Five Black Democrats Are Running for Governor Across the Country in 2026

Five Black candidates will carry the Democratic Party’s banner in gubernatorial races across the country this November, creating a notable moment for Black political representation in the 2026 midterm elections.

The five pictured are Wes Moore of Maryland, Jermaine Johnson of South Carolina, Keisha Lance Bottoms of Georgia, Aaron Ford of Nevada and David Crowley of Wisconsin.

The group includes Wes Moore in Maryland, Keisha Lance Bottoms in Georgia, Jermaine Johnson in South Carolina, Aaron Ford in Nevada and David Crowley in Wisconsin.

Crowley became the latest to join the group after narrowly winning Wisconsin’s Democratic gubernatorial primary this week. The Milwaukee County executive defeated state Rep. Francesca Hong by only a few thousand votes in one of Tuesday’s closest contests. His victory makes him the first Black major-party nominee for governor in Wisconsin history.

The five candidates enter the general election from significantly different political positions — from an incumbent governor seeking another term to challengers attempting to make history in states that have never elected a Black governor.

In Maryland, Moore is seeking a second term after easily securing the Democratic nomination in June. Moore made history in 2022 when Maryland voters elected him as the state’s first Black governor and only the third Black person elected governor of a U.S. state.

In Georgia, former Atlanta Mayor Keisha Lance Bottoms won a crowded Democratic primary in May. If elected in November, Bottoms would become Georgia’s first Black governor and the first Black woman elected governor of any state in U.S. history.

The stakes are similarly historic in neighboring South Carolina, where state Rep. Jermaine Johnson captured the Democratic nomination with nearly 60% of the primary vote, avoiding a runoff. Johnson, a millennial lawmaker and former professional basketball player, is attempting to break a long Democratic drought in a state where the party has not won a gubernatorial election since 1998.

In Nevada, Attorney General Aaron Ford is the Democratic standard-bearer in the race for governor. Ford has served as Nevada’s attorney general since 2019 and previously became the first Black person elected to statewide constitutional office in Nevada.

And in Wisconsin, Crowley’s victory adds another potentially historic contest to the November ballot. Crowley became Milwaukee County’s first Black county executive in 2020 and would become Wisconsin’s first Black governor if elected. He will face Republican U.S. Rep. Tom Tiffany in November.

The five candidacies do not guarantee five competitive races. The political terrain differs dramatically among the states. Moore is an incumbent Democrat running in heavily Democratic Maryland, while Johnson is campaigning in Republican-dominated South Carolina. Georgia, Nevada and Wisconsin could draw considerably more national attention as November approaches.

But taken together, the nominations represent an unusual concentration of Black candidates competing for one of the country’s most powerful state offices.

The United States has elected only a small number of Black governors in its history, and several of the 2026 candidates could make history in their respective states.

Whether that translates into victories will be decided in November. For now, voters in five states will see Black Democratic gubernatorial nominees on their general-election ballots — from the Deep South to the Midwest and Mountain West.