Indiana gubernatorial election, 1996

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Indiana gubernatorial election, 1996
Flag of Indiana.svg
  1992 November 5, 1996 (1996-11-05) 2000  
  Frank O'Bannon.jpg Stephen Goldsmith.jpg
Nominee Frank O'Bannon Steve Goldsmith
Party Democratic Republican
Running mate Joe Kernan George Witwer
Popular vote1,087,128986,982
Percentage51.5%46.8%

Indiana Governor Election Results by County, 1996.svg
County Results

O'Bannon:     40–50%     50–60%     60–70%     70–80%

Contents

Goldsmith:     40–50%     50–60%     60–70%

Governor before election

Evan Bayh
Democratic

Elected Governor

Frank O'Bannon
Democratic

The 1996 Indiana gubernatorial Election was held on November 5, 1996, alongside the election of both houses of the Indiana General Assembly. Incumbent Governor Evan Bayh, a Democrat, was ineligible to run for a third consecutive term due to term limits set in place by the Indiana Constitution. He was succeeded by Lt. Governor Frank O'Bannon, who won election over Republican Stephen Goldsmith with 52% of the vote.

Indiana General Assembly

The Indiana General Assembly is the state legislature, or legislative branch, of the state of Indiana. It is a bicameral legislature that consists of a lower house, the Indiana House of Representatives, and an upper house, the Indiana Senate. The General Assembly meets annually at the Indiana Statehouse in Indianapolis.

Evan Bayh American politician

Birch Evans Bayh III is an American lawyer, lobbyist, and politician of the Democratic Party who served as the junior United States Senator from Indiana from 1999 to 2011 and the 46th Governor of Indiana from 1989 to 1997.

Democratic Party (United States) political party in the United States

The Democratic Party is one of the two major contemporary political parties in the United States, along with the Republican Party. Tracing its heritage back to Thomas Jefferson and James Madison's Democratic-Republican Party, the modern-day Democratic Party was founded around 1828 by supporters of Andrew Jackson, making it the world's oldest active political party.

Primaries

Democratic Party

Candidates

O'Bannon was unchallenged in his party's primary, winning the Democratic nomination unanimously. He chose South Bend Mayor Joe Kernan to be his running mate.

Republican Party

Candidates

Stephen Goldsmith American mayor

Stephen "Steve" Goldsmith is an American politician and writer who was the 46th mayor of Indianapolis. He also served as the Deputy Mayor of New York City for Operations, stepping down effective August 4, 2011. He is currently the Daniel Paul Professor of Government, Director of Innovations in Government Program, and Director of Data-Smart City Solutions at the John F. Kennedy School of Government at Harvard University.

Declined

Dan Quayle 44th vice president of the United States

James Danforth Quayle is an American politician and lawyer who served as the 44th vice president of the United States from 1989 to 1993. Quayle was also a U.S. representative from 1977 to 1981 and was a U.S. senator from 1981 to 1989 for the state of Indiana.

With Governor Evan Bayh unable to seek another term in office, Indiana Republicans felt confident in their ability to take the Governor's Mansion in the general election. Of the three candidates for the nomination, the front-runner by far was Indianapolis Mayor Stephen Goldsmith. Goldsmith was by far the favorite for the nomination throughout the race, in some polls leading by as much as 20 points. [1] The race was particularly heated: Indiana Republican Party Chairman Michael McDaniel, hoping to avoid alienating any voters, declined to endorse a candidate, instead hanging a Swiss flag in his office to symbolize his neutrality. [1] Goldsmith easily won the primary and soon after chose Witwer as his running mate.

Flag of Switzerland flag

The flag of Switzerland displays a white cross in the centre of a square red field. The white cross is known as the Swiss cross. Its arms are equilateral, and their ratio of length to width is 7:6. The size of the cross in relation to the field was set in 2017 as 5:8.

Libertarian Party

Candidates

The Libertarian Party nominated Steve Dillon as their second candidate to contest the Indiana governorship.

General Election

The only Great Lakes state to have a Democratic Governor going into the 1996 elections, Indiana became the center of the Republican Party's attention in that year's gubernatorial elections. A traditionally Republican state, Goldsmith and his party were considered to have the edge in the election. That changed, however, when questions about Goldsmith's performance as Mayor of Indianapolis surfaced, specifically regarding an August 27 brawl in the city involving several drunken policemen. Goldsmith's campaign was further hurt when it was revealed that several comments made about O'Bannon's record as part of the Indiana state government had been statistically incorrect. The effect of these gaffes was to erase the double digit lead Goldsmith had enjoyed throughout the summer, leaving him narrowly trailing O'Bannon. [2] O'Bannon, meanwhile, was able to take credit for a thriving economy and a recent tax surplus that had occurred during Bayh's administration. The Democrat centered his campaign on his record in the Indiana State Senate, simultaneously attacking Goldsmith for controversial decisions made during his tenure as Mayor of Indianapolis. By running what was later described as a "steady" campaign, O'Bannon was able to refute many of the charges Goldsmith brought against him while keeping the pressure on. Even so, the race remained tight down to election night, and Goldsmith reportedly settled in on November 5 expecting to be elected. [3]

Results

O'Bannon won the election narrowly, carrying 52% of the vote to Goldsmith's 47%.

Indiana gubernatorial election, 1996
PartyCandidateVotes%
Democratic Frank O'Bannon 1,087,12851.52
Republican Stephen Goldsmith 986,98246.78
Libertarian Steve Dillon35,8051.70

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References

  1. 1 2 Meredith, Robyn. "POLITICAL BRIEFS: Indiana;As Governor Retires, 3 Republicans Joust".
  2. "Archived copy". Archived from the original on 2000-09-02. Retrieved 2013-11-13.
  3. "O'Bannon's 1996 campaign was one for the ages - Howey Politics". howeypolitics.com.