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1978 Illinois elections

(Redirected from 1978 Illinois Comptroller election)

Elections were held in Illinois on Tuesday, November 7, 1978.[1]

1978 Illinois elections
← 1976 November 7, 1978 1980 →
Turnout57.55%

Primaries were held on March 21, 1978.[2]

This was the first election that the 1970 Constitution of Illinois' change took effect that all statewide executive offices would be elected in national midterm years.

Election information

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1978 was a midterm election year in the United States.

This was the first election that the 1970 Constitution of Illinois' change took effect that all statewide executive offices would be elected in national midterm years.[3] To accommodate this, in 1976, all statewide executive offices that were up for election were elected to two-year terms that would expire following the 1978 elections.

Turnout

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Turnout in the primary election was 25.14%, with a total of 1,482,034 ballots cast. 911,290 Democratic and 570,744 Republican primary ballots were cast.[2]

Turnout during the general election was 57.55%, with 3,342,985 ballots cast.[1]

Federal elections

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United States Senate

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Main article: 1978 United States Senate election in Illinois
See also: 1978 United States Senate elections

Incumbent Republican Charles H. Percy was reelected to a third term.

United States House

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Main article: 1978 United States House of Representatives elections in Illinois
See also: 1978 United States House of Representatives elections

All 24 Illinois seats in the United States House of Representatives were up for election in 1978. The Republican Party flipped one seat, leaving the composition of Illinois' House delegation to consist of 13 Republicans and 11 democrats.

State elections

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Governor and Lieutenant Governor

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Main article: 1978 Illinois gubernatorial election
1978 Illinois gubernatorial election
 
← 1976 November 7, 1978 1982 →
Turnout54.23%[1]
     
Nominee James R. Thompson Michael Bakalis
Party Republican Democratic
Running mate David C. O'Neal Dick Durbin
Popular vote 1,859,684 1,263,134
Percentage 59.0% 40.1%
 
County Results

Thompson:      50-60%      60-70%      70-80%

Bakalis:      40–50%      50–60%
Governor before election

James R. Thompson
Republican

Elected Governor

James R. Thompson
Republican

Incumbent Governor James R. Thompson and Lieutenant Governor David C. O'Neal, Republicans, jointly won reelection to a second term.

1978 gubernatorial election, Illinois[4]
Party Candidate Votes %
Republican James Thompson / Dave O'Neal (incumbents) 1,859,684 59.04
Democratic Michael Bakalis / Dick Durbin 1,263,134 40.10
Libertarian Georgia Shields 11,420 0.36
Socialist Workers Cecil Lampkin 11,026 0.35
U.S. Labor Melvin Klenetsky 4,737 0.15
Write-in Others 106 0.00
Total votes 3,150,107

Attorney General

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1978 Illinois Attorney General election
 
← 1976 November 7, 1978 1982 →
Turnout52.85%[1]
     
Nominee William J. Scott Richard J. Troy
Party Republican Democratic
Popular vote 1,989,758 1,050,085
Percentage 64.81% 34.20%
 
County results
Scott:     50–60%      60–70%      70–80%      80–90%
Troy:      40–50%      50–60%
Attorney General before election

William J. Scott
Republican

Elected Attorney General

William J. Scott
Republican

Incumbent Attorney General William J. Scott, a Republican, was elected to a fourth term.

Democratic primary

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Richard J. Troy, a Commissioner of the Metropolitan Water Reclamation District of Greater Chicago,[5] won the Democratic primary, running unopposed.

Attorney General Democratic primary[2]
Party Candidate Votes %
Democratic Richard J. Troy 538,632 100
Write-in Others 24 0.01
Total votes 538,656 100

Republican primary

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Incumbent William J. Scott won the Republican primary, running unopposed.

Attorney General Republican primary[2]
Party Candidate Votes %
Republican William J. Scott (incumbent) 444,505 100
Write-in Others 35 0.01
Total votes 444,540 100

General election

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Attorney General election[1]
Party Candidate Votes %
Republican William J. Scott (incumbent) 1,989,758 64.81
Democratic Richard J. Troy 1,050,085 34.20
Socialist Workers Guy C. Miller 13,366 0.44
Libertarian Sheldon Waxman 11,917 0.39
U.S. Labor Richard D. Leebove 4,874 0.16
Write-in Others 31 0.00
Total votes 3,070,031 100

Secretary of State

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1978 Illinois Secretary of State election
 
← 1976 November 7, 1978 1982 →
Turnout53.98%[1]
     
Nominee Alan J. Dixon Sharon Sharp
Party Democratic Republican
Popular vote 2,314,546 797,560
Percentage 73.82% 25.44%
 
County results
Dixon:      50–60%      60–70%      70–80%
Secretary of State before election

Alan J. Dixon
Democratic

Elected Secretary of State

Alan J. Dixon
Democratic

Incumbent Secretary of State Alan J. Dixon, a Democrat, was reelected to a second term.

Dixon's margin-of victory was considered to be a landslide.[6]

Democratic primary

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Incumbent Alan J. Dixon won the Democratic primary, running unopposed.

Secretary of State Democratic primary[2]
Party Candidate Votes %
Democratic Alan J. Dixon (incumbent) 602,852 100
Write-in Others 9 0.00
Total votes 602,861 100

Republican primary

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Sharon Sharp, the Clerk of Elk Grove Township, was nominated in the Republican primary without opposition.[6]

Secretary of State Republican primary[2]
Party Candidate Votes %
Republican Sharon Sharp 415,789 100
Write-in Others 9 0.00
Total votes 415,799 100

General election

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Secretary of State election[1]
Party Candidate Votes %
Democratic Alan J. Dixon (incumbent) 2,314,546 73.82
Republican Sharon Sharp 797,560 25.44
Socialist Workers Marie Cobbs 10,247 0.33
Libertarian Ed May 9,104 0.29
U.S. Labor Edward Waffle 4,058 0.13
Write-in Others 12 0.00
Total votes 3,135,527 100

Comptroller

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1978 Illinois State Comptroller election
 
← 1976 November 7, 1978 1982 →
Turnout51.40%
     
Nominee Roland Burris John W. Castle
Party Democratic Republican
Popular vote 1,542,983 1,389,049
Percentage 51.67% 46.52%
 
County results
Burris:      40–50%      50–60%      60–70%
Castle:      40–50%      50–60%      60–70%      70–80%
State Comptroller before election

Michael Bakalis
Democratic

Elected State Comptroller

Roland Burris
Democratic

Incumbent Comptroller Michael Bakalis, a Democrat, did not seek a second term, instead opting to run for governor. Democrat Roland Burris was elected to succeed him. In winning the election, Burris became the first American American to be elected to statewide office in Illinois.[7]

Democratic primary

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With more than 64% of the vote, Roland Burris defeated State Representative Richard Luft in the Democratic primary.[1][8]

Burris was a Chicago attorney that had formerly served as director of the Department of General Services under Governor Dan Walker.[8] Luft had been the early favorite for the party to slate, but at the last minute was beaten out by Burris when the party finally slated candidates.[8] It was reported that black Chicago Democrats had pressured the party to slate a black candidate for statewide office.[8]

During the campaign, Burris and Luft argued over Burris' record as director of the Department of General Services.[8]

Secretary of State Democratic primary[2]
Party Candidate Votes %
Democratic Roland W. Burris 418,735 64.03
Democratic Richard N. Luft 235,192 35.97
Total votes 653,927 100

Republican primary

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With more than 52% of the vote, John W. Castle, director of the Department of Local Government Affairs, defeated W. Robert Blair, former Speaker of the Illinois House of Representatives, in the Republican primary.[1][8] Governor James R. Thompson, who had convinced Castle to abandon his declared plans to run for treasurer and instead run for comptroller, publicly endorsed Castle.[8] Blair criticized Castle for this endorsement, alleging that he would not be able to operate the comptroller's office independently of the governor, while Castle denied that his decisions would be influenced by his political ties to Thompson.[8]

Secretary of State Republican primary[2]
Party Candidate Votes %
Republican John W. Castle 238,086 52.02
Republican W. Robert Blair 219,570 47.98
Write-in Others 2 0.00
Total votes 457,656 100

General election

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Comptroller election[1]
Party Candidate Votes %
Democratic Roland W. Burris 1,542,983 51.67
Republican John W. Castle 1,389,049 46.52
Libertarian Mark B. Wallace 21,645 0.72
Socialist Workers John Eriksen 17,116 0.57
U.S. Labor Carol Leebove 15,181 0.51
Write-in Others 14 0.00
Total votes 2,985,988 100

Treasurer

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1978 Illinois State Treasurer election
 
← 1974 November 7, 1978 1982 →
Turnout51.32%[1]
     
Nominee Jerome Cosentino James M. Skelton
Party Democratic Republican
Popular vote 1,548,605 1,383,966
Percentage 51.95% 46.42%
 
County results
Cosentino:      40–50%      50–60%      60–70%      70–80%
Skelton:      40–50%      50–60%      60–70%      70–80%
Treasurer before election

Donald R. Smith
Republican

Elected Treasurer

Jerome Cosentino
Democratic

Incumbent Treasurer was Donald R. Smith, a Republican who had been appointed in 1977, did not seek reelection. Democrat Jerome Cosentino was elected to succeed him in office. This election made Cosentino the first Italian-American to be elected to statewide office in Illinois.[9]

Democratic primary

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In the Democratic primary, the party establishment had slated Metropolitan Water Reclamation District of Greater Chicago commissioner Jerome Cosentino as its preferred candidate.[8] He won the primary with 60% of the vote, defeating Nina T. Shepherd, a trustee of the University of Illinois.[8] Shepherd received the endorsement of Independent Voter of Illinois in the primary.[8] She ran largely due to the failure of the party of slate a woman for any statewide office.[8] The primary was not overly heated.[8] One issue that haunted Cosentino was that his trucking firm was under investigation by the Interstate Commerce Commission for possible violations of the Interstate Commerce Act.[8] While the investigation found no evidence of wrongdoing, it was not completed until after the primary was over.[8]

Treasurer Democratic primary[2]
Party Candidate Votes %
Democratic Jerome A. Cosentino 402,489 60.71
Democratic Nina T. Shepherd 260,512 39.29
Write-in Others 1 0.00
Total votes 663,002 100

Republican primary

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James M. Skelton, the incumbent county treasurer of Champaign County,[10] won a narrow 52% victory over Bradley M. Glass in the Republican primary.[8] With Skelton being a downstate politician, and Glass being an upstate politician, the race had the dynamics of "downstate vs. upstate".[8] John W. Castle had originally announced that he would run for the Republican nomination for Treasurer, before being convinced by Governor James R. Thompson to instead run for comptroller.[8]

 
County map of the 1978 Illinois Republican Treasurer primary
Skelton:      50-60%      60-70%      70-80%      80-90%      90-100%
Glass:      50-60%      60-70%      70-80%
Treasurer Republican primary[2]
Party Candidate Votes %
Republican James M. Skelton 236,802 52.82
Republican Brad Glass 211,591 47.19
Write-in Others 1 0.00
Total votes 448,394 100

General election

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Treasurer election[1]
Party Candidate Votes %
Democratic Jerome A. "Jerry" Cosentino 1,548,605 51.95
Republican James M. Skelton 1,383,966 46.42
Libertarian Everett Moffat 17,496 0.59
U.S. Labor John H. Brown, Jr. 15,682 0.53
Socialist Workers Randi Lawrence 15,411 0.52
Write-in Others 22 0.00
Total votes 2,981,182 100

State Senate

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One-third of the seats of the Illinois Senate were up for election in 1982. Democrats retained control of the chamber.

State House of Representatives

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All of the seats in the Illinois House of Representatives were up for election in 1978. Democrats retained control of the chamber.

Trustees of University of Illinois

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1978 Trustees of University of Illinois election
← 1976 November 7, 1978 1980 →

An election was held for three of nine seats for Trustees of University of Illinois system.

The election saw the reelection incumbent second-term Republican Ralph Crane Hahn and the election of new members, Democrats Edmund Roche Donoghue and Paul Stone.[1][11]

Incumbent Republican Park Livingston and incumbent first-term Republican Jane Hayes Rader lost reelection.[1][11]

Trustees of the University of Illinois election[1][11]
Party Candidate Votes %
Democratic Paul Stone 1,409,086 17.04
Democratic Edmund R. Donoghue 1,348,011 16.30
Republican Ralph C. Hahn (incumbent) 1,324,857 16.02
Democratic Robert J. "Bob" Webb 1,302,741 15.75
Republican Jane Hayes Rader (incumbent) 1,285,296 15.54
Republican Park Livingston (incumbent) 1,281,284 15.49
U.S. Labor Suzanne Rose 53,630 0.65
Socialist Workers Jo-Ann Della-Guistina 47,191 0.57
Libertarian William Mitchell 44,303 0.54
Libertarian James McCawley 37,298 0.45
Libertarian John Adrian 34,514 0.42
Socialist Workers John Pottinger 29,480 0.36
U.S. Labor Mitchell F. Hirsch 28,220 0.34
U.S. Labor Maureen Ravenscroft 25,424 0.31
Socialist Workers Lee Kail 20,071 0.24
Write-in Others 15 0.00
Total votes 8,271,421 100

Judicial elections

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Multiple judicial positions were up for election in 1978.[1]

Ballot measures

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Illinois voters voted on a two legislatively referred constitutional amendment ballot measures in 1978.[12] In order to be approved, the measures required either 60% support among those specifically voting on the measure or 50% support among all ballots cast in the elections.[12]

Personal Property Tax Amendment

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The Personal Property Tax Amendment (also known as "Amendment 1") was a legislatively referred constitutional amendment which would have amended Article IX, Section 5 of the Constitution of Illinois to eliminate the provision that required the legislature to abolish the personal property tax by January 1, 1979.[12][13] It failed to meet either threshold to amend the constitution.[12]

Personal Property Tax Amendment[1][12][13]
Option Votes % of votes
on measures 		% of all ballots
cast
Yes 952,416 56.48 28.49
No 733,845 43.52 21.95
Total votes 1,686,261 100 50.44
Voter turnout 29.03%

Exempt Veterans' Organizations from Property Taxes Amendment

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The Exempt Veterans' Organizations from Property Taxes Amendment (also known as "Property Tax Exemption for Veterans' Organizations Amendment" and "Amendment 2") was a legislatively referred constitutional amendment which would have amended Article IX, Section 6 of the Constitution of Illinois to exempt veterans' associations from paying property taxes on their meeting halls.[12][14] It failed to meet either threshold to amend the constitution.[12]

Exempt Veterans' Organizations from Property Taxes Amendment[1][12][14]
Option Votes % of votes
on measures 		% of all ballots
cast
Yes 747,907 48.11 22.37
No 806,579 51.89 24.13
Total votes 1,554,486 100 46.50
Voter turnout 26.76%

Local elections

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Local elections were held.

References

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  1. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q r "OFFICIAL VOTE Cast at the GENERAL ELECTION NOVEMBER 7, 1978" (PDF). Illinois State Board of Elections. Retrieved June 25, 2020.[permanent dead link‍]
  2. ^ a b c d e f g h i j "OFFICIAL VOTE Cast at the GENERAL PRIMARY ELECTION MARCH 21, 1978" (PDF). www.elections.il.gov. Illinois State Board of Elections. Archived from the original (PDF) on March 27, 2022. Retrieved June 25, 2020.
  3. ^ "Illinois Constitution - Article V". www.ilga.gov. Illinois General Assembly. Retrieved March 27, 2020.
  4. ^ "1978 Gubernatorial General Election Results - Illinois". uselectionatlas.org. Dave Leip's Atlas of U.S. Elections. Retrieved March 27, 2020.
  5. ^ "Opponent demands tax". videttearchive.ilstu.edu. Vol. 90, no. 91. UPI. January 13, 1978.
  6. ^ a b "Former Illinois Lottery director Sharon Sharp dies". The State Journal-Register. July 7, 2009. Retrieved October 17, 2024.
  7. ^ Kimmel, Leigh (March 14, 2019). "Roland Burris: The First African-American National Bank Examiner". www.occ.treas.gov. Office of the Comptroller of Currency. Retrieved March 27, 2020.
  8. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q r Maher, Sharon (August 1978). "Comptroller, treasurer races — too close to call". Illinois Issues. Retrieved March 27, 2020.
  9. ^ Illinois Blue Book: 1989-1990. Springfield, Ill.: Illinois Secretary of State. 1990. p. 33.
  10. ^ Easterwood, Ray (March 15, 1978). "GOP State Treasurer's race hotly contested". The Post. Vol. 40, no. 81. Loves Park, Illinois. p. 26. Retrieved October 17, 2024 – via Illinois Digital Newspaper Collections.
  11. ^ a b c "Trustees, University of Illinois Board of Trustees" (PDF). University of Illinois. Retrieved April 1, 2020.
  12. ^ a b c d e f g h "Illinois Constitution - Amendments Proposed". www.ilga.gov. Illinois General Assembly. Retrieved March 26, 2020.
  13. ^ a b "Illinois Personal Property Tax Amendment (1978)". Ballotpedia. Retrieved March 29, 2020.
  14. ^ a b "Illinois Property Tax Exemption for Veterans' Organizations (1978)". Ballotpedia. Retrieved March 29, 2020.
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