1996 New Hampshire gubernatorial election

For related races, see 1996 United States gubernatorial elections.

The 1996 New Hampshire gubernatorial election took place on November 5, 1996. State Senator Jeanne Shaheen won the election, marking the first time since 1980 that a Democrat was elected Governor of New Hampshire. She defeated Ovide Lamontagne, who had defeated representative Bill Zeliff for the Republican nomination.

1996 New Hampshire gubernatorial election

November 5, 1996

Nominee Jeanne Shaheen Ovide Lamontagne Party Democratic Republican Popular vote 284,175 196,321 Percentage 57.2% 39.5%

Shaheen:      40–50%      50–60%      60–70%      70–80%      >90% Lamontagne:      40–50%      50–60%      60–70%      80–90%

Governor before election Steve Merrill Republican Elected Governor Jeanne Shaheen Democratic

Election results

New Hampshire gubernatorial election, 1996

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Democratic	Jeanne Shaheen	284,175	57.17%	+31.62%
	Republican	Ovide Lamontagne	196,321	39.50%	−30.44%
	Independent	Fred Bramante	10,316	2.08%
	Libertarian	Robert Kingsbury	5,974	1.20%	−3.20%
	Write-ins		254	0.05%
Majority			87,854	17.68%	−26.71%
Turnout			497,040
	Democratic gain from Republican		Swing