Incumbent Gov. Gina Raimondo has easily won reelection, despite a crowded field vying for her office.

Gov. Raimondo faced Republican Allan Fung, three independents, and one minor candidate who was arrested in October for possession of 48 pounds of marijuana.

Despite the crowd, Raimondo still garnered almost 53 percent of the vote, with Fung a distant second at 37 percent.

Raimondo made job creation a priority in her first term. Unemployment has dropped from the highest in the nation to being in step with the national average in her first four years.

Republican Henry McMaster defeated Democrat James Smith to become governor of South Carolina.

With 99 percent of precincts reporting, McMaster beat Smith 54 percent to 45 percent.

McMaster is the former Attorney General and Lieutenant Governor of South Carolina.

He became governor of South Carolina in 2017 when Nikki Haley was appointed Ambassador to the United Nations.

Democratic Congresswoman and former state health secretary Michelle Lujan Grisham won last night’s New Mexico gubernatorial election with 56.91 percent of the vote. Lujan Grisham became the first Democratic Latina governor, taking over a seat held by Republicans for two terms.

Lujan Grisham’s win will mark the first time a Democratic candidate has won the gubernatorial seat since 2002, according to Vox.

She focused her platform on an expansion of preschool education, lowering crime rates, economic expansion, and investments in solar and wind energy.

Lujan Grisham has an extensive political tenure—she is a three-term U.S. congresswoman currently serving New Mexico’s first district. Prior to her federal service, she served as cabinet secretary for three different New Mexico governors.

Upon taking office, her current U.S. seat will be filled by Debra Haaland.

Jared Polis blew a victorious horn on November 6, 2018, as he claimed an historic win as Colorado’s governor over his opponent Walker Stapleton.

Polis became Colorado’s first Jewish governor and the first openly gay man elected to lead any U.S. State.

Colorado Governor-elect Polis emerged on stage alongside his running mate Dianne Primavera during a Democratic watch party in downtown Denver.

Polis succeeds the outgoing Democrat John Hickenlooper.

Larry Hogan, a moderate Republican who has emphasized bipartisanship, was re-elected as Maryland’s governor.

He is the first Republican to win re-election in Maryland since 1954, although Democrats outnumber Republicans in the state 2-1.

Hogan has the same priorities for his second term as his first: making improvements in education, job creation, transportation infrastructure and working for tax relief.

Hogan defeated Ben Jealous, who would have been Maryland’s first black governor and is a former national president of the NAACP.

Jealous had a progressive agenda that included tuition-free college and expanding Medicare to all. He supported funding full-day, universal kindergarten with the tax revenue from his proposal to legalize marijuana for recreational use.

Governor Tom Wolf was re-elected in Pennsylvania with a resounding 57.6 percent of the vote.  Republican challenger Scott Wagner did not pose a challenge, winning only 40.8 percent of the vote.

The win does not come as a surprise, as Governor Wolf led by double digits in every independent poll preceding the election.

Governor Wolf indicated he would continue working on his first-term priorities, including school funding.

He has advocated for many liberal causes, including ending the death penalty and expanding Medicaid.

Democratic candidates won at least seven gubernatorial races in Republican-held states on Tuesday.

Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker narrowly lost to Tony Evers in his bid for a third term, and Gov. Bruce Rauner lost big to billionaire J.B. Pritzker in deep-blue Illinois.

In addition to these victories, Democrats also picked up open seats in Kansas, Maine, Michigan, Nevada, and New Mexico.

Races yet to be called include Alaska, Connecticut, and Georgia.

On November 8, incumbent Republican Gov. Gary Herbert won his third election as Utah governor defeating Democratic challenger Mike Weinholtz 73.9 percent to 22.1 percent.

Herbert first became governor in 2009 when then-governor John Huntsman became the American ambassador to Singapore. Herbert was then elected in a special election in 2010, and again in the general election in 2012.

Utah, a Republican stronghold state, has not elected a Democratic governor in over 20 years.

Photo of Gov. Gary Herbert by 32ATPs on Wikimedia Commons.

The Republican Central Committee has nominated Lt. Gov. Eric Holcomb for governor.

On July 27, 2016, 22 committee members, comprised of party insiders and elected officials, choose Gov. Pence’s replacement from four potential gubernatorial candidates.

Holcomb beat out U.S. Reps. Susan Brooks and Todd Rokita and state Sen. Jim Tomes.

Photo of Lt. Governor Eric Holcomb courtesy of the State of Indiana website.

State Republicans are celebrating a victory today following a successful gubernatorial election. Matt Bevin, a Louisville businessman and favorite among Tea Party members, was elected governor, defeating Democrat and current Attorney General Jack Conway. This is an unusual change in a state where Democrats have held the governor’s office for all but four of the last 44 years.

Additionally, by capitalizing on the overwhelming unpopularity of President Obama within the state, Republicans will go from holding just one statewide office to four.

Kentucky is the last southern state where Democrats hold a chamber of the legislature, but without the support of the governor, the state’s House is likely to fall as well.

Independent candidate Tom Ervin suspended his campaign for governor this week and endorsed Democratic Sen. Vincent Sheheen. Ervin, a self-funded attorney and former judge, had the support of just 3.9 percent of likely voters, according to an October 1 Winthrop poll.

The poll also indicated Gov. Nikki Haley led Sheheen by a 43.6 percent to 33.6 percent margin. Haley, the state’s first female and Indian-American governor, beat Sheheen in 2010 with 51.4 percent of votes.

Neel Kashkari is the Republican nominee for governor after placing second with 19 percent of the vote in the first primary election for governor held under California’s open primary rules. The top two finishers in the primaries move on to the general election, regardless of party affiliation.

Kashkari, a native of Stow, Ohio, ran the federal bailout of the U.S. banking system and finished second to Gov. Jerry Brown, who took nearly 55 percent of the returns. Brown, who currently enjoys high approval and campaign donations, is expected to be elected to a record fourth term in November.

Attorney General Gary King received more than 33 percent of the vote in a field of five candidates to win the Democratic nomination for governor. King will face a general election match-up with Republican Gov. Susana Martinez, who ran unopposed in the Republican primary.

Martinez, a former district attorney from Las Cruces, was elected the state’s first female governor and the nation’s first female Hispanic governor in 2010.

King, a former state legislator and son of former Gov. Bruce King, raised about $476,000 for his gubernatorial bid since October. More than half of the contributions were in the form of King’s personal loans to the campaign.

During the same period, Martinez raised more than $2.4 million in campaign contributions.

The inauguration for Virginia Governor-Elect Terry McAuliffe will be held Saturday, January 11, 2014 in Capitol Square in Richmond Virginia. The day will begin with a prayer breakfast, followed by the inauguration ceremony, parade, executive mansion open house, and the Richmond Inaugural Ball. More information is available at http://www.inauguration2014.com/.

Virginia does not place any limits on the source or amount of political contributions or gifts, including to inaugural committees. Contributions to inaugural committees are not required to be reported on lobbying reports.

Photo of Virginia Governor-Elect Terry McAuliffe courtesy of Edward Kimmel on Wikimedia Commons.