There’s a lot more at stake in 2020 than just who sits in the White House.
For example, redistricting will happen in 2020, and in most states, governors either sign or veto the maps that the state legislatures draw up. The more Democrats we have in these seats, the better position we’ll be in to stop Republican gerrymandering.
Today we’re looking at the races that will determine who is governor in 11 states. Right now, 7 of those states have Republican governors, and 4 have Democratic governors. For each race, I have noted its rating (which I pull from Cook Political Report, Inside Elections, and Sabato’s Crystal Ball.)
The ratings: Safe D ➡️ Likely D ➡️ Lean D ➡️ Toss Up ⬅️ Lean R ⬅️ Likely R ⬅️ Safe R
Delaware
The current governor is 🔵 Democrat John Carney Jr. The filing deadline for this race isn’t until July, so we won’t know who exactly is running until we get closer to that date. You can keep track of the candidates who have filed to run HERE.
The primary is on September 15. This race is currently rated as Safe Democratic.
Indiana
The current governor is 🔴 Republican Eric Holcomb, who is running for re-election in 2020. The filing deadline is February 7, so we’ll soon know which Democrats are running against him. In the meantime, you can see who has filed to run HERE.
The primary is on May 5. This race is currently rated between Likely and Safe Republican.
Missouri
The current governor is 🔴 Republican Mike Parson. Parson was the Lt. Governor of Missouri when the then governor, Eric Greitens, was forced to resign after he was charged with multiple crimes and was facing impeachment in the Republican-led legislature. Parson has filed to run for governor and faces multiple challengers. You can see the full list of challengers HERE. The filing deadline is March 31.
The primary is on August 4. This race is currently rated between Likely and Safe Republican.
Montana
The current governor is 🔵 Democrat Steve Bullock. Bullock is term-limited and cannot run for re-election. The filing deadline is March 9 and there are already multiple challengers in both primaries. You can see the full list HERE.
The primary is on June 2. This race is currently rated as a Toss Up.
New Hampshire
The current governor is 🔴 Republican Chris Sununu, who is running for re-election. The filing deadline isn’t until June 12, so it’ll be a while yet before the full list of candidates is set. You can see who has filed HERE. And yes, there really is a Republican named Nobody who has filed to run against Sununu.
The primary is on September 8. This race is currently rated between Lean and Likely Republican.
North Carolina
The current governor is 🔵 Democrat Roy Cooper, who is running for re-election. The filing deadline has passed; you can see the full list of challengers HERE.
The primary is on March 3. This race is currently rated as Lean Democratic.
North Dakota
The current governor is 🔴 Republican Doug Burgum, who is running for re-election. As of the writing of this post, no Democrat has entered the race. The filing deadline is April 6.
The primary is on June 9. This race is currently rated as Safe Republican.
Utah
The current governor is 🔴 Republican Gary Herbert, who has declined to run for a third term. So far, there are a lot of Republican challengers and only one Democrat running. You can see the full list HERE. The filing deadline is March 19.
The primary is on June 30. This race is currently rated as Safe Republican.
Vermont
The current governor is 🔴 Republican Phil Scott, who has not yet said if he’ll run for re-election yet. The full list of candidates who have filed to run can be seen HERE; the filing deadline is May 28.
The primary is on August 11. This race is currently rated as Likely Republican.
Washington
The current governor is 🔵 Democrat Jay Inslee, who is running for re-election. The filing deadline is May 15; you can see the most updated list of challengers HERE.
The primary is on August 4. This race is currently rated as Safe Democratic.
West Virginia
The current governor is 🔴 Republican Jim Justice, who is running for re-election. Back in 2016, Jim Justice ran as a Democrat and won with 49% of the vote. In 2017, he announced that he was switching his party registration to Republican at a Trump rally. The filing deadline is January 25; you can see a full list of challengers HERE.
The primary is on May 12. This race is currently rated between Likely and Safe Republican.
How you can help
For those of you who live in or near these states, check out 15 Ways to Help a Campaign Win Their Election.
For those of you who want to help out with one of these races, but you don’t live near the state, check out 9 Ways to Help a Campaign From Afar.
Be sure to follow your favorite Democratic candidates on social media and share information about their campaigns on your accounts, as well as how people can donate to their campaigns.
Keep an eye out for postcarding campaigns to help these elections at sites like Postcards for Voters.
Get involved with a texting campaign to register voters in these states and/or turn them out on election day. There are several organizations that run texting campaigns, but I can personally vouch for Open Progress and can attest to how great their program works.
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I appreciate your coverage of these races. The spotlight is on the presidential race, but the reality is that there are other important races as well, including ones for governor.
Down ballot races are critical. It’s true every year, but in 2020 they take on even more significance.