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State legislative special elections, 2019
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In 2019, 77 state legislative special elections were held in 24 states. Between 2011 and 2018, an average of 77 special elections took place each year.
See the sections below for additional information on state legislative special elections in 2019.
- Causes and partisan control data: This section provides information on why special elections are held and the impact of special elections on the partisan composition of state legislatures.
- Noteworthy special elections: This section provides information on special elections covered in additional detail by Ballotpedia because they had the potential to impact a chamber's partisan control or they received attention from outside groups.
- Special elections by date: This section lists all special elections held in 2019 in the order they were held.
- Vacancies: This section provides information about vacancies across state legislatures in 2019.
- Seats that changed party control: This section lists the seats where a candidate of a party other than the previous incumbent's party won the special election.
- Historical data: This section contains data on special elections going back to 2010.
To read about the regularly-scheduled state legislative elections that took place across the country in 2019, click here.
Causes and partisan control data
In 2019, special elections for state legislative positions were held for the following reasons:
- 47 due to appointment, election, or the seeking of election to another position
- 21 due to a retirement
- 6 due to the death of the incumbent
- 1 due to a resignation related to criminal charges
- 2 due to an election being rerun
Impact of special elections on partisan composition
The partisan breakdown for the special elections was as follows:
- 39 Democratic seats
- 38 Republican seats
As of December 3, 2019, Republicans controlled 52.2 percent of all state legislative seats nationally, while Democrats held 46.8 percent. Republicans held a majority in 61 chambers, and Democrats held the majority in 37 chambers. One chamber (Alaska House) was sharing power between two parties.[1]
| Partisan balance of all 7,383 state legislative seats | ||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Legislative chamber | 
|
|
 [2]
| |||||
| State senates | 878 | 1,081 | 13 | |||||
| State houses | 2,579 | 2,775 | 57 | |||||
| Total: | 3,457 | 3,856 | 70 | |||||
Noteworthy special elections
Virginia State Senate District 33
- See also: Virginia State Senate District 33 special election, 2019 and Virginia state legislative special elections, 2019
A special election for District 33 of the Virginia State Senate was held on January 8, 2019. A firehouse primary election administered by each political party was held on November 17, 2018.
The seat became vacant after Jennifer Wexton (D) won election to Virginia's 10th Congressional District. She resigned from the state House on January 8.
General election
Special general election for Virginia State Senate District 33
Jennifer Boysko defeated Joe T. May in the special general election for Virginia State Senate District 33 on January 8, 2019.
Candidate | % | Votes | ||
| ✔ |  | Jennifer Boysko (D) | 69.8 | 14,779 |
 | Joe T. May (R) | 30.1 | 6,377 | |
| Other/Write-in votes | 0.1 | 27 | ||
| Total votes: 21,183 | |||
 = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey. | ||||
| If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey. | ||||
Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data? Contact our sales team. | ||||
Minnesota State Senate District 11
- See also: Minnesota State Senate District 11 special election, 2019 and Minnesota state legislative special elections, 2019
A special election for District 11 of the Minnesota State Senate was held on February 5, 2019. A primary took place on January 22, 2019. The filing deadline for candidates was January 8, 2019.[3]
The special election was called after Representative Tony Lourey (DFL) resigned in January 2019 after Governor Tim Walz (D) appointed Lourey to serve as human services commissioner.[4]
General election
Special general election for Minnesota State Senate District 11
Jason Rarick defeated Stu Lourey and John Birrenbach in the special general election for Minnesota State Senate District 11 on February 5, 2019.
Candidate | % | Votes | ||
| ✔ |  | Jason Rarick (R) | 52.0 | 8,127 |
 | Stu Lourey (D) | 45.9 | 7,171 | |
 | John Birrenbach (Legal Marijuana Now Party) | 1.9 | 298 | |
| Other/Write-in votes | 0.2 | 27 | ||
| Total votes: 15,623 | |||
| = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey. | ||||
| If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey. | ||||
Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data? Contact our sales team. | ||||
Democratic primary election
Special Democratic primary for Minnesota State Senate District 11
Stu Lourey defeated Michelle Lee in the special Democratic primary for Minnesota State Senate District 11 on January 22, 2019.
Candidate | % | Votes | ||
| ✔ | | Stu Lourey | 53.2 | 1,932 |
 | Michelle Lee | 46.8 | 1,699 | |
| Total votes: 3,631 | |||
| = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey. | ||||
| If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey. | ||||
Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data? Contact our sales team. | ||||
Republican primary election
Special Republican primary for Minnesota State Senate District 11
Jason Rarick advanced from the special Republican primary for Minnesota State Senate District 11 on January 22, 2019.
Candidate | % | Votes | ||
| ✔ | | Jason Rarick | 100.0 | 689 |
| Total votes: 689 | |||
| = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey. | ||||
| If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey. | ||||
Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data? Contact our sales team. | ||||
Withdrawn or disqualified candidates
- Justin Krych (R)
- Matthias Shir (R)
- Carl Pederson (R)
Legal Marijuana Now Party primary election
Special Legal Marijuana Now Party primary for Minnesota State Senate District 11
John Birrenbach advanced from the special Legal Marijuana Now Party primary for Minnesota State Senate District 11 on January 22, 2019.
Candidate | % | Votes | ||
| ✔ | | John Birrenbach | 100.0 | 69 |
| Total votes: 69 | |||
| = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey. | ||||
| If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey. | ||||
Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data? Contact our sales team. | ||||
Iowa State Senate District 30
- See also: Iowa State Senate District 30 special election, 2019 and Iowa State Senate District 30 special election, 2019
Cedar Falls School Board member Eric Giddens (D) defeated former state Rep. Walt Rogers (R) in a special election on March 19, 2019, for the District 30 seat in the Iowa State Senate. Giddens received 57 percent of the vote, while Rogers received 42 percent of the vote. The seat became vacant after Jeff Danielson (D) resigned on February 14, 2019. In the announcement of his resignation, Danielson said, "I’m closing two wonderful chapters in my life, 25 years as a firefighter and 15 years as a state senator, and I’m opening a new exciting chapter for which we’ll be able to share at a later date.”[5] Candidates in this race were chosen by party conventions rather than through primary elections.
The appearance of current and potential 2020 Democratic presidential candidates in the district helped this race garner national attention. To read more about the involvement of national politicians, click here. The district voted Democratic in the past two presidential elections. In 2012, Obama won the district by 7.4 percent. In 2016, Clinton won the district by 3.5 percent.
Heading into the election, Republicans held a 32-17 majority in the Iowa State Senate. A party needs 34 votes in the Senate in order to override a gubernatorial veto, so the outcome of this election did not impact either partisan control or vetoproof supermajority status.
General election
Special general election for Iowa State Senate District 30
Eric Giddens defeated Walt Rogers and Fred Perryman in the special general election for Iowa State Senate District 30 on March 19, 2019.
Candidate | % | Votes | ||
| ✔ |  | Eric Giddens (D) | 56.8 | 7,611 |
 | Walt Rogers (R) | 42.1 | 5,635 | |
 | Fred Perryman (L) | 1.1 | 143 | |
| Total votes: 13,389 | |||
| = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey. | ||||
| If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey. | ||||
Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data? Contact our sales team. | ||||
Special elections by date
Vacancies
Partisan breakdown of vacancies
- See also: State legislative vacancies, 2019
In 2019, there were 177 state legislative vacancies created across 45 states.
The process for filling vacancies varies among the state legislatures. Twenty-five states fill vacancies in the state legislature through special elections. Twenty-one states fill vacancies through appointments, and four states fill vacancies through a hybrid system that uses both appointments and special elections. The most common reasons for a state legislative vacancy include officeholders resigning, dying, leaving for a new job, being elected or appointed to a different office, or receiving a legal conviction.
The table below details the partisan breakdown for state legislative vacancies in 2019. The number on the left reflects how many vacant seats were originally held by each party, while the number on the right shows how many vacant seats each party held after the special elections and appointments took place.
| Partisan breakdown of the vacancies (2019) | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Party | As of vacancy | After vacancy | |
| Democratic Party | |||
| Republican Party | |||
| Independent | |||
| Total | 177 | 177 | |
Seats that changed party control
The table below details how many seats changed parties as the result of a special election in 2019. The number on the left reflects how many vacant seats were originally held by each party, while the number on the right shows how many vacant seats each party won in the special elections. In elections between 2011 and 2018, either the Democratic Party or Republican Party saw an average net gain of four seats across the country. Between 2017 and 2018, Democrats had a net gain of 19 seats.
Note: This table reflects information for elections that were held and not the total number of vacant seats.
| Partisan Change from Special Elections (2019) | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Party | As of Special Election | After Special Election | |
| Democratic Party | 39 | 36 | |
| Republican Party | 38 | 40 | |
| Independent | 0 | 1 | |
| Total | 77 | 77 | |
Flipped seats
In 2019, eight seats flipped as a result of state legislative special elections.
Seats flipped from D to R
- Minnesota State Senate District 11 (February 5)
- Connecticut State Senate District 6 (February 26)
- Connecticut House of Representatives District 99 (February 26)
- Kentucky State Senate District 31 (March 5)
- New Jersey State Senate District 1 (November 5)
Seats flipped from R to D
- Pennsylvania State Senate District 37 (April 2)
- Missouri House of Representatives District 99 (November 5)
Seats flipped from R to I
Historical data
State breakdown by year
The table below details how many state legislative special elections were held in a state in a given year. From 2010 to 2024, Georgia held the most state legislative special elections with 82. Pennsylvania held the second-most special elections with 69.
Partisan breakdown by year
The average number of special elections per even year between 2011 and 2024 (2012, 2014, 2016, 2018, 2020, 2022, and 2024) was 59, while the average per odd year was 80. The most special elections in a single year during that same time frame was 99, which happened in 2018.
The table below details how many state legislative seats changed parties as the result of a special election between 2011 and 2024. The numbers on the left side of the table reflect how many vacant seats were originally held by each party, while the numbers on the right side of the table show how many vacant seats each party won in special elections.
| State legislative special election vacancies and results, 2011-2024 | ||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Year | Total elections held | Vacancies before elections | Seats held after elections | Net change | ||||
| Democrats
|
Republicans
|
Minor party | Democrats
|
Republicans
|
Minor party | |||
| 2024 | 52 | 26 | 26 | 0 | 29 | 23 | 0 | +3 D, -3 R |
| 2023 | 53 | 33 | 20 | 0 | 33 | 20 | 0 | - |
| 2022 | 54 | 36 | 18 | 0 | 36 | 18 | 0 | - |
| 2021 | 66 | 33 | 33 | 0 | 33 | 33 | 0 | - |
| 2020 | 59 | 21 | 38 | 0 | 27 | 32 | 0 | +6 D, -6 R |
| 2019 | 77 | 39 | 38 | 0 | 36 | 40 | 1 | -3 D, +2 R, +1 I |
| 2018 | 99 | 42 | 57 | 0 | 50 | 49 | 0 | +8 D, -8 R |
| 2017 | 98 | 45 | 53 | 0 | 56 | 42 | 0 | +11 D, -11 R |
| 2016* | 65 | 37 | 28 | 0 | 39 | 24 | 2 | +2 D, -4 R |
| 2015* | 89 | 42 | 46 | 1 | 38 | 50 | 1 | -4 D, +4 R |
| 2014 | 40 | 22 | 18 | 0 | 19 | 21 | 0 | -3 D, +3 R |
| 2013 | 84 | 51 | 33 | 0 | 48 | 36 | 0 | -3 D, +3 R |
| 2012 | 46 | 23 | 23 | 0 | 25 | 21 | 0 | +2 D, -2 R |
| 2011* | 95 | 49 | 45 | 1 | 46 | 48 | 1 | -3 D, +3 R |
| Averages | 70 | 36 | 34 | N/A | 37 | 33 | N/A | N/A |
| *Please see the year-specific pages for information regarding minor-party candidates. | ||||||||
Seats that changed partisan control by year
Current as of January 17, 2025 (updated annually)
Since 2010, 121 state legislative seats have switched partisan control, or flipped, in special elections. The chart below shows the number of special elections that resulted in partisan changes in each year:
| Flipped seats in state legislative special elections | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Year | Total special elections | Total flips | Democratic flips | Republican flips | Other flips |
| 2024 | 52 | 5 | 4 | 1 | 0 |
| 2023 | 53 | 4 | 2 | 2 | 0 |
| 2022 | 54 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 0 |
| 2021 | 66 | 6 | 3 | 3 | 0 |
| 2020 | 59 | 8 | 7 | 1 | 0 |
| 2019 | 77 | 8 | 2 | 5 | 1 |
| 2018 | 99 | 16 | 12 | 4 | 0 |
| 2017 | 98 | 17 | 14 | 3 | 0 |
| 2016 | 65 | 9 | 5 | 2 | 2 |
| 2015 | 89 | 16 | 5 | 9 | 2 |
| 2014 | 40 | 5 | 1 | 4 | 0 |
| 2013 | 84 | 7 | 1 | 6 | 0 |
| 2012 | 46 | 7 | 5 | 2 | 0 |
| 2011 | 95 | 11 | 4 | 6 | 1 |
| 2010 | 30 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Total | 1,007 | 121 | 66 | 49 | 6 |
| Click here to see a list of all state legislative seats that have changed partisan control in special elections since 2010 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Days between vacancies and elections by year
The following table tracks the gap between when state legislative vacancies occurred and special elections were held from 2012 through September 12, 2025:
Analysis of state elections, 2019
In 2019, eight states held elections for executive, legislative, or judicial seats, including elections for seven of the nation's 99 state legislative chambers and for three gubernatorial seats.
See also
- State legislative elections, 2019
- State legislative elections, 2018
- State legislative elections, 2017
- State legislative elections, 2016
- State legislative elections, 2015
- State legislative special elections, 2018
- State legislative special elections, 2017
- State legislative special elections, 2016
- State legislative special elections, 2015
- State legislative special elections, 2014
- State legislative special elections, 2013
- State legislative special elections, 2012
- State legislative special elections, 2011
- State legislative special elections, 2010
Footnotes
- ↑ Nebraska is officially nonpartisan but was held by a Republican majority. For more information on how Ballotpedia determined the partisan affiliation for Nebraska senators, please click here.
- ↑ This tally includes minor-party incumbents and vacancies.
- ↑ Minnesota Executive Department, "Writ of Special Election," accessed January 4, 2019
- ↑ WDIO, "Special Election Set for Senate Seat, 3rd-Generation Lourey Enters Race," January 3, 2019
- ↑ The Courier, "Sen. Jeff Danielson resigns for new, undisclosed job," February 16, 2019
- ↑ Candidates running for special elections in Virginia are selected through firehouse primaries administered by each political party.
- ↑ 7.0 7.1 7.2 7.3 7.4 7.5 7.6 Candidates running for special elections in Connecticut are nominated through party conventions.
- ↑ 8.0 8.1 8.2 8.3 8.4 8.5 8.6 Candidates running for special elections in Pennsylvania are selected by their respective political parties.
- ↑ 9.0 9.1 Candidates running for special elections in Iowa are chosen by party convention.
- ↑ This special election was called after the regularly scheduled primary on May 22, 2018, was deemed inconclusive due to ballot errors.
- ↑ This special election was a revote of the Republican primary for state Senate District 50 held on August 6, 2019.
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