Secretary of State elections, 2026
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There are 26 secretary of state seats on the ballot in 2026. These elections are in Alabama, Arizona, Arkansas, California, Colorado, Connecticut, Georgia, Idaho, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Nebraska, Nevada, New Mexico, North Dakota, Ohio, Rhode Island, South Carolina, South Dakota, Vermont, Wisconsin, and Wyoming.
The secretary of state is one of the three elements in a state government triplex. 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.
In 2024, voters decided who would control 11 of 47 state secretary of state offices. Seven offices were directly up for election, and four offices’ appointing authorities were on the ballot. Before the election, the nationwide partisan balance of secretaries of state was 26 Republicans and 21 Democrats. Republicans and Democrats retained control of 26 and 21 secretary of state offices, respectively, following the elections.
- Partisan balanceThe partisan balance of secretaries of state
- On the ballotA list of elections and candidates on the ballot
- TriplexesInformation on state government triplexes
- About the officeInformation about secretaries of state across all 50 states
Partisan balance
The table below highlights the partisan balance of all 47 secretaries of state before and after the 2026 elections.
| Party | As of February 2026 | After the 2026 elections |
|---|---|---|
| Democratic | 21 | TBD |
| Republican | 26 | TBD |
| Total | 47 | 47 |
The chart below shows historical partisan breakdown information for secretaries of state.
On the ballot
Click the tabs below to view information about the elections this year. In this section, you will find:
- A list of seats up for election
- A list of candidates running
- Ballotpedia's Sample Ballot Lookup Tool
There are 13 Democratic-held secretary of state offices and 13 Republican-held secretary of state offices on the ballot in 2026. The table below shows which states are holding secretary of state elections in 2026.
| State | Incumbent | Incumbent running? | Election winner | Last time office changed parties | 2024 presidential result | 2022 election result[1] | 2026 election result |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Alabama | Wes Allen | No | TBD | 2006 | R+30.6 | R+34.8 | TBD |
| Arizona | Adrian Fontes | TBD | TBD | 2018 | R+5.5 | D+4.8 | TBD |
| Arkansas | Cole Jester | No | TBD | 2010 | R+30.6 | R+34.2 | TBD |
| California | Shirley Weber | TBD | TBD | 2006 | D+20.7 | D+20.2 | TBD |
| Colorado | Jena Griswold | TBD | TBD | 2018 | D+11.0 | D+13.0 | TBD |
| Connecticut | Stephanie Thomas | TBD | TBD | 1994 | D+14.5 | D+12.5 | TBD |
| Georgia | Brad Raffensperger | TBD | TBD | 2006 | R+2.2 | R+9.2 | TBD |
| Idaho | Phil McGrane | Yes | TBD | 1966 | R+36.5 | R+45.0 | TBD |
| Illinois | Alexi Giannoulias | Yes | TBD | 1998 | D+10.6 | D+9.7 | TBD |
| Indiana | Diego Morales | TBD | TBD | 1994 | R+18.9 | R+13.9 | TBD |
| Iowa | Paul Pate | TBD | TBD | 2010 | R+13.3 | R+20.2 | TBD |
| Kansas | Scott Schwab | TBD | TBD | 2010 | R+16.2 | R+19.7 | TBD |
| Massachusetts | William Galvin | TBD | TBD | 1948 | D+24.8 | D+37.9 | TBD |
| Michigan | Jocelyn Benson | TBD | TBD | 2018 | R+1.4 | D+14.0 | TBD |
| Minnesota | Steve Simon | TBD | TBD | 2006 | D+4.2 | D+9.2 | TBD |
| Nebraska | Bob Evnen | TBD | TBD | 1952 | R+20.5 | R+100.0 | TBD |
| Nevada | Cisco Aguilar | TBD | TBD | 2022 | R+3.1 | D+2.2 | TBD |
| New Mexico | Maggie Toulouse Oliver | TBD | TBD | 2016 | D+6.0 | D+11.9 | TBD |
| North Dakota | Michael Howe | TBD | TBD | 1992 | R+36.5 | R+35.8 | TBD |
| Ohio | Frank LaRose | TBD | TBD | 2010 | R+11.3 | R+20.1 | TBD |
| Rhode Island | Gregg Amore | TBD | TBD | 1994 | D+13.7 | D+19.2 | TBD |
| South Carolina | Mark Hammond | TBD | TBD | 1990 | R+17.8 | R+26.8 | TBD |
| South Dakota | Monae Johnson | TBD | TBD | 1978 | R+29.2 | R+27.8 | TBD |
| Vermont | Sarah Copeland Hanzas | TBD | TBD | 1998 | D+31.5 | D+19.2 | TBD |
| Wisconsin | Sarah Godlewski | Yes | TBD | 1974 | R+0.9 | D+0.3 | TBD |
| Wyoming | Chuck Gray | TBD | TBD | 1994 | R+45.8 | R+100.0 | TBD |
Triplexes
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.
As of February 25, 2026, there are 24 Republican triplexes, 21 Democratic triplexes, and 5 divided governments where neither party holds triplex control.
Important dates and deadlines
The following table details 2026 statewide filing deadlines and primary dates.
| State | Primary date | Primary runoff date | Filing deadline for primary candidates | Source |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Alabama | 5/19/2026 | 6/16/2026 | 1/23/2026 | Source |
| Alaska | 8/18/2026 | N/A | 6/1/2026 | Source |
| Arizona | 7/21/2026 | N/A | 3/23/2026 | Source |
| Arkansas | 3/3/2026 | 3/31/2026 | 11/12/2025 | Source |
| California | 6/2/2026 | N/A | 3/6/2026 | Source |
| Colorado | 6/30/2026 | N/A | 3/18/2026 | Source |
| Connecticut | 8/11/2026 | N/A | 6/9/2026 | Source |
| Delaware | 9/15/2026 | N/A | 7/14/2026 | Source |
| Florida | 8/18/2026 | N/A | 4/24/2026[2] 6/12/2026[3] | Source |
| Georgia | 5/19/2026 | 6/16/2026 | 3/6/2026 | Source |
| Hawaii | 8/8/2026 | N/A | 6/2/2026 | Source |
| Idaho | 5/19/2026 | N/A | 2/27/2026 | Source |
| Illinois | 3/17/2026 | N/A | 11/3/2025 | Source |
| Indiana | 5/5/2026 | N/A | 2/6/2026 | Source |
| Iowa | 6/2/2026 | N/A | Primary: 3/13/2026 | Source |
| Kansas | 8/4/2026 | N/A | 6/1/2026 | Source |
| Kentucky | 5/19/2026 | N/A | 1/9/2026 | Source |
| Louisiana | 5/16/2026 | 6/27/2026 | 2/13/2026 | Source |
| Maine | 6/9/2026 | N/A | 3/16/2026 | Source |
| Maryland | 6/23/2026 | N/A | 2/24/2026 | Source |
| Massachusetts | 9/1/2026 | N/A | 6/2/2026 | Source |
| Michigan | 8/4/2026 | N/A | 4/21/2026 | Source |
| Minnesota | 8/11/2026 | N/A | 6/2/2026 | Source |
| Mississippi | 3/10/2026 | 4/7/2026 | 12/26/2025 | Source |
| Missouri | 8/4/2026 | N/A | 3/31/2026 | Source |
| Montana | 6/2/2026 | N/A | 3/4/2026 | Source |
| Nebraska | 5/12/2026 | N/A | Incumbents: 2/17/2026, Non-incumbents: 3/2/2026 | Source |
| Nevada | 6/9/2026 | N/A | 3/13/2026 | Source |
| New Hampshire | 9/8/2026 | N/A | 6/12/2026 | Source |
| New Jersey | 6/2/2026 | N/A | 3/23/2026 | Source |
| New Mexico | 6/2/2026 | N/A | Candidates seeking pre-primary designation: 2/3/2026; Candidates not seeking pre-primary designation: 3/10/2026 | Source |
| New York | 6/23/2026 | N/A | 4/6/2026 | Source |
| North Carolina | 3/3/2026 | N/A | 12/19/2025 | Source |
| North Dakota | 6/9/2026 | N/A | 4/6/2026 | Source |
| Ohio | 5/5/2026 | N/A | 2/4/2026 | Source |
| Oklahoma | 6/16/2026 | 8/25/2026 | 4/3/2026 | Source |
| Oregon | 5/19/26 | N/A | Incumbents: 3/3/2026, New candidates: 3/10/2026 | Source |
| Pennsylvania | 5/19/2026 | N/A | 3/10/2026 | Source |
| Rhode Island | 9/8/2026 | N/A | 6/24/2026 | Source |
| South Carolina | 6/9/2026 | N/A | 3/30/2026 | Source |
| South Dakota | 6/2/2026 | 7/28/2026 | 3/31/2026 | Source |
| Tennessee | 8/6/2026 | N/A | 3/10/2026 | Source |
| Texas | 3/3/2026 | 5/26/2026 | 12/8/2025 | Source |
| Utah | 6/23/2026 | N/A | 1/8/2026[4] 3/13/2026[5] | Source |
| Vermont | 8/11/2026 | N/A | 5/28/2026 | Source |
| Virginia | 8/4/2026 | N/A | 4/2/2026[6] 5/26/2026[7] | Source |
| Washington | 8/4/2026 | N/A | 5/8/2026 | Source |
| West Virginia | 5/12/2026 | N/A | 1/31/2026 | Source |
| Wisconsin | 8/11/2026 | N/A | 6/1/2026 | Source |
| Wyoming | 8/18/2026 | N/A | 5/29/2026 | Source |
Election coverage by office
See also
- Past secretary of state elections: 2025 • 2024 • 2023 • 2022 • 2021 • 2020 • 2019 • 2018 • 2017 • 2016
- Past state executive elections: 2025 • 2024 • 2023 • 2022 • 2021 • 2020 • 2019 • 2018 • 2017 • 2016
- Past election analysis: 2025 • 2024 • 2023 • 2022 • 2021 • 2020 • 2019 • 2018
External links
Footnotes
- ↑ 2024 election for Vermont.
- ↑ For the following offices: state supreme court
- ↑ For the following offices: U.S. House, governor, attorney general, commissioner of agriculture, chief financial officer, state senators, and state representatives.
- ↑ For the following offices: State Board of Education, state senator, state representative.
- ↑ For the following offices: U.S. House.
- ↑ For U.S. Senate candidates.
- ↑ For U.S. House candidates.
