2002 United States elections

During the 2002 U.S. Senate elections, all thirty-three regularly scheduled Class II Senate seats as well as a special election in Missouri were held.

In the United States Senate elections, the Republican Party achieved an overall net gain of two seats with victories in Georgia, Minnesota, and Missouri while the Democrats took a seat in Arkansas. Thus, the balance of power in the Senate changed from 51-49 Democratic majority to 51-49 Republican majority. This represents the only time in U.S. history that the president's party gained control of a chamber of Congress in a mid-term election.

During the 2002 House elections, all 435 seats in the House of Representatives plus five of the six non-voting Delegates from non-state districts were up for election that year. These elections were the first to be held following redistricting in apportionment according to the 2000 United States Census.

Republicans succeeded in expanding their majority in the House of Representatives by a net gain of eight, resulting in a 229-204 Republican majority. They won the nationwide popular vote by a margin of 4.8 points.[2] This represented just the third time since the American Civil War that the president's party picked up seats in the House of Representatives, following the 1934 and 1998 elections.[3]

In addition to all regularly scheduled House elections, there were two special elections held, one for Oklahoma's 1st congressional district on January 8 and another for Hawaii's 2nd congressional district on November 30.

During the 2002 gubernatorial elections, the governorships of the thirty-six states, two territories, and the District of Columbia were up for election.

Going into the elections, Republicans held the governorships of twenty-seven states and one territory (that being the Northern Mariana Islands), Democrats held those of twenty-one states, four territories, and the Mayorship of the District of Columbia, and two governorships were held by incumbents of neither party (those being Angus King (I-ME) and Jesse Ventura (MIP-MN)). Following the elections, Republicans sustained a net loss of one state governorship (but did gain the governorship of the territory of Guam), Democrats gained an overall net gain of three state governorships and held on to all other territorial governorships and the Mayorship of the District of Columbia, and there would be no governorships held by Independents or third parties. Thus the balance of power (excluding non-state entities) would be changed from 27-21 Republican majority to 26-24 Republican Majority.

In some states where the positions were elective offices, voters elected candidates for state executive branch offices (Lieutenant Governors (though some were elected on the same ticket as the gubernatorial nominee), Secretary of state, state Treasurer, state Auditor, state Attorney General, state Superintendent of Education, Commissioners of Insurance, Agriculture or, Labor, etc.) and state judicial branch offices (seats on state Supreme Courts and, in some states, state appellate courts).

In 2002, the seats of the Legislatures of forty-six states and five non-state entities were up for election.

Republicans captured eight legislative chambers from Democrats and also won the majority of state legislative seats for the first time in half a century.[4]

During 2002, various major American cities held their mayoral elections that year, including the following:

• Augusta, Georgia – Incumbent Mayor Bob Young (R), won re-election against former Mayor Ed McIntyre.[5]
• Dover, Delaware – Incumbent mayor James L. Hutchison (R) was re-elected without opposition.[6]
• Independence, Missouri – Incumbent Mayor Ron Stewart (D) was re-elected.[7]
• Lexington, Kentucky – former Councilwoman Teresa Isaac (D) defeated attorney Scott Crosbie in open seat election to succeed outgoing mayor Pam Miller (D).[8]
• Louisville – Former Louisville Mayor Jerry Abramson (D) was elected mayor of the newly created Consolidated city–county of Louisville-Jefferson County[9] (created as the result of the merger of Louisville city and Jefferson County governments).
• New Orleans – Vice president and regional general manager of Cox Communications Ray Nagin (D) won an open seat election to succeed outgoing Mayor Marc Morial (D).
• Providence, Rhode Island – state Representative David Cicilline (D) won an open seat election to succeed acting Mayor John J. Lombardi. Cicilline thus became the first openly gay mayor of a state capital city and Providence would remain the largest American to have an openly gay mayor[10] until Sam Adams' inauguration as Mayor of Portland, Oregon on January 1, 2009.
• Salem, Oregon – Janet Taylor was elected Mayor of Salem to succeed outgoing Mayor Mike Swaim.[11]
• Washington, D.C. – Incumbent Mayor Anthony A. Williams (D) was re-elected to a second term defeating Councilwoman Carol Schwartz (R).