Secretary of State elections, 2024
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There were seven secretary of state seats on the ballot in 2024. These elections were in Missouri, Montana, North Carolina, Oregon, Vermont, Washington, and West Virginia.
In 47 states—all except Alaska, Hawaii, and Utah—the secretary of state is among the top executive offices. Although the duties and powers of the secretary of state vary from state to state, a common responsibility is management and oversight of elections and voter rolls, which are assigned to the secretary of state in 41 states. Other common responsibilities include registration of businesses, maintenance of state records, and certification of official documents.
A state government triplex describes when one political party holds the following three positions in a state's government: governor, attorney general, and secretary of state.
Six states impose some form of term limits on the office of the secretary of state.
In 2022, voters decided who would control 35 of the country’s 47 secretary of state offices. Twenty-seven offices were up for election, and eight offices’ appointment authorities were on the ballot. As a result of the 2022 elections, the partisan control of one secretary of state—in Nevada—changed from Republican to Democrat. Democrats won appointment control over another secretary of state—in Maryland—after winning that state's gubernatorial election. All 15 incumbents that ran for re-election—eight Democrats and seven Republicans—were re-elected.
In 2020, Democrats picked up one office. In Oregon, Shemia Fagan (D) won election, succeeding Bev Clarno (R). All five incumbents who sought re-election won. Republicans maintained Montana's office in an open-seat election.
Election results, 2024
Heading into the 2024 elections, there were 26 Republican secretaries of state and 21 Democratic secretaries of state. The office does not exist in Alaska, Hawaii, and Utah. Republicans and Democrats retained control of 26 and 21 secretary of state offices, respectively, following the elections.
There were seven secretary of state offices on the ballot in 2024. These elections were in Missouri, Montana, North Carolina, Oregon, Vermont, Washington, and West Virginia. Democrats held the office in four of these states and Republicans in three. Four incumbents ran for re-election, while three did not.
Democrats retained control of the secretary of state in North Carolina, Oregon, Vermont, and Washington. Republicans retained control in Missouri, Montana, and West Virginia.
In four other states—Delaware, Maine, New Hampshire, and Tennessee—other elections on the ballot determined the appointment of secretaries of state. Democrats retained appointing authority over the secretary of state in Delaware and Maine, and Republicans retained authority in Tennessee and New Hampshire.
Ballotpedia identified the secretary of state election in North Carolina as a battleground.
List of secretary of state elections
There were four Democratic-held secretary of state offices and three Republican-held secretary of state offices on the ballot in 2024. The table below shows which states held secretary of state elections in 2024.
| Secretary of State elections, 2024 | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| State | Incumbent | Incumbent running? | Election winner | Last time office changed parties | 2020 presidential result | 2020 secretary of state result[1] | 2024 election result |
| Missouri |  Jay Ashcroft |
No[2] | Denny Hoskins |
2017 | R+15.4 | R+24.1 | R+15.4 |
| Montana | Christi Jacobsen |
Yes | Christi Jacobsen |
2017 | R+16.4 | R+19.2 | R+24.2 |
| North Carolina |  Elaine Marshall |
Yes | Elaine Marshall |
1901 | R+1.3 | D+2.4 | D+1.8 |
| Oregon | LaVonne Griffin-Valade[3] |
No[4] | Tobias Read |
2021 | D+16.1 | D+7.1 | D+7.8 |
| Vermont | Sarah Copeland Hanzas |
Yes | Sarah Copeland Hanzas |
1999 | D+35.1 | D+30.0 | D+19.2 |
| Washington | Steve Hobbs |
Yes | Steve Hobbs |
2021 | D+19.2 | D+3.8 | D+19.3 |
| West Virginia | Mac Warner |
No[5] | Kris Warner |
2017 | R+38.9 | R+16.6 | R+44.6 |
List of candidates
The table below contains a list of all candidates for secretary of state in 2024. The table is fully searchable by candidate, party and candidacy status. Depending on the size of your screen, you'll either see a menu to the left of the table or an arrow at the top right corner, which you can use to select a state.
| candidate | party | office | status |
|---|---|---|---|
 | Republican | Won General | |
 | Republican | Lost Primary | |
Republican | Lost Primary | ||
 | Republican | Lost Primary | |
Republican | Lost Primary | ||
Republican | Lost Primary | ||
 | Republican | Lost Primary | |
 | Republican | Lost Primary | |
Democratic | Lost Primary | ||
Democratic | Lost General | ||
Democratic | Lost Primary | ||
 | Green | Lost General | |
Libertarian | Lost General | ||
 | Republican | Withdrew Primary |
= candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
| candidate | party | office | status |
|---|---|---|---|
 Christi Jacobsen Incumbent | Republican | Won General | |
 | Democratic | Lost General | |
 | Libertarian | Lost General |
= candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
| candidate | party | office | status |
|---|---|---|---|
 Elaine Marshall Incumbent | Democratic | Won General | |
Republican | Lost General | ||
Republican | Lost Primary | ||
Republican | Lost Primary | ||
 | Republican | Withdrew Primary |
= candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
| candidate | party | office | status |
|---|---|---|---|
 | Democratic, Working Families Party, Independent Party | Won General | |
Republican | Lost Primary | ||
 | Republican | Lost Primary | |
 | Democratic | Lost Primary | |
 | Democratic | Lost Primary | |
 | Democratic | Lost Primary | |
Democratic | Lost Primary | ||
Progressive Party, Pacific Green Party | Lost General | ||
Republican, Constitution Party | Lost General | ||
No Party Affiliation | Withdrew General |
= candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
| candidate | party | office | status |
|---|---|---|---|
 | Democratic | Won General | |
 | Republican | Lost General |
= candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
| candidate | party | office | status |
|---|---|---|---|
 | Democratic | Won General | |
 | Republican | Lost General | |
 | Democratic | Lost Primary | |
No Labels Party | Lost Primary | ||
 | Republican | Withdrew Primary |
= candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
| candidate | party | office | status |
|---|---|---|---|
 | Republican | Won General | |
 | Republican | Lost Primary | |
 | Republican | Lost Primary | |
 | Republican | Lost Primary | |
Democratic | Lost General |
= candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
What's on your ballot?
- See also: Sample Ballot Lookup
Partisan balance
The following table displays the number of secretary of state offices held by each party before and after the 2024 elections.
| U.S. secretaries of state partisan breakdown | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Party | As of the 2024 elections | After the 2024 elections | |
| Democratic Party | 21 | 21 | |
| Republican Party | 26 | 26 | |
| Total | 47 | 47 | |
Triplexes
As of May 10, 2025, there are 25 Republican triplexes, 20 Democratic triplexes, and 5 divided governments where neither party holds triplex control.
Historical control
In 1977, the Democratic Party held a total of 25 elected secretary of state offices to the Republican Party's 10. The Democratic lead in secretary of state offices narrowed somewhat throughout the 1980s, but once again reached a 25-10 majority of elected offices in 1989 and 1990. Following the 1994 midterm elections, the Republican Party gained an 18-17 majority of elected secretary of state offices. The Democrats would regain their lead following the 2008 presidential election but lose it once again in the 2010 midterm elections. The gap between the parties widened following the 2016 elections, which increased the Republican majority of elected secretary of state offices from 21-14 to 24-11. Democrats picked up three net seats in the 2018 elections, and North Dakota incumbent Secretary of State Al Jaeger won re-election as an independent, leaving Republicans with a 20-14 majority. One seat switched from Democrat to Republican in the 2019 elections, one switched from Republican to Democrat in 2020, and Jaeger returned to identifying as a Republican, which returned the margin of elected secretaries of state to 21-14 in favor of Republicans. Democrats gained one elected secretary of state office in the 2022 elections, leaving Republicans with a 20-15 majority.
Important dates and deadlines
The following table details 2024 statewide filing deadlines and primary dates. The signature filing deadline was the date by which candidates had to file nominating signatures with election officials in order to have their name placed on the ballot.
| State | Primary date | Primary runoff date | Filing deadline for primary candidates | Source |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Alabama | 3/5/2024 | 4/16/2024 | 11/10/2023 | Source |
| Alaska | 8/20/2024 | N/A | 6/1/2024 | Source |
| Arizona | 7/30/2024 | N/A | 4/1/2024 | Source |
| Arkansas | 3/5/2024 | 4/2/2024 | 11/14/2023 | Source |
| California | 3/5/2024 | N/A | 12/8/2023 | Source |
| Colorado | 6/25/2024 | N/A | 3/19/2024 | Source |
| Connecticut | 8/13/2024 | N/A | 6/11/2024 | Source |
| Delaware | 9/10/2024 | N/A | 7/9/2024 | Source |
| Florida | 8/20/2024 | N/A | 4/26/2024[6] | Source |
| Georgia | 5/21/2024 | 6/18/2024 | 3/8/2024 | Source |
| Hawaii | 8/10/2024 | N/A | 6/4/2024 | Source |
| Idaho | 5/21/2024 | N/A | 3/15/2024 | Source |
| Illinois | 3/19/2024 | N/A | 12/4/2023 | Source |
| Indiana | 5/7/2024 | N/A | 2/9/2024 | Source |
| Iowa | 6/4/2024 | N/A | 3/15/2024[7] | Source |
| Kansas | 8/6/2024 | N/A | 6/3/2024 | Source |
| Kentucky | 5/21/2024 | N/A | 1/5/2024 | Source |
| Louisiana | 11/5/2024 | N/A | 7/19/2024 | Source |
| Maine | 6/11/2024 | N/A | 3/15/2024 | Source |
| Maryland | 5/14/2024 | N/A | 2/9/2024 | Source |
| Massachusetts | 9/3/2024 | N/A | 6/4/2024 | Source |
| Michigan | 8/6/2024 | N/A | 4/23/2024 | Source |
| Minnesota | 8/13/2024 | N/A | 6/4/2024 | Source |
| Mississippi | 3/12/2024 | 4/2/2024 | 1/12/2024 | Source |
| Missouri | 8/6/2024 | N/A | 3/26/2024 | Source |
| Montana | 6/4/2024 | N/A | 3/11/2024 | Source |
| Nebraska | 5/14/2024 | N/A | 3/1/2024[8] | Source |
| Nevada | 6/11/2024 | N/A | 3/15/2024[9] | Source |
| New Hampshire | 9/10/2024 | N/A | 6/14/2024 | Source |
| New Jersey | 6/4/2024 | N/A | 3/25/2024 | Source |
| New Mexico | 6/4/2024 | N/A | 2/6/2024[10] | Source |
| New York | 6/25/2024 | N/A | 4/4/2024 | Source |
| North Carolina | 3/5/2024 | 5/14/2024 | 12/15/2023 | Source |
| North Dakota | 6/11/2024 | N/A | 4/8/2024 | Source |
| Ohio | 3/19/2024 | N/A | 12/20/2023 | Source |
| Oklahoma | 6/18/2024 | 8/27/2024 | 4/5/2024 | Source |
| Oregon | 5/21/2024 | N/A | 3/12/2024 | Source |
| Pennsylvania | 4/23/2024 | N/A | 2/13/2024 | Source |
| Rhode Island | 9/10/2024 | N/A | 6/26/2024 | Source |
| South Carolina | 6/11/2024 | 6/25/2024 | 4/1/2024 | Source |
| South Dakota | 6/4/2024 | 7/30/2024 | 3/26/2024 | Source |
| Tennessee | 8/1/2024 | N/A | 4/4/2024 | Source |
| Texas | 3/5/2024 | 5/28/2024 | 12/11/2023 | Source |
| Utah | 6/25/2024 | N/A | 1/8/2024 | Source |
| Vermont | 8/13/2024 | N/A | 5/30/2024 | Source |
| Virginia[11] | 6/18/2024 | N/A | 4/4/2024 | Source |
| Washington | 8/6/2024 | N/A | 5/10/2024 | Source |
| West Virginia | 5/14/2024 | N/A | 1/27/2024 | Source |
| Wisconsin | 8/13/2024 | N/A | 6/3/2024 | Source |
| Wyoming | 8/20/2024 | N/A | 5/31/2024 | Source |
Results from the 2022 elections
Voters decided who would control 35 of the country’s 47 secretary of state offices in the 2022 elections. Twenty-seven offices were up for election, and eight offices’ appointment authorities were on the ballot.
The partisan control of two secretary of state offices changed from Republican to Democrat.
- In Nevada, Cisco Aguilar (D) was elected secretary of state, succeeding incumbent Barbara Cegavske (R), who was term-limited.
- Democrats won appointment control over Maryland's secretary of state after winning that state's gubernatorial election. Wes Moore (D) was elected governor of Maryland, succeeding Larry Hogan (R), who was term-limited. At the time of the election, Maryland had a Republican secretary of state that Hogan appointed.
In the nine elections Ballotpedia designated as battlegrounds, five were in states with Democratic incumbents, and four were in states with Republican incumbents. Only the Nevada race changed partisan control from Republican to Democrat. All 15 incumbents that ran for re-election—eight Democrats and seven Republicans—were re-elected.
About the office
Method of selection
Although the position of secretary of state is popularly elected in the majority of states, it is an appointed position in 12 states. Of those 12, the governor is given the power of appointment in nine, while the state Legislature appoints the secretary of state in the remaining three.
Partisan affiliation
Compensation
According to compensation figures for 2017 compiled by the Council of State Governments in the Book of the States, the highest salary for a secretary of state is $195,972 in Tennessee, while the lowest is $68,500 in Colorado. To view the compensation of a specific secretary of state, hover your mouse cursor over the state.[12]
In 37 states, the secretary of state is the chief elections officer with ultimate oversight over state elections and voter registration.[13]
Ballot measures
In 23 states, the secretary of state is responsible for receiving and certifying ballot measure petitions.[13]
Political party eligibility
In 36 states, the secretary of state is responsible for determining which parties qualify for major-party ballot access.[13]
Term limits
16 states impose some form of term limits on the office of secretary of state.
Historical control
In 1977, the Democratic Party held a total of 25 elected secretary of state offices to the Republican Party's 10. The Democratic lead in secretary of state offices narrowed somewhat throughout the 1980s, but once again reached a 25-10 majority of elected offices in 1989 and 1990. Following the 1994 midterm elections, the Republican Party gained an 18-17 majority of elected secretary of state offices. The Democrats would regain their lead following the 2008 presidential election but lose it once again in the 2010 midterm elections. The gap between the parties widened following the 2016 elections, which increased the Republican majority of elected secretary of state offices from 21-14 to 24-11.
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Footnotes
- ↑ 2022 election for Vermont.
- ↑ Ashcroft announced that he was running for governor on April 6, 2023.
- ↑ Griffin-Valade was sworn in on June 30, 2023. Shemia Fagan (D), who was elected in 2020, resigned on May 8, 2023.
- ↑ Griffin-Valade said she did not plan to seek election to the office in 2024.
- ↑ Warner announced that he was running for governor on January 10, 2023.
- ↑ This deadline was for the following offices: U.S. Congress, state attorney, public defender, state supreme court, district appeals court, circuit court. The filing deadline for state senator, state representative, county office, and special districts was 6/14/2024.
- ↑ This deadline was for U.S. Congress and state offices. The filing deadline for county offices was 3/22/2024.
- ↑ This filing deadline is for non-incumbents. Incumbents must file by 2/15/2024.
- ↑ This filing deadline is for non-judicial candidates. The filing deadline for judicial candidates was 1/12/2024.
- ↑ This deadline was for candidates seeking pre-primary designation. The filing deadline for all other candidates was 3/12/2024.
- ↑ In Virginia, the Democratic and Republican parties form committees to decide on the method of nomination used for congressional races. These non-primary methods of nomination may take place on a date other than the statewide primary.
- ↑ Council of State Governments, "Book of the States 2017 - Selected State Administrative Officials: Annual Salaries," accessed December 3, 2017
- ↑ 13.0 13.1 13.2 Council of State Governments, "Book of the States 2017 - Secretaries of State: Election and Registration Duties," accessed December 3, 2017
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