LIMSwiki

2000 United States gubernatorial elections

← 1999 November 7, 2000 2001 →
13 governorships 11 states; 2 territories
Majority party Minority party   Party Republican Democratic Seats before 30 18 Seats after 29 19 Seat change 1 1 Popular vote 5,966,679 6,942,442 Percentage 45.10% 52.48% Seats up 4 7 Seats won 3 8
Map of the results      Democratic hold      Republican hold      Democratic gain      Popular Democratic gain      Nonpartisan      No election

United States gubernatorial elections were held on November 7, 2000, in 11 states and two territories. The elections coincided with the presidential election. Democrats gained one seat by defeating an incumbent in West Virginia. As of 2024, this remains the last gubernatorial cycle in which a Democrat won in Indiana.

State	Incumbent	Party	First elected	Result	Candidates
Delaware	Tom Carper	Democratic	1992	Incumbent term-limited. New governor elected. Democratic hold.	Y Ruth Ann Minner (Democratic) 59.2% John M. Burris (Republican) 39.7% Floyd E. McDowell (Independent) 1.0%
Indiana	Frank O'Bannon	Democratic	1996	Incumbent re-elected.	Y Frank O'Bannon (Democratic) 56.6% David M. McIntosh (Republican) 41.7% Andrew Horning (Libertarian) 1.8%
Missouri	Roger B. Wilson	Democratic	2000[a]	Incumbent retired. New governor elected. Democratic hold.	Y Bob Holden (Democratic) 49.1% Jim Talent (Republican) 48.2% Larry Rice (Independent) 1.5%
Montana	Marc Racicot	Republican	1992	Incumbent term-limited. New governor elected. Republican hold.	Y Judy Martz (Republican) 51.0% Mark O'Keefe (Democratic) 47.1% Stan Jones (Libertarian) 1.9%
New Hampshire	Jeanne Shaheen	Democratic	1996	Incumbent re-elected.	Y Jeanne Shaheen (Democratic) 48.7% Gordon J. Humphrey (Republican) 43.7% Mary Brown (Independent) 6.4% John J. Babiarz (Libertarian) 1.1%
North Carolina	Jim Hunt	Democratic	1976 1984 (term-limited) 1992	Incumbent term-limited. New governor elected. Democratic hold.	Y Mike Easley (Democratic) 52.0% Richard Vinroot (Republican) 46.3% Barbara Howe (Libertarian) 1.4%
North Dakota	Ed Schafer	Republican	1992	Incumbent retired. New governor elected. Republican hold.	Y John Hoeven (Republican) 55.0% Heidi Heitkamp (Democratic) 45.0%
Utah	Mike Leavitt	Republican	1992	Incumbent re-elected.	Y Mike Leavitt (Republican) 55.8% Bill Orton (Democratic) 42.3%
Vermont	Howard Dean	Democratic	1991[b]	Incumbent re-elected.	Y Howard Dean (Democratic) 50.5% Ruth Dwyer (Republican) 38.0% Anthony Pollina (Progressive) 9.6%
Washington	Gary Locke	Democratic	1996	Incumbent re-elected.	Y Gary Locke (Democratic) 58.4% John Carlson (Republican) 39.7% Steve LePage (Libertarian) 1.9%
West Virginia	Cecil Underwood	Republican	1956 1960 (term-limited) 1996	Incumbent lost re-election. New governor elected. Democratic gain.	Y Bob Wise (Democratic) 50.1% Cecil Underwood (Republican) 47.2% Denise Giardina (Mountain) 1.6%

State	Incumbent	Party	First elected	Result	Candidates
American Samoa	Tauese Sunia	Democratic	1996	Incumbent re-elected.	Y Tauese Sunia (Democratic) 51.4% L. Peter Reid (Independent) 48.6%[1]
Puerto Rico	Pedro Rosselló	New Progressive	1992	Incumbent retired. New governor elected. Popular Democratic gain.	Y Sila María Calderón (PPD) 48.6% Carlos Pesquera (PNP) 45.7% Rubén Berríos Martínez (PIP) 5.2%

States where the margin of victory was under 1%:

1. Missouri, 0.9%

States where the margin of victory was under 5%:

1. American Samoa, 2.8%
2. West Virginia, 2.9%
3. Puerto Rico, 3.0%
4. Montana, 3.9%

States where the margin of victory was under 10%:

1. New Hampshire, 5.0%
2. North Carolina, 5.8%

2000 Delaware gubernatorial election

← 1996 November 7, 2000 2004 →

Nominee Ruth Ann Minner John Burris Party Democratic Republican Popular vote 191,695 128,603 Percentage 59.2% 39.8%

County results Minner:      50–60%      60–70%

Governor before election Tom Carper Democratic Elected Governor Ruth Ann Minner Democratic

The 2000 Delaware gubernatorial election was held on November 7, 2000, coinciding with the U.S. presidential election. Incumbent governor Tom Carper was term-limited and instead successfully ran for the United States Senate. Lieutenant Governor and Democratic nominee Ruth Ann Minner squared off against Republican nominee John M. Burris and won in a landslide on election day.

2000 Indiana gubernatorial election

← 1996 November 7, 2000 (2000-11-07) 2004 →

Nominee Frank O'Bannon David McIntosh Party Democratic Republican Running mate Joe Kernan J. Murray Clark Popular vote 1,232,525 908,285 Percentage 56.6% 41.7%

County results O'Bannon:      40–50%      50–60%      60–70%      70–80% McIntosh:      40–50%      50–60%

Governor before election Frank O'Bannon Democratic Elected Governor Frank O'Bannon Democratic

The 2000 Indiana gubernatorial election was held on November 7, 2000. Incumbent governor Frank O'Bannon, a Democrat, was re-elected over Republican David M. McIntosh with 57% of the vote. Libertarian Andrew Horning also ran and received 2% of the vote. O'Bannon's victory was the fourth consecutive election in which a Democrat was elected Governor of Indiana, the longest winning streak for that party in the state since the Civil War. As of 2023, this was the last time a Democrat was elected Governor of Indiana.

2000 Missouri gubernatorial election

← 1996 November 7, 2000 2004 →

Nominee Bob Holden Jim Talent Party Democratic Republican Popular vote 1,152,752 1,131,307 Percentage 49.12% 48.21%

County results Holden:      40–50%      50–60%      60–70%      70–80% Talent:      40–50%      50–60%      60–70%      70–80%

Governor before election Roger B. Wilson Democratic Elected Governor Bob Holden Democratic

The 2000 Missouri gubernatorial election was held on November 7, 2000 and resulted in a narrow victory for the Democratic nominee, State Treasurer of Missouri Bob Holden, over the Republican candidate, U.S. Representative Jim Talent, and several other candidates. Incumbent Democratic governor Mel Carnahan was term-limited and could not run for re-election to a third term in office. However, he was killed in a plane crash on October 16, 2000, while campaigning for Missouri's Class 1 Senate seat. Lieutenant Governor Roger B. Wilson succeeded to the office following Carnahan's death.

Coincidentally, Talent would later be elected at the 2002 Senate special election and defeated Mel Carnahan's widow Jean Carnahan to begin the rest of Mel Carnahan's unexpired Senate term. This was the only time between 1968 and 2020 that the winner of the Missouri gubernatorial election did not come from the same party as the winner of the presidential election held simultaneously. This gubernatorial election was one of the closest in Missouri's history. Bob Holden did well, as expected in St. Louis and Kansas City. Talent easily won most rural parts of the state. Holden did poorly in the St. Louis suburbs. However Holden's wins in the Democratic strongholds of St. Louis and Kansas City proved to be just enough to push him over the finish line. Because the election was decided by less than 1%, Talent could have requested a recount that his campaign would have to pay for since it was not below half a percent. However, most recounts never see a swing of more than 1,000 votes, and Talent was trailing by 21,445. Talent ultimately did not request a recount and conceded defeat on the late evening of November 14.

2000 Montana gubernatorial election

← 1996 November 7, 2000 2004 →
Turnout	59.90%10.70[2]
Nominee Judy Martz Mark O'Keefe Party Republican Democratic Running mate Karl Ohs Carol Williams Popular vote 209,135 193,131 Percentage 51.0% 47.1%
County results Martz:      50–60%      60–70%      70–80%      80–90% O'Keefe:      50–60%      60–70%      70–80%
Governor before election Marc Racicot Republican Elected Governor Judy Martz Republican

The 2000 Montana gubernatorial election took place on November 7, 2000. Incumbent governor of Montana Marc Racicot, who was first elected in 1992 and was re-elected in 1996, was unable to seek re-election due to term limits. Judy Martz, the lieutenant governor of Montana under Racicot for four years, won the Republican primary and advanced to the general election, where she faced Mark O'Keefe, the Montana State Auditor and Democratic nominee. Despite the fact that George W. Bush, the Republican nominee for president in 2000, won the state in a landslide, the race between Martz and O'Keefe was close. However, Martz managed to narrowly defeat him to win her first and only term as governor. This was the last time that a Republican was elected Governor of Montana until 2020, when Greg Gianforte was elected.^[3]

2000 New Hampshire gubernatorial election

← 1998 November 7, 2000 2002 →

Nominee Jeanne Shaheen Gordon Humphrey Mary Brown Party Democratic Republican Independent Popular vote 275,038 246,952 35,904 Percentage 48.8% 43.8% 6.4%

County results Municipality results Shaheen:      40–50%      50–60%      60–70% Humphrey:      40–50%      50–60%      60–70%      70–80%      80–90%      >90% Tie:      40–50%

Governor before election Jeanne Shaheen Democratic Elected Governor Jeanne Shaheen Democratic

The 2000 New Hampshire gubernatorial election took place on November 7, 2000. Incumbent Democratic Governor Jeanne Shaheen won re-election.

2000 North Carolina gubernatorial election

← 1996 November 7, 2000 2004 →

Nominee Mike Easley Richard Vinroot Party Democratic Republican Popular vote 1,530,324 1,360,960 Percentage 52.02% 46.26%

County results Easley:      40–50%      50–60%      60–70%      70–80% Vinroot:      50–60%      60–70%

Governor before election Jim Hunt Democratic Elected Governor Mike Easley Democratic

The 2000 North Carolina gubernatorial election was held on November 7, 2000. The general election was fought between the Republican nominee, former mayor of Charlotte Richard Vinroot and the Democratic nominee, state Attorney General Mike Easley. Easley won by 52% to 46% and succeeded fellow Democrat Jim Hunt as governor.

2000 North Dakota gubernatorial election

← 1996 November 7, 2000 2004 →

Nominee John Hoeven Heidi Heitkamp Party Republican Democratic–NPL Running mate Jack Dalrymple Aaron Krauter Popular vote 159,255 130,144 Percentage 55.0% 45.0%

County results Hoeven:      50–60%      60–70% Heitkamp:      50–60%      60–70%      70–80%      80–90%

Governor before election Ed Schafer Republican Elected Governor John Hoeven Republican

The 2000 North Dakota gubernatorial election took place on November 7, 2000 for the post of Governor of North Dakota. Incumbent Republican governor Ed Schafer decided not to run for reelection. Republican nominee John Hoeven won the election over Democratic State Attorney General Heidi Heitkamp. Heitkamp had led in the polls until early October, when reports indicated that she had breast cancer, and would undergo surgery. She ran advertisements to assure voters she was still fit to serve; however, by the final month, Hoeven had taken a six-point lead in polling.^[4] As of 2021, this is the most recent North Dakota gubernatorial election in which the Democratic nominee received over 40% of the vote. Hoeven and Heitkamp later served alongside each other in the United States Senate from 2013 to 2019.

2000 Utah gubernatorial election

← 1996 November 7, 2000 2004 →

Nominee Mike Leavitt Bill Orton Party Republican Democratic Running mate Olene Walker Karen Hale Popular vote 424,837 321,979 Percentage 55.77% 42.27%

County results Leavitt:      50–60%      60–70%      70–80% Orton:      50–60%      60–70%

Governor before election Mike Leavitt Republican Elected Governor Mike Leavitt Republican

The 2000 Utah gubernatorial election took place on November 7, 2000. Incumbent Republican Mike Leavitt won reelection to a third term.

2000 Vermont gubernatorial election

← 1998 November 7, 2000 2002 →

Nominee Howard Dean Ruth Dwyer Anthony Pollina Party Democratic Republican Progressive Popular vote 148,059 111,359 28,116 Percentage 50.5% 38.0% 9.6%

County results Municipality results Dean:      30-40%      40-50%      50-60%      60-70%      70-80%      80-90% Dwyer:      30-40%      40-50%      50-60%      60-70%      70-80%

Governor before election Howard Dean Democratic Elected Governor Howard Dean Democratic

The 2000 Vermont gubernatorial election took place on November 7, 2000. Incumbent Democratic governor Howard Dean won re-election. The campaign was dominated by the fallout from the passage of a civil union bill and the subsequent backlash encapsulated by the slogan Take Back Vermont. Ruth Dwyer, the Republican nominee in 1998, ran again in 2000 and was closely tied to the Take Back Vermont movement. Howard Dean, the Democratic governor, favored civil unions and was a primary target of Take Back Vermont.^[5]

2000 Washington gubernatorial election

← 1996 November 7, 2000 2004 →

Nominee Gary Locke John Carlson Party Democratic Republican Popular vote 1,441,973 980,060 Percentage 58.4% 39.7%

County results Locke:      40–50%      50–60%      60–70% Carlson:      40–50%      50–60%

Governor before election Gary Locke Democratic Elected Governor Gary Locke Democratic

Elections in Washington
Federal government Presidential elections 1892 1896 1900 1904 1908 1912 1916 1920 1924 1928 1932 1936 1940 1944 1948 1952 1956 1960 1964 1968 1972 1976 1980 1984 1988 1992 1996 2000 2004 2008 2012 2016 2020 2024 Presidential primaries Democratic 2004 2008 2012 2016 2020 2024 Republican 2008 2012 2016 2020 2024 U.S. Senate elections 1889 1891 1893 1895 sp 1897 1899 1903 1905 1909 1911 1914 1916 1920 1922 1928 1934 1940 1946 1952 1956 1958 1962 1964 1968 1970 1974 1976 1980 1982 1983 sp 1986 1988 1992 1994 1998 2000 2004 2006 2010 2012 2016 2018 2022 2024 2028 U.S. House of Representatives elections 1889 1890 1892 1894 1896 1898 1900 1902 1904 1906 1908 1909 2nd sp 1910 1912 1914 1916 1918 1920 1922 1923 5th sp 1924 1926 1928 1930 1932 1934 1936 1938 1940 1942 1944 1946 1947 3rd sp 1948 1950 1952 1954 1956 1958 1960 3rd sp 1962 1964 1966 1968 1970 1972 1974 1975 3rd sp 1976 1977 7th sp 1978 1980 1982 1984 1986 1988 1990 1992 1994 1996 1998 2000 2002 2004 2006 2008 2010 2012 1st sp 2014 2016 2018 2020 2022 2024 2026
State government General elections 2004 2008 2010 2012 2016 2020 2024 Gubernatorial elections 1889 1892 1896 1900 1904 1908 1912 1916 1920 1924 1928 1932 1936 1940 1944 1948 1952 1956 1960 1964 1968 1972 1976 1980 1984 1988 1992 1996 2000 2004 2008 2012 2016 2020 2024 Lieutenant gubernatorial elections 2020 2024 Secretary of State elections 1992 1996 2000 2004 2008 2012 2016 2020 2022 sp 2024 Attorney General elections 2000 2004 2008 2012 2016 2020 2024 State Treasurer elections 2024 State Auditor elections 2024 Commissioner of Public Lands elections 2024 State Senate elections 2004 2006 2008 2010 2012 2013 26th sp 2014 2016 2017 45th sp 2018 2020 2022 2024 House of Representatives elections 2006 2008 2010 21st 2012 2014 2016 2018 2020 2022 2024 Supreme Court elections 2004 2006 2008 2012
Ballot measures 1972 276 2004 872 2006 920 933 937 4223 2007 67 2008 1000 2009 71 2012 74 502 1185 1240 2016 732 2018 1631 1639 2019 976 2024 2066 2109 2117 2124
Seattle Mayoral elections 2005 2009 2013 2017 2021 2025 City Attorney elections 2021 City Council elections 2019 2021 3rd recall 2023 Ballot measures Sound Transit 3
Spokane Mayoral elections 2011 2015 2019 2023

The 2000 Washington gubernatorial election was held on November 7, 2000. Incumbent Democratic governor Gary Locke defeated the Republican candidate John Carlson for his second term in a landslide.

As of 2022, this was the earliest gubernatorial election in Washington in which both candidates are currently still living. This is the last time a Democratic nominee for governor outperformed the Democratic nominee for president in Washington. This would also be the last gubernatorial election in Washington in which the margin of victory was in double digits and in which any counties in Eastern Washington voted for a Democrat until Jay Inslee's 2020 landslide victory.

2000 West Virginia gubernatorial election

← 1996 November 7, 2000 2004 →

Nominee Bob Wise Cecil Underwood Party Democratic Republican Popular vote 324,822 305,926 Percentage 50.1% 47.2%

County results Wise:      40–50%      50–60%      60–70% Underwood:      40–50%      50–60%      60–70%      70–80%

Governor before election Cecil Underwood Republican Elected Governor Bob Wise Democratic

The 2000 West Virginia gubernatorial election took place on November 7, 2000. Incumbent Republican governor Cecil Underwood ran for re-election to a second consecutive term in office, but was defeated by Democratic U.S. Representative Bob Wise. Concurrently, the state voted for the opposite party federally, choosing Republican nominee, George W. Bush over Democratic nominee Al Gore in the presidential election that year. As of 2022, this was the last time in which an incumbent West Virginia Governor lost re-election.

Guam election

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Democratic	Tauese Sunia	{{{votes}}}	51.4%
	Independent	L. Peter Reid	{{{votes}}}	48.6%
Total votes			{{{votes}}}	100.00

2000 Puerto Rican general election

← 1996 7 November 2000 2004 →
Turnout	82.20%
Nominee Sila María Calderón Carlos Pesquera Rubén Berríos Party Popular Democratic New Progressive Independence Alliance Democratic Democratic Popular vote 978,860 919,194 104,705 Percentage 48.9% 45.9% 5.7%
Results by municipality Calderón:      40-50%      50-60% Pesquera:      40–50%      50–60%
Governor before election Pedro Rosselló New Progressive Elected Governor Sila María Calderón Popular Democratic

• 2000 United States elections
  • 2000 United States presidential election
  • 2000 United States Senate elections
  • 2000 United States House of Representatives elections