UPDATED STORY: 10/25/26
When we first wrote about the unprecedented eight Black major-party candidates running for governor this year, the history was in the number itself.
Now, with just over a week until the Nov. 3 election, the question is no longer simply that they made it onto the ballot. Can they win?
A lot has happened since we first introduced you to these eight candidates. Some races have tightened, some candidates have gained ground and others face a tougher path as Election Day approaches.
And the stakes are significant. Several victories would produce historic firsts for their states — and one could produce a first for the nation.
So we’ve updated our original profiles. Read on to meet the eight candidates, learn more about the states they hope to lead and see where each race stands heading into the final days before the election.
FYI, five of the candidates are Democrats and three are Republicans.
A Remarkably Short List
To appreciate why eight candidates caught my attention, consider the history.
Douglas Wilder of Virginia became the first Black person elected governor of a state in 1989 — more than two centuries after the nation’s founding.
Massachusetts voters elected Deval Patrick in 2006. Sixteen years later, Maryland voters elected Wes Moore.
That’s it. Those are the only three Black Americans ever elected governor.
New York’s David Paterson also served as governor, from 2008 to 2010, after Gov. Eliot Spitzer resigned, but Paterson was not elected to the office.
Now, in a single election, voters could significantly expand a list that has remained remarkably short.
Here are the eight candidates making 2026 historic.
Keisha Lance Bottoms — Georgia, Democrat
Bottoms is well known nationally from her four years as mayor of Atlanta, including leading the city through the COVID-19 pandemic and protests following the murder of George Floyd. She previously served as a judge and Atlanta City Council member and later worked in the Biden White House as a senior adviser.
Bottoms won a crowded seven-candidate Democratic primary with 56% of the vote. She faces Republican businessman Rick Jackson in November.
If elected, Bottoms would become Georgia’s first Black governor — and potentially the nation’s first Black woman governor.
UPDATE: Bottoms is still within striking distance in one of the closest races among the eight candidates. Recent polls have Republican Rick Jackson ahead by only one to three points; a University of Georgia poll had Jackson at 46% and Bottoms at 45%, with 8% undecided. A Bottoms victory would make her both Georgia’s first Black governor and the first Black woman elected governor anywhere in the country.
Lisa Demuth — Minnesota, Republican
Demuth is competing with Bottoms for that national first.
A business owner and former school board member, Demuth was elected to the Minnesota House in 2018. In 2025, she became the first Black lawmaker and first Republican woman to serve as speaker of the Minnesota House.
She faces Democratic U.S. Sen. Amy Klobuchar in November. A Demuth victory would make her Minnesota’s first Black governor and potentially America’s first Black woman governor.
UPDATE: Demuth also enters the closing stretch behind Democrat Amy Klobuchar. Three October polls put Klobuchar’s advantage between seven and nine points, making Demuth’s path considerably steeper than those of several of the other Black gubernatorial candidates.
Aaron Ford — Nevada, Democrat
Ford already knows something about making history. In 2019, he became Nevada’s first Black attorney general.
Before that, Ford was a public school math teacher and served in the Nevada Senate, eventually becoming majority leader. His personal story includes becoming a single father while still in college and relying on Medicaid and food assistance before eventually earning five degrees, including a law degree and Ph.D.
If elected, Ford would become Nevada’s first Black governor.
UPDATE: Ford’s challenge to Republican Gov. Joe Lombardo remains highly competitive. An Oct. 8-13 poll had Lombardo ahead just 48%-47%, while an even newer Oct. 20-23 survey had Ford ahead 45%-42%; both differences were within their respective margins of error. Ford would become Nevada’s first Black governor.
Byron Donalds — Florida, Republican
Donalds, a U.S. congressman from southwest Florida, won the Republican nomination with the backing of President Donald Trump.
Before entering Congress in 2021, Donalds served in the Florida House of Representatives and worked in banking, finance and insurance.
He faces Democrat David Jolly, himself a former Republican congressman. A Donalds victory would make him Florida’s first Black governor.
UPDATE: Donalds continues to lead Democrat David Jolly in most recent polling, but the race has tightened enough that President Donald Trump returned to Florida to rally support for Donalds. That alone is notable in a state where Republicans have won every gubernatorial election since 1998 — Jeb Bush, Charlie Crist, Rick Scott and Ron DeSantis. Democrat Lawton Chiles, reelected in 1994, was the last Democrat elected governor of Florida
John James — Michigan, Republican
James brings a military and business background to the race. A West Point graduate, he served eight years in the Army as a Ranger-qualified aviation officer and flew Apache helicopters during Operation Iraqi Freedom.
After returning home, James worked in his family’s supply-chain business before entering politics. He ran twice for the U.S. Senate before winning election to Congress in 2022.
James faces Democratic Michigan Secretary of State Jocelyn Benson. If elected, he would become Michigan’s first Black governor.
UPDATE: James has more ground to make up heading into the final days. An Oct. 18 Marist poll of likely voters had Democrat Jocelyn Benson ahead 51%-45%; other October polling has also shown Benson leading, although the size of the gap varies.
David Crowley — Wisconsin, Democrat
Crowley became both the youngest person and first Black person elected Milwaukee County executive when he won the position in 2020.
His path to political leadership came after a difficult childhood that included poverty and housing instability. Before becoming county executive, Crowley served in the Wisconsin State Assembly.
A victory in November would make him Wisconsin’s first Black governor.
UPDATE: Crowley has emerged as one of the candidates to watch closely. The latest Marquette Law School Poll had him at 49% to Republican Tom Tiffany’s 46% among likely voters, although the three-point difference is within the poll’s margin of error. A Crowley victory would give Wisconsin its first Black governor.
Jermaine Johnson — South Carolina, Democrat
Johnson’s path to politics began far from the statehouse.
A former college basketball player who later played professionally, Johnson earned a doctorate in organizational leadership and founded a nonprofit focused on helping people develop employment skills.
He has served in the South Carolina House since 2020, representing a district in the Columbia area, home to the state capital.
Johnson is seeking to become South Carolina’s first elected Black governor — in a state where nearly one-quarter of the population is Black.
UPDATE: Johnson’s race has produced conflicting polling. Several likely-voter surveys have Republican Alan Wilson ahead — including a recent poll showing an 8.6-point margin — while an Oct. 21 Claflin University survey surprisingly showed Johnson ahead 43.5%-37.7%. That Claflin result deserves caution: its online survey was unweighted and included registered voters regardless of how likely they were to vote.
Wes Moore — Maryland, Democrat
Moore is the one candidate on this list who has already made gubernatorial history.
A Rhodes Scholar, Army veteran, author and former nonprofit executive, Moore became Maryland’s first Black governor when he was elected in 2022.
He easily won renomination this year and faces Republican Dan Cox in a rematch of their 2022 contest. Moore is currently the only Black governor serving in the United States.
UPDATE: Moore remains in a strong position for reelection. An October UMBC poll of likely voters had him leading Republican Dan Cox 51% to 24%, a 27-point margin.
The Political Landscape
There is one more thing I found interesting when looking at these eight races: the presidential voting history of the states.
Trump carried six of the eight in 2024 — Florida, Georgia, Michigan, Nevada, South Carolina and Wisconsin. But only Florida and South Carolina backed Trump in both 2020 and 2024. Minnesota and Maryland voted Democratic in both elections.
That political landscape makes some paths to history look easier than others.
Moore, an incumbent Democrat running in reliably Democratic Maryland, appears to have the strongest path to victory. Donalds also enters November with favorable political terrain in Florida, a state that has moved increasingly Republican and supported Trump in both of the last two presidential elections.
Demuth faces almost the opposite situation in Minnesota. The state rejected Trump in both elections, and she is challenging a well-established statewide officeholder in U.S. Sen. Amy Klobuchar.
The others are running across a more complicated political map. Georgia, Michigan, Nevada and Wisconsin all flipped from Biden in 2020 to Trump in 2024, demonstrating that voters in those states can move between the parties. Johnson, meanwhile, faces the challenge of running as a Democrat in South Carolina, which supported Trump in both presidential elections.
Already Historic
Certainly, winning a nomination is not the same as winning in November. Some of these candidates have much steeper paths to victory than others.
But I don’t think we should overlook what has already happened.
Eight Black major-party candidates for governor. Five Democrats. Three Republicans. Two Black women with an opportunity to accomplish something no Black woman in American history has done.
After nearly 250 years in which voters have elected only three Black governors, having eight Black nominees on ballots in the same election is remarkable.
Whatever happens Nov. 3, that’s history worth noting.
