After the rush of a midterm election, there’s something anticlimactic about looking at the year ahead. Sure, there’s a new Congress, and there’ll be a bunch of activity in the presidential scene as candidates begin to announce – but there aren’t any federal elections, and no chamber of Congress is up for grabs.

But fear not – there will still be some elections! Three governors will be up for election in 2023, as will a few state legislatures, some big mayorships, and a very high profile state supreme court race. The greatest show on Earth goes on, so what can you put on your calendar for 2023, and why do these races matter?

Gubernatorial Elections

The most exciting gubernatorial election next year is in Kentucky, where incumbent Democratic Governor Andy Beshear will face off against a Republican challenger. Kentucky is a very red state, and Beshear (who is a former attorney general of the state and the son of its former Democratic governor, Steve Beshear) only narrowly won in 2019 by 0.4%. But, Beshear is also one of the most popular governors in the country, with a 59% approval rating – nothing to sniff at in deeply Republican Kentucky. The most prominent Republican seeking the nomination is the Trump-endorsed Attorney General Daniel Cameron, who succeeded Beshear as attorney general. Non-Trump endorsed Kelly Craft, who served as Trump’s ambassador to the United Nations, is also in the running. And there are rumors Matt Bevin, the incumbent governor who Beshear defeated in 2019, may run again too. This will easily be the most competitive gubernatorial race of the year.

Down the Mississippi is the gubernatorial race in… well, Mississippi. Incumbent Republican Governor Tate Reeves was first elected in 2019 and can seek another term, but he has not indicated if he will – nor has any other candidate. This was a closer race than you might have expected in 2019, when then-Attorney General Jim Hood was nominated by Democrats and only lost by about 5% – the closest gubernatorial election in Mississippi since the 90s. Reeves’ popularity leaves a lot to be desired, but as an incumbent Republican in a state that went for Trump by 16% in 2020, Reeves is heavily favored if he seeks the seat.

And across the Mississippi in Louisiana, a flip is in the making. Incumbent Democratic Governor John Bel Edwards is up against a term limit and no Democrat has announced their candidacy yet, while Republicans are anxious to claw back the governor’s mansion in yet another red state. The state’s attorney general, Jeff Landry, has already declared and is the only one officially running so far. The Democratic field isn’t as thin as you might think but that no strong candidate has emerged yet to keep the governor’s office in their hands is a red flag. Keep an eye on former New Orleans Mayor Mitch Landrieu, who is probably the best nationally-known candidate yet to decide.

State Legislatures

Four states will hold state legislative elections in 2023. In Louisiana, all seats of the State Senate and State House of Representatives will be up and Republicans hold overwhelming control of both, which is unlikely to change. It’s a similar story in Mississippi; it’s hard to see a lot of movement happening in their state legislature either. In New Jersey, Democrats control both the State Senate and General Assembly, and all seats are up. Though control is closer in New Jersey than it is in the aforementioned Southern states, Democrats are pretty good at keeping the legislature and have held it for 20 years. New Jersey Democrats are also trying to put protections for abortion rights on the same ballot, which should juice turnout in an otherwise slow election year.

Finally, in Virginia, there will be a fierce conquest for both chambers. Democrats hold 21 of 40 seats in the State Senate and Republicans hold 52 of 100 seats in the House of Delegates. Given the state has a Republican governor in Glenn Youngkin, Democrats are anxious to keep control of at least one chamber of the legislature, and Republicans are fiercely seeking to acquire a trifecta. Of all the state legislature elections this cycle, Virginia will get the most attention – expect abortion and education to get a lot of airtime in the Old Dominion.

Mayors

Several significant mayoral offices are also up for election in 2023. Of the nation’s 25 largest cities, the largest city with a mayoral election is Chicago, where incumbent Democrat Lori Lightfoot is seeking a second term. Lightfoot faces some pretty serious challengers and has often lagged in polling behind Democratic Congressman Chuy Garcia, likely due to rising crime rates in the city and a high profile conflict with the teachers union. Chicago uses a runoff system if no single candidate gets a majority of the vote on February 28, so a high profile mayoral election seems likely on April 4. Houston will have an open seat as incumbent Democrat Sylvester Turner is term-limited; Democratic State Senator John Whitmire and former vice chair of the Texas Democratic Party Chris Hollins are both in the race. Philadelphia also has a term-limited Democrat and a wide open field has emerged with many candidates vying to run the City of Brotherly Love.

San Antonio’s Independent Mayor, Ron Nirenberg, is eligible to seek reelection as is Dallas’ Democratic Mayor Eric Johnson. Jacksonville is the largest city with a Republican mayor, but Lenny Curry is ineligible to run again due to term limits; several councilmembers are running, as are some Democrats who may have a shot to take the seat. Fort Worth, the second-largest city with a Republican mayor, also has an election but incumbent Mattie Parker has not indicated if she’ll run again. Columbus’ incumbent Democrat Andrew Ginther is eligible to seek reelection, Indianapolis’ incumbent Democrat Joe Hogsett is seeking another term, Charlotte’s incumbent Democrat Vi Lyles is eligible for reelection, and Nashville’s incumbent Democrat John Cooper is seeking another term. Rounding out the mayoral elections in America’s largest cities, Denver’s incumbent Democrat Michael Hancock is term-limited and a truly astonishing number of people have declared they’ll be running in the Mile High City.

Other notable mayoral races include Memphis, Salt Lake City, Tucson, Colorado Springs, Kansas City, Portland, and Tampa. 

State Supreme Court, Special Elections, and More!

One state will hold an election for its Supreme Court, and it’s gearing up to be quite an ordeal up in Wisconsin. Justice Patience Roggensack, who has attracted some controversy in the past for her positions on COVID-19 and election drop boxes, is considered a member of the court’s conservative bloc and, in a state as on the frontlines of the nation’s culture and policy wars as Wisconsin is, this will be a major election. Former Justice Daniel Kelly is running, as are three circuit court judges – Everett Mitchell, Janet Protasiewicz, and Jennifer Dorow. Among these four, Kelly and Dorow are “conservative” candidates and Mitchell and Protasiewicz are “liberal” candidates. Because this gives Democrats an opportunity to get a “majority” on the court until at least 2025, this will be the most significant race in the Midwest in 2023. It’s also months before the November elections, taking place on April 4.

So far in 2023, we also have one special election in Virginia’s 4th District after Democratic Congressman Donald McEachin died of cancer a couple weeks after being reelected in the 2022 midterms. For the February 21 election, Democrats chose State Senator Jennifer McClellan to run for the seat, which is considered safe for Democrats (Republicans don’t tend to get above 40% in this district). It’s pretty likely we’ll see another couple of special elections for the House of Representatives in 2023, given that there were nine in 2022. But, they may get outsized attention this year given the incredibly narrow margin of control in the House. Two or three more special elections and things start to get really interesting… 

And finally, don’t forget there are a number of other offices up for election in the states holding gubernatorial elections for positions including attorney general, secretary of state, and state treasurer. But for now, that’s the overview of the major offices up for election in 2023 to keep you satiated until 2024.