Political party strength in U.S. states

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Throughout most of the 20th century, although the Republican and Democratic parties alternated in power at a national level, some states were so overwhelmingly dominated by one party that nomination was usually tantamount to election. This was especially true in the Solid South, where the Republican Party was virtually nonexistent for the best part of a century, from the end of Reconstruction in the late 1870s to the 1960s. Conversely, the New England states of Vermont, Maine, and New Hampshire were Republican bastions, as were some Midwestern states like Iowa and North Dakota.

However, in the 1970s and 1980s, the increasingly conservative Republican Party gradually overtook the Democrats, whose support had been eroded during the vast cultural, political and economic upheaval that surrounded the 1960s. In the 1990s, the Republicans overtook the Democrats in holding majorities in statehouses and governorships in the South. In New England, the opposite trend took place; the former Republican strongholds of Maine and Vermont became solidly Democratic, as did formerly Republican areas of New Jersey, New York, and other states.

Currently, the majority of the overall number of seats held in the state legislatures has been switching between the two parties every few years. As of the U.S. gubernatorial elections of 2010, the Republican party holds an outright majority of approximately 440 with 3,890 seats (53% of total) compared to the Democratic party's number of 3,450 (47% of total) seats elected on a partisan ballot.[1] Of the 7,382 seats in all of the state legislatures combined, independents and third parties account for only 15 members, not counting the 49 members of the Nebraska Legislature, which is the only legislature in the nation to hold non-partisan elections to determine its members. Due to the results of the 2010 elections, Republicans took control of an additional 19 state legislative chambers, giving them majority control of both chambers in 25 states versus the Democrats' majority control of both chambers in only 16 states, with 8 states having split or inconclusive control of both chambers (not including Nebraska); previous to the 2010 elections, it was Democrats who controlled both chambers in 27 states versus the Republican party having total control in only 14 states, with eight states divided and Nebraska being nonpartisan.[2]

Contents

[edit] Current party strength

As of 2010, Gallup polling found that 31% of Americans identified as Democrats, 29% as Republicans, and 38% as independents.[3]

The following table shows all the U.S. states and to what party (Democratic or Republican) their state governors belong. Also indicated is the majority party of the state legislatures' upper and lower houses as well as U.S. Senate representation. Nebraska's legislature is unicameral, i.e., it has only one legislative house and is officially non-partisan, though party affiliation still has an unofficial influence on the legislative process.

The simplest measure of the party strength in a state's voting population is the breakdown-by-party totals from its voter registration figures (figures that can easily be obtained from the websites of the Secretaries of State or the Boards of Elections of the various states). As of 2010, 28 states and the District of Columbia allow registered voters to indicate a party preference when registering to vote; the following 22 states (mostly in the South and the Midwest) do not provide for party preferences in voter registration: Alabama, Arkansas, Georgia, Hawaii, Idaho, Illinois, Indiana, Michigan, Minnesota, Mississippi, Missouri, Montana, North Dakota, Ohio, South Carolina, Tennessee, Texas, Utah, Vermont, Virginia, Washington and Wisconsin. The partisan breakdown "demographics" provided in the following table are obtained from that state's party registration figures (from late 2010 whenever possible) where indicated. Only Wyoming has a majority of registered voters identifying themselves as Republicans; five states have a majority of registered voters identifying themselves as Democrats: Maryland, Kentucky, West Virginia, Pennsylvania and Louisiana.

State 2008 Presidential Election Governor Upper House Majority Lower House Majority Senior U.S. Senator Junior U.S. Senator U.S. House Delegation Demographics
Alabama Republican Republican Republican 22-12-1 Republican 66-39 Republican Republican Republican 6-1 Republican
48-34
Alaska Republican Republican Coalition(e) 16-4 Republican 24-16 Republican Democratic Republican 1-0 Republican
26-15(g)
Arizona Republican Republican Republican 21-9 Republican 40-20 Republican Republican Republican 5-3 Republican
36-32(g)
Arkansas Republican Democratic Democratic 20-15 Democratic 54-46 Democratic Republican Republican 3-1 Democratic
41-31
California Democratic Democratic Democratic 25-15 Democratic 52-28 Democratic Democratic Democratic 34-19 Democratic
44-31(g)
Colorado Democratic Democratic Democratic 20-15 Republican 33-32 Democratic Democratic Republican 4-3 Republican
35-33(g)
Connecticut Democratic Democratic Democratic 22-14 Democratic 99-52 Independent(a) Democratic Democratic 5-0 Democratic
37-20(g)
Delaware Democratic Democratic Democratic 14-7 Democratic 26-15 Democratic Democratic Democratic 1-0 Democratic
47-29(g)
Florida Democratic Republican Republican 28-12 Republican 81-39 Democratic Republican Republican 19-6 Democratic
41-36(g)
Georgia Republican Republican Republican 36-20 Republican 116-63-1 Republican Republican Republican 8-5 Republican
44-32
Hawaii Democratic Democratic Democratic 24-1 Democratic 43-8 Democratic Democratic Democratic 2-0 Democratic
40-23
Idaho Republican Republican Republican 28-7 Republican 57-13 Republican Republican Republican 2-0 Republican
50-22
Illinois Democratic Democratic Democratic 35-24 Democratic 64-54 Democratic Republican Republican 11-8 Democratic
46-31
Indiana Democratic Republican Republican 37-13 Republican 60-40 Republican Republican Republican 6-3 Republican
46-32
Iowa Democratic Republican Democratic 26-24 Republican 60-40 Republican Democratic Democratic 3-2 Democratic
34-31(g)
Kansas Republican Republican Republican 32-8 Republican 92-33 Republican Republican Republican 4-0 Republican
44-27(g)
Kentucky Republican Democratic Republican 22-15-1 Democratic 59-41 Republican Republican Republican 4-2 Democratic
56-37(g)
Louisiana Republican Republican Republican 24-15 Republican 58-45-2 Democratic Republican Republican 6-1 Democratic
51-26(g)
Maine Democratic Republican Republican 20-14-1 Republican 78-72-1 Republican Republican Democratic 2-0 Democratic
33-28(g)
Maryland Democratic Democratic Democratic 35-12 Democratic 98-43 Democratic Democratic Democratic 6-2 Democratic
56-27(g)
Massachusetts Democratic Democratic Democratic 36-4 Democratic 127-33 Democratic Republican Democratic 10-0 Democratic
37-11(g)
Michigan Democratic Republican Republican 26-12 Republican 63-47 Democratic Democratic Republican 9-6 Democratic
40-33
Minnesota Democratic Democratic Republican 37-30 Republican 72-62 Democratic Democratic Split 4-4 Democratic
46-30
Mississippi Republican Republican Republican 30-22 Republican 64-58 Republican Republican Republican 3-1 Republican
47-38
Missouri Republican Democratic Republican 26-8 Republican 106-57 Democratic Republican Republican 6-3 Republican
39-37
Montana Republican Democratic Republican 28-22 Republican 68-32 Democratic Democratic Republican 1-0 Republican
39-32
Nebraska Republican 4 Republican Unicameral legislature(d):
Non-partisan (official)
Republican 32-17 (unofficial)
Democratic Republican Republican 3-0 Republican
48-34(g)
Democratic 1(f)
Nevada Democratic Republican Democratic 11-10 Democratic 26-16 Democratic Republican Republican 2-1 Democratic
42-37(g)
New Hampshire Democratic Democratic Republican 19-5 Republican 295-105 Democratic Republican Republican
2-0
Tied
29-29(g)
New Jersey Democratic Republican Democratic 24-16 Democratic 48-32 Democratic Democratic Democratic 7-6 Democratic
33-20(g)
New Mexico Democratic Republican Democratic 27-15 Democratic 37-33 Democratic Democratic Democratic 2-1 Democratic
50-32(g)
New York Democratic Democratic Republican 32-29-1(c) Democratic 99-51 Democratic Democratic Democratic 20-8 Democratic
49-25(g)
North Carolina Democratic Democratic Republican 31-19 Republican 68-52 Republican Democratic Democratic 7-6 Democratic
45-32(g)
North Dakota Republican Republican Republican 35-12 Republican 69-25 Democratic Republican Republican 1-0 Republican
38-29
Ohio Democratic Republican Republican 23-10 Republican 59-40 Democratic Republican Republican 13-5 Republican
37-36
Oklahoma Republican Republican Republican 32-16 Republican 70-31 Republican Republican Republican 4-1 Democratic
49-40(g)
Oregon Democratic Democratic Democratic 16-14 Split 30-30 Democratic Democratic Democratic 4-1 Democratic
42-32(g)
Pennsylvania Democratic Republican Republican 30-20 Republican 112-91 Democratic Republican Republican 12-7 Democratic
51-37(g)
Rhode Island Democratic Independent Democratic 29-8-1 Democratic 65-10 Democratic Democratic Democratic 2-0 Democratic
38-11(g)
South Carolina Republican Republican Republican 27-19 Republican 76-48 Republican Republican Republican 5-1 Republican
44-33
South Dakota Republican Republican Republican 30-5 Republican 50-19-1 Democratic Republican Republican 1-0 Republican
46-38(g)
Tennessee Republican Republican Republican 20-13 Republican 64-34-1 Republican Republican Republican 7-2 Republican
38-34
Texas Republican Republican Republican 19-12 Republican 101-49 Republican Republican Republican 23-9 Republican
45-21
Utah Republican Republican Republican 22-7 Republican 58-17 Republican Republican Republican 2-1 Republican
56-20
Vermont Democratic Democratic Democratic 22-8 Democratic 96-46-8(a) Democratic Independent(a) Democratic 1-0 Democratic
29-27
Virginia Democratic Republican Republican 20-20(h) Republican 67-32-1(b) Democratic Democratic Republican 8-3 Republican
39-36
Washington Democratic Democratic Democratic 27-22 Democratic 55-42 Democratic Democratic Democratic 5-4 Democratic
39-29
West Virginia Republican Democratic Democratic 28-6 Democratic 65-35 Democratic Democratic Republican 2-1 Democratic
54-29(g)
Wisconsin Democratic Republican Republican 17-16 Republican 59-39-1(b) Democratic Republican Republican 5-3 Democratic
38-34
Wyoming Republican Republican Republican 26-4 Republican 50-10 Republican Republican Republican 1-0 Republican
63-24(g)
Totals
President Governor State Upper House Majority State Lower House Majority U.S. Senate U.S. House of Representatives
Democratic 365-173 Republican 29-20-1 Republican 30(h)-18-1(e)-1(d) Republican 31-17-1(d) Democratic 51-47-2(a) Republican 242-193

(a) Non-Democrats caucusing with Democratic Party.

(b) Non-Republicans caucusing with Republican Party.

(c) Vacancy.

(d) Nebraska has no lower house, and its upper house is a non-partisan chamber.

(e) The Alaska State Senate has a coalition majority of all the senate's Democrats and several Republicans, with the remaining Republicans in the minority.

(f) Obama–Biden won an electoral vote in Nebraska by winning a plurality of the votes in Nebraska's 2nd congressional district.

(g) Indicated partisan breakdown numbers are from the registration-by-party figures from that state's registered voter statistics (late 2010 party registration figures provided whenever possible).

(h) As a result of the 2011 legislative elections in Virginia, the Virginia State Senate is tied between the parties, 20-20. But the Republican Lt. Governor is allowed to cast tie-breaking votes in the Virginia State Senate, giving Republicans operational control of the chamber.

[edit] Regional breakdowns

Local and regional political circumstances often influence party strength.

[edit] State government

The following figure is for Governors as of the Spring of 2011:

Governor
United States Governors map.svg

The following figures for party control of state legislative chambers are for the Winter of 2010 (i.e. from the results of the 2010 elections):

Upper Lower
Upper House majority Lower House majority

[edit] Presidential election results and congressional delegations

The following are based on the results of the 2008 elections:

Presidential Election
United States Presidential Election 2008.
Senate House of Representatives
Senators' party affiliations delegation by state. Percent of members of the House of Representatives from each party by state.

[edit] Demographics

USpercentagesbystate.png

[edit] Historical party strength

The following table shows how many state legislatures were controlled outright by each party.[4]

Year Democrats Republicans Split
1938 21 19 6
1940 21 17 8
1942 19 24 3
1944 19 24 3
1946 17 25 4
1948 19 16 11
1950 19 21 6
1952 16 26 4
1954 19 20 7
1956 22 19 5
1958 30 7 11
1960 27 15 6
1962 25 17 6
1964 32 6 10
1966 23 16 9
1968 20 20 8
1970 23 16 9
1972 26 16 7
1974 37 4 8
1976 35 4 10
1978 31 11 7
1980 29 15 5
1982 34 11 4
1984 26 11 12
1986 28 9 12
1988 29 8 12
1990 30 6 13
1992 25 8 16
1994 18 19 12
1996 20 18 11
1998 20 17 12
2000 16 18 15
2002 18 17 14
2003 16 21 12
2004 17 21 11
2005 20 20 9
2007 24 16 9
2008 23 15 12
2009 27 14 8
2011 15 26 8
2012 15 28 6

The following table shows how many governorships were controlled outright by each party.[4]

Year Democrats Republicans Independent
1922 26 22
1923 27 21
1924 23 25
1926 20 28
1927 19 29
1928 16 32
1930 24 22 2
1931 26 20 2
1932 36 10 2
1934 37 9 2
1936 38 7 3
1937 39 6 3
1938 29 19
1940 28 20
1942 24 24
1943 22 26
1944 25 23
1946 23 25
1947 24 24
1948 28 20
1950 22 26
1952 18 30
1953 19 29
1954 27 21
1956 28 20
1958 35 15
1960 34 16
1962 34 16
1964 33 17
1966 25 25
1967 24 26
1968 19 31
1969 18 32
1970 29 21
1971 30 20
1972 31 19
1973 32 18
1974 36 13 1
1976 37 12 1
1978 32 18
1979 31 19
1980 27 23
1982 34 16
1983 35 15
1984 34 16
1986 26 24
1988 28 22
1989 29 21
1990 28 20 2
1992 30 18 2
1993 29 19 2
1994 19 30 1
1995 18 31 1
1996 17 32 1
1998 17 31 2
1999 18 30 2
2000 19 29 2
2001 21 27 2
2002 24 26
2004 22 28
2006 28 22
2008 29 21
2009 26 24
2010 26 23 1
2011 20 29 1

[edit] See also

[edit] References

  1. ^ "Republicans Exceed Expectations in 2010 State Legislative Elections - NCLS News (National Conference of State Legislatures)". www.ncls.org. 2010-11-03. http://www.ncsl.org/?tabid=21634. Retrieved 2011-01-22. 
  2. ^ "Red Tide: December 2010, A GOP wave washed over state legislatures on Election Day. - NCLS Election & Campaigns (National Conference of State Legislatures)". www.ncls.org. 2010-11-12. http://www.ncsl.org/default.aspx?TabID=746&tabs=1116,114,796#1116. Retrieved 2011-01-22. 
  3. ^ Democratic Party ID Drops in 2010, Tying 22-Year Low
  4. ^ a b "U.S. Census Bureau, The 2011 Statistical Abstract, The National Data Book, Elections: Gubernatorial and State Legislatures". www.census.gov/compendia/statab/. 2011-01-06. http://www.census.gov/compendia/statab/cats/elections/gubernatorial_and_state_legislatures.html. Retrieved 2011-01-25. 
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