“"We now have the keys to the car…" and, touting his win, Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro "pointed out that now 9 of the 10 largest states will have Democratic governors" — CNN Politics, Edward-Isaac Dovere, Nov. 5, 2026”
The claim: “"We now have the keys to the car…" and, touting his win, Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro "pointed out that now 9 of the 10 largest states will have Democratic governors" — CNN Politics, Edward-Isaac Dovere, Nov. 5, 2026”
Why we rated it this way: Census-based 2026 state population rankings put California, Texas, Florida, New York, Pennsylvania, Illinois, Ohio, Georgia, North Carolina, and Michigan as the ten largest. After the midterms, MultiState’s governor results show Democratic winners or continuing Democratic governors in nine of those ten, including Gina Hinojosa’s AP-called flip in Texas; Republican Byron Donalds held Florida, the lone Republican among the top ten.
See the evidenceWhat would change our rating: A reversed call in Texas, Ohio, Georgia, or another top-ten state that left two or more of the ten largest with Republican governors would move this toward Contradicted; a Florida Democratic flip would make it 10 of 10 without changing the 9-of-10 claim.
Our read
Census-based rankings put California through Michigan as the ten largest states. MultiState’s governor results show Democrats in nine of those ten after the midterms, including Texas; Florida stayed Republican under Byron Donalds.
Broadcast
Picture to come
Nov 5, 2026, 11:35 AM CST
Sources
Script
Narration script. If a face or a voice delivers this, the anchor is synthetic.
Midday Check. CNN quotes Josh Shapiro saying 9 of the 10 largest states will have Democratic governors. Population ranks and the 2026 results leave only Florida Republican among the top ten. Verdict: matches the record.
Corrections
None on file.