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State legislative special elections, 2026

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2026 State Legislative
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As of December 2025, 20 state legislative special elections have been scheduled for 2026 in 12 states. Between 2011 and 2024, an average of 70 special elections took place each year.

As of November 7, 2025, seven special elections had resulted in a change in party control of a state legislative seat in 2025:

See the sections below for additional information on state legislative special elections in 2026.

  1. Causes: This section provides information on why special elections are held.
  2. Partisan control: This section provides information on the impact of special elections on the partisan composition of state legislatures.
  3. Special elections by date: This section lists all special elections held in 2026 in the order they were held.
  4. Historical data: This section contains data on special elections going back to 2010.


See also: State legislative elections, 2026

Causes

In 2026, special elections for state legislative positions are being held for the following reasons:

  • 8 due to appointment, election, or the seeking of election to another position
  • 10 due to resignation
  • 2 due to the death of the incumbent

Partisan control

The partisan breakdown for the special elections is as follows:

As of December 3rd, 2025, Republicans controlled 55.32% of all state legislative seats nationally, while Democrats held 43.49%. Republicans held a majority in 57 chambers, and Democrats held the majority in 39 chambers. Two chambers (Alaska House and Alaska Senate) were organized under multipartisan, power-sharing coalitions. One chamber (Minnesota House of Representatives) was split evenly between both parties.

Partisan balance of all 7,386 state legislative seats
Legislative chamber Democratic Party Republican Party Grey.png Other Vacant
State senates 827 1,120 6 20
State houses 2,385 2,966 21 41
Total: 3,212

4,086

27

61


Elections

Click the tabs below to view detailed information regarding 2026 state legislative special elections. In this section, you will find:

  • A list of elections by date
  • A list of what caused special elections
  • Information on seats that changed party control as a result of special elections

Editor's note: Some states choose to cancel some or all stages of an election if the number of candidates who filed does not meet a certain threshold. The table below does not reflect which elections were canceled. Please click through to each state's special election page for more information.

2026 state legislative special elections
Office Former incumbent Filing deadline Primary election date General election date
Connecticut State House 25 Bobby Sanchez December 1, 2025 (major party)
December 17, 2025 (write-ins)		 - January 6, 2026
South Carolina State House 98 Chris Murphy September 13, 2025 November 4, 2025 January 6, 2026
Alabama State House 63 Cynthia Almond June 15, 2025 (major party)
September 30, 2025 (minor party and independents)		 September 30, 2025 (primary)
October 28, 2025 (primary runoff)		 January 13, 2026
Minnesota State House 47A Amanda Hemmingsen-Jaeger November 25, 2025 (major party)
January 8, 2026 (write-ins)		 December 16, 2025 January 27, 2026
Minnesota State House 64A Kaohly Her November 25, 2025 (major party)
January 8, 2026 (write-ins)		 December 16, 2025 January 27, 2026
Alabama State House 38 Debbie Hamby Wood August 20, 2025 (major party)
October 21, 2025 (minor party and independents)		 October 21, 2025 (primary)
November 18, 2025 (primary runoff)		 February 3, 2026
Oklahoma State House 35 Ty Burns October 8, 2025 December 9, 2025 (primary)
January 13, 2026 (primary runoff)		 February 10, 2026
Arkansas State Senate 26 Gary Stubblefield November 12, 2025 (major party)
November 26, 2025 (independents)		 January 6, 2026 (primary)
February 3, 2026 (primary runoff)		 March 3, 2026[1]
Arkansas State House 70 Carlton Wing November 12, 2025 (major party)
November 26, 2025 (independents)		 January 6, 2026 (primary)
February 3, 2026 (primary runoff)		 March 3, 2026[2]
Massachusetts State Senate 1st Middlesex Edward Kennedy December 23, 2025 February 3, 2026 March 3, 2026
Louisiana State Senate 3 Joseph Bouie December 19, 2025 February 7, 2026 March 14, 2026
Florida State House 87 Mike Caruso November 18, 2025 January 13, 2026 March 24, 2026
Florida State House 52 John Temple November 18, 2025 January 13, 2026 March 24, 2026
Florida State House 51 Josie Tomkow November 18, 2025 January 13, 2026 March 24, 2026
Florida State Senate 14 Jay Collins November 18, 2025 January 13, 2026 March 24, 2026
Texas State Senate 4 Brandon Creighton March 3, 2025 - May 2, 2026
Michigan State Senate 35 Kristen McDonald Rivet September 30, 2025 February 3, 2026 May 5, 2026
Colorado State Senate District 17 Sonya Jaquez Lewis March 18, 2026 (major and minor party)
July 9, 2026 (unaffiliated)		 June 30, 2026 November 3. 2026
Colorado State Senate District 29 Janet Buckner March 18, 2026 (major and minor party)
July 9, 2026 (unaffiliated)		 June 30, 2026 November 3. 2026
Colorado State Senate District 31 Chris Hansen March 18, 2026 (major and minor party)
July 9, 2026 (unaffiliated)		 June 30, 2026 November 3. 2026

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
Democratic Party Democrats Republican Party Republicans Minor party Democratic Party Democrats Republican Party 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

See also: State legislative special election changes in party control since 2010

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


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 November 14, 2025:

Election coverage by office

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See also

Footnotes

  1. ↑ This election was originally scheduled for June 9, 2026
  2. ↑ This election was originally scheduled for June 9, 2026
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