The Democrats' election night victory extended to a number of gubernatorial races, flipping five previously Republican seats.
Three seats held by outgoing Republicans — Ohio, Iowa, and Georgia — went to Democrats, while two Republican incumbents were dethroned in Texas and Nevada. (RELATED: 'No Downside': Iran War Hawks Get A Midterm Reality Check)
In Nevada, Democratic Attorney General Aaron Ford defeated Republican incumbent Joe Lombardo with 51.7 percent of the vote, with 87 percent of ballots counted, the Associated Press reported.
Ford, a Dallas, Texas, native, campaigned on his story of coming from a working-class family and relying on Medicaid while raising a son as a single father just after his junior year in college.
Now remarried and holding a Ph.D. in education, Ford marketed himself as a supporter of affordable housing, expanding unions, protecting Medicaid and pushing back against artificial intelligence data centers.
The strategy paid off as Ford secured the formerly red state and prepares to be sworn in as governor on January 19.
Texas Democratic Senate candidate, State Rep. James Talarico (R) and Texas Democratic gubernatorial candidate, State Rep. Gina Hinojosa (left) react during a midterm campaign rally at the Bayou Music Center on October 31, 2026 in Houston, Texas. (Photo by Brandon Bell/Getty Images)
Joining Ford is Democratic Gov.-elect Gina Hinojosa, who will officially replace Texas's current Republican Gov. Greg Abbott on the same day. Abbott has held the governor's mansion since 2015.
The AP called the race for Hinojosa, who won 52.8 percent of the vote with 98 percent of ballots counted.
Texas has had only Republican governors since 1994, but the gubernatorial race, along with the U.S. Senate and state House races, all went blue Tuesday, according to the AP.
Despite an initial slight lead in the polls, Cook Political Report showed the race shifting toward Hinojosa, in part due to her "recent shift on data centers."
Polls also started shifting in her favor as she began shedding woke positions on issues such as pronouns, child sex changes, and diversity, equity, and inclusion, instead embracing issues more pressing to Texans, such as the economy.
ATHENS, GEORGIA - SEPTEMBER 13: Keisha Lance Bottoms, Georgia Democratic Gubernatorial candidate, speaks during a campaign event at the Georgia Theater on September 13, 2026 in Athens, Georgia. (Photo by Elijah Nouvelage/Getty Images)
While losses in Texas and Nevada served as a referendum on the Republican incumbents' time in office, open seats in other Republican states led to several political battles, with Democrats winning three of them.
The AP called the Georgia gubernatorial race for Keisha Lance Bottoms, who won 54.3 percent of the vote with 99 percent of ballots counted.
An attorney and former mayor of Atlanta, Bottoms ran on establishing a trust fund to finance housing and rent, offering free community college, expanding Medicaid and repealing more of Georgia's abortion restrictions.
Her opponent, Republican health care executive Rick Jackson, described himself as an outsider and campaigned on slashing taxes, improving affordability and public safety. However, his efforts were not enough to inherit the red seat left by outgoing Republican Gov. Brian Kemp.
Ohio Democratic gubernatorial candidate and former director of the Ohio Department of Health, Dr. Amy Acton, speaks to supporters during a rally on April 28, 2026 in Cincinnati, Ohio. (Photo by Jon Cherry/Getty Images)
The AP also called the Ohio election for Democratic candidate Amy Acton, who won 52.3 percent of the vote.
Former presidential candidate Republican Vivek Ramaswamy failed to keep the gubernatorial seat red despite having raised $82 million for his campaign.
Much of this came after a campaign spot backfired against Ramaswamy, who featured Acton's mother in an ad in which she described her daughter as a liar. Controversy struck as voters realized that Acton's mother had defended her late husband, Acton's stepfather, despite his 1978 indictment by a grand jury for allegedly sexually abusing then-12-year-old Acton.
Acton campaigned on supporting abortion, LGBT rights and Medicaid, as well as cutting taxes on the middle class.
Iowa Governor-elect Rob Sand speaks at a midterm election night watch party with Iowa Democrats at the State Historical Museum of Iowa on November 03, 2026 in Des Moines, Iowa. (Photo by Scott Olson/Getty Images)
Iowa's Democratic Gov.-elect and current Rep. Rob Sand defeated Republican Zach Lahn with 55.5 percent of the statewide vote, according to the AP.
Sand, a state auditor, has campaigned against data centers, promoted universal all-day pre-K and called for reversing the privatization of Medicaid.
Leaked audio has also shown Sand saying he would make Republicans in Iowa wait until after his term to see the desired bipartisan changes, allowing him to exercise more power himself and ensuring that the state's Republicans "take their medicine." (RELATED: Data Centers Made Noise, But Skyrocketing Gasoline And Diesel Prices Decided The Midterms)
Although the AP had not called the gubernatorial races in Kansas and Alaska by publication, both leaned heavily Democratic. Democrats swept Republicans nationally, bringing their total to 28 governors compared to the GOP's 20.
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