State showdowns

Governors

Candidates are competing in open races in half of the 36 governorships up for grabs. Cook classifies four contests as true toss-ups: Georgia, Nevada, Wisconsin, and Ohio. Another four races—Arizona. Iowa, Michigan, and Oregon—lean Democratic, while Alaska and Kansas lean slightly Republican.

Wisconsin

Moderate Democrat David Crowley, county executive for Milwaukee, bested state representative Francesca Hong, a progressive Democrat with ties to the DSA, in his party’s primary. But Crowley only managed to eke out a narrow victory, much to the chagrin of establishment Democrats watching democratic socialists gain ground, even in purple states. Trump endorsed Crowley’s Republican opponent, U.S. Rep. Tom Tiffany, who argued on X that Wisconsin will “be the firewall that stops socialism from spreading across America.”

Iowa

Chemical pollution, the state’s water quality, and cancer rates are shaping up to be consequential issues in the Hawkeye State’s gubernatorial race. Democratic nominee Rob Sand, Iowa’s state auditor, and Republican Zach Lahn, a businessman and farmer, are championing different sets of policies to incentivize farmers to take measures to prevent runoff. The pair are competing in an open race to replace outgoing Republican Gov. Kim Reynolds.

Nevada

Republican incumbent Gov. Joe Lombardo is running against Aaron Ford, the state’s Democratic attorney general. Nevada’s unaffiliated voter population has risen in recent years. Trump became the first Republican to win the state since George W. Bush in 2004.

Ohio

Republicans’ odds of winning the governorship fell over the summer, and Cook moved the race from “lean Republican” to “toss-up.” Republican nominee and former presidential candidate Vivek Ramaswamy is in a deadlocked race against Democratic nominee Amy Acton, a physician and the former director of the Ohio Department of Health.

Georgia

Democrat Keisha Lance Bottoms, former Atlanta mayor, is facing off against Republican Rick Jackson to replace outgoing Republican Gov. Brian Kemp who has reached his two-term limit. Jackson, founder and CEO of a healthcare staffing company, has positioned himself as a businessman outsider calling for tax cuts. The Peach State last elected a Democratic governor in 1998.

Ballot Measures

Measures for consideration range from picking a state gun in Idaho to requiring schools to conduct the Pledge of Allegiance daily and allow students to initiate prayer in class.

Gender

Voters in Arizona, Colorado, Missouri, Nebraska, and Washington will weigh constitutional amendments aimed at ­protecting children from gender-­affirming treatments and ensuring boys ­cannot play on girls sports teams.

Citizenship

Six states—Alaska, Arizona, Arkansas, Kansas, South Dakota, and West Virginia—will consider amending state constitutions to clarify that noncitizens cannot vote in elections. The ballot measures also require voters to pre­sent a valid form of photo ID.

Abortion

Voters in Missouri are considering a measure to overturn a constitutional amendment that legalized abortion until the baby is able to survive outside of the womb. Virginia, Nevada, and Idaho voters will weigh amendments that would enshrine a right to abortion into their state constitutions or create a new law guaranteeing abortion access.

See our Election Day guide for more races to watch: Senate and House.