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Secretary of State elections, 2018

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State executive elections by position and year:

In 2018, 27 states held elections for secretary of state out of the 35 states in which the office is elected. Among other duties, secretaries of state serve as the chief election official in their state, administering state elections and maintaining official election results. They often oversee areas of election law such as voter identification requirements. The office of secretary of state is officially nonpartisan in Pennsylvania and does not exist in Alaska, Hawaii, or Utah.

Heading into the 2018 elections, the majority of elected secretary of state offices were held by Republicans, with 28 secretary of state offices to Democrats' 17. Three Republican-held seats (Arizona, Colorado, and Michigan) flipped to Democratic control. No Democratic-held seats flipped or advanced to runoffs.

2018 election analysis and context

In total, 36 out of 47 secretary of state seats were contested in the 2018 election cycle. On top of the 27 states where elections were held, six states where the secretary of state is appointed by the governor held elections for governor in 2018, and all three of the states where the secretary of state is chosen by the state legislature held legislative elections.

Seventeen Republican-held seats were up for election, of which eight were open seats. One incumbent lost. Nine of 17 Democratic-held seats were up for election. Democratic incumbents ran and won re-election in each race. Independent North Dakota Secretary of State Al Jaeger won his 2018 re-election bid.

Ballotpedia identified seven secretary of state elections, all in Republican-held seats, as battleground races. Of those, Republicans successfully defended four seats while Democrats gained control in three.

  • In Iowa, Democrat Deidre DeJear challenged incumbent Paul Pate (R), who began phasing in a new voter ID law in 2018. Pate won re-election.

Ballotpedia provided in-depth coverage of secretary of state primary elections. Click the links below for more information:

Secretary of state offices that changed party control

This table lists secretary of state offices where party control changed as a result of the November 6, 2018 elections.

Secretary of State offices that changed party control, 2018 elections
State Pre-election control Post-election control
Arizona Michele Reagan Republican Party Katie Hobbs Democratic Party
Colorado Wayne Williams Republican Party Jena Griswold Democratic Party
Michigan Ruth Johnson Republican Party Jocelyn Benson Democratic Party

List of Secretary of State elections

In 47 states the secretary of state is among the top executive offices. Although the duties and powers of the secretary of state vary from state to state, a common responsibility is management and oversight of elections and voter rolls, which are assigned to the secretary of state in 41 states. Other common responsibilities include registration of businesses, maintenance of state records, and certification of official documents.

A state government triplex describes when one political party holds the following three positions in a state's government: governor, attorney general, and secretary of state.

Six states impose some form of term limits on the office of secretary of state.


Updated November 9, 2018

State Triplex status (before) Triplex status (after) Incumbent Democratic candidate Republican candidate
Alabama Republican triplex Republican triplex John Merrill.jpg
Republican Party John Merrill		 Democratic Party Heather Milam Republican Party John Merrill
{{{1}}}
Arizona Republican triplex Divided triplex control Michele Reagan.gif
Republican PartyMichele Reagan[1]		 Democratic Party Katie Hobbs
{{{1}}}
 Republican Party Steve Gaynor
Arkansas Republican triplex Republican triplex Mark Martin.png
Republican Party Mark Martin		 Democratic Party Susan Inman Republican Party John Thurston
{{{1}}}
California Democratic triplex Democratic triplex Alex Padilla.JPG
Democratic Party Alex Padilla		 Democratic Party Alex Padilla
{{{1}}}
 Republican Party Mark P. Meuser
Colorado Divided triplex control Democratic triplex Wayne Williams.jpg
Republican Party Wayne W. Williams		 Democratic Party Jena Griswold
{{{1}}}
 Republican Party Wayne W. Williams
Connecticut Democratic triplex Democratic triplex Denise Merrill 2013.jpg
Democratic Party Denise Merrill		 Democratic Party Denise Merrill
{{{1}}}
 Republican Party Susan Chapman
Georgia Republican triplex Republican triplex Brian Kemp.png
Republican Party Brian Kemp		 Democratic Party John Barrow Republican Party Brad Raffensperger
{{{1}}}
Idaho Republican triplex Republican triplex Denney22.jpg
Republican Party Lawerence Denney		 Democratic Party Jill Humble Republican Party Lawerence Denney
{{{1}}}
Illinois Divided triplex control Democratic triplex Jesse White.jpg
Democratic Party Jesse White		 Democratic Party Jesse White
{{{1}}}
 Republican Party Jason Helland
Indiana Republican triplex Republican triplex Connie Lawson.jpg
Republican Party Connie Lawson		 Democratic Party Jim Harper Republican Party Connie Lawson
{{{1}}}
Iowa Divided triplex control Divided triplex control Paul Pate.png
Republican Party Paul Pate		 Democratic Party Deidre DeJear Republican Party Paul Pate
{{{1}}}
Kansas Republican triplex Divided triplex control Kris Kobach.jpg
Republican Party Kris Kobach		 Democratic Party Brian "BAM" McClendon Republican Party Scott Schwab
{{{1}}}
Louisiana Divided triplex control Divided triplex control Kyle Ardoin.jpg
Republican Party Kyle Ardoin		 Democratic Party Gwen Collins-Greenup
Democratic Party Renee Fontenot Free		 Republican Party Kyle Ardoin
{{{1}}}

Republican Party Heather Cloud
Republican Party A.G. Crowe
Republican Party Rick Edmonds
Republican Party Thomas Kennedy III
Republican Party Julie Stokes
Massachusetts Divided triplex control Divided triplex control William f galvin.jpg
Democratic Party William Galvin		 Democratic Party William Galvin
{{{1}}}
 Republican Party Anthony Amore
Michigan Republican triplex Democratic triplex Ruth Johnson.png
Republican Party Ruth Johnson		 Democratic Party Jocelyn Benson
{{{1}}}
 Republican Party Mary Treder Lang
Minnesota Democratic triplex Democratic triplex SSimon.JPG
Democratic Party Steve Simon		 Democratic Party Steve Simon
{{{1}}}
 Republican Party John Howe
Nebraska Republican triplex Republican triplex John Gale.jpg
Republican Party John A. Gale		 Democratic Party Spencer Danner Republican Party Bob Evnen
{{{1}}}
Nevada Republican triplex Divided triplex control Barbara Cegavske.jpg
Republican Party Barbara Cegavske		 Democratic Party Nelson Araujo Republican Party Barbara Cegavske
{{{1}}}
New Mexico Divided triplex control Democratic triplex Maggie Toulouse Oliver.png
Democratic Party Maggie Toulouse Oliver		 Democratic Party Maggie Toulouse Oliver
{{{1}}}
 Republican Party Gavin Clarkson
North Dakota Republican triplex Divided triplex control Al Jaeger.jpg
Grey.png Al Jaeger[2]		 Democratic Party Joshua Boschee None
Ohio Republican triplex Republican triplex Jon Husted 2013.jpg
Republican Party Jon Husted		 Democratic Party Kathleen Clyde Republican Party Frank LaRose
{{{1}}}
Rhode Island Democratic triplex Democratic triplex Nellie Gorbea.JPG
Democratic Party Nellie Gorbea		 Democratic Party Nellie Gorbea
{{{1}}}
 Republican Party Pat Cortellessa
South Carolina Republican triplex Republican triplex Mark Hammond.png
Republican Party Mark Hammond		 Democratic Party Melvin Whittenburg Republican Party Mark Hammond
{{{1}}}
South Dakota Republican triplex Republican triplex Shantel Krebs.jpg
Republican Party Shantel Krebs		 Democratic Party Alexandra Frederick Republican Party Steve Barnett
{{{1}}}
Vermont Divided triplex control Divided triplex control Jim Condos.jpg
Democratic Party Jim Condos		 Democratic Party Jim Condos
{{{1}}}
 Republican Party Brooke Paige
Wisconsin Divided triplex control TBD Doug LaFollette.jpg
Democratic Party Douglas La Follette		 Democratic Party Douglas La Follette
{{{1}}}
 Republican Party Jay Schroeder
Wyoming Republican triplex Republican triplex Buchanan.jpg
Republican Party Edward Buchanan		 Democratic Party James Byrd Republican Party Edward Buchanan
{{{1}}}

Battleground elections

The following map displays which Secretary of State seats were up for election in 2018 and identifies those races that were considered battleground elections. Mouse over a state for more detailed information.


2018 Secretary of State Battleground Races
State Pre-election Incumbent Open Seat (Y/N) 2018 Winner
Arizona Republican Party Michele Reagan Yes Democratic Party Katie Hobbs
Colorado Republican Party Wayne Williams No Democratic Party Jena Griswold
Iowa Republican Party Paul Pate No Republican Party Paul Pate
Georgia Republican Party Brian Kemp Yes Republican Party Brad Raffensperger
Michigan Republican Party Ruth Johnson Yes Democratic Party Jocelyn Benson
Nevada Republican Party Barbara Cegavske No Republican Party Barbara Cegavske
Ohio Republican Party Jon Husted Yes Republican Party Frank LaRose


About the office

See also: Secretary of State (state executive office)

The secretary of state is a state-level position in 47 of the 50 states. The position does not exist in Alaska, Hawaii and Utah. In Massachusetts, Pennsylvania and Virginia, the office is called the secretary of the commonwealth and differs only in name. The voters directly elect the secretary of state in 35 states. In the other 12, the secretary is appointed by either the governor or the state legislature.

The position's duties are generally administrative, and no two states have identical responsibilities delegated to the secretary of state. Many are tasked with keeping state records, from registering businesses to recording the official acts of the governor. The officeholder also often serves as the chief election official in their state, administering state elections and maintaining official election results. The commissioning and regulation of notaries public, keeping of the official state seal, and certification of official documents all typically fall under the purview of the secretary of state.

Although the position of secretary of state is popularly elected in the majority of states, it is an appointed position in 12 states. Of those 12, the governor is given the power of appointment in nine, while the state Legislature appoints the secretary of state in the remaining three.

Historical elections

In 1977, the Democratic Party held a total of 25 elected secretary of state offices to the Republican Party's 10. The Democratic lead in secretary of state offices narrowed somewhat throughout the 1980s, but once again reached a 25-10 majority of elected offices in 1989 and 1990. Following the 1994 midterm elections, the Republican Party gained an 18-17 majority of elected secretary of state offices. The Democrats would regain their lead following the 2008 presidential election but lose it once again in the 2010 midterm elections. The gap between the parties widened following the 2016 elections, which increased the Republican majority of elected secretary of state offices from 21-14 to 24-11.

See also


Footnotes

  1. ↑ Reagan ran for re-election but was defeated in the Republican primary.
  2. ↑ Jaeger was running for re-election as an independent in 2018.
  3. ↑ 3.0 3.1 3.2 Council of State Governments, "Book of the States 2017 - Secretaries of State: Election and Registration Duties," accessed December 3, 2017
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