Democrats held on to vulnerable seats in Michigan and Wisconsin and were fighting hard to unseat a Republican in Minnesota.
The nation's best-known governor, California Republican Arnold Schwarzenegger, easily won reelection. The former action star defeated Democrat Phil Angelides, the state treasurer.
Massachusetts Democrat Deval L. Patrick will become the first black governor of his state and the second elected black governor of any state since Reconstruction. In Ohio, Democratic Representative Ted Strickland easily defeated Republican Ken Blackwell. New York, as expected, chose Democrat Eliot Spitzer, the attorney general who crusaded for Wall Street and corporate reform.
Massachusetts and Ohio hadn't elected a Democrat since 1986. New York last elected a Democrat in 1990.
In Colorado, Democrat Bill Ritter defeated GOP Representative Bob Beauprez for the seat left open by term-limited GOP Governor Bill Owens. Arkansas chose a Democrat, Attorney General Mike Beebe, over Republican Asa Hutchinson. Maryland voters favored the Democratic mayor of Baltimore, Martin O'Malley, over GOP Governor Robert Ehrlich.
Two vulnerable Democratic governors in the Great Lakes beat back well-funded Republican challenges. Michigan Governor Jennifer Granholm, long targeted by the GOP, defeated millionaire Dick DeVos, even though he put more than $35 million of his own money toward his campaign. Wisconsin Governor Jim Doyle defeated GOP Representative Mark Green.
In Rhode Island, Republican Governor Don Carcieri narrowly defeated Democratic challenger Charles Fogarty. With 100 percent of precincts reporting, Carcieri had 51 percent, to 49 percent for Fogarty.
In another bit of good news for Republicans, the GOP's Charlie Crist, the state attorney general of Florida, defeated Democratic Representative Jim Davis in the contest to replace term-limited GOP Governor Jeb Bush.
And Texas Governor Rick Perry, a Republican, won reelection. He fended off challengers including musician and writer Kinky Friedman.
