2026 Governor Elections: Complete Race and Candidate Guide

Thirty-six governorships are on the ballot in 2026, with voters choosing state executives who will shape policy, budgets and election administration for the next several years. The class is evenly divided between 18 Democratic-held and 18 Republican-held seats. Election Day is Tuesday, November 3, 2026.

This guide tracks every 2026 governor race, the incumbent or open-seat status, the major-party field and the latest Cook Political Report rating. Candidate information will be updated as the final September primaries and remaining runoff are completed.

2026 governor elections at a glance

Complete list of 2026 governor races and candidates

Table last updated August 21, 2026. Candidate and nomination status will be revised as the remaining primaries and runoff are completed. Use the search box to find a state or candidate.

State	Incumbent / Seat Status	Democratic Candidate	Republican Candidate	Cook Rating
Alabama	Kay Ivey (R) — term-limited	Doug Jones	Tommy Tuberville	Solid R
Alaska	Mike Dunleavy (R) — term-limited	Tom Begich; Jonathan Kreiss-Tomkins	Click Bishop; Dave Bronson; Treg Taylor; Bernadette Wilson	Likely R
Arizona	Katie Hobbs (D) — running	Katie Hobbs	Andy Biggs	Lean D
Arkansas	Sarah Huckabee Sanders (R) — running	Fredrick Love	Sarah Huckabee Sanders	Solid R
California	Gavin Newsom (D) — term-limited	Xavier Becerra	Steve Hilton	Solid D
Colorado	Jared Polis (D) — term-limited	Phil Weiser	Victor Marx	Solid D
Connecticut	Ned Lamont (D) — running	Ned Lamont	Ryan Fazio	Solid D
Florida	Ron DeSantis (R) — term-limited	David Jolly	Byron Donalds	Solid R
Georgia	Brian Kemp (R) — term-limited	Keisha Lance Bottoms	Rick Jackson	Toss-up
Hawaii	Josh Green (D) — running	Josh Green	Gary Cordery	Solid D
Idaho	Brad Little (R) — running	Terri Pickens	Brad Little	Solid R
Illinois	JB Pritzker (D) — running	JB Pritzker	Darren Bailey	Solid D
Iowa	Kim Reynolds (R) — retiring	Rob Sand	Zach Lahn	Lean D
Kansas	Laura Kelly (D) — term-limited	Cindy Holscher	Ty Masterson	Lean R
Maine	Janet Mills (D) — term-limited	Hannah Pingree	Robert B. Charles	Solid D
Maryland	Wes Moore (D) — running	Wes Moore	Dan Cox	Solid D
Massachusetts	Maura Healey (D) — running; primary Sept. 1	Maura Healey	Primary: Brian Shortsleeve; Mike Minogue	Solid D
Michigan	Gretchen Whitmer (D) — term-limited	Jocelyn Benson	John James	Lean D
Minnesota	Tim Walz (D) — retiring	Amy Klobuchar	Lisa Demuth	Solid D
Nebraska	Jim Pillen (R) — running	Lynne Walz	Jim Pillen	Solid R
Nevada	Joe Lombardo (R) — running	Aaron Ford	Joe Lombardo	Toss-up
New Hampshire	Kelly Ayotte (R) — running; primary Sept. 8	Cinde Warmington	Kelly Ayotte	Likely R
New Mexico	Michelle Lujan Grisham (D) — term-limited	Deb Haaland	Gregg Hull	Solid D
New York	Kathy Hochul (D) — running	Kathy Hochul	Bruce Blakeman	Solid D
Ohio	Mike DeWine (R) — term-limited	Amy Acton	Vivek Ramaswamy	Toss-up
Oklahoma	Kevin Stitt (R) — term-limited; GOP runoff pending	Cyndi Munson	Runoff: Gentner Drummond; Mike Mazzei	Solid R
Oregon	Tina Kotek (D) — running	Tina Kotek	Christine Drazan	Likely D
Pennsylvania	Josh Shapiro (D) — running	Josh Shapiro	Stacy Garrity	Solid D
Rhode Island	Dan McKee (D) — running; primary Sept. 8	Primary: Dan McKee; Helena Foulkes; others	Primary: Aaron Guckian; Elaine Pelino; others	Solid D
South Carolina	Henry McMaster (R) — term-limited	Jermaine Johnson	Alan Wilson	Solid R
South Dakota	Larry Rhoden (R) — running	Dan Ahlers	Larry Rhoden	Solid R
Tennessee	Bill Lee (R) — term-limited	Jerri Green	Marsha Blackburn	Solid R
Texas	Greg Abbott (R) — running	Gina Hinojosa	Greg Abbott	Likely R
Vermont	Phil Scott (R) — running	Amanda Janoo	Phil Scott	Solid R
Wisconsin	Tony Evers (D) — retiring	David Crowley	Tom Tiffany	Toss-up
Wyoming	Mark Gordon (R) — term-limited	Kenneth Casner	Eric Barlow	Solid R

Governor races to watch in 2026

The most competitive contests are concentrated in a mix of open seats and closely divided states. Cook Political Report currently rates Georgia, Nevada, Ohio and Wisconsin as Toss-ups. Arizona, Iowa, Kansas and Michigan are also competitive, while Alaska, New Hampshire, Oregon and Texas sit one step further from the center of the ratings scale.

Major open-seat contests

• Georgia: Term-limited Republican Gov. Brian Kemp leaves an open race between Democrat Keisha Lance Bottoms and Republican Rick Jackson.
• Ohio: Republican Gov. Mike DeWine is term-limited, producing a closely watched contest between Democrat Amy Acton and Republican Vivek Ramaswamy.
• Wisconsin: Democratic Gov. Tony Evers is retiring. Democrat David Crowley and Republican Tom Tiffany are competing for the open seat.
• Michigan: Democratic Gov. Gretchen Whitmer is term-limited. Democrat Jocelyn Benson and Republican John James lead the major-party tickets, while independent Mike Duggan adds another important dimension to the race.
• Iowa: Republican Gov. Kim Reynolds is retiring, and Cook currently gives Democrat Rob Sand a narrow advantage in the open-seat contest.

How this guide is maintained

Candidate status is compiled from state election filings and current election coverage, including Ballotpedia’s 2026 gubernatorial election coverage. Race ratings follow the Cook Political Report governor ratings, updated August 20, 2026. The overall election count and term-limit status are also cross-checked against the 270toWin governor election map.

Ratings describe the current competitive position of a race, not a prediction of the final vote. This page will be updated when nominees change, ratings move or ballot access is finalized.