California gubernatorial election, 1982

Last updated
California gubernatorial election, 1982
Flag of California.svg
  1978 November 2, 1982 1986  
  George Deukmejian.jpg Tom Bradley (1).jpg
Nominee George Deukmejian Tom Bradley
Party Republican Democratic
Popular vote3,881,0143,787,669
Percentage49.3%48.1%

CA1982Gov.svg
Election results by county

Deukmejian:     40-50%     50-60%     60-70%

Bradley:     40–50%     50–60%

Governor before election

Jerry Brown
Democratic

Elected Governor

George Deukmejian
Republican

The 1982 California gubernatorial election occurred on November 2, 1982. The Republican nominee, Attorney General George Deukmejian, narrowly defeated the Democratic nominee, Los Angeles Mayor Tom Bradley. Incumbent Governor Jerry Brown did not seek reelection to a third term (although he was elected again in 2010).

The California Republican Party (CAGOP) is the California affiliate of the United States Republican Party. The party is based in Sacramento, and is led by Chairwoman Jessica Patterson.

George Deukmejian American politician

Courken George Deukmejian Jr. was an American politician who was the 35th Governor of California from 1983 to 1991 and Attorney General of California from 1979 to 1983. Deukmejian was the first and so far the only governor of Armenian descent of a U.S. state.

The California Democratic Party is the state branch of the United States Democratic Party in the state of California. The party is headquartered in Sacramento, and is led by acting-Chair Alex Gallardo-Rooker.

Contents

Primary election summary

In the Democratic primary, Los Angeles Mayor Tom Bradley easily defeated State Senator John Garamendi. On the Republican side, it was a two-man race between Lieutenant Governor Mike Curb and Attorney General George Deukmejian. Deukmejian won the primary with nearly 55% of the vote.

Tom Bradley (American politician) American politician

Thomas J. Bradley was an American politician and former police officer who served as the 38th Mayor of Los Angeles from 1973 to 1993. He has been the only African American Mayor of Los Angeles, and his 20 years in office mark the longest tenure by any mayor in the city's history; barring any change to the City Charter, no other future mayor of Los Angeles will serve longer than Bradley. His 1973 election made him the second African-American mayor of a major U.S. city. Bradley retired in 1993, after his approval ratings began dropping subsequent to the 1992 Los Angeles Riots. Bradley unsuccessfully ran for Governor of California in 1982 and 1986 and was defeated each time by the Republican George Deukmejian. The racial dynamics that appeared to underlie his narrow and unexpected loss in 1982 gave rise to the political term "the Bradley effect." In 1985, he was awarded the Spingarn Medal from the NAACP.

California State Senate upper house of the California State Legislature

The California State Senate is the upper house of the California State Legislature, the lower house being the California State Assembly. The State Senate convenes, along with the State Assembly, at the California State Capitol in Sacramento.

John Garamendi California politician

John Raymond Garamendi is an American businessman, politician, and member of the Democratic Party who has represented areas of Northern California between San Francisco and Sacramento, including the cities of Fairfield and Suisun City, in the United States House of Representatives since November 2009. Garamendi was previously the California Insurance Commissioner from 1991 to 1995 and 2003 to 2007, the U.S. Deputy Secretary of the Interior from 1995 to 1998, and the 46th Lieutenant Governor of California from 2007 until his election to Congress.

General election

Early indications were that it would be a close race but as the campaign went on, Bradley slowly increased his lead in the polls. Despite this, the outcome was still in doubt as election night wore on. A large late surge of absentee ballots (many from conservative Orange County and Deukmejian's home area of Long Beach) helped tip the balance in his favor. The incorrect polling numbers led to the theory later dubbed "the Bradley effect" that a statistically significant number of voters had given inaccurate responses when questioned by pollsters.

Orange County, California County in California, United States

Orange County is a county in the Los Angeles metropolitan area in the U.S. state of California. As of the 2010 census, the population was 3,010,232, making it the third-most populous county in California, the sixth-most populous in the United States, and more populous than 21 U.S. states. Its county seat is Santa Ana. It is the second most densely populated county in the state, behind San Francisco County. The county's four largest cities by population, Anaheim, Santa Ana, Irvine, and Huntington Beach, each have a population exceeding 200,000. Several of Orange County's cities are on the Pacific Ocean western coast, including Huntington Beach, Newport Beach, Laguna Beach, Dana Point, and San Clemente.

Long Beach, California City in California, United States

Long Beach is a city on the Pacific Coast of the United States, within the Los Angeles metropolitan area of Southern California. As of 2010, its population was 462,257. It is the 39th most populous city in the United States and the 7th most populous in California. Long Beach is the second-largest city in the Los Angeles metropolitan area and the third largest in Southern California behind Los Angeles and San Diego. Long Beach is a charter city.

Bradley effect theory about discrepancies between opinion polls and election results in the United States

The Bradley effect is a theory concerning observed discrepancies between voter opinion polls and election outcomes in some United States government elections where a white candidate and a non-white candidate run against each other. The theory proposes that some voters who intend to vote for the white candidate would nonetheless tell pollsters that they are undecided or likely to vote for the non-white candidate. It was named after Los Angeles Mayor Tom Bradley, an African-American who lost the 1982 California governor's race despite being ahead in voter polls going into the elections.

1982 gubernatorial election, California
PartyCandidateVotes%
Republican George Deukmejian 3,881,01449.28
Democratic Tom Bradley 3,787,66948.09
Libertarian Dan P. Dougherty81,0761.03
Peace and Freedom Elizabeth Martinez 70,3270.89
American Independent Jim Griffin56,2490.71
Total votes7,876,515100.00
Turnout  50.45
Republican gain from Democratic

Results by county

County Deukmejian Votes Bradley VotesOthersVotes
Modoc 68.83%2,59926.35%9954.82%182
Glenn 67.49%5,49229.47%2,3983.05%248
Inyo 63.87%5,00833.15%2,5992.98%234
Sutter 63.33%10,75333.33%5,6603.34%567
Colusa 62.95%3,03633.61%1,6213.44%166
Calaveras 61.63%6,27734.37%3,5014.00%407
Orange 61.44%422,87836.70%252,5721.87%12,848
Amador 61.19%6,25135.66%3,6433.14%321
San Joaquin 60.06%65,58336.63%40,0023.30%3,607
Mono 59.58%1,97737.64%1,2492.77%92
El Dorado 59.37%20,59137.48%12,9993.14%1,090
Tehama 58.55%9,62837.30%6,1344.15%683
Siskiyou 58.40%9,45737.11%6,0094.50%728
Butte 58.13%36,07438.25%23,7343.62%2,245
Shasta 57.61%26,90238.66%18,0533.73%1,743
Tuolumne 56.84%8,71639.82%6,1073.34%512
Nevada 56.80%14,75339.51%10,2623.69%959
Tulare 56.69%38,90141.29%28,3302.02%1,386
Lassen 56.64%4,47238.03%3,0035.33%421
Mariposa 56.39%3,25540.26%2,3243.34%193
Stanislaus 55.94%43,63941.38%32,2762.68%2,093
Placer 55.47%28,08241.15%20,8323.38%1,710
Kern 55.30%70,09542.44%53,7992.26%2,859
Ventura 55.22%99,13042.39%76,0942.40%4,300
Kings 54.64%9,93842.43%7,7182.93%533
Madera 54.57%10,33441.66%7,8893.77%714
Napa 54.20%21,81242.34%17,0423.46%1,393
Trinity 53.95%3,10040.92%2,3515.13%295
Yuba 53.77%6,95941.73%5,4004.50%582
Plumas 53.53%4,23742.39%3,3554.08%323
San Bernardino 53.29%144,09644.08%119,1852.63%7,117
Riverside 53.27%119,68044.68%100,3702.05%4,597
Lake 53.24%8,86742.89%7,1433.87%644
San Luis Obispo 52.94%33,45744.96%28,4172.10%1,327
San Diego 52.76%330,03744.62%279,1132.62%16,366
Alpine 52.66%21844.69%1852.66%11
Merced 52.62%17,47744.10%14,6493.28%1,090
Fresno 52.59%80,17145.01%68,6232.40%3,659
Sacramento 52.35%171,17644.70%146,1672.95%9,639
Imperial 51.40%10,27245.70%9,1332.91%581
Del Norte 51.32%3,35544.88%2,9343.81%249
Solano 50.31%36,96846.26%33,9973.43%2,522
Contra Costa 49.83%126,46047.17%119,7123.00%7,616
Santa Barbara 48.33%55,68249.62%57,1642.05%2,357
Sierra 48.33%91447.96%9073.70%70
Monterey 47.78%37,49348.81%38,3013.42%2,681
Mendocino 46.82%12,39848.29%12,7864.89%1,294
San Benito 46.67%3,60848.92%3,7824.41%341
San Mateo 46.36%99,52750.48%108,3743.15%6,768
Los Angeles 45.67%1,024,94652.27%1,173,1492.06%46,141
Humboldt 45.38%21,60950.38%23,9914.25%2,023
Sonoma 45.10%55,96851.20%63,5423.70%4,597
Santa Clara 43.96%180,23252.87%216,7813.17%13,004
Yolo 42.99%19,22754.00%24,1503.01%1,345
Marin 42.83%42,26053.24%52,5343.93%3,874
Santa Cruz 38.09%29,54557.09%44,2824.82%3,738
Alameda 37.62%145,96458.91%228,5783.47%13,480
San Francisco 30.43%69,47866.47%151,7693.10%7,087

Related Research Articles

Joe Edward Purcell was Acting Governor of Arkansas for six days in 1979 as well as Arkansas Attorney General from 1967–1971 and the 13th Lieutenant Governor of Arkansas from 1975–1981.

1978 United States Senate elections

The 1978 United States Senate elections in the middle of Democratic President Jimmy Carter's term. Thirteen seats changed hands between parties. The Democrats at first lost a net of two seats to the Republicans, and then one more in a special election. Democrats nevertheless retained a 58-41 majority.

2006 New York gubernatorial election

The New York gubernatorial election of 2006 took place on November 7, 2006 to elect the governor and lieutenant governor of New York, concurrently with elections to the United States Senate in other states and elections to the United States House of Representatives and various state and local elections. Eliot Spitzer was elected, succeeding Governor George Pataki, the three-term incumbent, who did not run for a fourth term.

2006 California gubernatorial election

The 2006 California gubernatorial election occurred on November 7, 2006. The primary elections took place on June 6, 2006. The incumbent Republican Governor, Arnold Schwarzenegger, won re-election for his first and only full term. His main opponent was California State Treasurer Phil Angelides, the California Democratic Party nominee. Peter Camejo was the California Green Party nominee, Janice Jordan was the Peace and Freedom Party nominee, Art Olivier was the California Libertarian Party nominee, and Edward C. Noonan was the California American Independent Party nominee.

Lieutenant Governor of New York

The Lieutenant Governor of New York is a constitutional office in the executive branch of the Government of the State of New York. It is the second highest-ranking official in state government. The lieutenant governor is elected on a ticket with the governor for a four-year term. Official duties dictated to the lieutenant governor under the present New York Constitution are to serve as president of the state senate, serve as acting governor in the absence of the governor from the state or the disability of the governor, or to become governor in the event of the governor's death, resignation or removal from office via impeachment. Additional statutory duties of the lieutenant governor are to serve on the New York Court for the Trial of Impeachments, the State Defense Council, and on the board of trustees of the College of Environmental Science and Forestry.

1986 California gubernatorial election

The 1986 California gubernatorial election took place on November 4, 1986. Incumbent Republican George Deukmejian won easily in this rematch over the Democratic challenger, Los Angeles Mayor Tom Bradley. This was the largest gubernatorial victory since Earl Warren in 1950.

1978 California gubernatorial election

The 1978 California gubernatorial election occurred on November 7, 1978. The Democratic incumbent, Jerry Brown, defeated the Republican nominee, Attorney General Evelle J. Younger, in a landslide.

2010 Pennsylvania gubernatorial election

The 2010 Pennsylvania gubernatorial election was held on November 2, 2010, to elect the Governor and Lieutenant Governor of Pennsylvania, concurrently with elections to the United States Senate in Pennsylvania and other states and elections to the United States House of Representatives and various state and local elections.

2010 United States gubernatorial elections

United States gubernatorial elections were held on November 2, 2010 in 37 states and two territories. As in most midterm elections, the party controlling the White House lost ground. Democrats did take five governorships from the Republicans, and Republicans took 11 governorships from the Democrats. An independent won one governorship previously held by a Republican. A Republican won one governorship previously held by an independent. Republicans held a majority of governorships for the first time since before the 2006 elections. One state, Louisiana, had no election for governor, but did feature a special election for lieutenant governor.

1958 Alabama gubernatorial election

The Alabama gubernatorial election of 1958 was held on November 3, 1958. Incumbent Democrat Jim Folsom was term limited and could not seek a second consecutive term.

2012 United States gubernatorial elections

United States gubernatorial elections were held in 12 states and two territories. Of the eight Democratic and four Republican seats contested, only that of North Carolina changed party hands, giving the Republicans a net gain of one governorship. These elections coincided with the presidential election on November 6, 2012.

2002 Wisconsin gubernatorial election

The Wisconsin gubernatorial election of 2002 was held on November 5, 2002. Incumbent Republican Governor of Wisconsin Scott McCallum, who had assumed office upon the resignation of Tommy Thompson, ran for his first full term in office. McCallum won his party's nomination by defeating two minor candidates, and Attorney General of Wisconsin Jim Doyle won the Democratic primary with a little more than a third of the vote in a highly competitive primary election. In the general election, the presence of Ed Thompson, former Governor Tommy Thompson's younger brother, the Mayor of Tomah, and the Libertarian Party nominee, held both McCallum and Doyle to under fifty percent of the vote, enabling Doyle to win with 45% of the vote, defeating McCallum.

1964 Massachusetts gubernatorial election

The 1964 Massachusetts gubernatorial election was held on November 3, 1964. Former Governor John A. Volpe was elected to a two-year term. He defeated former Lieutenant Governor Francis X. Bellotti in the general election.

1948 Massachusetts gubernatorial election

The 1948 Massachusetts gubernatorial election was held on November 2, 1948. Democrat Paul A. Dever defeated Republican incumbent Robert F. Bradford, Socialist Labor candidate Horace Hillis, and Prohibition candidate Mark R. Shaw.

2014 California gubernatorial election

The 2014 California gubernatorial election was held on November 4, 2014, to elect the Governor of California, concurrently with elections for the rest of California's executive branch, as well as elections to the United States Senate in other states and elections to the United States House of Representatives and various state and local elections.

1982 Alaska gubernatorial election

The 1982 Alaska gubernatorial election took place on November 2, 1982, for the post of Governor of Alaska. To replace outgoing Republican governor Jay Hammond, Democratic nominee Bill Sheffield defeated three opponents: Republican nominee Tom Fink, Libertarian nominee Dick Randolph and Alaskan Independence Party nominee Joe Vogler. Hammond had endorsed his lieutenant governor, Terry Miller, who lost the Republican nomination to Fink in the primary election.

1997 United States elections

The 1997 United States elections were off-year elections were held on Tuesday, November 4, 1997, comprising 2 gubernatorial races, 3 congressional special elections, and a plethora of other local elections across the United States. No Senate special elections were held.

References