Commissioner | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Treasurer | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Total | 11 | 4 | 5 | 2 |
Differential impact on parties
Term limits create open seats, which can impact the competitiveness of state executive elections. A total of 171 state executive offices were on the ballot in 2020, and 47 of those offices were subject to term limits. Out of those 47 offices, 11 featured an open seat since the incumbent was term-limited.
| 2020 term-limited state executive elections | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| State | Trifecta status[1] | Democrats
|
Republicans
|
Other
|
# of seats with term limits | % of seats term-limited in 2020 |
| Alabama | Republican | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0% |
| Arizona | Republican | 0 | 1 | 0 | 3 | 33.3% |
| Colorado | Democratic | 1 | 0 | 0 | 6 | 16.6% |
| Delaware | Democratic | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0% |
| Georgia | Republican | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0% |
| Hawaii | Democratic | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0% |
| Indiana | Republican | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0% |
| Kansas | Divided government | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0% |
| Louisiana | Divided government | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0% |
| Michigan | Divided government | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0% |
| Missouri | Republican | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0% |
| Montana | Divided government | 1 | 3 | 0 | 9 | 44.4% |
| Nebraska | Republican | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0% |
| Nevada | Democratic | 0 | 0 | 1 | 4 | 25% |
| New Mexico | Democratic | 1 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 50% |
| North Carolina | Divided government | 0 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 50% |
| Ohio | Republican | 0 | 0 | 1 | 6 | 16.6% |
| Oklahoma | Republican | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0% |
| Oregon | Democratic | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0% |
| Pennsylvania | Divided government | 1 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 33.3% |
| South Dakota | Republican | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0% |
| West Virginia | Republican | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0% |
| Total | --- | 4 | 5 | 2 | 47 | 26% |
Term-limited elections by state
Alabama
Five state executive seats in Alabama were up for election in 2020. No officials were ineligible to run because of term limits.
Arizona
Three state executive seats in Arizona were up for election in 2020. One official was ineligible to run because of term limits.
- Corporation Commissioner Robert Burns (R)
Colorado
Six state executive seats in Colorado were up for election in 2020. One official was ineligible to run because of term limits.
- State Board of Education - District 7 - Jane Goff (D)
Delaware
Three state executive seats in Delaware were up for election in 2020. No officials were ineligible to run because of term limits.
Georgia
Two state executive seats in Georgia were up for election in 2020. No officials were ineligible to run because of term limits.
Hawaii
Four state executive seats in Hawaii were up for election in 2020. No officials were ineligible to run because of term limits.
Indiana
Three state executive seats in Indiana were up for election in 2020. No officials were ineligible to run because of term limits.
Kansas
Five state executive seats in Kansas were up for election in 2020. No officials were ineligible to run because of term limits.
Louisiana
Two state executive seats in Louisiana were up for election in 2020. No officials were ineligible to run because of term limits.
Michigan
Eight state executive seats in Michigan were up for election in 2020. No officials were ineligible to run because of term limits.
Missouri
Five state executive seats in Missouri were up for election in 2020. No officials were ineligible to run because of term limits.
Montana
Nine state executive seats in Montana were up for election in 2020. Four officials were ineligible to run because of term limits.
- Gov. Steve Bullock (D)
- Attorney Gen. Tim Fox (R)
- Public Service Commissioner Roger Koopman (R)
- Public Service Commissioner Bob Lake (R)
Nebraska
Seven state executive seats in Nebraska were up for election in 2020. No officials were ineligible to run because of term limits.
Nevada
Eight state executive seats in Nevada were up for election in 2020. One official was ineligible to run because of term limits.
- Board of Regents - District 3 - Kevin Page (nonpartisan)
New Mexico
Seven state executive seats in New Mexico were up for election in 2020. One official was ineligible to run because of term limits.
- Public Regulation Commission - District 3 - Valerie Espinoza (D)
North Carolina
Ten state executive seats in North Carolina were up for election in 2020. One official was ineligible to run because of term limits.
- Lt. Gov. Dan Forest (R)
Ohio
Six state executive seats in Ohio were up for election in 2020. One official was ineligible to run because of term limits.
- State Board of Education - District 9 - Stephanie Dodd (nonpartisan)
Oklahoma
One state executive seat in Oklahoma was up for election in 2020. No official was ineligible to run because of term limits.
Oregon
Three state executive seats in Oregon were up for election in 2020. No officials were ineligible to run because of term limits.
Pennsylvania
Three state executive seats in Pennsylvania were up for election in 2020. One official was ineligible to run because of term limits.
- Auditor Eugene DePasquale (D)
South Dakota
One state executive seat in South Dakota was up for election in 2020. No official was ineligible to run because of term limits.
West Virginia
Six state executive seats in West Virginia were up for election in 2020. No officials were ineligible to run because of term limits.
See also
- State executive official elections, 2020
- State executives with term limits
- Impact of term limits on state legislative elections in 2020
- Term limits on the ballot
- Term limits in the United States
- Impact of term limits on state executive elections in 2021
Footnotes
- ↑ A state's trifecta status was current as of the 2020 election.
