2020 United States elections

The United States presidential election of 2020 will be the 59th quadrennial U.S. presidential election. Incumbent Republicans Donald Trump and Mike Pence are both eligible for re-election as President of the United States and Vice President of the United States respectively.[1]

Other parties, including the Democratic Party and various third parties, will also field presidential candidates. Like the Republican primaries, the 2020 Democratic primaries will take place from early 2020 to mid-2020. The Democratic ticket will be nominated at the 2020 Democratic National Convention, held in July 2020. Other parties will conduct various processes to choose their presidential tickets, and independent candidates may also seek the presidency.

The individual who wins a majority of the presidential electoral vote (270 of the 538 electoral votes) will win the presidential election. The current electoral vote distribution was determined by the 2010 census. Each elector is chosen by the states and is charged with casting one vote for president and one vote for vice president. Most states award all their electoral votes to the individual who wins a majority or plurality of that state's popular vote, although two states award electors by congressional districts. If no individual wins a majority of the electoral vote, then the United States House of Representatives will hold a contingent election to determine the winner.[lower-alpha 2] The vice president is selected in a similar manner, though a contingent election will be held in the United States Senate if no individual receives a majority of the vice presidential electoral vote.

At least 35 of the 100 seats in the United States Senate will be up for election. All seats of Senate Class II will be up for election; the winners of those elections will serve six-year terms. Additionally, Arizona and Georgia will hold special elections to a fill Class III Senate vacancies; the winners of those elections will serve two-year terms. Other states may also hold special elections.

Republicans won control of the Senate in the 2014 Senate elections. They retained that majority through the 2016 and 2018 Senate elections. Republicans currently hold 53 Senate seats, Democrats hold 45, and independents hold two. Both independents have caucused with the Democratic Party since joining the Senate. Barring further vacancies or party switching, 21 Republican-held seats, along with 12 Democratic-held seats, will be up for election. If they win the vice presidency, Democrats will need to achieve a net gain of at least three seats to take the majority; otherwise, they will need to achieve a net gain of at least four seats to take the majority.

All 435 voting seats in the United States House of Representatives will be up for election. The winners of each race will serve a two-year term. Additionally, elections will be held to select the delegate for the District of Columbia as well as the delegates from U.S. territories. This includes the resident commissioner of Puerto Rico, a position with a four-year term.

Democrats won control of the House of Representatives in the 2018 elections, controlling 235 seats while Republicans control 199 seats. One seat is held by an independent.[lower-alpha 4] Winning 218 or more seats determines which party is in the majority.

The following special elections will be held to replace a member who resigned or died in office during the 116th U.S. Congress:

• California's 25th Congressional district: Republican Mike Garcia defeated Democrat Christy Smith to replace Democrat Katie Hill, who announced on October 27, 2019, her intent to resign in the wake of ethics concerns surrounding a relationship with a staffer complicated by her being a victim of revenge porn.[2] The district has an even partisan index.[3]
• Maryland's 7th Congressional district: Democrat Kweisi Mfume defeated Republican Kim Klacik to replace Democrat Elijah Cummings, who died in office on October 17, 2019.[4] The district has a partisan index of D+26.[5]
• New York's 27th Congressional district: Republican Chris Collins resigned from Congress on October 1, 2019, ahead of his pleading guilty to insider trading.[6] Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the special election was delayed until June 23, 2020.[7] The district has a partisan index of R+11.[8]
• Wisconsin's 7th congressional district: Republican Tom Tiffany defeated Democrat Tricia Zunker to replace Republican Sean Duffy, who announced his resignation effective September 23, 2019, ahead of the birth of his ninth child, who was diagnosed in utero with severe medical complications.[9][10] The district has a partisan index of R+7.[11]

Elections will be held for the governorships of 11 U.S. states and two U.S. territories. Special elections may be held for vacancies in the other states and territories, if required by respective state/territorial constitutions. Most elections will be for four-year terms, but the governors of New Hampshire and Vermont each serve two-year terms.

Barring vacancies and party switching, Republicans will be defending seven seats, while Democrats will be defending six seats. At least two Democratic incumbents and at least one Republican incumbent will not seek election to another term.

Partisan control of states after the 2019 elections.

  Democratic trifecta

  Republican trifecta

  Divided government

  Officially non-partisan legislature

Most states will hold state legislative elections in 2020. Alabama, Louisiana, Maryland, Mississippi, New Jersey and Virginia will not hold state legislative elections, Michigan will hold elections only for the lower house, while North Dakota will hold elections only for the upper house. In states that use staggered terms, some state senators will not be up for election. After the 2019 elections, Democrats have 15 trifectas (control of the governor's office and both legislative chambers), Republicans have 20 trifectas, and 14 states have a divided government (Nebraska has a non-partisan legislature).[12][13]

• 2020 California State Assembly election in the State of California
• 2020 California State Senate election in the State of California
• 2020 Florida Senate election in the state of Florida
• 2020 Florida House of Representatives election in the state of Florida
• 2020 Michigan House of Representatives election in the state of Michigan
• 2020 Nevada State Senate election in the state of Nevada
• 2020 Oregon House of Representatives election
• 2020 Oregon State Senate election
• 2020 Pennsylvania House of Representatives election in the State of Pennsylvania
• 2020 Pennsylvania Senate election in the State of Pennsylvania

In 2020, 82 state supreme court seats are up for election in 35 states. This constitutes 24% of all state supreme court seats in the country.

A census will be conducted in 2020, after which the United States House of Representatives and state legislatures will undergo redistricting, and the state delegations to the United States House of Representatives will undergo reapportionment. In states without redistricting commissions, the legislators and governors elected between 2017 and 2020 will draw the new Congressional and state legislative districts that will take effect starting with the 2022 elections. If either party does well in the 2020 elections, they could gain a significant advantage in electing their candidates to the state legislature and the United States House of Representatives until the next round of redistricting in 2030. State supreme courts can also have a significant effect on redistricting, as demonstrated in Pennsylvania and Virginia.[14]

Incumbent mayors won re-election in major cities during 2020, including Bakersfield, California (Karen Goh[15]), Milwaukee, Wisconsin (Tom Barrett[16]), and Sacramento, California (Darrell Steinberg[17]).

An open mayoral seat was won in Fresno, California (Jerry Dyer[18]).

Mayoral elections remain to be held in many cities, including:[19]

• Baltimore, Maryland: Incumbent Democrat Jack Young, who was elevated to mayor following the resignation of Catherine Pugh, is seeking re-election. Election to be held on November 3, 2020.
• Baton Rouge, Louisiana: Incumbent Mayor-President Sharon Weston Broome is running for re-election. Election to be held on November 3, 2020.
• Chesapeake, Virginia: Election to be held on May 5, 2020.
• Corpus Christi, Texas: Incumbent Mayor Joe McComb is seeking re-election. Election to be held on November 3, 2020.
• El Paso, Texas: Election to be held on November 3, 2020.
• Fremont, California: Election to be held on November 3, 2020.
• Gilbert, Arizona: Incumbent Mayor Jenn Daniels declined to seek re-election to a second term. Election to be held on November 3, 2020.
• Glendale, Arizona: Election to be held on November 3, 2020.
• Honolulu, Hawaii: Two-term incumbent Democrat Kirk Caldwell is ineligible to run for reelection due to term limits. Election to be held on November 3, 2020.
• Irving, Texas: Incumbent Mayor Rick Stopfer is eligible to run for re-election. Election to be held on November 3, 2020.
• Lubbock, Texas: Incumbent Mayor Dan Pope is seeking re-election. Election to be held on November 3, 2020.
• Mesa, Arizona: Incumbent Mayor John Giles is seeking re-election. Election to be held on November 3, 2020.
• Miami-Dade County, Florida: Election to be held on August 18, 2020.
• Norfolk, Virginia: Election to be held on May 5, 2020.
• Phoenix, Arizona: Election to be held on November 3, 2020.
• Portland, Oregon: This is a non-partisan office. One-term incumbent Ted Wheeler is eligible to run for reelection. Election to be held on November 3, 2020.
• Richmond, Virginia: Incumbent Democrat Levar Stoney is eligible to run for reelection. He has not announced whether or not he will run for reelection. Election to be held on November 3, 2020.
• Riverside, California: Incumbent Mayor Rusty Bailey declined to seek re-election. A run-off election between city councilman Andy Melendrez and school board member Patricia Lock Dawson, the top-two vote getters in the March 3 primary, will be held on November 3, 2020.[20]
• San Diego, California: This is a non-partisan election. Incumbent Kevin Faulconer is ineligible to run for a third term due to term limits. Election to be held on November 3, 2020.
• San Juan, Puerto Rico: Two-term incumbent Popular Democrat Carmen Yulín Cruz is eligible to run for reelection, but has said she plans to run for governor.[21]
• Santa Ana, California: Election to be held on November 3, 2020.
• Scottsdale, Arizona: Election to be held on November 3, 2020.
• Stockton, California: Incumbent Mayor Michael Tubbs faces Kevin Lincoln II in a run-off election on November 3, 2020.[22]
• Tulsa, Oklahoma: Incumbent Mayor G. T. Bynum is seeking a second term. Election to be held on November 3, 2020.
• Virginia Beach, Virginia: Election to be held on November 3, 2020.
• Winston-Salem, North Carolina: Incumbent Mayor Allen Joines is seeking re-election. Election to be held on November 3, 2020.

• One of Washington, D.C.'s, shadow senators and its shadow representative, who are charged with lobbying Congress for D.C. statehood, are up for election.
• A California veto referendum funded by the American Bail Coalition PAC will decide whether to uphold SB10, which replaces cash bail with risk assessments for suspects who are detained in jail awaiting trial.
• A veto referendum in Colorado will decide whether to allow the state to join the National Popular Vote Interstate Compact or retain the traditional membership in the Electoral College in presidential elections.
• A Florida constitutional amendment initiative seeks to narrow the right to vote in any Florida election exclusively to citizens, replacing language in the state constitution stating "every citizen" has the right to vote with "only a citizen."
• A Maine veto referendum sought to overturn a new law which eliminates religious and philosophical exemptions from mandatory vaccinations for K-12 and college students and employees of healthcare facilities. It failed by a wide margin on the March primary ballot.
• Constitutional amendments to remove penal exceptions from state constitutions will be on the ballot in Nebraska and Utah.
• A legislatively-referred ballot question in New Jersey will allow voters to decide on legalization of recreational cannabis.
• The legalization of medical marijuana will be on the ballot in South Dakota.