1986 United States gubernatorial elections
(Redirected from 1986 U.S. gubernatorial elections)
United States gubernatorial elections were held on November 4, 1986, in 36 states and two territories. The Democrats had a net loss of eight seats during this election, which coincided with the Senate and the House elections. This was despite the Democratic trend on a federal level, making this the last midterm election until 2022 where the party of the incumbent president achieved a net gain of governorships.
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38 governorships 36 states; 2 territories | |||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Republican hold
Republican gain
Democratic hold
Democratic gain |
Election results
editA bolded state name features an article about the specific election.
States
editState | Incumbent | Party | First elected |
Result | Candidates |
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Alabama | George Wallace | Democratic | 1962 1966 (term-limited) 1970 1978 (term-limited) 1982 |
Incumbent retired. New governor elected. Republican gain. |
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Alaska | Bill Sheffield | Democratic | 1982 | Incumbent lost re-nomination. New governor elected. Democratic hold. |
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Arizona | Bruce Babbitt | Democratic | 1978[a] | Incumbent retired. New governor elected. Republican gain. |
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Arkansas | Bill Clinton | Democratic | 1978 1980 (defeated) 1982 |
Incumbent re-elected. |
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California | George Deukmejian | Republican | 1982 | Incumbent re-elected. |
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Colorado | Richard Lamm | Democratic | 1974 | Incumbent retired. New governor elected. Democratic hold. |
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Connecticut | William A. O'Neill | Democratic | 1980[b] | Incumbent re-elected. |
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Florida | Bob Graham | Democratic | 1978 | Incumbent term-limited. New governor elected. Republican gain. |
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Georgia | Joe Frank Harris | Democratic | 1982 | Incumbent re-elected. |
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Hawaii | George Ariyoshi | Democratic | 1974 | Incumbent term-limited. New governor elected. Democratic hold. |
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Idaho | John Evans | Democratic | 1978[c] | Incumbent retired. New governor elected. Democratic hold. |
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Illinois | James R. Thompson | Republican | 1976 | Incumbent re-elected |
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Iowa | Terry Branstad | Republican | 1982 | Incumbent re-elected |
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Kansas | John W. Carlin | Democratic | 1978 | Incumbent term-limited. New governor elected. Republican gain. |
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Maine | Joseph E. Brennan | Democratic | 1978 | Incumbent term-limited. New governor elected. Republican gain. |
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Maryland | Harry Hughes | Democratic | 1978 | Incumbent term-limited. New governor elected. Democratic hold. |
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Massachusetts | Michael Dukakis | Democratic | 1974 1978 (lost renomination) 1982 |
Incumbent re-elected |
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Michigan | James Blanchard | Democratic | 1982 | Incumbent re-elected |
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Minnesota | Rudy Perpich | Democratic | 1976[e] 1978 (defeated) 1982 |
Incumbent re-elected |
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Nebraska | Bob Kerrey | Democratic | 1982 | Incumbent retired. New governor elected. Republican gain. |
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Nevada | Richard Bryan | Democratic | 1982 | Incumbent re-elected. |
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New Hampshire | John H. Sununu | Republican | 1982 | Incumbent re-elected. |
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New Mexico | Toney Anaya | Democratic | 1982 | Incumbent term-limited. New governor elected. Republican gain. |
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New York | Mario Cuomo | Democratic | 1982 | Incumbent re-elected. |
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Ohio | Dick Celeste | Democratic | 1982 | Incumbent re-elected. |
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Oklahoma | George Nigh | Democratic | 1978 | Incumbent term-limited. New governor elected. Republican gain. |
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Oregon | Victor Atiyeh | Republican | 1978 | Incumbent term-limited. New governor elected. Democratic gain. |
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Pennsylvania | Dick Thornburgh | Republican | 1978 | Incumbent term-limited. New governor elected. Democratic gain. |
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Rhode Island | Edward D. DiPrete | Republican | 1984 | Incumbent re-elected. |
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South Carolina | Richard Riley | Democratic | 1978 | Incumbent term-limited. New governor elected. Republican gain. |
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South Dakota | Bill Janklow | Republican | 1978 | Incumbent term-limited. New governor elected. Republican hold. |
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Tennessee | Lamar Alexander | Republican | 1978 | Incumbent term-limited. New governor elected. Democratic gain. |
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Texas | Mark White | Democratic | 1982 | Incumbent lost re-election. New governor elected. Republican gain. |
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Vermont | Madeleine Kunin | Democratic | 1982 | Incumbent re-elected.[f][1] |
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Wisconsin | Tony Earl | Democratic | 1982 | Incumbent lost re-election. New governor elected. Republican gain. |
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Wyoming | Edward Herschler | Democratic | 1974 | Incumbent retired. New governor elected. Democratic hold. |
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Territories and federal district
editTerritory | Incumbent | Party | First elected |
Result | Candidates |
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District of Columbia | Marion Barry | Democratic | 1978 | Incumbent re-elected. |
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Guam | Ricardo Bordallo | Democratic | 1982 | Incumbent lost re-election.[2] New governor elected. Republican gain. |
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U.S. Virgin Islands | Juan Francisco Luis | Independent | 1978 | Incumbent term-limited.[3] New governor elected. Democratic gain. |
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See also
editNotes
edit- ^ Babbitt took office after his predecessor (Wesley Bolin) died.
- ^ O'Neill took office after his predecessor (Ella Grasso) resigned. He was subsequently elected in the 1982 Connecticut gubernatorial election.
- ^ Evans took office after his predecessor (Cecil Andrus) resigned.
- ^ Stevenson was originally the Democratic gubernatorial nominee but later withdrew when several Lyndon LaRouche supporters won spots on the Democratic ticket. See Solidarity Party for more details
- ^ Perpich took office after his predecessor (Wendell R. Anderson) resigned.
- ^ Kunin did not win a majority of the votes; therefore, the state assembly had to cast the final vote.
References
edit- ^ "VT Governor Race - Nov 04, 1986". Our Campaigns. Retrieved 2022-03-18.
- ^ "Guam Governor Race - Nov 04, 1986". Our Campaigns. January 19, 2006.
- ^ "USVI Governor Race - Nov 04, 1986". Our Campaigns. January 19, 2006.