The 2001 United States elections were held on November 6 of that year (with some exceptions for local elections and other special elections across the country). The 2001 recession was a dominant issue throughout the year as well as the

September 11 attacks The September 11 attacks, commonly known as 9/11, were four coordinated suicide terrorist attacks carried out by al-Qaeda against the United States on Tuesday, September 11, 2001. That morning, nineteen terrorists hijacked four commer ...

and subsequent

War on Terror The war on terror, officially the Global War on Terrorism (GWOT), is an ongoing international counterterrorism military campaign initiated by the United States following the September 11 attacks. The main targets of the campaign are militant ...

Federal elections

No elections to either the

Senate A senate is a deliberative assembly, often the upper house or chamber of a bicameral legislature. The name comes from the ancient Roman Senate (Latin: ''Senatus''), so-called as an assembly of the senior (Latin: ''senex'' meaning "the el ...

House A house is a single-unit residential building. It may range in complexity from a rudimentary hut to a complex structure of wood, masonry, concrete or other material, outfitted with plumbing, electrical, and heating, ventilation, and air cond ...

were regularly scheduled to occur in 2001.

U.S. House of Representatives special elections

In 2001, seven

special elections A by-election, also known as a special election in the United States and the Philippines, a bye-election in Ireland, a bypoll in India, or a Zimni election (Urdu: ضمنی انتخاب, supplementary election) in Pakistan, is an election used to f ...

to fill vacancies in the House of Representatives were held. Special elections were held for Pennsylvania's 9th congressional district (on May 15),

California's 32nd congressional district California's 32nd congressional district is a congressional district in the U.S. state of California based in Los Angeles County. The 32nd district takes in the city of Malibu and the Los Angeles neighborhoods of Pacific Palisades, Beverly Gl ...

(June 5),

Virginia's 4th congressional district Virginia's fourth congressional district is a United States congressional district in the state of Virginia, taking in most of the area between Richmond and Chesapeake. In Hampton Roads, it covers all or part of the counties of Charles City, ...

(June 19),

Massachusetts's 9th congressional district Massachusetts's 9th congressional district is located in eastern Massachusetts. It is represented by Democrat William R. Keating. The 9th district is the least Democratic congressional district in Massachusetts, according to the PVI. Redistric ...

(October 16),

Florida's 1st congressional district Florida's 1st congressional district is a congressional district in the U.S. state of Florida, covering the state's western Panhandle. It includes all of Escambia, Okaloosa, Santa Rosa, and Walton counties and portions of Holmes county. The ...

(October 16),

Arkansas's 3rd congressional district Arkansas's 3rd congressional district is a congressional district in the U.S. state of Arkansas. The district covers Northwest Arkansas and takes in Fort Smith, Fayetteville, Springdale, and Bentonville. The district is represented by Repu ...

(November 20), and

South Carolina's 2nd congressional district The 2nd congressional district of South Carolina is in central and southwestern South Carolina. The district spans from Columbia, South Carolina, Columbia to the South Carolina side of the Augusta, Georgia metropolitan area. From 1993 through ...

(December 18). Only one district, Virginia's 4th congressional district, changed hands with

state Senator A state senator is a member of a state's senate in the bicameral legislature of 49 U.S. states, or a member of the unicameral Nebraska Legislature. Description A state senator is a member of an upper house in the bicameral legislatures of ...

Randy Forbes' ( R) victory to the seat previously held by

Norman Sisisky Norman Sisisky (June 9, 1927 – March 29, 2001) was a Democratic member of the United States House of Representatives from Virginia from 1983 to 2001, representing the 4th District. He was a leader of the Blue Dog Coalition and one of the most ...

( D). Thus Republicans increased their majority in the House by one seat.

State elections

Gubernatorial elections

During the 2001 gubernatorial elections, the governorships of two states and one territory were up for election. Going into the elections, Republicans held the Governorships of twenty-nine states and one territory, Democrats held the governorships of nineteen states, four territories, and the Mayorship of the

District of Columbia ) , image_skyline = , image_caption = Clockwise from top left: the Washington Monument and Lincoln Memorial on the National Mall, United States Capitol, Logan Circle (Washington, D.C.), Logan Circle, Jefferson Memoria ...

, and two governorships were held by incumbents of neither party. Democrats gained the governorships of

Virginia Virginia, officially the Commonwealth of Virginia, is a state in the Mid-Atlantic and Southeastern regions of the United States, between the Atlantic Coast and the Appalachian Mountains. The geography and climate of the Commonwealth are ...

and

New Jersey New Jersey is a state in the Mid-Atlantic and Northeastern regions of the United States. It is bordered on the north and east by the state of New York; on the east, southeast, and south by the Atlantic Ocean; on the west by the Delawa ...

. However, Republicans retained the governorship of the

Northern Mariana Islands The Northern Mariana Islands, officially the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands (CNMI; ch, Sankattan Siha Na Islas Mariånas; cal, Commonwealth Téél Falúw kka Efáng llól Marianas), is an unincorporated territory and commonw ...

. Thus the balance of power between Republicans and Democrats was changed from 29–19 to 27–21.

Other statewide elections

The offices of Lieutenant Governor (in

as a separate election and the

on the same ticket as the gubernatorial nominee) and state Attorney General in the former were up for election. There were no other statewide elective offices in

open with the office of governor aside.

State legislative elections

In 2001, seats of the Legislatures of two states and one territory were up for election. Though Democrats gained control of both chambers of the

New Jersey Legislature The New Jersey Legislature is the legislative branch of the government of the U.S. state of New Jersey. In its current form, as defined by the New Jersey Constitution of 1947, the Legislature consists of two houses: the General Assembly and the ...

, Republicans retained control of the

Virginia General Assembly The Virginia General Assembly is the legislative body of the Commonwealth of Virginia, the oldest continuous law-making body in the Western Hemisphere, the first elected legislative assembly in the New World, and was established on July 30, 16 ...

and Northern Mariana Islands Commonwealth Legislature.

Local elections

Mayoral elections

During 2001, several Major American cities held mayoral elections in that year, including the following: *

Albuquerque Albuquerque ( ; ), ; kee, Arawageeki; tow, Vakêêke; zun, Alo:ke:k'ya; apj, Gołgéeki'yé. abbreviated ABQ, is the most populous city in the U.S. state of New Mexico. Its nicknames, The Duke City and Burque, both reference its founding i ...

- former Mayor

Martin Chavez Martin may refer to: Places * Martin City (disambiguation) * Martin County (disambiguation) * Martin Township (disambiguation) Antarctica * Martin Peninsula, Marie Byrd Land * Port Martin, Adelie Land * Point Martin, South Orkney Islands Austra ...

(D) was elected to his previous job to serve a second term. *

Boston Boston (), officially the City of Boston, is the state capital and most populous city of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, as well as the cultural and financial center of the New England region of the United States. It is the 24th- mo ...

- Incumbent Mayor

Thomas Menino Thomas Michael Menino (December 27, 1942 – October 30, 2014) was an American politician who served as the 53rd mayor of Boston, from 1993 to 2014. He was the city's longest-serving mayor. He was elected mayor in 1993 after first serving three ...

(D), breaking a campaign pledge he had made in his first election in 1993 to serve only two terms, was re-elected to a third term. * Buffalo- Incumbent Mayor

Anthony Masiello Anthony M. Masiello (born April 28, 1947) is an American politician and former basketball player who served as Mayor of Buffalo, New York from 1994 to 2005. Prior to being mayor, he served as a member of the New York State Senate. He is currently ...

(D) was re-elected. *

Charlotte Charlotte ( ) is the most populous city in the U.S. state of North Carolina. Located in the Piedmont region, it is the county seat of Mecklenburg County. The population was 874,579 at the 2020 census, making Charlotte the 16th-most populo ...

- Incumbent Mayor

Pat McCrory Patrick Lloyd McCrory (born October 17, 1956) is an American businessman, politician and radio host who served as the 74th governor of North Carolina from 2013 to 2017. A member of the Republican Party, he previously served as the 53rd Mayor of ...

(R) was re-elected to a fourth term. *

Greensboro, North Carolina Greensboro (; formerly Greensborough) is a city in and the county seat of Guilford County, North Carolina, United States. It is the List of municipalities in North Carolina, third-most populous city in North Carolina after Charlotte, North Car ...

- Incumbent Mayor

Keith Holliday Keith Holliday (6 April 1934 – 9 March 2017) was an English professional rugby league footballer who played in the 1950s and 1960s, and coached in the 1960s. He played at representative level for Great Britain and Yorkshire (captain), and ...

won re-election in the runoff against Roch Smith Jr. *

Houston Houston (; ) is the most populous city in Texas, the most populous city in the Southern United States, the fourth-most populous city in the United States, and the sixth-most populous city in North America, with a population of 2,304,580 ...

- Incumbent Mayor

Lee P. Brown Lee Patrick Brown (born October 4, 1937) is an American politician, criminologist and businessman; in 1997 he was the first African-American to be elected mayor of Houston, Texas. He was re-elected twice to serve the maximum of three terms fro ...

(D) defeated Councilman Orlando Sanchez to win re-election to a third term. *

Jersey City Jersey City is the second-most populous city in the U.S. state of New Jersey, after Newark.Glenn D. Cunningham (D) won an open seat election to succeed outgoing Mayor

Bret Schundler Bret D. Schundler (born January 14, 1959) is an American Republican politician from New Jersey. Schundler was the mayor of Jersey City from 1992 until 2001. Schundler was the city's first Republican mayor since 1917. He ran for Governor of New Je ...

(R). Cunningham became Jersey City's first

Black Black is a color which results from the absence or complete absorption of visible light. It is an achromatic color, without hue, like white and grey. It is often used symbolically or figuratively to represent darkness. Black and white ha ...

mayor. *

Kansas City, Kansas Kansas City, abbreviated as "KCK", is the third-largest city in the U.S. state of Kansas, and the county seat of Wyandotte County. It is an inner suburb of the older and more populous Kansas City, Missouri, after which it is named. As of ...

- Incumbent Mayor

Carol Marinovich Carol Marinovich is an American politician in Kansas. She was the first woman to sit on the city council of Kansas City, Kansas when she was elected in 1989. She was then the first woman elected as Mayor of Kansas City, Kansas in 1995. Perso ...

was re-elected. *

Los Angeles Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the largest city in the state of California and the second most populous city in the United States after New York City, as well as one of the world ...

City Attorney A city attorney is a position in city and municipal government in the United States. The city attorney is the attorney representing the municipality. Unlike a district attorney or public defender, who usually handles criminal cases, a city att ...

James Hahn James Kenneth Hahn (born July 3, 1950) is an American lawyer and politician. A Democrat, Hahn was elected the 40th mayor of Los Angeles in 2001. He served until 2005, at which time he was defeated in his bid for re-election. Prior to his term a ...

(D) defeated former State Assembly Speaker

Antonio Villaraigosa Antonio Ramón Villaraigosa (; né Villar Jr.; born January 23, 1953) is an American politician who served as the 41st Mayor of Los Angeles from 2005 to 2013. A member of the Democratic Party, Villaraigosa was a national co-chairman of Hillary ...

(D) in the runoff to succeed term-limited Mayor

Richard Riordan Richard Joseph Riordan (born May 1, 1930) is an American investment banker, businessman, lawyer, and former Republican politician who was the 39th Mayor of Los Angeles, from 1993 to 2001. Born in New York City and raised in New Rochelle, New Y ...

(R). Villaraigosa would defeat Hahn four years later. * Monroe- Chairman of the Monroe City Council Jamie Mayo was elected Mayor of

Monroe, Louisiana Monroe (historically french: Poste-du-Ouachita) is the list of municipalities in Louisiana#List of Municipalities, eighth-largest city in the U.S. state of Louisiana, and parish seat of Ouachita Parish, Louisiana, Ouachita Parish. With a 2020 Unit ...

in 2001. Mayo is the second

African-American African Americans (also referred to as Black Americans and Afro-Americans) are an ethnic group consisting of Americans with partial or total ancestry from sub-Saharan Africa. The term "African American" generally denotes descendants of ensl ...

to be elected Mayor of Monroe. *

New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the List of United States cities by population, most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the L ...

- In a tight race to succeed term-limited Mayor

Rudy Giuliani Rudolph William Louis Giuliani (, ; born May 28, 1944) is an American politician and lawyer who served as the 107th Mayor of New York City from 1994 to 2001. He previously served as the United States Associate Attorney General from 1981 to 19 ...

(R) that was complicated due to the

9/11 The September 11 attacks, commonly known as 9/11, were four coordinated suicide terrorist attacks carried out by al-Qaeda against the United States on Tuesday, September 11, 2001. That morning, nineteen terrorists hijacked four commerci ...

terrorist attacks, Democrat turned Republican billionaire

Michael Bloomberg Michael Rubens Bloomberg (born February 14, 1942) is an American businessman, politician, philanthropist, and author. He is the majority owner, co-founder and CEO of Bloomberg L.P. He was Mayor of New York City from 2002 to 2013, and was a c ...

defeated then-

Public Advocate An ombudsman (, also ,), ombud, ombuds, ombudswoman, ombudsperson or public advocate is an official who is usually appointed by the government or by parliament (usually with a significant degree of independence) to investigate complaints and at ...

Mark J. Green Mark Joseph Green (born March 15, 1945) is an American author, former public official, public interest lawyer, and Democratic politician from New York City. Green was New York City Consumer Affairs Commissioner from 1990 to 1993 and New York Ci ...

(D), thus giving the Republican party its third consecutive victory for the Mayorship of New York City despite that city's strong Democratic tendency. *

Pittsburgh Pittsburgh ( ) is a city in the Commonwealth (U.S. state), Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, United States, and the county seat of Allegheny County, Pennsylvania, Allegheny County. It is the most populous city in both Allegheny County and Wester ...

- Incumbent Mayor Thomas J. Murphy, Jr. (D) was re-elected *

Raleigh Raleigh (; ) is the capital city of the state of North Carolina and the seat of Wake County in the United States. It is the second-most populous city in North Carolina, after Charlotte. Raleigh is the tenth-most populous city in the Southeas ...

- Incumbent Mayor

Paul Coble Paul Yelverton Coble (born October 19, 1953, in Raleigh, North Carolina) served one term as Mayor of Raleigh, North Carolina from December 1999 to December 2001. Coble served on the Wake County Board of Commissioners from 2006 to 2014, and served ...

(R) was defeated by former Councilman

Charles Meeker Charles Carpenter Meeker (born July 27, 1950) is an American politician and member of the Democratic Party who served as the 34th Mayor of Raleigh, North Carolina. He was first elected in 2001 over Republican Paul Coble, and reelected for a fi ...

(D).

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:United States Elections, 2001 2001 elections in the United States

2001 The September 11 attacks against the United States by Al-Qaeda, which killed 2,977 people and instigated the global war on terror, were a defining event of 2001. The United States led a multi-national coalition in an invasion of Afghanist ...

November 2001 events in the United States