Democrats gain full control of five state governments, further expanding the party’s power
Wisconsin Democratic gubernatorial candidate David Crowley and lieutenant governor running mate Sarah Godlewski celebrate at an election night event in Milwaukee.John Moore / GettyShareAdd NBC News to GoogleNov. 4, 2026, 2:00 PM ESTBy Adam EdelmanDemocrats gained total control of at least five state governments on Tuesday, giving the party a level of power it hasn’t held in some of those places in years.
The party won so-called trifectas — taking the governor’s office and both legislative chambers — in Michigan, Minnesota, Nevada, Pennsylvania and Wisconsin, according to The Associated Press.
The victories are the latest marker of an overwhelmingly successful midterm election for the party. In addition to sweeping control of both chambers of Congress, Democrats won a majority of governorships for the first time in 16 years, with Republicans long dominating at the state level.
Now, Democrats will have the ability to fundamentally change the local policy agenda, including in several presidential battleground states.
“This was the most significant night for state legislatures since the seismic Republican wave in 2010,” said Mandara Meyers, the executive director of The States Project, a Democratic-aligned group that works to build the party’s power in state legislatures.
The group was one of several to spend millions to boost Democratic gains in state legislative chambers.
In Wisconsin, Democrats clawed back full control of state government for the first time in 16 years, flipping the state Assembly and Senate while holding on to the governor’s mansion.
Those gains were partly the product of the state’s new legislative maps that went into effect after the state Supreme Court struck down the previous Republican-drawn lines in 2024. Democrats needed to flip two seats for a majority in the Senate and five in the Assembly but ended up with far more in both chambers.
In another key swing state, Pennsylvania, Democrats flipped far more than the three seats they needed in the state Senate to retake the chamber, while also expanding on what had been a one-seat edge in the state Assembly, handing the re-elected Gov. Josh Shapiro a powerful tool for his second term. It’s Democrats’ first trifecta in Pennsylvania since 1993.
Democrats also recaptured a trifecta in Michigan after losing it two years earlier, flipping control of the state House and padding their narrow majority in the state Senate. Meanwhile, Secretary of State Jocelyn Benson won the race to succeed term-limited Democratic Gov. Gretchen Whitmer.
In Minnesota, Democrats built sizable majorities in both legislative chambers, having needed only to flip one seat in the state House and protect a one-seat majority in the state Senate. Democratic Sen. Amy Klobuchar will be the state’s next governor, taking over for Gov. Tim Walz.
And in Nevada, Democrats held on to their existing control of both legislative chambers, while flipping the governorship blue with state Attorney General Aaron Ford’s win over GOP Gov. Joe Lombardo.
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In Texas, state Rep. Gina Hinojosa defeated GOP Gov. Greg Abbott, becoming the first Democratic governor to lead the state since 1995. Republicans had enjoyed complete control over state government since 2003.
As of Wednesday morning, Texas state Democrats had made significant gains in the state House, too — some state party leaders said control of the chamber was within reach — though the AP has not yet called control of that chamber. Republicans maintained control of the state Senate, according to the AP.
In Georgia, Keisha Lance Bottoms won the race for governor, flipping the office blue for the first time in 24 years, while Democrats made major gains in the state House. The AP hasn’t called control of the state House but has projected that Republicans will maintain control of the state Senate.
Republicans had held a trifecta in Georgia since 2005.
In addition, Democratic gubernatorial victories in Iowa and Ohio broke up total GOP control of state government there.
Democrats also flipped control of the North Carolina state House for the first time in 16 years, the AP projected, while narrowly falling short of a majority in the state Senate.
Elsewhere, Democrats said they made enough legislative seat gains to break Republican supermajorities in chambers in South Carolina, Florida, Indiana, Kansas, Missouri and Ohio.
Adam EdelmanI cover state legislatures, politics and policy — and how those topics coalesce into and intersect with national political trends. Given what state lawmakers have focused on in recent years, my coverage areas tend to veer into reproductive rights, voting rights and education policy. I was born and raised in Milwaukee, and I try to make my native state proud by covering as many of its fascinating political stories as I can.
