The following table shows all the U.S. states and to what party (Democratic or Republican) their state governors belong. Also indicated is the majority party of the state legislatures' upper and lower houses. (Nebraska's legislature has only one house and is officially non-partisan, though party affiliation still has an unofficial influence on the legislative process.)

Throughout most of the 20th century, although the Republican party often held power at a national level, the Democratic party held almost uncontested power at the state level, especially in the solid South, where the Republican party was virtually nonexistent. (For much of the 20th century, North Dakota was a one-party Republican state, the only one in the country.)

However, in the 1970s and 1980s, the Republicans slowly increased their strength in the state legislatures, especially in the South, where the increasingly Republican party took the place of the Democrats, who had been tainted by their party's support for the Civil Rights Movement starting in the 1940s. In the 1990s, the Republicans finally overtook the Democrats in holding majorities in statehouses and governorships.

The Republican lead, however, is based on a slim majority overall, with Democrats holding 3,626 elected seats, only 57 fewer than the Republicans' 3,683.

Current Party Strength

Totals

Governor

• Democratic: 22
• Republican: 28

Upper House Majority

• Democratic: 25 (949 seats)
• Republican: 25 (966 seats)
• 3 seats undecided

Lower House Majority

• Democratic: 24 (2,709 seats)
• Republican: 25 (2,685 seats)
• No lower house: 1
• 2 seats undecided

Regional Breakdowns

Because local and regional political circumstances often have an influence on party strength, it can be interesting to analyze party strength on a regional basis.

Historical Party Strength

The following table shows how many legislatures were controlled outright by each party.

See also:

• Political Party Strength in Ohio