Iowa gubernatorial election, 2002

Last updated
Iowa gubernatorial election, 2002
Flag of Iowa.svg
  1998 November 5, 2002 2006  

  Tom Vilsack ChangeGov Press (cropped).jpg Doug Gross (cropped).jpg
Nominee Tom Vilsack Doug Gross
Party Democratic Republican
Popular vote540,449456,612
Percentage52.7%44.5%

2002 Iowa Governor Election Results.png
Blue counties won by Vilsack.
Red counties won by Gross.

Governor before election

Tom Vilsack
Democratic

Elected Governor

Tom Vilsack
Democratic

The Iowa gubernatorial election of 2002 took place November 5, 2002. Incumbent Democratic Governor of Iowa Tom Vilsack sought re-election to a second term as governor. Governor Vilsack won his party's nomination uncontested, while Doug Gross, an advisor to former Governor Terry Branstad, narrowly won the Republican Party's primary in a crowded and competitive election. In the general election, Vilsack was able to improve ever so slightly on his margin of victory four years earlier to win what would be his second and final term as governor.

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.

Governor of Iowa Chief executive of the U.S. state of Iowa

The Governor of Iowa is the chief executive of the U.S. state of Iowa. The governor is the head of the executive branch of the state government and is charged with enforcing state laws. The officeholder has the power to either approve or veto bills passed by the Iowa General Assembly, to convene the legislature, as well as to grant pardons, except in cases of treason and impeachment. The Governor of Iowa is also the commander-in-chief of the state's military forces.

Tom Vilsack American politician

Thomas James Vilsack is an American politician and lawyer who served as the United States Secretary of Agriculture from January 2009 until January 2017. A member of the Iowa Democratic Party, Vilsack also served as the 40th Governor of Iowa from 1999 to 2007.

Contents

Democratic primary

Candidates

Results

Democratic primary results [1]
PartyCandidateVotes%
Democratic Tom Vilsack (incumbent)79,27798.6
Democratic Write-ins1,1661.4
Total votes80,443100

Republican primary

Candidates

Terry Branstad U.S. Ambassador to China, Governor of Iowa (1983–1999; 2011–2017)

Terry Edward Branstad is an American politician, university administrator, and diplomat serving as the United States Ambassador to China since 2017. A member of the Republican Party, he previously served as Governor of Iowa. Branstad also previously served three terms in the Iowa House of Representatives from 1973 to 1979.

Iowa House of Representatives lower chamber of the Iowa state legislature

The Iowa House of Representatives is the lower house of the Iowa General Assembly, the upper house being the Iowa Senate. There are 100 seats in the Iowa House of Representatives, representing 100 single-member districts across the state, formed by dividing the 50 Senate districts in half. Each district has a population of approximately 30,464 as of the 2010 United States Census. The House of Representatives meets at the Iowa State Capitol in Des Moines.

Bob Vander Plaats American chief executive

Robert Lee Vander Plaats is an American politician and political activist. He is currently the president and CEO of The Family Leader, a social conservative organization. In 2016, he was the National Co-Chair for Ted Cruz for President.

Results

Republican primary results [1]
PartyCandidateVotes%
Republican Doug Gross71,47835.9
Republican Steve Sukup64,49032.4
Republican Bob Vander Plaats63,07731.7
Republican Write-ins1890.1
Total votes199,234100

General election

Results

Iowa gubernatorial election, 2002 [2]
PartyCandidateVotes%±
Democratic Tom Vilsack (inc.) 540,449 52.7% +0.38%
Republican Doug Gross456,61244.5%-1.99%
Green Jay Robinson14,6281.4%
Libertarian Clyde Cleveland13,0981.3%
Write-ins1,0250.1%
Majority83,8378.2%+2.38%
Turnout 1,025,802
Democratic hold Swing

See also

Related Research Articles

2006 Iowa gubernatorial election

The Iowa gubernatorial election of 2006 took place November 7, 2006. The incumbent governor, Tom Vilsack, a Democrat, had served two terms and decided not to seek a third term. In the election, Chet Culver defeated Jim Nussle to win the governorship, by a margin of 54.4 percent to 44.1 percent. As of 2019, this is the last time a Democrat has won the governorship of Iowa.

2006 Maine gubernatorial election

The Maine gubernatorial election of 2006 took place on November 7, 2006. Incumbent Democrat John Baldacci was re-elected to his second term. This was the last time a Democrat won statewide office in Maine until 2018, when Janet Mills won the gubernatorial election over Republican Shawn Moody.

2006 Oregon gubernatorial election

The 2006 Oregon gubernatorial election took place on November 7, 2006. Incumbent Democratic Governor of Oregon Ted Kulongoski ran for a second and final term as governor. Kulongoski faced several challengers in his primary, whom he dispatched to win his party's nomination a second time, while Republican nominee Ron Saxton, the former Chair of the Portland Public Schools Board and a candidate for governor in 2002 emerged from a crowded primary. Kulongoski and Saxton were initially going to be challenged in the general election by State Senator Ben Westlund, but Westlund withdrew his candidacy before the general election. There were, however, a number of strong independent challengers, the most notable of whom was Mary Starrett, the Constitution Party nominee. In a hard-fought campaign, Kulongoski won re-election by a surprisingly wide margin, winning his second term as governor.

Paul Danny Pate Jr. is an American businessman and politician serving as the 32nd and current Secretary of State of Iowa since 2015, previously holding the office from 1995 to 1999. Pate is the President-Elect for the National Association of Secretaries of State. A member of the Republican Party, he also served in the Iowa Senate from 1989 to 1995 and as Mayor of Cedar Rapids from 2002 to 2006. He was an unsuccessful candidate for his party's nomination for Governor of Iowa in 1998.

The Iowa Democratic Party (IDP) is the affiliate of the United States Democratic Party in the state of Iowa.

Tyler Olson (politician) American politician

Tyler Olson, is a former Iowa State Representative from the 38th District. A member of the Democratic Party, he served in the Iowa House of Representatives from 2007 to 2015. He also was Chairman of the Iowa Democratic Party from January to June 2013. He received his BA from Claremont McKenna College and his JD from the University of Iowa College of Law.

2010 Iowa gubernatorial election

The Iowa gubernatorial election of 2010 was held on Tuesday, November 2, 2010 to elect the governor and lieutenant governor, to serve a four-year term beginning on January 14, 2011. In Iowa, the governor and lieutenant governor are elected on the same ballot.

Kim Reynolds 43rd Governor of Iowa

Kimberly Kay Reynolds is an American politician serving as the 43rd Governor of Iowa since 2017. A member of the Republican Party, she is the first female Governor of Iowa. Reynolds previously served as the 46th Lieutenant Governor of Iowa from 2011 to 2017. Before she was elected Lieutenant Governor, Reynolds served as Clarke County Treasurer for four terms and then served in the Iowa Senate from 2009 to 2011.

1998 Iowa gubernatorial election

The Iowa gubernatorial election of 1998 took place on November 5, 1998. Incumbent Republican Governor of Iowa Terry Branstad did not seek re-election to a fifth term.

1994 Iowa gubernatorial election

The Iowa gubernatorial election of 1994 took place November 8, 1994. Incumbent Republican Governor of Iowa Terry Branstad ran for re-election to a fourth term as governor. Branstad narrowly defeated a tough challenger in his primary election, emerging victorious by less than 12,000 votes. On the Democratic side, Attorney General of Iowa Bonnie Campbell won her party's nomination and both Branstad and Campbell moved on to the general election. Branstad ultimately won re-election to a fourth term as governor, defeating Bonnie Campbell by a comfortable margin.

2014 Iowa gubernatorial election

The 2014 Iowa gubernatorial election took place on November 4, 2014, to elect the Governor of Iowa. Republican incumbent Terry Branstad was running for reelection to a sixth overall and second consecutive four-year term. On December 14, 2015, he became the longest-serving governor in American history. Branstad went on to win a historic sixth term as governor by defeating Democratic challenger and State Senator Jack Hatch. Branstad won 59.1% of the popular vote to Hatch's 37.3%. Branstad won every county except Johnson County.

2014 Iowa elections

A general election was held in the U.S. state of Iowa on November 4, 2014. All of Iowa's executive officers were up for election as well as a United States Senate seat, all four of Iowa's seats in the United States House of Representatives, 25 (half) of the seats in the Iowa Senate, and all 100 seats in the Iowa House of Representatives. Primary elections were held on June 3, 2014.

2018 Iowa gubernatorial election

The 2018 Iowa gubernatorial election took place on November 6, 2018. Incumbent Republican Governor Kim Reynolds ran for election to a full term, facing Democratic businessman Fred Hubbell, Libertarian Jake Porter, and independent candidate Gary Siegwarth.

2018 Iowa elections

The Iowa elections, 2018 were held in the U.S. state of Iowa on November 6, 2018. A closed primary election was held on June 5, 2018. All of Iowa's executive officers were up for election as well as all four of Iowa's seats in the United States House of Representatives, 25 (half) of the seats in the Iowa Senate, and all 100 seats in the Iowa House of Representatives.

Adam Gregg Lieutenant Governor of Iowa

Adam Gregg is an American politician serving as the 47th and current Lieutenant Governor of Iowa since 2019. He previously served as Acting Lieutenant Governor from 2017 to 2019. A member of the Republican Party, he previously served as Public Defender of Iowa having been appointed on December 8, 2014 after losing the November 2014 race for Attorney General of Iowa to Democrat Tom Miller.

1990 Iowa gubernatorial election

The Iowa gubernatorial election of 1990 took place November 8, 1990. Incumbent Republican Governor of Iowa Terry Branstad ran for re-election to a third term as governor. On the Democratic side, state representative Donald Avenson won his party's nomination and both Branstad and Avenson moved on to the general election. Branstad won re-election to a third term as governor, defeating Avenson by a margin of over 20 points.

1982 Iowa gubernatorial election

The 1982 Iowa gubernatorial election was held on November 2, 1982. Republican nominee Terry Branstad defeated Democratic nominee Roxanne Conlin with 52.81% of the vote.

References