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 County results Bangerter: 30–40% 40–50% 50-60% 60-70% 70-80% Wilson: 30–40% 40–50% 50–60% 60–70% 70–80% | |||||||||||||||||||||
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| Elections in Utah |
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The 1988 Utah gubernatorial election was held on November 8, 1988. Republican nominee and incumbent Governor Norman H. Bangerter defeated Democratic nominee Ted Wilson and independent Merrill Cook with 40.13% of the vote. As of 2023, this is the closest a Democrat has come to winning the governorship in Utah since Scott M. Matheson left office in 1985.
Bangerter defeated Samuels at the state convention on June 11 [4] with over 70% of the vote and therefore avoided a primary. [5]
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Republican | Norm Bangerter (incumbent) | 1,502 | 80.6% | |
| Republican | W. Dean Samuels | 361 | 19.4% | |
| Write-in | Merrill Cook | 1 | 0.1% | |
| Total votes | 1,864 | |||
Wilson defeated Hewett at the state convention on June 25 with over 70% of the vote and therefore avoided a primary.
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Democratic | Ted Wilson | 1,654 | 97.4% | |
| Democratic | David E. Hewett | 44 | 2.6% | |
| Total votes | 1,698 | |||
Pedersen defeated Topham at the state convention on June 25 [10] with over 70% of the vote and therefore avoided a primary. [11]
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| American | Arly H. Pedersen | 42 | 77.8% | |
| American | Lawrence Rey Topham | 12 | 22.2% | |
| Total votes | 54 | |||
| Poll source | Date(s) administered | Sample size | Margin of error | Norm Bangerter (R) | Ted Wilson (D) | Merrill Cook (I) | Other | Undecided |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Dan Jones & Associates | April 19–21, 1988 | 904 | ± 3.0% | 28% | 56% | 8% | 1% | 7% |
| Deseret News/KSL | (May 3, 1988) | 27% | 52% | 6% | 1% | |||
| Dan Jones & Associates | (June 27, 1988) | 30% | 49% | 11% | ||||
| Dan Jones & Associates | July 26–28, 1988 | 905 | ± 3.2% | 31% | 50% | 12% | 1% | 7% |
| Dan Jones & Associates | (September 3, 1988) | 31% | 50% | 12% | ||||
| Dan Jones & Associates | November 6, 1988 | 36% | 36% | 24% | ||||
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Republican | Norman H. Bangerter (incumbent) | 260,462 | 40.13% | ||
| Democratic | Ted Wilson | 249,321 | 38.41% | ||
| Independent | Merrill Cook | 136,651 | 21.05% | ||
| Libertarian | Kitty K. Burton | 1,661 | 0.26% | ||
| American | Arly H. Pedersen | 1,019 | 0.16% | ||
| Majority | 11,141 | 1.72% | |||
| Turnout | 649,114 | 100.00% | |||
| Republican hold | Swing | ||||
Jon Meade Huntsman Sr. was an American businessman and philanthropist. He was the founder and executive chairman of Huntsman Corporation, a global manufacturer and marketer of specialty chemicals. Huntsman plastics are used in a wide variety of familiar objects, including (formerly) clamshell containers for McDonald's hamburgers. Huntsman Corporation also manufactures a wide variety of organic and inorganic chemicals that include polyurethanes, textiles, and pigments. Huntsman's philanthropic giving exceeded $1.5 billion, focusing on areas of cancer research, programs at various universities, and aid to Armenia.
Gary Richard Herbert is an American politician who served as the 17th governor of Utah from 2009 to 2021. A member of the Republican Party, he chaired the National Governors Association during the 2015–2016 cycle.
Merrill Alonzo Cook is an American politician and businessman who served as a Republican Party member in the United States House of Representatives from Utah.
William Orton was an American Democratic politician who served as a member of the United States House of Representatives from Utah from 1991 to 1997.
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Jenny Wilson is an American politician currently serving as the Mayor of Salt Lake County, Utah. In September 2007, she was a primary candidate for mayor of Salt Lake City, Utah. In 2016, she was Utah's national committeewoman for the Democratic Party. She is the daughter of Ted Wilson, a former mayor of Salt Lake City. Wilson was the Democratic nominee in the 2018 Utah Senate race, running against Republican nominee Mitt Romney. After her election defeat, she was appointed to replace Ben McAdams as Salt Lake County Mayor, taking the oath of office in January 2019. She was elected to that position for a full four-year term in the 2020 general election.
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The 2010 United States Senate election in Utah took place on November 2, 2010, along with other midterm elections throughout the United States. Incumbent Republican U.S. Senator Bob Bennett was seeking re-election to a fourth term, but lost renomination at the Republican Party's state convention. Mike Lee proceeded to win the Republican primary against Tim Bridgewater and the general election against Democrat Sam Granato. As of 2021, this is the most recent U.S. Senate election in which a political party held the seat after denying renomination to the incumbent senator.
David Keith Nelson is an American activist for the protection of equal rights for lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) people. He founded or helped found several LGBT-related nonprofit organizations in Utah and helped direct others. His work with the Democratic Party encouraged many LGBT Utahns to serve as party leaders. His work as a legislative and executive lobbyist accomplished the adoption of several LGBT- and weapon-friendly state and local laws, rules, ordinances and policies, and the rejection of other legislation.
The 1974 United States Senate election in Utah took place on November 5, 1974 alongside other elections to the United States Senate in other states as well as elections to the United States House of Representatives and various state and local elections.
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The 2012 Utah gubernatorial election was held on November 6, 2012. It was won by Republican incumbent Governor Gary Herbert.
The 1996 Utah gubernatorial election took place on November 5, 1996. Republican nominee and incumbent Governor Michael Leavitt won the election.
Brad R. Wilson is an American businessman, politician and a Republican member of the Utah House of Representatives representing District 15 since January 1, 2011. He lives in Kaysville, Utah, with his wife Jeni and their three children. On April 13, 2023, he formed an exploratory committee to run for the U.S. Senate against Mitt Romney in 2024.
The 2016 United States Senate election in Utah took place on November 8, 2016, to elect a member of the United States Senate to represent the State of Utah, concurrently with the 2016 U.S. presidential election, as well as other elections to the United States Senate in other states and elections to the United States House of Representatives and various state and local elections.
Jack Monson Bangerter was an American businessman and politician.
The 2018 United States Senate election in Utah took place on November 6, 2018, to elect a member of the United States Senate to represent the State of Utah, concurrently with other elections to the United States Senate, elections to the United States House of Representatives, and various state and local elections. The primaries took place on June 26.
The 2020 Utah gubernatorial election was held on November 3, 2020, to elect the governor of Utah, concurrently with the 2020 U.S. presidential election, as well as elections to the United States Senate and elections to the United States House of Representatives and various state and local elections. Although incumbent Republican Governor Gary Herbert was eligible to run for re-election to a third full term, he initially announced shortly after being re-elected in 2016 that he would not run again, but indicated in January 2019 that he was open to the possibility of running again before ultimately deciding to retire and endorse his lieutenant governor, Spencer Cox. Utah has not had a Democratic governor since Scott M. Matheson left office in January 1985. This is the second longest active streak of one-party leadership, trailing only South Dakota, which has not had a Democratic governor since Harvey L. Wollman left office in 1979.
John Dougall is an American politician from the state of Utah who has been serving as the Utah State Auditor since 2013. A member of the Republican Party, he previously served as a Utah State Representative from 2003 to 2013. Dougall assumed office during the 55th legislative session, replacing David Litvack. Dougall has received bipartisan praise for his accomplishments as state auditor.
