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2020 United States secretary of state elections

For related races, see 2020 United States elections.
2020 United States secretary of state elections
← 2019 November 3, 2020 (2020-11-03) 2022 →
7 secretary of state offices
  Majority party Minority party
 
Party Republican Democratic
Seats before 26 21
Seats after 25 22
Seat change Decrease 1 Increase 1
Popular vote 8,422,210 7,575,999
Percentage 51.75% 46.55%
Seats up 5 2
Seats won 4 3
     Democratic hold      Democratic gain
     Republican hold
     No election

The 2020 United States secretary of state elections were held on November 3, 2020, to elect the secretaries of state in seven states. These elections took place concurrently with several other federal, state, and local elections.

The previous elections for this group of states took place in 2016. The secretary of state of Vermont serves two-year terms and was last elected in 2018.

Going into the election, there were 26 Republican secretaries of state and 21 Democratic secretaries of state. 5 Republican secretaries of state were up for election, of whom Corey Stapleton of Montana and Bev Clarno of Oregon are retiring. 2 Democratic secretaries of state were up for election, both seeking re-election.

Partisan composition

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Going into these elections, this class of secretaries of state is made up of 5 Republicans and 2 Democrats. Republicans were defending two states won by Hillary Clinton in 2016 (Oregon and Washington), while Democrats are defending one state won by Donald Trump in 2016 (North Carolina).

Election predictions

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Several sites and individuals published predictions of competitive seats. These predictions looked at factors such as the strength of the incumbent (if the incumbent is running for re-election), the strength of the candidates, and the partisan leanings of the state (reflected in part by the state's Cook Partisan Voting Index rating). The predictions assigned ratings to each seat, with the rating indicating the predicted advantage that a party has in winning that seat.

Most election predictors use:

State PVI Incumbent[1] Last
race 		Cook
June 25,
2024 		Result
Missouri R+9 Jay Ashcroft 57.6% R Solid R Ashcroft
60.6% R
Montana R+11 Corey Stapleton
(retiring) 		55.5% R Lean R Jacobsen
59.6% R
North Carolina R+3 Elaine Marshall 52.3% D Likely D Marshall
51.2% D
Oregon D+5 Bev Clarno
(retiring) 		Appointed
(2019)[a] 		Likely D (flip) Fagan
50.3% D
(flip)
Vermont D+15 Jim Condos 66.81% D Solid D Condos
57.9% D
Washington D+7 Kim Wyman 54.6% R Lean R Wyman
50.9% R
West Virginia R+19 Mac Warner 48.5% R Likely R Warner
58.3% R

Race summary

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States

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State Secretary
of state 		Party First
elected 		Result Candidates
Missouri Jay Ashcroft Republican 2016 Incumbent re-elected.
Others
Montana Corey Stapleton Republican 2016 Incumbent retired to run for U.S. House.
New secretary of state elected.
Republican hold.
North Carolina Elaine Marshall Democratic 1996 Incumbent re-elected.
Oregon Bev Clarno Republican 2019 (appointed) Interim appointee retiring.
New secretary of state elected.
Democratic gain.
Vermont Jim Condos Democratic 2010 Incumbent re-elected.
Washington Kim Wyman Republican 2012 Incumbent re-elected.
West Virginia Mac Warner Republican 2016 Incumbent re-elected.

Closest races

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States where the margin of victory was under 5%:

  1. North Carolina, 2.4%

States where the margin of victory was under 10%:

  1. Oregon, 7.1%
  2. Washington, 7.6%

Blue denotes races won by Democrats. Red denotes races won by Republicans.

Missouri

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Main article: 2020 Missouri Secretary of State election
2020 Missouri Secretary of State election
← 2016 November 3, 2020 2024 →
 
Nominee Jay Ashcroft Yinka Faleti
Party Republican Democratic
Popular vote 1,790,873 1,072,415
Percentage 60.6% 36.3%
Ashcroft:      40–50%      50–60%      60–70%      70–80%      80–90%      >90%
Faleti:      40–50%      50–60%      60–70%      70–80%      80–90%      >90%
Secretary of State before election

Jay Ashcroft
Republican

Elected Secretary of State

Jay Ashcroft
Republican

Incumbent secretary of state Jay Ashcroft ran and won re-election to a second term after he defeated Democratic nominee Yinka Faleti with 60.6% of the vote.

Republican primary results[2]
Party Candidate Votes %
Republican Jay Ashcroft (incumbent) 620,822 100.0%
Total votes 620,822 100.0%
Democratic primary results[2]
Party Candidate Votes %
Democratic Yinka Faleti 470,955 100.0%
Total votes 470,955 100.0%
Missouri Secretary of State election, 2020
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Republican Jay Ashcroft (incumbent) 1,790,873 60.59% +2.97%
Democratic Yinka Faleti 1,072,415 36.28% −2.17%
Libertarian Carl Herman Freese 55,320 1.87% −2.06%
Green Paul Lehmann 23,981 0.81% N/A
Constitution Paul Venable 13,066 0.44% N/A
Total votes 2,955,655 100.0%

Montana

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Main article: 2020 Montana Secretary of State election
2020 Montana Secretary of State election
← 2016 November 3, 2020 2024 →
 
Nominee Christi Jacobsen Bryce Bennett
Party Republican Democratic
Popular vote 352,939 239,617
Percentage 59.6% 40.4%
Jacobsen:      50–60%      60–70%      70–80%      80–90%      >90%
Bennett:      50–60%      60–70%      70–80%      80–90%
Secretary of State before election

Corey Stapleton
Republican

Elected Secretary of State

Christi Jacobsen
Republican

Incumbent Republican secretary of state Corey Stapleton was eligible to run for a second term but has decided to run for U.S. House instead. Former chief of staff to Stapleton, Christi Jacobsen won the Republican nomination defeating president of the Montana State Senate, Scott Sales and Montana Public Service Commissioner, Brad Johnson.

She went on to defeat Democratic state senator Bryce Bennett with 59.6% of the vote.

Republican primary results
Party Candidate Votes %
Republican Christi Jacobsen 57,941 29.4%
Republican Scott Sales 49,759 25.3%
Republican Brad Johnson 45,526 23.1%
Republican Forrest Mandeville 20,318 10.3%
Republican Bowen Greenwood 14,080 7.1%
Republican Kurt Johnson 9,346 4.7%
Total votes 196,970 100.0%
Democratic primary results
Party Candidate Votes %
Democratic Bryce Bennett 130,109 100.0%
Total votes 130,109 100.0%
Montana Secretary of State election, 2020[3]
Party Candidate Votes %
Republican Christi Jacobsen 352,939 59.56%
Democratic Bryce Bennett 239,617 40.44%
Total votes 592,556 100.00%

North Carolina

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Main article: 2020 North Carolina Council of State election § Secretary of State
2020 North Carolina Secretary of State election
← 2016 November 3, 2020 (2020-11-03) 2024 →
 
Nominee Elaine Marshall E.C. Sykes
Party Democratic Republican
Popular vote 2,755,571 2,630,559
Percentage 51.16% 48.84%
  • Marshall:      50-60%      60-70%      70-80%      80–90%      >90%
  • Sykes:      50-60%      60-70%      70-80%      80-90%      >90%
Secretary of State before election

Elaine Marshall
Democratic

Elected Secretary of State

Elaine Marshall
Democratic

Incumbent Democrat Elaine Marshall won re-election to a seventh term after she defeated Republican nominee businessman E.C. Sykes with 51.2% of the vote.

Republican primary results[4]
Party Candidate Votes %
Republican E.C. Sykes 296,457 42.9
Republican Chad Brown 262,595 38.0
Republican Michael LaPaglia 131,832 19.1
Total votes 690,884 100.0
North Carolina Secretary of State election, 2020[5]
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Democratic Elaine Marshall (incumbent) 2,755,571 51.16% −1.10%
Republican E.C. Sykes 2,630,559 48.84% +1.10%
Total votes 5,386,130 100.0%

Oregon

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Main article: 2020 Oregon Secretary of State election
2020 Oregon Secretary of State election
← 2016 November 3, 2020 2024 →
 
Nominee Shemia Fagan Kim Thatcher
Party Democratic Republican
Popular vote 1,146,370 984,587
Percentage 50.3% 43.2%
Fagan:      40–50%      50–60%      60–70%      70–80%      80–90%      >90%
Thatcher:      40–50%      50–60%      60–70%      70–80%      80–90%      >90%
Secretary of State before election

Bev Clarno
Republican

Elected Secretary of State

Shemia Fagan
Democratic

Incumbent Republican Bev Clarno had agreed not to run for a full term. Clarno was appointed by Governor Kate Brown to replace Dennis Richardson, who died of cancer during his term.

Republicans nominated state senator Kim Thatcher while Democrats nominated state senator Shemia Fagan.

Fagan defeated Thatcher with 50.3% of the vote.

Republican primary results
Party Candidate Votes %
Republican Kim Thatcher 312,296 85.62%
Republican Dave Stauffer 48,839 13.39%
Write-in 3,625 0.99%
Total votes 364,760 100.0%
Democratic primary results
Party Candidate Votes %
Democratic Shemia Fagan 209,682 36.23%
Democratic Mark Hass 205,230 35.46%
Democratic Jamie McLeod-Skinner 159,430 27.55%
Write-in 4,395 0.76%
Total votes 578,737 100.0%
2020 Oregon Secretary of State election[6]
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Democratic Shemia Fagan 1,146,370 50.31% +6.84%
Republican Kim Thatcher 984,597 43.21% −3.85%
Pacific Green Nathalie Paravicini 82,211 3.61% +1.06%
Libertarian Kyle Markley 62,985 2.77% +0.29%
Write-in 2,340 0.10% -0.09%
Total votes 2,278,503 100.0%

Vermont

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Main article: 2020 Vermont elections § Secretary of State
2020 Vermont Secretary of State election
← 2018 November 3, 2020 2022 →
 
Nominee Jim Condos H. Brooke Paige Pamala Smith
Party Democratic Republican Independent
Popular vote 214,666 99,564 21,210
Percentage 57.87 26.84 5.72
Secretary of State before election

Jim Condos
Democratic

Elected Secretary of State

Jim Condos
Democratic

Incumbent Democratic secretary of state Jim Condos won re-election to a fifth term after he defeated Republican nominee H. Brooke Paige.

2020 Vermont Secretary of State election
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Democratic Jim Condos (incumbent) 214,666 57.87% −8.94
Republican H. Brooke Paige 99,564 26.84% −2.68
Independent Pamala Smith 21,210 5.72% +5.72%
Progressive Cris Ericson 11,171 3.01% +3.01%
Write-in 309 0.08% +0.04%
Total votes 2,278,503 100.0%

Washington

[edit]
Main article: 2020 Washington Secretary of State election
2020 Washington Secretary of State election
← 2016 November 3, 2020 2022 (special) →
 
Nominee Kim Wyman Gael Tarleton
Party Republican Democratic
Popular vote 2,116,141 1,826,710
Percentage 53.6% 46.3%
Wyman:      40–50%      50–60%      60–70%      70–80%      80–90%      >90%
Tarleton:      50–60%      60–70%
Secretary of State before election

Kim Wyman
Republican

Elected Secretary of State

Kim Wyman
Republican

Incumbent Republican secretary of state Kim Wyman won re-election to a second term after she defeated Democratic nominee Gael Tarleton with 53.6% of the vote.

Top-two primary results[7]
Party Candidate Votes %
Republican Kim Wyman (incumbent) 1,238,455 50.89%
Democratic Gael Tarleton 1,053,584 43.29%
Independent Ed Minger 87,982 3.62%
Progressive Gentry Lange 51,826 2.13%
Write-in 1,919 0.08%
Total votes 2,433,766 100.00%
2020 Washington Secretary of State election[8]
Party Candidate Votes %
Republican Kim Wyman (incumbent) 2,116,141 53.61%
Democratic Gael Tarleton 1,826,710 46.27%
Write-in 4,666 0.12%
Total votes 3,947,517 100.00%

West Virginia

[edit]
Main article: 2020 West Virginia Secretary of State election
2020 West Virginia Secretary of State election
← 2016 November 3, 2020 2024 →
 
Nominee Mac Warner Natalie Tennant
Party Republican Democratic
Popular vote 447,537 320,650
Percentage 58.26% 41.74%
Warner:      40–50%      50–60%      60–70%      70–80%      80–90%      >90%
Tennant:      50–60%
Secretary of State before election

Mac Warner
Republican

Elected Secretary of State

Mac Warner
Republican

Incumbent Republican secretary of state Mac Warner won re-election to a second term after he defeated former secretary of state Natalie Tennant with 53.3% of the vote.

Republican primary results
Party Candidate Votes %
Republican Mac Warner (incumbent) 176,915 100.0%
Total votes 176,915 100.0%
Democratic primary results
Party Candidate Votes %
Democratic Natalie Tennant 175,600 100.0%
Total votes 175,600 100.0%
General election results
Party Candidate Votes %
Republican Mac Warner (incumbent) 447,537 58.26%
Democratic Natalie Tennant 320,650 41.74%
Total votes 768,187 100.0%

Notes

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  1. ^ Republican Dennis Richardson won with 47.1% of the vote in 2016 against Democratic nominee Brad Avakian, but died in office on February 26, 2019.

References

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  1. ^ Parentheses around an incumbent's name indicates that the incumbent is not running for re-election.
  2. ^ a b "State of Missouri - State of Missouri - Primary Election, August 04, 2020". Missouri Secretary of State.
  3. ^ "Montana Statewide Election Results". Montana Secretary of State. November 3, 2020. Retrieved November 18, 2020.
  4. ^ "03/03/2020 OFFICIAL LOCAL ELECTION RESULTS - STATEWIDE". North Carolina State Board of Elections.
  5. ^ "State Composite Abstract Report - Contest.pdf" (PDF). North Carolina State Board of Elections. Retrieved November 24, 2020.
  6. ^ "November 3, 2020, General Election Abstract of Votes" (PDF). Oregon Secretary of State. Retrieved December 3, 2020.
  7. ^ "August 4, 2020 Primary Results". Washington Secretary of State. Retrieved 17 December 2020.
  8. ^ "General Election Results". Washington Secretary of State. Retrieved 17 December 2020.