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Annual State Legislative Competitiveness Report: Vol. 3, 2013

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2013 State Legislative Elections
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A total of 220 seats of the country's 7,383 state legislative seats were up for election in the November 5, 2013, state legislative elections. With 93% of incumbents running for re-election, 24 faced a primary challenger.

This is an overview of our analysis of the degree of competitiveness in 2013's state legislative elections. The analysis utilizes the 3-factor "Competitiveness Index".

This report is organized into four sections. They are:

Competitiveness overview

Competitiveness refers to the presence of choice throughout the election cycle. A greater level of competitiveness means voters have the ability to make more decisions. A lower level of competitiveness equals fewer choices.

Ballotpedia uses three factors to determine state legislative competitiveness:

These percentages are averaged to produce a State Legislative Competitiveness Index, which can range from zero (least competitive) to 100 (most competitive).

The table below shows the Competitiveness Indices from 2011 to 2013 as well as the three factors used to calculate the indices. Click here to read more about Ballotpedia's methodology used when calculating Competitiveness Indices.

State legislative Competitiveness Indices, 2011-2013
2011 2013 AVERAGE
Competitiveness Index 28.1 30.3 29.2
Open seats 17.0% 6.8% 11.9%
Inc. in contested primaries 21.4% 11.7% 16.6%
Seats with major party competition 46.0% 72.3% 59.2%

Open seats

See also: Open seats in state legislative elections, 2013

There were 180 state legislative districts up for election nationwide, creating 360 possible primaries. Of that total, there were 32 contested primaries, meaning 9% of all primaries were contested. This represented a decrease from 2011 when 22% of primaries were contested.

In 2013:

  • There were 12 contested Democratic primaries, representing 7% of all possible Democratic primaries.
  • There were 20 contested Republican primaries, representing 11% of all possible Republican primaries.
  • No states held top-two/four primaries.



    • Contested state legislative primaries, 2013
    Chamber Districts
    Democratic Republican Top-two/four Total
    # % # % # % # %
    House 140 8 5.7% 14 10.0% 0 - 22 7.9%
    Senate 40 4 10.0% 6 15.0% 0 - 10 12.5%
    Total 180 12 6.7% 20 11.1% 0 N/A 32 8.9%

    Historical comparison

    The chart below shows a breakdown of contested primaries between 2011 and 2013.

    Incumbents in contested primaries

    See also: State legislative incumbents in contested primaries, 2013

    There were 220 state legislative seats up for election on November 5, 2013, in two states. Overall, 205 incumbents filed for re-election and were running at the time of their respective primaries. Of that total, 24 incumbents faced contested primaries, representing 12% of all incumbents who filed for re-election. This represented a decrease from 2011 when 21% of incumbents faced contested primaries.

    Ballotpedia uses the number and percentage of incumbents in contested primaries to help determine the overall competitiveness of an election cycle. A larger number of contested primaries indicates more opportunities for voters to elect a non-incumbent to office. A smaller number indicates fewer of those opportunities.

    In 2013:

  • There were 14 Democratic incumbents in contested primaries, representing 14% of all Democratic incumbents who filed for re-election.
  • There were 10 Republican incumbents in contested primaries, representing 9% of all Republican incumbents who filed for re-election.
  • No minor party or independent incumbents face contested primaries.



    • State legislative incumbents in contested primaries, 2013
    Chamber Seats
    Democratic Republican Total[1]
    Filed Cont. % Filed Cont. % Filed Cont. %
    House 180 75 10 13.3% 91 8 8.8% 166 18 10.8%
    Senate 40 23 4 17.4% 16 2 12.5% 39 6 15.4%
    Total 220 98 14 14.3% 107 10 9.3% 205 24 11.7%

    Historical comparison

    The chart below shows a breakdown of incumbents in contested primaries between 2011 and 2013.

    All contested primaries

    See also: Contested state legislative primaries, 2013

    This section shows figures on all contested state legislative primaries, regardless of whether an incumbent was present. There were 180 state legislative districts up for election nationwide, creating 360 possible primaries. Of that total, there were 32 contested primaries, meaning 9% of all primaries were contested. This represented a decrease from 2011 when 22% of primaries were contested.

    In 2013:

  • There were 12 contested Democratic primaries, representing 7% of all possible Democratic primaries.
  • There were 20 contested Republican primaries, representing 11% of all possible Republican primaries.
  • No states held top-two/four primaries.



    • Contested state legislative primaries, 2013
    Chamber Districts
    Democratic Republican Top-two/four Total
    # % # % # % # %
    House 140 8 5.7% 14 10.0% 0 - 22 7.9%
    Senate 40 4 10.0% 6 15.0% 0 - 10 12.5%
    Total 180 12 6.7% 20 11.1% 0 N/A 32 8.9%

    The chart below shows a breakdown of contested primaries between 2011 and 2013.

    Major party competition

    See also: Major party competition in state legislative elections, 2013

    There were 220 state legislative seats up for election on November 5, 2013, in two states. Of that total, 61 (28%) were uncontested and had no major party competition. The remaining 159 (72%) were contested by both major parties.

    Ballotpedia uses the level of major party competition to help determine the overall competitiveness of an election cycle. A larger number of seats without major party competition indicates fewer options on the ballot. A smaller number indicates more options.

    In 2013:

  • Democrats were guaranteed to win 25 seats (11%) that lacked Republican competition, down from 22% in 2011.
  • Republicans were guaranteed to win 36 seats (16%) that lacked Democratic competition, down from 32% in 2011.
  • Overall, Democrats ran for 184 seats (84%) and Republicans ran for 195 (89%).
  • The total percentage of seats without major party competition—28%—was down from 54% in 2011.


    • Major party competition in state legislative elections, 2013
    Chamber Seats
    Uncontested Contested
    Only Democrats Only Republicans Total
    # % # % # % # %
    House 180 24 13.3% 35 19.4% 59 32.8% 121 67.2%
    Senate 40 01 2.5% 01 2.5% 02 5.0% 38 95.0%
    Total 220 25 11.4% 36 16.4% 61 27.7% 159 72.3%

    Historical comparison

    The chart below shows a breakdown of major party competition in state legislative elections between 2011 and 2013.

    See also

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    1. ↑ Totals may include minor party or independent officeholders.
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