Since 2018, Ballotpedia has invited candidates to take part in our Candidate Connection initiative. We survey candidates at the federal, state, and local levels to help voters better understand how their candidates think about the world and how they intend to govern.
A total of 6,541 candidates from all 50 states, four territories, and the District of Columbia responded to the survey in 2024. Of these candidates, 1,127 were part of Ballotpedia’s expansion to collect surveys from local candidates beyond Ballotpedia’s core coverage scope. The remaining 5,414 candidates represent 19.2% of the 28,246 candidates Ballotpedia covered in 2024. This is the highest response rate Ballotpedia has recorded since the Candidate Connection initiative began in 2018. The second highest response rate was recorded in 2022 when 19.1% of candidates responded to Ballotpedia’s survey.
California was the state with the highest number of survey respondents, with 904 candidates answering Ballotpedia’s survey, followed by Texas with 435 respondents. Candidates for state legislative offices made up the greatest percentage of respondents at 41%, followed by congressional candidates at 18%. A total of 1,068 candidates, or 20% of respondents for whom election outcomes were tracked, won their elections.
Learn more about these candidates in our new report, which also highlights several notable candidates who completed the survey, features the respondents who won their elections, and lists all of the 6,541 candidates who sent in answers.
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