Republican Gov. Tate Reeves is projected to win reelection in Mississippi.
Nov. 7, 2023, was Election Day in at least 37 states, and Americans cast their votes on everything from governorships to local referenda. When the dust settled, it was a solid night for Democrats and their allies: According to ABC News projections, Democratic Gov. Andy Beshear won reelection in Kentucky, and Ohio voters passed Issue 1 to codify abortion rights in the state constitution. The AP also projected that Democrats won both chambers of the Virginia legislature and an open seat on the Pennsylvania Supreme Court. However, there were a few bright spots for Republicans: ABC News projected that Mississippi Gov. Tate Reeves beat back a strong challenge from Democrat Brandon Presley.
As results came in, 538 analysts were breaking them down in real time with live updates, analysis and commentary. Read our full live blog below.
Speaking of which … ABC News can now project that Amo has won in Rhode Island’s 1st District. I’ll still be watching to see what the final margin is, though, since overperformance in special elections can often tell us which way the political winds are blowing.
—Nathaniel Rakich, 538
With 39 percent of the expected vote reporting, Democrat Gabe Amo leads Republican Gerry Leonard Jr. 63 percent to 37 percent in the special election for Rhode Island’s 1st District. This is wholly unsurprising, considering that the district voted for Biden by a similar margin of 64 percent to 35 percent. So far, Amo isn’t overperforming to quite the same degree as Democrats have in state-legislative special elections this year. But that shouldn’t stop him from becoming the first person of color to represent Rhode Island in Congress.
—Nathaniel Rakich, 538
In Philadelphia, ABC News projects former Philadelphia City Council member Cherelle Parker will be the city's next mayor. She will become Philadelphia's first female mayor, defeating Republican David Oh.
— Leah Askarinam, 538
In Kentucky, 60 percent of the expected vote has reported in the governor's race, and Beshear leads by 5 points over Cameron, 52.5 percent to 47.5 percent. But there's more good news for Beshear: He's mostly running ahead of his 2019 numbers in the counties where most of the vote has come in. At this point, 37 counties have reported at least 90 percent of their expected vote (out of 120 in the state), and across them Beshear is running 4.7 points ahead of his 2019 margin. Now, most of those counties are small — together, they made up about 23 percent of the statewide vote four years ago. But those counties also don't include the two biggest Democratic bases of support in Jefferson and Fayette counties (Louisville and Lexington).
—Geoffrey Skelley, 538
