As the 2026 midterm elections approach, candidates who have denied or disputed the results of the 2020 presidential election are running for statewide offices that will play a direct role in certifying future vote tallies. A new analysis by States United Action, a nonprofit that tracks candidate positions on election validity and shared its findings exclusively with NPR ahead of publication, identifies at least 53 such candidates competing for statewide posts across 23 states.
In total, 39 states are holding elections this year for offices that interact with the electoral process: secretaries of state, governors, or attorneys general. These positions have authority over administering, certifying, or enforcing election laws. The States United analysis found that five presidential swing states — Arizona, Georgia, Michigan, Nevada, and Pennsylvania — are among those where election-denying candidates are running for these critical roles.
The report defines election denial using five criteria, including whether candidates have falsely claimed former President Donald Trump was the rightful winner of 2020 or supported efforts to undermine results after audits and legal challenges concluded. In Arizona, a key battleground state, candidates who dispute 2020 results are running for all three major statewide positions that affect elections: governor, secretary of state, and attorney general.
What the Left Is Saying
Democratic strategists and election integrity advocates argue that the presence of these candidates poses an unprecedented risk to democratic norms. Joanna Lydgate, CEO of States United Action, said her organization seeks to provide voters with accurate information about where candidates stand on fundamental questions about electoral legitimacy. "We know that they will do that again," Lydgate said, referring to officials who resisted pressure from Trump in 2020. "But it's incredibly important that we elect people who believe in our system and who believe in free and fair elections."
In Georgia during 2020, Republican Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger declined Trump's request to find additional votes. In Michigan, Democratic Secretary of State Jocelyn Benson faced armed protesters at her home in the weeks following the election. Both states will elect new secretaries of state and governors this year, with candidates who have disputed 2020 results among those competing for both positions.
Brendan Fischer, who leads research into efforts to undermine elections at the Campaign Legal Center, said a coordinated "election denial infrastructure" has developed since 2020 that has proven effective at moving Republican candidates toward false theories about voting. "The election denier movement still represents a tiny, tiny minority of the country," Fischer said. "But it is an energized and active force within Republican politics."
What the Right Is Saying
Supporters of these candidates argue they are responding to legitimate concerns among their constituents about election security. In Arizona, Rep. Andy Biggs, who voted against certifying the 2020 election results while serving in the U.S. House, is the front-runner for the Republican gubernatorial nomination. During that period, Biggs contacted a key state lawmaker to explore other avenues to investigate the election results.
Republican candidates in states Trump won by double digits — or those seeking his endorsement in crowded primaries — have generally not been deterred by polling showing voters oppose election denial as a campaign stance. Some conservative commentators argue that concerns about future certification are overblown, noting that officials from both parties successfully resisted pressure to overturn results in 2020 and that existing legal guardrails would constrain any individual official's ability to manipulate outcomes.
What the Numbers Show
The States United analysis counts at least 53 election-denying candidates competing for statewide offices this cycle. This represents a decrease compared with recent midterm cycles, according to Lydgate, who attributed the decline to candidates recognizing it as poor campaign strategy in competitive states. "Election denial is not something that American voters like, and candidates who've run on that platform have paid a real price in the past," she said.
A post-2022 analysis by NPR found that Republican secretary of state candidates who denied 2020 results generally underperformed other GOP candidates in competitive races. States United estimated that penalty at roughly 3 percentage points. However, the data shows significant variation based on state context: candidates running in deeply Republican districts or states have faced little apparent electoral cost for their positions.
The Bottom Line
The 2026 midterms will determine who holds offices with direct authority over how elections are administered and certified through at least 2028. Whether election-denying candidates succeed depends largely on whether they face competitive general elections or run in reliably Republican areas where the Democratic penalty documented in previous cycles does not apply. Observers say voters in competitive states — particularly Arizona, Georgia, Michigan, Nevada, and Pennsylvania — will have the most direct impact on determining who oversees their future votes.
The outcome could also test whether the electoral price identified after 2022 holds steady, increases, or diminishes as Election Day approaches.