By Dan Diorio

Fall in is in the air—the nights are getting crisp, leaves are changing and football is back.

It’s also a great time to start sampling the seasonal cuisine, and this fall state menus are sure to be packed with elections—all shapes, sizes and varieties but none are more important than state legislative elections. NCSL’s StateVote 2016 has put together the recipe for a perfect election season:

• Stir together 5,917 legislative races in 44 states across the country—use approximately half Republicans and half Democrats (These represent 80 percent of the nation’s 7,383 total legislative seats).
• Blend in some battlegrounds—11 Senates (Arizona, Colorado, Iowa, Maine, New Hampshire, New Mexico, Nevada, New York, Washington, Wisconsin and West Virginia) and seven lower chambers (Colorado, Kentucky, Minnesota, New Hampshire, Nevada, New Mexico and Washington).
• Season to taste with 34 U.S. Senate and 435 U.S. House races, eight races for governorships held by Democrats and four held by Republicans..
• Sprinkle on top with 150 or so ballot measures for flavor.
• Now mix at breakneck speed for 60 days.
• Cook on a presidential hot stove that’s been burning since 2015.

The finished product: The political landscape for at least the next two years. Whether it will be tasty depends on the consumer. Republicans currently control 67 state legislative chambers (more than any time in party history), Democrats control 31 chambers. Nebraska is unicameral and nonpartisan.

There you have it—the essential recipe for this election season. NCSL’s StateVote 2016 webpage offers one-stop shopping for all state legislative election and statewide ballot measure needs this fall.

Be sure to come back on election night, Nov. 8, for round-the-clock coverage and check out NCSL’s StateVote 2016 post-election event in Washington, D.C., on Nov. 14.

Dan Diorio is a policy specialist in NCSL's Elections Program.

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