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

Montana State Senate Election Results[edit]

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

Montana State Senate
Party		As of November 1, 2010	After the 2010 Election
	Democratic Party	22	22
	Republican Party	27	28
	Vacancy	1	-
Total		50	50

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 9 incumbents who ran in the November 2 general election. Only 1 incumbents lost, and thus 8 incumbents were re-elected to the Montana State Senate.

• No Democratic incumbents lost in the general election, while 1 Republican incumbent lost.

• There will be 18 new senators sworn-in. Of those 18, 6 are Democrats and 12 are Republicans

• Of the 26 seats up for election, 9 were won by Democrats and 17 by Republicans.

• 5 candidates were unopposed, 1 Democrat and 4 Republicans.

• Only 1 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 Montana, 17 incumbent senators did not run for re-election on the November 2 ballot, while 9 incumbents (34.6%) ran for re-election. Of these 9 incumbents, 1 Republican was defeated and no Democrats 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:

Candidate	Party	District
Roy Brown

Challengers who beat an incumbent[edit]

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

Candidate	Party	District
Kendall Van Dyk

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 Montana, 18 new senators will be sworn-in. Of those 18, 6 are Democrats and 12 are Republicans. In the 17 open seat contests, Republicans won 12 and Democrats 5. In total, Montana elected 26 senators, 17 Republicans and 9 Democrats.

Newly elected senators[edit]

The following are the newly-elected members of the Montana 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 Montana 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 Montana, 5 candidates (19.2% of all seats) faced no major party opposition. Of these 5, 1 was a Democrat and 4 were Republicans.

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 Montana, 1 (2.1%) of the 48 senate candidates ran as an independent or third party candidate. 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:

House[edit]

2010 Legislative Election Results
State-by-State Analysis
Alabama • Alaska • Arizona • Arkansas • California • Colorado • Connecticut • Delaware • Florida • Georgia • Hawaii • Idaho • Illinois • Indiana • Iowa • Kansas • Kentucky • Maine • Maryland • Massachusetts • Michigan• Minnesota • Missouri • Montana • Nebraska • Nevada • New Hampshire • New Mexico • New York • North Carolina • North Dakota • Ohio • Oklahoma • Oregon • Pennsylvania • Rhode Island • South Carolina • South Dakota • Tennessee • Texas • Utah • Vermont • Washington • West Virginia • Wisconsin • Wyoming
Other 2010 Election information
State legislative election results • Statewide elections, 2010 • State Senate elections • State House elections

Montana State House Election Results[edit]

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

Montana House of Representatives
Party		As of November 1, 2010	After the 2010 Election
	Democratic Party	50	32
	Republican Party	50	68
Total		100	100

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 64 incumbents who ran in the November 2 general election. Only 9 incumbents lost, and thus 55 incumbents were re-elected to the Montana House of Representatives.

• No Republican incumbents lost in the general election, while 9 incumbent Democratic incumbent lost.

• There will be 44 new representatives sworn-in. Of those 44, 9 are Democrats and 35 are Republicans

• Of the 99 seats up for election, 69 were won by Democrats and 30 by Republicans.

• 28 candidates were unopposed, 9 Democrats and 19 Republicans.

• Only 2 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 Montana, 64 (64.64%) incumbents ran for re-election. Of these 64, 9 incumbent representatives were defeated. All 9 incumbents were Democrats.

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:

Candidate	Party	District
Jennifer Pomnichowski
Robert Ebinger, Jr.
Paul Beck
John Fleming (Montana)
Frosty Calf Boss Ribs
Julie French (Montana)
Dennis Getz
J. David Roundstone
Wanda Grinde

Challengers who beat an incumbent[edit]

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

Candidate	Party	District
Tom Burnett
Dan Skattum
John Esp
Joanne Blyton
Daniel Salomon
Joe Read
Austin Knudsen
Sterling Small
Douglas Kary

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 Montana, 44 new representatives will be sworn-in. Of those 44, 9 are Democrats and 35 are Republicans. In the 34 open seat contests, Republicans won 25 and Democrats 9. In total, Montana elected 99 representatives, 69 Republicans and 30 Democrats.

Newly elected representatives[edit]

The following are the newly-elected members of the Montana House of Representatives:

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 Montana House of Representatives:

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 Montana, 28 candidates (28.28% of all seats) faced no major party opposition. Of these 28, 9 were Democrats and 19 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 Montana, 11 (6.1%) of the 180 house candidates ran as independent or third party candidates.

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
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

National Partisan Trends[edit]

The following tables detail the partisan breakdown of national election results. These results provide context for Republican gains in Montana.

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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