Five states hold state executive and legislative primaries August 4


Five states held statewide primaries on August 4, 2020: Arizona, Kansas, Michigan, Missouri, and Washington. There were 690 state executive and legislative seats up for election. These included 22 state executive seats, 112 state senate seats, and 556 state house seats.

Candidates competed to advance to the general election on November 3, 2020.

The following information was current as of August 6. At that time, some races were still too close to call, and results from Washington were not yet final because the election was held largely by mail.

Across the five states, 549 incumbents filed for re-election to the 690 seats. Preliminary results indicate at least 16 incumbents were defeated.

Eighteen state executive incumbents filed for re-election. Of those 18 incumbents, 15 advanced to the general election. The results for three of the seats were not yet known.

In the state senate elections, 90 incumbents filed for re-election to 112 seats. At least seven did not advance to the general election. In the state house elections, 441 incumbents competed for re-election to 556 seats. Nine were defeated, but that number may grow as results are finalized.

Washington state holds top-two primaries in which all candidates appear on the primary ballot, regardless of party affiliation. The top two vote-getters advance to the general election.

These primaries were the 32nd through the 36th to take place in the 2020 election cycle. The next primary was held on August 6 in Tennessee.

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