Democrats add one governorship

Democrats made a net gain of only one governorship in Tuesday's national election through Jay Nixon's victory in Missouri, reports the Governing.com. They also benefited from surprisingly easy wins in two other competitive gubernatorial races.

Democrats now hold 29 governorships nationwide, compared to 21 Republicans. That represents their high-water mark since the Republican sweep year of 1994.

It was the year's only change in party control. In North Carolina, Lieutenant Governor Bev Perdue will step into the state's top job, succeeding fellow Democrat Mike Easley. She beat Charlotte Mayor Pat McCrory, 50-47 percent. Perdue ran just a couple of thousand votes ahead of Barack Obama in the state.

In Washington State, Democratic Gov. Christine Gregoire beat former state Sen. Dino Rossi in a rematch. Gregoire won their 2004 contest by just 133 votes, but is heading to a healthy if not overwhelming win.

Nixon, Missouri's attorney general, never trailed in his race against Rep. Kenny Hulshof. The unpopularity of outgoing Republican Matt Blunt, along with wounds from a contentious GOP primary, left Hulshof without a chance.

Vermont GOP Governor James Douglas won a clear majority against two opponents, Democratic state House Speaker Gaye Symington and independent Anthony Pollina. Douglas took about 55 percent of the vote, while his rivals each took about 21 percent.

Indiana Republican Mitch Daniels won a comfortable victory over Democratic former Rep. Jill Long Thompson, 58 to 40 percent.

Democrat Jack Markell easily held the Delaware governorship, where Ruth Ann Minner is term-limited.

As expected, the other incumbent governors coasted to big wins, including Republicans Jon Huntsman Jr. of Utah and John Hoeven of North Dakota, as well as Democrats Brian Schweitzer of Montana, Joe Manchin of West Virginia and John Lynch of New Hampshire.

Republican governors are more inclined than Democrats to outsource information technology jobs to the private sector. The most notable exception is former Virginia Democratic Gov. Mark Warner, who outsourced statewide IT infrastructure support to Northrop Grumman Corp.