The 2026 United States secretary of state elections are scheduled to be held on November 3, 2026, to elect the secretary of state of twenty-six U.S. states.
November 3, 2026 | ||||||||||||||||
26 secretary of state offices | ||||||||||||||||
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Democratic incumbent Term-limited or retiring Democrat Republican incumbent Term-limited or retiring Republican No election | ||||||||||||||||
The previous secretary of state elections for this group of states took place in 2022. The secretary of state of Vermont serves two-year terms and was last elected in 2024.
These elections will take place concurrently with various other federal, state, and local elections.
Partisan composition
Going into these elections, this class of secretaries of state is made up of 13 Democrats and 13 Republicans. Democrats are defending four states won by Donald Trump in 2024 (Arizona, Michigan, Nevada, and Wisconsin), while Republicans do not hold any states won by Kamala Harris.
Predictions
Several sites and individuals published predictions of competitive seats. These predictions looked at factors such as the strength of the incumbent (if the incumbent was running for reelection) and the other candidates, and the state's partisan lean (reflected in part by the state's Cook Partisan Voting Index rating). The predictions assigned ratings to each seat, indicating the predicted advantage that a party had in winning that seat. Most election predictors used:
- "tossup": no advantage
- "tilt" (used by some predictors): advantage that is not quite as strong as "lean"
- "lean": slight advantage
- "likely": significant, but surmountable, advantage
- "safe" or "solid": near-certain chance of victory
| Constituency | Incumbent | Ratings | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| State | PVI | Secretary of State | Last election | Sabato Aug. 7, 2025 |
| Alabama | R+15 | Wes Allen (retiring) | 65.88% R | Safe R |
| Arizona | R+2 | Adrian Fontes | 52.38% D | Tossup |
| Arkansas | R+15 | Cole Jester (term-limited) | Appointed (2025) | Safe R |
| California | D+12 | Shirley Weber | 60.05% D | Safe D |
| Colorado | D+6 | Jena Griswold (term-limited) | 55.10% D | Safe D |
| Connecticut | D+8 | Stephanie Thomas | 55.22% D | Safe D |
| Georgia | R+1 | Brad Raffensperger (retiring) | 53.23% R | Lean R |
| Idaho | R+18 | Phil McGrane | 72.12% R | Safe R |
| Illinois | D+6 | Alexi Giannoulias | 54.28% D | Safe D |
| Indiana | R+9 | Diego Morales | 54.13% R | Likely R |
| Iowa | R+6 | Paul Pate | 60.05% R | Likely R |
| Kansas | R+8 | Scott Schwab (retiring) | 58.36% R | Safe R |
| Massachusetts | D+14 | William F. Galvin | 67.69% D | Safe D |
| Michigan | EVEN | Jocelyn Benson (term-limited) | 55.86% D | Tossup |
| Minnesota | D+3 | Steve Simon | 54.53% DFL | Likely D |
| Nebraska | R+10 | Bob Evnen | 100.0% R | Safe R |
| Nevada | R+1 | Cisco Aguilar | 48.95% D | Tossup |
| New Mexico | D+4 | Maggie Toulouse Oliver (term-limited) | 54.52% D | Safe D |
| North Dakota | R+18 | Michael Howe | 63.22% R | Safe R |
| Ohio | R+5 | Frank LaRose (term-limited) | 59.29% R | Likely R |
| Rhode Island | D+8 | Gregg Amore | 59.54% D | Safe D |
| South Carolina | R+8 | Mark Hammond | 63.33% R | Safe R |
| South Dakota | R+15 | Monae Johnson | 63.90% R | Safe R |
| Vermont | D+17 | Sarah Copeland Hanzas | 59.61% D | Safe D |
| Wisconsin | EVEN | Sarah Godlewski (retiring) | Appointed (2023) | Tossup |
| Wyoming | R+23 | Chuck Gray (retiring) | 91.57% R | Safe R |
Race summary
| State | Secretary of state | Party | First elected | Status | Candidates |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Alabama | Wes Allen | Republican | 2022 | Incumbent retiring to run for lieutenant governor |
|
| Arizona | Adrian Fontes | Democratic | 2022 | Incumbent running |
|
| Arkansas | Cole Jester | Republican | 2025 (appointed) | Term-limited |
|
| California | Shirley Weber | Democratic | 2021 | Incumbent running |
|
| Colorado | Jena Griswold | Democratic | 2018 | Term-limited |
|
| Connecticut | Stephanie Thomas | Democratic | 2022 | Incumbent's intent unknown | TBD |
| Georgia | Brad Raffensperger | Republican | 2018 | Incumbent retiring to run for governor |
|
| Idaho | Phil McGrane | Republican | 2022 | Incumbent's intent unknown | TBD |
| Illinois | Alexi Giannoulias | Democratic | 2022 | Incumbent running |
|
| Indiana | Diego Morales | Republican | 2022 | Incumbent running |
|
| Iowa | Paul Pate | Republican | 2014 | Incumbent running |
|
| Kansas | Scott Schwab | Republican | 2018 | Incumbent retiring to run for governor |
|
| Massachusetts | William F. Galvin | Democratic | 1994 | Incumbent running |
|
| Michigan | Jocelyn Benson | Democratic | 2018 | Term-limited |
|
| Minnesota | Steve Simon | DFL | 2014 | Incumbent running |
|
| Nebraska | Bob Evnen | Republican | 2018 | Incumbent running |
|
| Nevada | Cisco Aguilar | Democratic | 2022 | Incumbent's intent unknown |
|
| New Mexico | Maggie Toulouse Oliver | Democratic | 2016 (special) | Term-limited |
|
| North Dakota | Michael Howe | Republican | 2022 | Incumbent's intent unknown | TBD |
| Ohio | Frank LaRose | Republican | 2018 | Term-limited |
|
| Rhode Island | Gregg Amore | Democratic | 2022 | Incumbent running |
|
| South Carolina | Mark Hammond | Republican | 2002 | Incumbent's intent unknown | TBD |
| South Dakota | Monae Johnson | Republican | 2022 | Incumbent running |
|
| Vermont | Sarah Copeland Hanzas | Democratic | 2022 | Incumbent running |
|
| Wisconsin | Sarah Godlewski | Democratic | 2023 (appointed) | Incumbent retiring to run for lieutenant governor |
|
| Wyoming | Chuck Gray | Republican | 2022 | Incumbent retiring to run for U.S. House | TBD |
Alabama
Secretary of State Wes Allen was elected in 2022 with 65.9% of the vote. He is retiring to run for Lieutenant Governor.
Arizona
Secretary of State Adrian Fontes was elected in 2022 with 52.4% of the vote. He is running for re-election to a second term in office. Fontes hinted at a potential primary challenge to Arizona governor Katie Hobbs, but ultimately decided against it. Alexander Kolodin, representative for District 3 in the Arizona House of Representatives, announced his campaign for the Republican nomination on March 31.
Arkansas
Secretary of State John Thurston resigned after being elected as state treasurer in 2024. Governor Sarah Huckabee Sanders appointed Cole Jester to fill the remainder of his term. However, he is ineligible to run for a full term per the state constitution. Republican candidates include state senator Kim Hammer. Marketing specialist Kelly Grappe is running as a Democrat.
California
Secretary of State Shirley Weber was elected in 2022 with 60.1% of the vote. She is running for re-election to a second term. Republican Orange County supervisor Don Wagner is also running for the position.
Colorado
Secretary of State Jena Griswold was re-elected in 2022 with 55.1% of the vote. She will be term limited by the Colorado Constitution and cannot seek re-election to a third consecutive term. Democratic candidates include Jefferson County Clerk Amanda Gonzalez.
Connecticut
Secretary of the State Stephanie Thomas was elected in 2022 with 55.2% of the vote. She is eligible to run for re-election but has not yet stated if she will do so. Republican perennial candidate Peter Lumaj has created an exploratory committee, though has not specified which office he may run for.
Georgia
Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger was re-elected in 2022 with 53.2% of the vote. In September 2025, he decided to run for governor instead of seeking reelection as Secretary of State. Republican state representative Tim Fleming, businessman Kelvin King, and former elections official Gabriel Sterling have announced plans to run for the position.
Idaho
Secretary of State Phil McGrane was elected in 2022 with 72.5% of the vote. He is eligible to run for re-election but has not yet stated if he will do so.
Illinois
Secretary of State Alexi Giannoulias was elected in 2022 with 54.3% of the vote. He is running for re-election. Republicans Walter Adamczyk and Joliet Junior College trustee Diane Harris are running against him.
Indiana
Secretary of State Diego Morales was elected in 2022 with 54.1% of the vote. He is running for re-election to a second term. Beau Bayh, an attorney and the son of former Indiana governor Evan Bayh, is running for the office as a Democrat.
Iowa
Secretary of State Paul Pate was re-elected in 2022 with 60.1% of the vote. He is running for re-election. Democrat Navy veteran Ryan Peterman is running against him.
Kansas
Secretary of State Scott Schwab was re-elected in 2022 with 58.4% of the vote. He is retiring to run for governor. Republican state representatives Pat Proctor and Ken Rahjes are running for the position. Construction inspector Samuel Lane is running as a Democrat.
Massachusetts
Secretary of the Commonwealth William F. Galvin was re-elected in 2022 with 67.7% of the vote. He is running for re-election to a ninth term. Democratic state senator Becca Rausch is seen as a potential primary challenger to Galvin.
Michigan
Secretary of State Jocelyn Benson was re-elected in 2022 with 55.9% of the vote. She is term-limited and cannot seek re-election.
Candidates for the Democratic nomination include Ingham County clerk Barbara Byrum, former state senator Adam Hollier, Lieutenant Governor Garlin Gilchrist, and former Michigan Lottery Commissioner Suzanna Shkreli.
Macomb County clerk Anthony Forlini and businesswoman Monica Yatooma are running for the Republican nomination.
Minnesota
Secretary of State Steve Simon was re-elected in 2022 with 54.5% of the vote. He is running for re-election to a fourth term.
Republican Tad Jude announced his candidacy on September 12, 2025.
Nebraska
Secretary of State Bob Evnen was re-elected unopposed in 2022. He is running for re-election to a third term.
Nevada
Secretary of State Cisco Aguilar was elected in 2022 with 48.9% of the vote. He is eligible to run for re-election but has not yet stated if he will do so.
Republican Sharron Angle has announced her candidacy.
New Mexico
Secretary of State Maggie Toulouse Oliver was re-elected in 2022 with 54.5% of the vote. She is term-limited and cannot seek re-election.
North Dakota
Secretary of State Michael Howe was re-elected in 2022 with 63.3% of the vote. He is eligible to run for re-election but has not yet stated if he will do so.
Ohio
Secretary of State Frank LaRose was re-elected in 2022 with 59.3% of the vote. He is term-limited and cannot seek re-election. Ohio State Treasurer Robert Sprague has launched a bid for the Republican nomination, as has former Air Force officer Marcell Strbich. On the Democrat side, oncologist Bryan Hambley and former House minority leader Allison Russo have announced runs.
Rhode Island
Secretary of State Gregg Amore was re-elected in 2022 with 59.5% of the vote. He is running for re-election to a second term in office.
South Carolina
Secretary of State Mark Hammond was re-elected in 2022 with 63.3% of the vote. He is eligible to run for re-election but has not yet stated if he will do so.
South Dakota
Secretary of State Monae Johnson was elected in 2022 with 63.9% of the vote. She is eligible to run for re-election and has stated her intent to do so. Democrat former state trooper Terrence Davis is running against her.
Vermont
Secretary of State Sarah Copeland Hanzas was re-elected in 2024 with 59.6% of the vote. She is running for re-election.
Wisconsin
Secretary of State Sarah Godlewski was appointed in 2023 after Doug La Follette resigned. She is retiring to run for lieutenant governor.
Wyoming
Secretary of State Chuck Gray was elected in 2022 with 91.6% of the vote, without major party opposition. He is retiring to run for U.S. House.
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