1994 New York Attorney General election

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1994 New York Attorney General Election
Flag of New York (1909-2020).svg
  1990 November 8, 1994 1998  
  Dennis Vacco (New York Attorney General).jpg
Nominee Dennis Vacco Karen Burstein
Party Republican Democratic
Alliance Liberal
Popular vote2,294,5282,206,188
Percentage49.28%47.38%

1994 New York Attorney General election results map by county.svg
County results
Vacco:     40–50%     50–60%     60–70%
Burstein:     50–60%     60–70%     70–80%

New York Attorney General before election

G. Oliver Koppell
Democratic

Elected New York Attorney General

Dennis Vacco
Republican

The 1994 New York Attorney General election took place on November 8, 1994. Republican nominee Dennis Vacco narrowly defeated Democratic nominee Karen Burstein. As of 2023, this is the last time a Republican was elected Attorney General of New York.

Contents

Background

Attorney General Robert Abrams ran for United States Senate in 1992 but narrowly lost to incumbent Republican Al D'Amato. Abrams announced his resignation from the office of attorney general on September 8, 1993, to take effect on December 31.

The New York State Legislature appointed G. Oliver Koppel, an Assemblyman from the Bronx, to fill the office of Attorney General until a successor was elected at the regularly scheduled 1994 election. [1]

Democratic primary

Candidates

General election

Candidates

Campaign

In the final month of the campaign, Staten Island Borough President Guy Molinari publicly remarked that Burstein would be unqualified for office because she was a lesbian.

Results

General Election Results [2]
PartyCandidateVotes%
Republican Dennis Vacco1,988,56742.71%
Conservative Dennis Vacco305,9616.57%
Total Dennis Vacco 2,294,52849.28%
Democratic Karen Burstein2,097,08345.04%
Liberal Karen Burstein109,1052.34%
Total Karen Burstein 2,206,18847.38%
Right to Life Alfred Skidmore85,6491.84%
Independence James Hartman37,5000.81%
Libertarian Daniel Conti19,2020.41%
Socialist Workers Nancy Rosenstock13,4160.29%
Majority88,3401.9%
Turnout 4,656,483
Republican gain from Democratic

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References

  1. 1 2 3 4 5 Fisher, Ian (September 14, 1994). "THE 1994 CAMPAIGN: ATTORNEY GENERAL; Burstein Wins Close Victory Against Koppell in Primary". The New York Times . pp. B6. Retrieved April 1, 2024.
  2. "1994 Election Results | New York State Board of Elections". www.elections.ny.gov. Retrieved August 4, 2021.

See also

Preceded by
1990
New York Attorney General election
1994
Succeeded by
1998