Gubernatorial elections are a major feature of the 2026 electoral landscape. All told, 36 states choose governors in midterms, making it the main decision point for state executives around the country. To go through some of the most competitive gubernatorial contests, Chief Elections Analyst Geoffrey Skelley welcomed Lou Jacobson to the podcast. Lou is the chief correspondent for PolitiFact and is the chief author for the 2026 Almanac of American Politics. He’s covered politics and elections for many years, and currently writes all about these subjects on the the Almanac of American Politics Substack.
They began with an overview of the 2026 electoral map and how previous midterms in 2002, 2010, and 2018 set the stage for the current situation (2:30). They then turned to some Democratic-held seats in key swing states. In Arizona, Democratic Gov. Katie Hobbs is seeking reelection, and looks likely to face Republican Rep. Andy Biggs in November (9:20). Michigan now looks likely to have a competitive Republican primary, and it’s set to have a three-way general election involving Democrat-turned-independent Mike Duggan, the former mayor of Detroit (15:15). They also spoke briefly about Wisconsin’s open-seat race for governor, which was a greater focus of last week’s conversation about the Badger State (21:06).
Lou and Geoffrey then shifted to some key Republican-held seats that are up for grabs. They started with Georgia, where both parties have very crowded primary races, and where control of the governorship could be critical to future congressional redistricting in the Peach State (23:36). In Iowa, the likely matchup between GOP Rep. Randy Feenstra and Democratic state Auditor Rob Sand will test the state’s recent red lean (31:48). The situation is somewhat similar in Ohio, where the likely contest between Republican Vivek Ramaswamy, a 2024 presidential candidate, and Democrat Amy Acton, the state’s former health director, looks highly competitive (37:58). They then looked at Republican Gov. Joe Lombardo’s reelection chances in Nevada against his likely Democratic opponent, Attorney General Aaron Ford (40:56).
They closed out by examining two states with interesting gubernatorial contests that aren’t traditional battlegrounds. They started with Kansas, where Democratic Gov. Laura Kelly is term-limited and the GOP probably has its best pickup opportunity this cycle (44:40). Then they discussed the messy situation in California, where a crowded primary field has raised the possibility that two Republicans could advance to the general election, locking out Democrats in one of the bluest states in the country (49:35).
