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THURSDAY UPDATE: In About 95% of Statewide Races Called So Far, Election Denialism Failed to Gain New Ground

In Races Called as of 1 p.m. ET, Only 5 Non-Incumbent Election Deniers Have Won Statewide Office in 94 Total Races; 9 Incumbent Election Deniers Have Won

Published: 11.10.22

Washington, D.C. States United Action today released the following update on the Election Denier landscape based on election results as of 1 p.m. ET on November 10, 2022. This tracking represents only partial results, as votes are still being counted in many states across the country, including Arizona and Nevada. 

“Running on Election Denial as a platform was a new tactic we saw this year, and the results show that it didn’t work. So far, most of the Election Deniers who have won statewide office were already sitting elected officials in states that voted for Trump,” said Joanna Lydgate, CEO of States United Action. “We’re still waiting on results from Arizona, Nevada, and a few other states, but Americans have already sent a clear message: They believe in our free and fair elections. And they don’t want Election Deniers to have power over their vote.” 

As of 1 p.m. ET on November 10, 2022: 

  • Out of 94 races for statewide office this year, only 5 new Election Deniers have won (5.32% or 5/94) so far. The 9 other Election Deniers who have won were incumbents (in AL, FL, IA, ID, KS, SC, TN, and TX). All 14 races where Election Deniers won were in states that voted to elect Donald Trump in both 2016 and 2020.
    • In 36 races for governor, so far 0 non-incumbent Election Deniers have won. 
    • In 31 races for attorney general, so far only 2 non-incumbent Election Deniers have won.
    • In 27 races for secretary of state, so far only 3 non-incumbent Election Deniers have won. 
  • Looking at the 40 states and D.C. that had statewide elections this year, Election Deniers have so far won fewer than 1 in 6 (14/94 or 14.89%) races for the statewide positions that oversee our elections—governor, attorney general, and secretary of state. 85 races have been called as of reporting. 
    • Races Called So Far: 14 Election Deniers have won a statewide role in election administration in 10 states. 24 Election Deniers have lost races for a statewide role in election administration in 17 states.
    • Governor: Election Deniers have won elections for governor in 5 states. Election Deniers have lost elections for governor in 12 states. Results aren’t final yet in 3 races with Election Deniers.
    • Attorney General: Election Deniers have won elections for attorney general in 6 states. Election Deniers have lost elections for attorney general in 2 states. Results aren’t final yet in 2 races with Election Deniers. 
    • Secretary of State: Election Deniers have won elections for secretary of state in 3 states. Election Deniers have lost elections for secretary of state in 8 states. Results aren’t final yet in 2 races with Election Deniers.

“When you break the results down by incumbents vs. new candidates, it’s apparent that this year’s midterm was a referendum on the Election Denial movement. So far, new Election Denier candidates have only won around 5 percent of all races for statewide office. And there aren’t enough uncalled races left for that trend to shift much. That means that voters in an overwhelming majority of races do not want a new Election Denier in office,” said Thania Sanchez, Senior Vice President of Research and Policy Development at States United Action. 

Review our full pre-election Replacing the Refs tracker, as of October 15, here. We will release a full post-election update to this resource, including deeper analysis of the results and the implications for our free and fair elections, in the coming weeks. 

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About States United Action 

States United Action is a nonpartisan section 501(c)(4) nonprofit organization with a mission to protect our elections and our democracy. States United Action advocates for policies that protect election integrity, hold democracy violators accountable, and prevent political violence that threatens to undermine the will of the American people, and amplifies the voices of state leaders and law enforcement leaders who share these values. To learn more, visit www.statesuniteddemocracy.org/states-united-action.