Before Tuesday’s election, Republicans held more governorships and state legislative seats than Democrats and had an advantage in the state trifectas – unified control of the governor’s office and both houses of the Legislature.
That advantage has disappeared, clearing the way for more climate and clean energy legislation, according to analysts and advocates.
Democrats won the vast majority of state races, leaving Republicans in control of the governorship in Georgia, Iowa, Ohio, Nevada and Texas.
Democrats hold a 29-19 lead in the governorship, with Kansas too close to call and Alaska likely to take a while to declare a winner.
The party is on track to gain hundreds of seats in the Legislature, potentially giving it control of more seats than Republicans nationwide for the first time in more than a decade. According to MultiState, a research and lobbying firm, Republicans had 4,072 seats and Democrats had 3,257 before the election. According to MultiState, Democrats recorded a net gain of more than 350 seats on Tuesday and are likely to add several hundred more as results continue to be tabulated.
Democrats won five new trifectas: Michigan, Minnesota, Nevada, Pennsylvania and Wisconsin, with Arizona likely to be the sixth once officials finish counting. These additions would give the party 22 trifectas, with Republicans having unified control in 18 states and split control in nine states. Kansas has not yet been decided.
Republicans lost trifectas in Iowa, Georgia, Texas, New Hampshire and Ohio. Before the election, Republicans had trifectas in 23 states, Democrats had 16, and 11 were in split control.
The impact on climate and energy policy is likely to be profound, said Caroline Spears, executive director of Climate Cabinet, an advocacy group.
“In the states, we have made a generational policy window shift to improve people’s lives, reduce costs while reducing climate pollution,” she said in a conference call.
