Category Archives: Politics

U.S. Senate Seats Up for Reelection

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[This blog post was updated on April 19, 2024]

Of the current 100 Senators, 48 are Democrats, 49 are Republicans, and 3 are Independents.

If we’ve learned anything from the 2022 elections, it’s that one senator can make a significant difference on some extremely consequential issues, especially if the party control of the Senate is close.

It’s never too early for reelection vision time. The time to start organizing is now.

There are a total of 535 Members of Congress. 100 serve in the U.S. Senate, and 435 serve in the U.S. House of Representatives.

Each state sends two Senators to represent their state in the U.S. Senate. In the Senate, the majority has the power to schedule when various bills come to the floor for voting, but a single Senator can slow legislation from coming to the floor for a vote.

Since debate in the Senate is not concluded until 60 Senators vote for a cloture motion to approve a bill for consideration, the majority must also coordinate with the minority party to set the rules for debate on legislation.

Under this system, legislation can be debated for one or two weeks on the Senate floor alone.

Senators serve a six-year term, and elections to the Senate are staggered over even years so that approximately 1/3 of the Senate is up for reelection during any election.

To contact your Senator, click here.

Below are the Senate seats up for reelection in alphabetical order by political party, reelection year, and state.

Democrats up for reelection in 2024:

California: Laphonza Butler (Not running for re-election)

Connecticut: Chris Murphy

Delaware: Tom Carper (Retiring)

Hawaii: Mazie Hirono

Maryland: Ben Cardin (Retiring)

Massachusetts: Elizabeth Warren

Michigan: Debbie Stabenow (Retiring)

Minnesota: Amy Klobuchar

Montana: Jon Tester

Nevada: Jacky Rosen

New Jersey: Bob Menendez (Won’t seek re-election as a Democrat, but didn’t rule out in Independent bid)

New Mexico: Martin Heinrich

New York: Kirsten Gillibrand

Ohio: Sherrod Brown

Pennsylvania: Bob Casey Jr.

Rhode Island: Sheldon Whitehouse

Virginia: Tim Kaine

Washington: Maria Cantwell

West Virginia: Joe Manchin (Retiring)

Wisconsin: Tammy Baldwin

Independents up for reelection in 2024:

Arizona: Kyrsten Sinema (Retiring)

Maine: Angus King

Vermont: Bernie Sanders

Republicans up for reelection in 2024:

Florida: Rick Scott

Indiana: Mike Braun (Braun is running for Governor in 2024. Representative Jim Banks announced he will run for Braun’s Senate seat.)

Mississippi: Roger Wicker

Missouri: Josh Hawley

Nebraska: Deb Fischer

North Dakota: Kevin Cramer

Oklahoma: Markwayne Mullin

Tennessee: Marsha Blackburn

Texas: Ted Cruz

Utah: Mitt Romney (Retiring)

Wyoming: John Barrasso

Democrats up for reelection in 2026:

Colorado: John Hickenlooper

Delaware: Chris Coons

Georgia: Jon Ossoff

Illinois: Dick Durbin

Massachusetts: Ed Markey

Michigan: Gary Peters

Minnesota: Tina Smith

New Hampshire: Jeanne Shaheen

New Jersey: Cory Booker

New Mexico: Ben Ray Lujan

Oregon: Jeff Merkley

Rhode Island: Jack Reed

Virginia: Mark Warner

Republicans up for reelection in 2026:

Alabama: Tommy Tuberville

Alaska: Dan Sullivan

Arkansas: Tom Cotton

Idaho: James Risch

Iowa: Joni Ernst

Kansas: Roger Marshall

Kentucky: Mitch McConnell

Louisiana: Bill Cassidy

Maine: Susan Collins

Mississippi: Cindy Hyde-Smith

Montana: Steve Daines

Nebraska: Ben Sasse

North Carolina: Thom Tillis

South Carolina: Lindsey Graham

South Dakota: Mike Rounds

Tennessee: Bill Hagerty

Texas: John Cornyn

West Virginia: Shelley Moore Capito

Wyoming: Cynthia Lummis

Democrats up for reelection in 2028:

Arizona: Mark Kelly

California: Alex Padilla

Colorado: Michael Bennet

Connecticut: Richard Blumenthal

Georgia: Raphael Warnock

Hawaii: Brian Schatz

Illinois: Tammy Duckworth

Maryland: Chris Van Hollen

Nevada: Catherine Cortez Masto

New Hampshire: Maggie Hassan

New York: Chuck Schumer

Oregon: Ron Wyden

Pennsylvania: John Fetterman

Vermont: Peter Welch

Washington: Patty Murray

Republicans up for reelection in 2028:

Alabama: Katie Britt

Alaska: Lisa Murkowski

Arkansas: John Boozman

Florida: Marco Rubio

Idaho: Mike Crapo

Indiana: Todd Young

Iowa: Chuck Grassley

Kansas: Jerry Moran

Kentucky: Rand Paul

Louisiana: John N. Kennedy

Missouri: Eric Schmitt

North Carolina: Ted Budd

North Dakota:  John Hoeven

Ohio: JD Vance

Oklahoma: James Lankford

South Carolina: Tim Scott

South Dakota: John Thune

Utah: Mike Lee

Wisconsin: Ron Johnson

Secretaries of State – a State-by-State Breakdown

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[This article was updated 11/30/23]

Secretaries of state can’t single-handedly change an election’s results, but they can undermine and disrupt the process and the system in undemocratic ways.

Knowing your secretaries of state can help you better understand your state’s election procedures and make you a more informed voter. And keeping up with your secretary of state’s policy actions, especially election-related ones, can help ensure accountability.

The secretary of state is an official in the state governments of 47 of the 50 states of the United States.

In three states, there is no secretary of state, so the lieutenant governors perform those duties: Alaska (Republican, Kevin Meyer), Hawaii (Democrat, Sylvia Luke), and Utah (Republican, Deidre Henderson).

Of the 50 current Secretaries of State, or Lt. Governors, 28 are Republican, and 22 are Democrats.

In 35 states, the secretary of state is elected by the people and serves a four-year term, except for Vermont, which serves a two-year term.

In the other 12 states, the secretary of state is appointed by either the governor or the state legislature. Maine and New Hampshire General Courts select their secretaries of state for two-year terms.

Below is a state-by-state breakdown of secretaries of state by voter elected or governor/legislator appointed, political party, state, and reelection year where applicable:

DEMOCRATS UP FOR REELECTION IN 2024

North Carolina (Voter Elected): Up for reelection in 2024
Elaine Marshall: Won by 51.2%
Four-year term
Term limit: None

Oregon (Voter Elected): Up for reelection in 2024
Shemia Fagan: Won by 50.3%
Four-year term
Term limit: Eight years in a 12-year period

Vermont (Voter Elected): Up for reelection in 2024
Sarah Copeland Hanzas: Won by 64.9%
Two-year term
Term limit: None

Washington (Voter Elected): Up for reelection in 2024
Steve Hobbs: Won by 49.8%
Four-year term
Term limit: None

DEMOCRATS UP FOR REELECTION IN 2026

Arizona (Voter Elected): Up for reelection in 2026
Adrian Fontes: Won by 52.8%
Four-year term
Term limit: Two Consecutive Terms

California (Voter Elected): Up for reelection in 2026 (Can’t run due to term limits)
Shirley Weber: Won by 57.7%
Four-year term
Term limit: Two Terms

Colorado (Voter Elected): Up for reelection in 2026 (Can’t run due to term limits)
Jena Griswold: Won by 53.6%
Four-year term
Term limit: Two Consecutive Terms

Connecticut: (Voter Elected): Up for reelection in 2026
Stephanie Thomas: Won by 54.9%
Four-year term
Term limit: None

Illinois (Voter Elected): Up for reelection in 2026
Alexi Giannoulias: Won by 53.8%
Four-year term
Term limit: None

Massachusetts (Voter Elected): Up for reelection in 2026
William Galvin: Won by 67.5%
Four-year term
Term limit: None

Michigan (Voter Elected): Up for reelection in 2026 (Can’t run due to term limits)
Jocelyn Benson: Won by 50.8%
Four-year term
Term limit: Two Terms

Minnesota (Voter Elected): Up for reelection in 2026
Steve Simon: Won by 54.5%
Four-year term
Term limit: None

Nevada: (Voter Elected): Up for reelection in 2026
Cisco Aguilar: Won by 48.9%
Four-year term
Term limit: Two Terms

New Mexico: (Voter Elected): Up for reelection in 2026
Maggie Toulouse Oliver: Won by 54.5%
Four-year term
Term limit: Two Consecutive Terms

Rhode Island (Voter Elected): Up for reelection in 2026
Gregg Amore: won by 59.4%
Four-year term
Term limit: Two Consecutive Terms

Wisconsin (Voter Elected): Up for reelection in 2026
Douglas La Follette: Won by 48.3%
Four-year term
Term limit: None

REPUBLICANS UP FOR REELECTION IN 2024

Missouri (Voter Elected): Up for reelection in 2024
Jay Ashcroft: Won by 60.5%
Four-year term
Term limit: None

Montana (Voter Elected): Up for reelection in 2024
Christi Jacobsen: Won by 59.6%
Four-year term
Term limit: Two terms in a 16-year period

West Virginia (Voter Elected): Up for reelection in 2024
Mac Warner: Won by 58.3%
Four-year term
Term limit: None

REPUBLICANS UP FOR REELECTION IN 2026

Alabama (Voter Elected): Up for reelection in 2026  
Wes Allen: Won by 66.3%
Four-year term
Term limit: Two Consecutive Terms

Arkansas (Voter Elected): Up for reelection in 2026 (Can’t run due to term limits)
John Thurston: Won by 67.2%
Four-year term
Term limit: Two Terms

Georgia (Voter Elected): Up for reelection in 2026
Brad Raffensperger: Won by 53.3%
Four-year term
Term limit: None

Idaho (Voter Elected): Up for reelection in 2026
Phil McGrane: Won by 72.4%
Four-year term
Term limit: None

Indiana (Voter Elected): Up for reelection in 2026
Diego Morales: Won by 57.4%
Four-year term
Term limit: Eight out of twelve years

Iowa (Voter Elected): Up for reelection in 2026
Paul Pate: Won by 60.4%
Four-year term
Term limit: None

Kansas (Voter Elected): Up for reelection in 2026
Scott Schwab: Won by 58.8%
Four-year term
Term limit: None

Nebraska (Voter Elected): Up for reelection in 2026
Bob Evnen: Won by 100%
Four-year term
Term limit: None

North Dakota (Voter Elected): Up for reelection in 2026
Michael Howe: Won by 63.2%
Four-year term
Term limit: None

Ohio (Voter Elected): Up for reelection in 2026 (Can’t run due to term limits)
Frank LaRose: Won by 59.6%
Four-year term
Term limit: Two Consecutive Terms

South Carolina (Voter Elected): Up for reelection in 2026
Mark Hammond: Won by 63.3%
Four-year term
Term limit: None

South Dakota (Voter Elected): Up for reelection in 2026
Monae Johnson: Won by 64.5%
Four-year term
Term limit: Two Consecutive Terms

Wyoming (Voter Elected): Up for reelection in 2026
Chuck Gray: Won by 91.6%
Four-year term
Term limit: None

REPUBLICANS UP FOR REELECTION IN 2027

Kentucky (Voter Elected): Up for reelection in 2027 (Can’t run due to term limits)
Michael Adams
Four-year term
Term limit: Two Consecutive Terms

Louisiana (Voter Elected): Up for reelection in 2027
Nancy Landry
Four-year term
Term limit: None

Mississippi (Voter Elected): Up for reelection in 2027
Michael D. Watson, Jr
Four-year term
Term limit: None

DEMOCRAT SECRETARIES OF STATE APPOINTED BY THE GOVERNOR OR STATE LEGISLATURE

Delaware (Governor Elected)
Jeffrey W. Bullock: Assumed Office on 1/21/09
Length of Term: Serves at the pleasure of the Governor
Term limit: None

Maine (Legislator Elected)
Shenna Bellows: Assumed Office on 1/4/21
Length of Term: Two Years
Term limit: Four Consecutive Terms

New Jersey (Governor Elected)
Tahesha Way: Assumed Office on 6/1/18
Length of Term: Serves a term coterminous with the Governor
Term limit: None

New York (Governor Elected)
Robert Rodriguez: Assumed Office on 12/20/21
Length of Term: Until the end of the term of the governor by whom s/he was appointed and until his or her successor is appointed and has qualified
Term limit: None

Pennsylvania (Governor Elected)
Leigh Chapman: Assumed Office on 1/8/22
Length of Term: Serves at the pleasure of the Governor
Term limit: None

REPUBLICAN SECRETARIES OF STATE APPOINTED BY THE GOVERNOR OR STATE LEGISLATURE
Florida (Governor Elected)
Cord Byrd: Assumed Office on 5/17/22
Length of Term: Serves at the pleasure of the Governor
Term limit: None

Maryland (Governor Elected)
John C. Wobensmith: Assumed Office on 1/21/15
Length of Term: Serves at the pleasure of the Governor
Term limit: None

New Hampshire (Legislator Elected)
David Scanlan: Assumed Office on 1/10/22
Length of Term: Two Years
Term limit: None

Oklahoma (Governor Elected)
Brian Bingman: Assumed Office on 2020
Length of Term: Four Years
Term limit: None

Tennessee (Legislator Elected)
Tre Hargett: Assumed Office on 1/15/09
Length of Term: Four Years
Term limit: None

Texas (Governor Elected)
John Scott: Assumed Office on 10/21/21
Length of Term: Serves concurrent with the appointing Governor
Term limit: None

Virginia (Governor Elected)
Kay Coles James: Assumed Office on 1/24/22
Length of Term: Four years
Term limit: None

Governors up for Reelection

Politics

[This blog post was updated on 11/8/23]

Of the fifty current Governors, 26 are Republicans, and 24 are Democrats.

In politics, it’s never too early to start planning.

Governors are the chief executive officers of their state government and control the day-to-day governmental business. A majority of governors also have the authority to appoint state court judges as well, so your vote for Governor is as important as your vote for President.

All but two of the fifty Governors serve four-year terms — the governors of New Hampshire and Vermont serve two-year terms.

To contact your Governor, click here.

Below are the Governors up for reelection in alphabetical order by political party, reelection year, and state.

Democrats up for reelection in 2024:

Delaware: John Carney (Not running due to term limits)

Louisiana: John Bel Edwards (Not running due to term limits)

North Carolina: Roy Cooper (Not running due to term limits)

Washington: Jay Inslee (Retiring)

Republicans up for reelection in 2024:

Indiana: Eric Holcomb (Not running due to term limits) Eric Doden is running for the Republican nomination.

Missouri: Mike Parson (Not running due to term limits) Lieutenant Governor Mike Kehoe is running for the Republican nomination.

Montana: Greg Gianforte 

New Hampshire: Chris Sununu (Retiring)

North Dakota: Doug Burgum 

Utah: Spencer Cox 

Vermont: Phil Scott

West Virginia: Jim Justice (Not running due to term limits) Chris Miller is running for the Republican nomination.

Democrats up for reelection in 2025:

New Jersey: Phil Murphy 

There are no Republicans up for re-election in 2025

Democrats up for reelection in 2026:

Arizona: Katie Hobbs

California: Gavin Newsom 

Colorado: Jared Polis 

Connecticut: Ned Lamont 

Hawaii: Josh Green

Illinois: J.B. Pritzker 

Kansas: Laura Kelly 

Maine: Janet Mills 

Maryland: Wes Moore

Massachusetts: Maura Healey

Michigan: Gretchen Whitmer 

Minnesota: Tim Walz 

New Mexico: Michelle Lujan Grisham 

New York: Kathy Hochul 

Oregon: Tina Kotek

Pennsylvania: Josh Shapiro

Rhode Island: Daniel McKee 

Wisconsin: Tony Evers 

Republicans up for reelection in 2026:

Alabama: Kay Ivey 

Alaska: Mike Dunleavy 

Arkansas: Sarah Huckabee Sanders

Florida: Ron DeSantis 

Georgia: Brian Kemp 

Idaho: Brad Little 

Iowa: Kim Reynolds 

Nebraska: Jim Pillen

Nevada: Joe Lombardo

Ohio: Mike DeWine 

Oklahoma: Kevin Stitt 

South Carolina: Henry McMaster 

South Dakota: Kristi Noem 

Tennessee: Bill Lee 

Texas: Greg Abbott 

Virginia: Glenn Youngkin

Wyoming: Mark Gordon 

Democrats up for reelection in 2027:

Kentucky: Andy Beshear (4-Year Term)

Republicans up for reelection in 2027:

Mississippi: Tate Reeves (4-Year Term) (Not running due to term limits) 

Why Do So Many Elderly Run America?

Politics

According to my research, in 24 out of the previous 32 years, America was led by people born in or before 1946.

Politicians in other countries aren’t old like ours—our two-party system is steadfastly controlled by the elderly, which is why I have long advocated for a third party.

According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the average age of the 117th Congress’ 535 members is 59 years old, and the median is 60 years old.

Overall, the average age for Democrats in Congress is 60, and 58 for Republicans.

That’s old.

The current U.S. Senate (100 members) is the oldest in history, with an average age of 63 years.

The average age of the House of Representatives (435 members) is 58 years.

The age groups with the most significant gains in the 117th Congress compared to the 116th were born in the 1930s and 1960s.

Members in the 80+ and 50-59 both saw gains. Members in the 30-39 age group saw the most significant losses.

Why is Congress so old, and isn’t it far past the time to pass the government leadership baton?

The natural passing of the torch “to a new generation of American leadership,” as John F. Kennedy spoke about, hasn’t even come close to happening.

Maybe the Constitution should be amended to include maximum ages in addition to minimums.

The Constitution requires that a U.S. President be at least 35 years old, been a U.S. resident for at least 14 years, have been born in the U.S., or have at least one U.S. citizen parent.

The youngest elected president was John F. Kennedy, at age 43, in 1963. Bill Clinton was 46, Barack Obama was 47.

Joe Biden, inaugurated in 2021, is the oldest elected president in U.S. history at age 78. Donald Trump was 70, Ronald Reagan was 69, George H.W. Bush was 64.

The Constitution requires that Senators be at least 30 years old, have been a U.S. citizen for at least nine years, and reside in the state they want to represent at the time of election.

The youngest senator is Jon Ossoff (D-GA), age 35, and the youngest person elected to the U.S. Senate since 1980. The next youngest is Josh Hawley (R-MO), age 41.

Ossoff is also the youngest Democrat elected since 1973, when Joe Biden became Delaware’s Senator at age 30.

The two oldest U.S. Senators are both 87 years old. Dianne Feinstein (D-CA) has held her California seat for 30 years since 1992, and Chuck Grassley (D-IA) has held his seat for 41 years since 1981.

Six senators are at least 80, and 23 are in their 70s.

The Constitution requires that Members of the House be at least 25 years old, have been a U.S. citizen for at least seven years, and live in the state they represent (though not necessarily the same district).

Madison Cawthorn (R-NC) is the youngest of the 117th Congress at 26 and the youngest person elected to the U.S. House of Representatives since 1964—a whopping 58 years ago. The second youngest is Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-NY), at 32.

The oldest member of the House of Representatives is Eddie Bernice Johnson (D-TX) at 85, followed by Alcee Hastings (D-FL), Grace Napolitano (D-CA), and Bill Pascrell (D-NJ); all 84 years of age.

Now let’s look at the U.S. Population.

According to Pew, people over 50 make up 34 percent of the U.S. population but 52 percent of the electorate, which means, in simple terms, that our electorate college system does not come close to representing the U.S. populace.

Also, according to Pew, in 2018, the most common age for all Americans was 27, while the most common age for white Americans was 58.

Too many older people, both in Congress and the voter registries, point to just how overrepresented white interests are in the U.S.

And Americans over 55 own two-thirds of the wealth in this country.

According to the 2010 census, the number of Americans over 45 increased by almost 25 million versus 2000.

If in 2018, the most common age for all Americans was 27, why are our government officials so old?

I think it’s a two-part answer.

For those that run: Running for Congress takes money, political skills, and a significant network, and the older people have all three.

For those that vote: According to Wikipedia, voter turnout in the 2020 presidential election was highest among those ages 65 to 74 at 76.0%, while the percentage was lowest among those ages 18 to 24 at 51.4%.

Older people have the money, the political skills, and the network to run, and older people (who are voting for older people) are voting in higher numbers, making the oldest people the holders of the most power.

The highest number of people to turn 65 in U.S. history will be in 2023, so old people aren’t going anywhere anytime soon.

And according to the U.S. Census Bureau, by 2040, the population of American adults aged 65 and older will nearly double.

The bottom line is that if young people don’t start voting, a younger generation won’t take control of America’s leadership until the baby boomers are all dead.

By 2055, it’s estimated that there will still be 30 million people in the United States born before 1965 — most of whom will be boomers.

The younger generation needs to step up their democratic participation and run for office, or at the very least, vote. The future of the United States is in their hands.