Senate[edit]

2010 Legislative Election Results
State-by-State Analysis
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Other 2010 Election information
State legislative election results • Statewide elections, 2010 • State Senate elections • State House elections

California State Senate Election Results[edit]

This page contains macro-level election results and analysis for the California State Senate. For results in individual contests see our California State Senate elections, 2010 page. The following is a breakdown of the state senate before and after the election:

California State Senate
Party		As of November 1, 2010	After the 2010 Election
	Democratic Party	24	25
	Republican Party	14	14
	Vacancy	2	1
Total		40	40

What You'll See on This Page[edit]

This page displays the following lists of candidates

• Incumbents who ran on November 2
• Incumbents who were defeated
• Challengers who defeated an incumbent
• Newly elected senators
• List of all winners
• Unopposed candidates
• Third party candidates

State Senate Overview:[edit]

• There were 10 incumbents who ran in the November 2 general election. No incumbents lost, and thus 10 incumbents were re-elected to the California State Senate.

• There will be 10 new senators sworn-in. Of those 10, 5 are Democrats and 5 are Republicans

• Of the 20 seats up for election, 14 were won by Democrats and 6 by Republicans.

• 2 candidates were unopposed, both of which were Democrats.

• Only 9 candidates ran as an independent or third party candidate in the general election.

Incumbency Analysis[edit]

Of the 1,167 state senate seats up for election in 2010, incumbents ran for 894 (76.6%) of them. Of these 894, 94 lost their re-election bids, 89 Democrats and 5 Republicans. In California, ten incumbent senators did not run for re-election on the November 2 ballot, while 10 incumbents (50%) ran for re-election. Of these 10 incumbents, none were defeated.

Incumbents who ran on November 2[edit]

The following is a list of all of the incumbents who ran on the November 2 general election ballot:

Incumbents defeated[edit]

The following is a list of incumbents defeated on November 2:

No incumbents were defeated.

Challengers who beat an incumbent[edit]

The following is a list of challengers who defeated an incumbent on November 2: No challengers defeated an incumbent.

New State Senators and General Election Winners[edit]

388 new senators were elected across the country. This includes challengers who defeated incumbents as well as candidates who won open seats. Of these 388, 278 were Republicans and 110 were Democrats. In California, 10 new senators will be sworn-in. Of those 10, 5 are Democrats and 5 are Republicans. In the 10 open seat contests, Republicans won 5 and Democrats 5. In total, California elected 20 senators, 6 Republicans and 14 Democrats. Democratic senator Jenny Oropeza died before the election, so a special election will be held to replace her.

Newly elected senators[edit]

The following are the newly-elected members of the California State Senate:

Democratic[edit]

Republican[edit]

Open Seat Winners[edit]

The following is a list of candidates who won election in seats where no incumbent was running:

Democratic[edit]

Republican[edit]

Candidates who won election[edit]

The following is a list of all candidates elected to the California State Senate:

Democratic[edit]

Republican[edit]

Competitiveness[edit]

Across the nation, 1,167 state senate seats were up for election in 2010. 1,143 of those seats were partisan seats (24 seats were up for election in Nebraska's nonpartisan unicameral legislature). In 320 (28.0%) of these state senate contests, there was a major party candidate with no major party opposition. In California, 2 candidates (10% of seats) faced no major party opposition. Both were Democrats.

Unopposed candidates in general election[edit]

The following candidates did not face major party competition:

Democratic[edit]

Republican[edit]

Ballot Access[edit]

Across the nation, 140 independent or third party candidates ran for state senate. In California, 9 (19.1%) of the 47 senate candidates ran as an independent or third party candidate. None won election.

Third party candidates[edit]

The following is a list of third party and independent candidates who ran in 2010:

House[edit]

2010 Legislative Election Results
State-by-State Analysis
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Other 2010 Election information
State legislative election results • Statewide elections, 2010 • State Senate elections • State House elections

California State House Election Results[edit]

This page contains macro-level election results and analysis for the California General Assembly. For results in individual contests, see our California State Assembly elections, 2010. The following is a breakdown of the state house before and after the election:

California State Assembly
Party		As of November 1, 2010	After the 2010 Election
	Democratic Party	50	52
	Republican Party	27	28
	Independent	1	-
	Vacancy	2	-
Total		80	80

What You'll See on This Page[edit]

This page displays the following lists of candidates

• Incumbents who ran on November 2
• Incumbents who were defeated
• Challengers who defeated an incumbent
• Newly elected senators
• List of all winners
• Unopposed candidates
• Third party candidates

State House Overview:[edit]

• There were 52 incumbents who ran in the November 2 general election. No incumbents lost, and thus 52 incumbents were re-elected to the California General Assembly.

• There will be 28 new representatives sworn-in. Of those 28, 17 are Democrats and 11 are Republicans

• Of the 80 seats up for election, 52 were won by Democrats and 28 by Republicans.

• 6 candidates were unopposed, 4 Democrats and 2 Republicans.

• 28 candidates ran as an independent or third party candidate in the general election.

Incumbency Analysis[edit]

Of the 4,958 state house seats up for election, incumbents ran in the general election for 4,091 (79.5%) of them. Of these 4,091 incumbents, 413 lost their re-election bids, 403 Democrats and 10 Republicans. In California, 52 (65%) incumbents ran in the general election. No incumbents were defeated in the general election.

Incumbents who ran on November 2[edit]

The following is a list of all of the incumbents who ran on the November 2 general election ballot:

Incumbents defeated[edit]

The following is a list of incumbents defeated on November 2: No incumbents were defeated in the general election.

Challengers who beat an incumbent[edit]

The following is a list of challengers who defeated an incumbent on November 2:

No challengers defeated an incumbent in the general election.

New Representatives and General Election Winners[edit]

1,345 new representatives were elected across the country. This includes challengers who defeated incumbents as well as candidates who won open seats. Of these 1,345, 988 were Republicans and 357 were Democrats. In California, 28 new representatives will be sworn-in. Of those 28, 17 are Democrats and 11 are Republicans. In the 28 open seat contests, Republicans won 11 and Democrats 17. In total, California elected 80 representatives, 28 Republicans and 52 Democrats.

Newly elected representatives[edit]

The following are the newly-elected members of the California General Assembly:

Democratic[edit]

Republican[edit]

Open Seat Winners[edit]

The following is a list of candidates who won election in seats where no incumbent was running:

Democratic[edit]

Republican[edit]

Candidates who won election[edit]

The following is a list of all candidates elected to the California General Assembly:

Democratic[edit]

Republican[edit]

Competitiveness[edit]

Across the nation, 4,958 state house seats were up for election in 2010. In 1,680 (33.9%) of these state house contests, there was a major party candidate with no major party opposition. In California, 6 candidates (7.5% of all seats) faced no major party opposition. Of these 6, 4 were Democrats and 2 were Republicans.

Unopposed candidates in general election[edit]

The following candidates did not face major party competition:

Democratic[edit]

Republican[edit]

Ballot Access[edit]

In California, 28 (15.4%) of the 182 house candidates ran as independent or third party candidates. None won election in the November 2 general election.

Third party candidates[edit]

The following is a list of third party and independent candidates who ran in 2010:

National Partisan Trends[edit]

2010 Legislative Election Results
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Other 2010 Election information
State legislative election results • Statewide elections, 2010 • State Senate elections • State House elections

National Partisan Trends[edit]

The following tables detail the partisan breakdown of national election results. These results provide context for the lack of change in California.

Incumbents who were defeated in the general election[edit]

Across the nation, only 15 Republican incumbents were defeated while 492 Democratic incumbents were defeated. In total, 507 (10.4%) of the 4,872 incumbents running in the general election were defeated. The following is a breakdown of incumbent defeats in the 2010 general election:

The following is the breakdown of incumbents who lost.

Incumbents defeated in 2010 legislative elections
Party	Senate	House	Total
Democratic	89	403	492
Republican	5	10	15
TOTALS	94	413	507

Total new legislators elected[edit]

In total, 1,733 (28.3%) new legislators were elected in 2010. Of these 1,733, 1,266 (73.1%) are Republicans and 467 (26.9%) are Democrats.

The following is the breakdown of new legislators.

New Legislators after the 2010 legislative elections
Party	Senate	House	Total
Democratic	110	357	467
Republican	278	988	1,266
TOTALS	388	1,345	1,733

Winners of Open Seats[edit]

Open seats contests made up 1,178 (19.2%) of the 6,125 seats on November 2. Of these 1,178 open seats, Republicans won 729 (61.9%) while Democrats won 449 (38.1%). Going into the election, the number of open seats formerly held by each party was quite similar. Estimates prior to the election suggest that approximately 52% of the open seats were previously held by Republicans and 48% were held by Democrats.

The following is the breakdown of open seat winners.

Open Seat Winners in 2010 legislative elections
Party	Senate	House	Total
Democratic	108	341	449
Republican	191	538	729
TOTALS	299	879	1,178

Impact on legislative majorities[edit]

See also: Partisan balance of state legislatures

Heading into the November 2 elections, the Democratic Party held a commanding lead in state houses in the 88 legislative chambers that held elections in 2010. 52 of the 88 chambers, or nearly 60% of them, had a Democratic majority, while only 33 of them had a Republican majority. (Two chambers had an exactly equal number of Democrats and Republicans and one is officially nonpartisan.) The following is a partisan breakdown of state legislatures prior to the November 2 election:

Partisan breakdown before the November 2010 Election
Legislative chamber
State senates	23	18	1	1
State houses	29	15	1	-
Totals:	52	33	2	1

As a result of the election, Republicans picked up 20 legislative chambers while Democrats lost 20. Republicans won 53 total chambers on November 2, while Democrats won only 32. The following is a partisan breakdown of state legislatures after the November 2 election:

Partisan breakdown after the November 2010 Election
Legislative chamber
State senates	16	25	1	1
State houses	16	28	1	0
Totals:	32	53	2	1

Another way to examine the data is to gauge how many chambers had gains for the Democratic Party versus the Republican Party. Using this variable, the wide-sweeping Republican victory is further amplified. Democrats bolstered their majorities in only 7 of 88 (7.96%) state chambers. These legislatures are as follows:

State legislative chambers where Democrats gained seats on November 2
State	Chamber	Number of seats gained by Democrats
California	Assembly	+ 2
Delaware	House	+ 2
Hawaii	Senate	+ 1
Maryland	Senate	+ 2
Massachusetts	Senate	+ 1
Missouri	Senate	+ 1
West Virginia	Senate	+ 1

In 7 chambers, the GOP kept their current number of seats. In one chamber, the California State Assembly, both major parties gained seats by filling 2 vacancies and defeating an incumbent independent. Overall, the Republican Party picked up legislative seats in 75 (85.2%) of the 88 legislative chambers that held elections on November 2.

Impact on State Politics[edit]

Along with the GOP capture of the U.S. House of Representatives, state Republicans gained trifectas (control of the governorship, house, and senate) in 12 states. The following is a breakdown of trifectas across the nation, before and after the 2010 election:

Trifectas before and after the 2010 Election
Party	Before election	U.S. House seats	After election	U.S. House seats	Gain/loss states	Gain/loss congressional seats
Democratic	16	131	11	115	-5	-16
Republican	8	66	20	198	+12	+132

Before the election, 131 U.S House seats were in states with Democratic trifectas, while 66 districts were in states with Republican trifectas. After the election, Republicans trifectas control redistricting for 198 U.S. House seats while Democrats control only 115. Additionally, California, the strongest Democratic trifecta with 53 U.S. House representatives, passed propositions that take redistricting power away from state government.

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