As a result of the elections, the vast majority of states continue to have divided control between the legislature and the governorship. This split will remain as a key driving force affecting state legislative activity.

Democrats did better at the state level than the federal level this year, but not by much. They picked up seven chambers overall, compared with four for the GOP. Party control switched (or became tied) in 12 chambers which, according to the National Conference of State Legislatures, is the average in every two-year election cycle.

Democrat gains were experienced in the northeast and the west. In Colorado, both the Senate and the House switched from GOP to Democrat control. In Minnesota (although they don't control it yet), the Democrats picked up a whopping 14 House seats.

In the south, the GOP continued its gains. For example Texas, Florida, Georgia, and South Carolina are states where the GOP now controls the legislature and the governorship. In Georgia and Tennessee, new Republican majorities in the House and Senate respectively are the first since Reconstruction.

In terms of total state legislators, before the election Republicans had 64 more legislators. It is now tied at 3,657 (with one seat still up in the air). There are 7,382 seats in the nation's state legislatures—but not all are partisan (Nebraska).

For an overview of the state elections, with relevant links, the National Conference of State Legislatures has a press release. There is also an article on this topic in the December issue of State Legislatures magazine.