2011 United States state legislative elections

2011 United States state legislative elections
8 legislative chambers; 4 states
	Map of upper house elections:; Democrats retained control; Republicans gained control Republicans retained control; No regularly-scheduled elections
	Map of lower house elections:; Democrats retained control; Republicans gained control Republicans retained control; No regularly-scheduled elections

The 2011 United States state legislative elections were held on November 8, 2011. Eight legislative chambers in four states held regularly scheduled elections. These off-year elections coincided with other state and local elections, including gubernatorial elections in four states.^[1]

These were the first elections to be affected by redistricting after the 2010 census.^[2] Additionally, the first wave of recall elections occurred in the Wisconsin Senate; while Republicans lost seats, they maintained a narrow majority. A second wave would occur in 2012.

Republicans flipped control of the Virginia Senate, thereby establishing a trifecta. In Mississippi, Republicans won the state House for the first time since 1876. After having gained effective control of the Mississippi Senate earlier in the year due to party switching,^[3] Republicans solidified their control of the chamber in the November election. Republicans obtained a trifecta in the state for the first time since 1876 as a result.

In Louisiana, Republicans gained control of the State House in December 2010 when a state representative switched parties,^[4] and control of the State Senate by winning a February 2011 special election,^[5] thus giving Republicans control of both chambers and a trifecta for the first time in the state since 1873.

Summary table

Regularly scheduled elections were held in 8 of the 99 state legislative chambers in the United States. Nationwide, regularly scheduled elections were held for 578 of the 7,383 legislative seats. This table only covers regularly scheduled elections; additional special elections took place concurrently with these regularly scheduled elections.

State	Upper House				Lower House
State	Seats up	Total	% up	Term	Seats up	Total	% up	Term
Louisiana	39	39	100	4	105	105	100	4
Mississippi	52	52	100	4	122	122	100	4
New Jersey	40	40	100	2/4^[d]	80	80	100	2
Virginia	40	40	100	4	100	100	100	2

State summaries

Louisiana

All seats of the Louisiana State Senate and the Louisiana House of Representatives were up for election to four-year terms in single-member districts. Republicans flipped both chambers through party switching and special elections in the past year, and then retained majority control in both chambers in the 2011 elections.

Louisiana State Senate
Party		Before	After	Change
	Republican	22	24	2
	Democratic	17	15	2
Total		39	39

Louisiana House of Representatives
Party		Before	After	Change
	Republican	57	58	1
	Democratic	46	45	1
	Independent	2	2
Total		105	105

Mississippi

All seats of the Mississippi State Senate and the Mississippi House of Representatives were up for election to four-year terms in single-member districts. Republicans won a majority in the lower house. They had previously won a majority in the upper house through party switching and special elections earlier in the year, and then retained a majority in the general election.

Mississippi State Senate
Party		Before	After	Change
	Republican	27	31	4
	Democratic	24	21	3
Total		52	52

Mississippi House of Representatives
Party		Before	After	Change
	Republican	54	64	10
	Democratic	68	58	10
Total		122	122

New Jersey

All seats of the New Jersey Senate and the New Jersey General Assembly were up for election. In 2011, senators were elected to two-year terms in single-member districts, while Assembly members were elected to two-year terms in two-member districts.^[6] Democrats retained majority control in both chambers.

Senate
Party		Before	After
	Democratic	24	24
	Republican	16	16
Total		40	40

General Assembly
Party		Before	After	Change
	Democratic	47	48	1
	Republican	33	32	1
Total		80	80

Virginia

All seats of the Senate of Virginia and the Virginia House of Delegates were up for election in single-member districts. Senators were elected to four-year terms, while delegates serve terms of two years. Republicans maintained control of the lower chamber and won control of the upper chamber because the Republican lieutenant governor broke the ties in the now-evenly split body.

Senate of Virginia
Party		Before	After	Change
	Republican	18	20	2
	Democratic	22	20	2
Total		40	40

Virginia House of Delegates
Party		Before	After	Change
	Republican	59	67	8
	Independent	2	1	1
	Democratic	39	32	7
Total		100	100

Notes

^ Republicans took control of the Mississippi State Senate, the Louisiana House of Representatives, and the Louisiana State Senate through party switching and special elections earlier in the year.
^ The Oregon House of Representatives was tied in the 2011-2013 session; the chamber is not counted towards the total here.
^ ^a ^b The Alaska Senate was controlled by a coalition of Democrats and Republicans. The minority caucus consists of Republicans who were not part of the majority coalition.
^ The upper houses of Arkansas, Delaware, Florida, Hawaii, Illinois, Minnesota, New Jersey, and Texas use a 2-4-4 term length system.

References

^ "State legislative elections, 2011". Ballotpedia. Retrieved December 26, 2022.
^ "State legislative elections, 2011". Ballotpedia. Retrieved December 26, 2022.
^ "Sen. Ezell Lee Qualifies As A Republican « Majority In Mississippi". 2011-02-21. Archived from the original on 2011-02-21. Retrieved 2024-08-05.
^ "Political switch gives GOP control of Louisiana House". www.kplctv.com. 2010-12-18. Retrieved 2024-07-06.
^ Freddoso, David (2011-02-21). "Special election gives GOP complete control of Louisiana state government - Washington Examiner". Retrieved 2024-07-06.
^ "New Jersey Secretary of State". state.nj.us.

[SpecialElections-1] Republicans took control of the Mississippi State Senate, the Louisiana House of Representatives, and the Louisiana State Senate through party switching and special elections earlier in the year.

[ORhouse-2] The Oregon House of Representatives was tied in the 2011-2013 session; the chamber is not counted towards the total here.

[AKSenate-3] The Alaska Senate was controlled by a coalition of Democrats and Republicans. The minority caucus consists of Republicans who were not part of the majority coalition.

[variabletermlength-9] The upper houses of Arkansas, Delaware, Florida, Hawaii, Illinois, Minnesota, New Jersey, and Texas use a 2-4-4 term length system.

[4] "State legislative elections, 2011". Ballotpedia. Retrieved December 26, 2022.

[5] "State legislative elections, 2011". Ballotpedia. Retrieved December 26, 2022.

[6] "Sen. Ezell Lee Qualifies As A Republican « Majority In Mississippi". 2011-02-21. Archived from the original on 2011-02-21. Retrieved 2024-08-05.

[7] "Political switch gives GOP control of Louisiana House". www.kplctv.com. 2010-12-18. Retrieved 2024-07-06.

[8] Freddoso, David (2011-02-21). "Special election gives GOP complete control of Louisiana state government - Washington Examiner". Retrieved 2024-07-06.

[10] "New Jersey Secretary of State". state.nj.us.

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