Texas House of Representatives

Josh Goodman points out that the Democrats narrowly missed gaining an additional seat in the Texas House of Representatives. The Republicans have 76 seats compared to the Democrats' 74 seats. An additional seat for the Dems would have created a tie and that one contested seat in the Dallas area was won by the incumbent Republican by a mere 20 votes!

States Made History, Too

Stateline:

New Hampshire became the first state in U.S. history to give women the majority in a legislative chamber.

...Meanwhile, the South Carolina Senate went the opposite direction and will become the only state legislative chamber in the country without any female members.

Colorado is poised to become the first state to have black lawmakers leading both legislative chambers.

Click here for more firsts and interesting factoids.

State Legislatures

Democrats did not win overwhelmingly but there are many bright spots for both parties. Republican gains were surprising and mostly concentrated in the South.

Democrats won the biggest prize of the night, taking control of the New York Senate for the first time since 1966 -- and gaining control of the entire New York State government for the first time since the Depression. They now hold at least 32 seats in the 62-seat chamber.

Update: They also gained control of the Ohio House for the first time since 1994, gaining seven seats (they needed four to win). And they took the Wisconsin House, gaining overall control of state government for the first time in more than two decades.

In Nevada, Democrats gained a veto-proof majority in the Assembly and won the Senate for the first time since 1991.

But Republicans pulled off the biggest surprise of the cycle, taking the Tennessee House for the first time since 1971. They also broke a tie in the Tennessee Senate, winning a solid majority that gives them total control of the legislature for the first time since Reconstruction.

Republicans also broke a tie in the Oklahoma Senate, taking control of that chamber for the first time ever.

Continuing GOP inroads in Southern legislatures were offset by growing Democratic strength in the Northeast. Democrats added to their majority in the Delaware Senate, while taking control of the state House. Six incumbent House Republicans went down to defeat, including Terry Spence, the longest-serving House Speaker in the nation.

The Pennsylvania Senate is now the only Republican-controlled chamber north of Virginia.

Democrats appear to have held onto the Pennsylvania House, which they had held by a one-vote majority. They also preserved narrow control of the Maine Senate and the Indiana House.

They fell short in their hopes of capturing other chambers, including the Texas House, the Arizona House and the North Dakota Senate. It also did not look like Democrats were going to make much of a net gain in overall legislative seats nationwide.

State of the State Legislatures, Part II

Tim Storer:

The Democratic advantage in governors is matched in legislatures. Democrats control both chambers in 23 states compared to 14 for Republicans. In 12 states, party control is divided. (The Nebraska Legislature is both nonpartisan and unicameral.) The last time Democrats controlled more than 23 states was before the 1994 election, when Republicans walloped Democrats by seizing the majority in 21 chambers. Currently, Democrats have a 57 to 39 edge in control of individual chambers. There are two legislative bodies that have an equal number of Republicans and Democrats—the Oklahoma and Tennessee senates.

...At least 28 of the 84 legislative chambers with elections this year can be called battlegrounds with either party having a chance to emerge with a majority. At the top of the list are the Oklahoma and Tennessee senates, which are tied. In nine other chambers (Alaska Senate, Maine Senate, Montana Senate, Nevada Senate, New York Senate, Indiana House, Montana House, Oregon House, and Pennsylvania House) a shift of only one seat would change the majority.

The list of key states that are on the bubble may be most remarkable because it includes several of the biggest states where legislative control could have a major impact on congressional redistricting of large U.S. House delegations in 2011. The house in Michigan, Ohio, Pennsylvania and Texas, along with the New York Senate, are all close enough to be in play.

H/T: Open Left

State of the State Legislatures

The landscape for Republicans is not as daunting at the state level as it is on the Congressional level.

Of the top 12 battleground chambers as identified by the National Conference of State Legislatures, a nonpartisan research group, six are considered opportunities for a flip from a Republican to Democratic majority, and six are the reverse, with possible flips from Democratic to Republican control.