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United States gubernatorial elections were held on 3 November 1970, in 35 states and two territories.
During this election, the Democrats won a number of the governorships up for re-election via many ways, such as retirement of an incumbent, term limits, or the defeat of incumbent.
In 1970, Arizona, New Mexico and Wisconsin elected their governors to four-year terms for the first time, having previously elected them to two-year terms.
This election coincided with the Senate and the House elections.
In Alabama, Governor Albert Brewer (who succeeded to the governorship upon Lurleen Wallace's death in 1968) had to endure a very nasty Democratic primary against former Governor George Wallace. [1] In addition, there were no Republicans in the race for governor. Wallace won the Democratic primary and in November the election.
In Alaska, then-Lt. Gov. Keith Miller had gotten the job of governor in 1969 after Walter Hickel resigned to be part of President Nixon's Cabinet. [2] [3] He lost in 1970 to former Governor William Egan.
In Arizona, governors were elected to serve two-year terms until 1970, when Jack Richard Williams was the first governor to be elected to a four-year term. [4] [5] Previously, Williams had been elected governor twice to two-year terms in 1966 [6] and in 1968. [7] Arizona made the switch official from a two-year term to a four-year term in 1968 with an amendment. [8]
In Arkansas, Winthrop Rockefeller was the first Republican governor in Arkansas since the Reconstruction period. [9] He was defeated in his bid for a third term, by the Democratic challenger Dale Bumpers.
Incumbent Republican Governor and future President Ronald Reagan was elected to a second term as governor with about 53% of the vote over Speaker of the State Assembly Jesse Unruh.
Incumbent John Dempsey, a Democrat, did not seek re-election. Sixth District Congressman Thomas Joseph Meskill (Republican) defeated First District Congressman Emilio Q. Daddario (Democratic) 53.76% to 46.23%.
In Colorado, John Arthur Love won re-election. He served until 1973, when he would resign to become the first head of Energy Policy under President Nixon. [10]
Florida's Claude R. Kirk Jr. was another 'first Republican governor since Reconstruction' as well (he switched from Democrat to Republican early on), [11] and was defeated by the Democrat Reubin Askew.
In Georgia, governors would be limited to one term until George Busbee was allowed[ by whom? ] to serve two,[ when? ] and was the first governor to serve two consecutive terms. [12] Future president Jimmy Carter won the election.
In Hawaii, Burns won another term in 1970, but in 1973, Burns had health problems and his Lt. Governor George Ariyoshi, took over-as acting governor, and in 1974, with Burns' retirement, won a term in his own right. [13] Burns died in 1975. [14]
Iowa also had its governors serving two-year terms until Robert D. Ray won a four-year term in 1974. [15] Previously, Ray had won a two-year term in 1968, [16] a two-year term this year (1970), [17] and would win another two-year term in 1972. [18] Iowa made the four-year term switch official with an amendment to the state's constitution in 1972. [19]
Like Arizona and Iowa, Kansas also had its governors serving two-year terms until 1974, when a constitutional amendment was added, creating a four-year term system for governors. [20] Docking was elected governor in 1966, [21] 1968, [22] 1970, [23] and would get elected in 1972. [24] The first governor to get a four-year term was Robert Frederick Bennett in 1974. [25]
Beginning with the 1962 governor's race, Maine switched from a two-year term system to a four-year term system for the governors. [26] John H. Reed was the first Maine governor to be elected to a four-year term. [27] Kenneth Curtis was re-elected.
In Maryland, Mandel first won the governorship in 1969 in a special election when Agnew resigned in order to become vice president. [28]
In 1970, Mandel ran for a full term and won. [29]
In 1966, Massachusetts switched from a two-year to four-year terms for governors, and John A. Volpe was the first Massachusetts governor to be elected to a four-year term. He had previously been elected to two-year terms in 1960 and in 1964. Volpe resigned in 1969 to become President Nixon's Secretary of Transportation. Francis W. Sargent then became acting governor. In 1970, Sargent got a term in his own right. [30] [31]
In 1963, Michigan changed governors' terms from two years to four years. [32] George W. Romney had won two-year terms in 1962 [33] and 1964, [34] and a four-year term in 1966. [35] He resigned in 1969 to become President Nixon's Housing and Urban Development Secretary. [35] William Milliken became governor, [36] and got a full term in 1970. [37]
In 1962, voters in Nebraska approved of an amendment, effective with the 1966 governor's race, that switched from two-year to four-year terms for governors. In 1966, the "two consecutive terms" rule was established. [38] Norbert Tiemann was the first Nebraskan to get a four-year term with the 1966 governor's race. [39] J. James Exon was elected governor.
New Mexico also had a two-year term for governors until 1970, when the state constitution was changed to a four-year term for governors-without being allowed to have two consecutive terms. [40] As for the "no two consecutive terms" rule, that was still on the books until 1991, when thanks to a change in the state's constitution, Bruce King was eligible for two consecutive terms. [41] King was elected to the first of three non-consecutive terms.
In New York, Governor Nelson A. Rockefeller won re-election to a fourth term. Rockefeller served until 1973, when he resigned. [42]
In Pennsylvania, although the constitution was changed to allow governors to have two consecutive terms, the rule didn't apply to then current Gov. Raymond P. Shafer. [43] The election was won by Milton Shapp.
Governors in South Carolina weren't allowed two consecutive terms until 1980, when an amendment to the constitution was added. Richard Riley was the first South Carolina governor to have two consecutive terms with his 1982 re-election. [44] John C. West won election.
South Dakota also had governors on two-year terms until 1972, when a constitutional amendment allowed the governor to have a four-year term. [45] [46] Richard F. Kneip would be the first governor to be elected to a four-year term, though he resigned to accept an appointment. [47] Kneip, elected governor for a two-year term this year (1970), would be re-elected for another two-year term in 1972. [48] [49]
In 1978, Tennessee changed its constitution to allow the governors to serve two consecutive terms. [50] [51] Winfield Dunn was elected this (1970) year.
In 1968, Wisconsin changed its constitution from a two-year term for governor to a four-year term. [52] Upon his election this year, Patrick Lucey would become the first governor to serve a four-year term (see Wisconsin gubernatorial elections).
Governor Stanley K. Hathaway won re-election to a second four-year term.
State | Incumbent | Party | Status | Opposing candidates |
---|---|---|---|---|
Alabama | Albert Brewer | Democratic | Defeated in runoff primary, [53] [54] Democratic victory | George Wallace (Democratic) 74.51% John L. Cashin Jr. (National Democratic Party of Alabama) 14.68% A. C. Shelton (Independent) 8.85% Jerome B. Couch (Prohibition) 1.14% Menter G. Walker (Independent) 0.41% John Watts (Whig) 0.41% [55] |
Alaska | Keith Miller | Republican | Defeated, 46.13%, Democratic victory | William A. Egan (Democratic) 52.38% Ralph M. Anderson (American Independent) 1.49% [56] |
Arizona | Jack Williams | Republican | Re-elected, 50.89% | Raúl Héctor Castro (Democratic) 49.11% [57] |
Arkansas | Winthrop Rockefeller | Republican | Defeated, 32.41%, Democratic victory | Dale Bumpers (Democratic) 61.66% Walter L. Carruth (American) 5.93% [58] |
California | Ronald Reagan | Republican | Re-elected, 52.84% | Jesse M. Unruh (Democratic) 45.14% Ricardo Romo (Peace & Freedom) 1.01% William K. Shearer (American Independent) 1.01% [59] |
Colorado | John Arthur Love | Republican | Re-elected, 52.46% | Mark Anthony Hogan (Democratic) 45.24% Albert Gurule (La Raza Unida) 1.82% Walter R. Plankinton (American Independent) 0.31% James Lauderdale (Socialist Workers) 0.17% [60] |
Connecticut | John N. Dempsey | Democratic | Retired, [61] Republican victory | Thomas Meskill (Republican) 53.76% Emilio Q. Daddario (Democratic) 46.23% [62] |
Florida | Claude R. Kirk Jr. | Republican | Defeated, 43.12% | Reubin Askew (Democratic) 56.88% [63] |
Georgia | Lester Maddox | Democratic | Term-limited, Democratic victory | Jimmy Carter (Democratic) 59.28% Hal Suit (Republican) 40.60% Write-ins 0.12% [64] |
Hawaii | John A. Burns | Democratic | Re-elected, 57.65% | Samuel Pailthorpe King (Republican) 42.35% [65] |
Idaho | Don Samuelson | Republican | Defeated, 47.78% | Cecil Andrus (Democratic) 52.22% [66] |
Iowa | Robert D. Ray | Republican | Re-elected, 50.98% | Robert D. Fulton (Democratic) 46.62% Robert Dilley (American Independent) 2.39% [17] |
Kansas | Robert Docking | Democratic | Re-elected, 54.30% | Kent Frizzell (Republican) 44.72% P. Everett Sperry (Conservative) 0.58% Marshall Uncapher (Prohibition) 0.41% [23] |
Maine | Kenneth M. Curtis | Democratic | Re-elected, 50.14% | James S. Erwin (Republican) 49.86% [67] |
Maryland | Marvin Mandel | Democratic | Elected to a full term, 65.73% | Charles Stanley Blair (Republican) 32.40% Robert Woods Merkle, Sr. (American) 1.97% [29] |
Massachusetts | Francis Sargent | Republican | Elected to a full term, 56.67% | Kevin White (Democratic) 42.79% Henning A. Blomen (Socialist Labor) 0.36% John C. Hedges (Prohibition) 0.17% [68] |
Michigan | William Milliken | Republican | Elected to a full term, 50.41% | Sander Levin (Democratic) 48.74% James L. McCormick (American Independent) 0.68% George Bouse (Socialist Workers) 0.08% James Horvath (Socialist Labor) 0.08% [37] |
Minnesota | Harold LeVander | Republican | Retired, Democratic victory | Wendell R. Anderson (Democratic–Farmer–Labor) 54.04% Douglas M. Head (Republican) 45.54% Karl H. Heck (Industrial Government) 0.35% Write in Jack O. Kirkham (Independent) 0.07% [69] |
Nebraska | Norbert Tiemann | Republican | Defeated, 43.76%, Democratic victory | J. James Exon (Democratic) 53.84% Albert C. Walsh (American) 2.36% [70] |
Nevada | Paul Laxalt | Republican | Retired, Democratic victory | Mike O'Callaghan (Democratic) 48.10% Edward Fike (Republican) 43.81% Charles E. Springer (Independent) 4.41% Daniel M. Hansen (Independent American) 3.68% [71] |
New Hampshire | Walter R. Peterson Jr. | Republican | Re-elected, 45.99% | Roger J. Crowley (Democratic) 44.10% Meldrim Thomson Jr. (American) 9.91% Write ins 0.01% [72] |
New Mexico | David Cargo | Republican | Term-limited, Democratic victory | Bruce King (Democratic) 51.26% Pete Domenici (Republican) 46.37% John A. Salazar (Independent New Mexican) 1.60% Wilfredo Sedillo (People's Constitutional) 0.77% [73] |
New York | Nelson Rockefeller | Republican | Re-elected, 52.41% | Arthur Goldberg (Democratic) 40.27% Paul Adams (Conservative) 7.03% Rasheed Storey (Communist) 0.13% Clifton DeBerry (Socialist Workers) 0.10% Stephen Emery (Socialist Labor) 0.07% [42] |
Ohio | Jim Rhodes | Republican | Term-limited, [74] Democratic victory | John J. Gilligan (Democratic) 54.19% Roger Cloud (Republican) 43.42% Edward T. Lawton (American Independent) 1.93% Joseph Pirincin (Socialist Labor) 0.44% Write in John A. Crites (Independent) 0.01% [75] |
Oklahoma | Dewey F. Bartlett | Republican | Defeated, 48.11%, Democratic victory | David Hall (Democratic) 48.42% Reuel Little (American) 3.48% [76] |
Oregon | Tom McCall | Republican | Re-elected, 55.60% | Robert W. Straub (Democratic) 44.17% Write in Doug Yeager (Independent) 0.23% [77] |
Pennsylvania | Raymond P. Shafer | Republican | Term-limited, Democratic victory | Milton Shapp (Democratic) 55.22% Raymond J. Broderick (Republican) 41.70% Andrew J. Watson (Constitutional) 2.25% Francis McGeever (American Independent) 0.59% George S. Taylor (Socialist Labor) 0.10% Clarissa Cain (Consumer) 0.08% Pearl Chertov (Socialist Workers) 0.07% [78] |
Rhode Island | Frank Licht | Democratic | Re-elected, 50.07% | Herbert F. DeSimone (Republican) 49.53% John E. Powers (Socialist Workers) 0.40% [79] |
South Carolina | Robert Evander McNair | Democratic | Term-limited, Democratic victory | John C. West (Democratic) 51.68% Albert Watson (Republican) 45.63% A.W. "Red" Bethea (Independent) 2.01% Write in Thomas D. Broadwater (United Citizens) 0.68% [80] |
South Dakota | Frank Farrar | Republican | Defeated, 45.15% | Richard F. Kneip (Democratic) 54.85% [48] |
Tennessee | Buford Ellington | Democratic | Term-limited, Republican victory | Winfield Dunn (Republican) 51.95% John Jay Hooker (Democratic) 45.98% Douglas L. Heinsohn (American) 2.07% [81] |
Texas | Preston Smith | Democratic | Re-elected, 53.43% | Paul Eggers (Republican) 46.55% Others 0.02% [82] |
Vermont | Deane C. Davis | Republican | Re-elected, 56.97% | Leo O'Brien Jr. (Democratic) 43.01% Others 0.03% [83] |
Wisconsin | Warren P. Knowles | Republican | Retired, Democratic victory | Patrick Lucey (Democratic) 54.24% Jack B. Olson (Republican) 44.88% Leo James McDonald (American) 0.67% Georgia Cozzini (Independent) 0.10% Samuel K. Hunt (Independent) 0.07% Myrtle Kastner (Independent) 0.05% [84] |
Wyoming | Stanley K. Hathaway | Republican | Re-elected, 62.79% | John J. Rooney (Democratic) 37.21% [85] |
Territory | Incumbent | Party | Status | Opposing candidates |
---|---|---|---|---|
Guam | New territory | Republican victory | Carlos Camacho (Republican) 55.80% Ricardo Bordallo (Democratic) 44.20% [86] |
The governor of Texas heads the state government of Texas. The governor is the leader of the executive and legislative branch of the state government and is the commander in chief of the Texas Military. The current governor is Greg Abbott, who took office in 2015.
The governor of South Carolina is the head of government of South Carolina. The governor is the ex officio commander-in-chief of the National Guard when not called into federal service. The governor's responsibilities include making yearly "State of the State" addresses to the South Carolina General Assembly, submitting an executive budget, and ensuring that state laws are enforced.
The governor of Wisconsin is the head of government of Wisconsin and the commander-in-chief of the state's army and air forces. The governor has a duty to enforce state laws, and the power to either approve or veto bills passed by the Wisconsin Legislature, to convene the legislature, and to grant pardons, except in cases of treason and impeachment. The position was first filled by Nelson Dewey on June 7, 1848, the year Wisconsin became a state. Prior to statehood, there were four governors of Wisconsin Territory.
New York is a Democratic stronghold and is considered one of the "Big Three" Democratic strongholds alongside California and Illinois. The following table indicates the party of elected officials in the U.S. state of New York:
The following is a list of lieutenant governors of the State of Connecticut.
The 1912–13 United States Senate elections were held on various dates in various states. They were the last U.S. Senate elections before the ratification of the Seventeenth Amendment in 1913, establishing direct elections for all Senate seats. Senators had been primarily chosen by state legislatures. Senators were elected over a wide range of time throughout 1912 and 1913, and a seat may have been filled months late or remained vacant due to legislative deadlock. Some states elected their senators directly even before passage of Seventeenth Amendment. Oregon pioneered direct election and experimented with different measures over several years until it succeeded in 1907. Soon after, Nebraska followed suit and laid the foundation for other states to adopt measures reflecting the people's will. By 1912, as many as 29 states elected senators either as nominees of their party's primary or in conjunction with a general election.
United States gubernatorial elections were held on November 5, 2002, in 36 states and two territories. The Republicans won eight seats previously held by the Democrats, as well as the seat previously held by Minnesota governor Jesse Ventura, who was elected on the Reform Party ticket but had since renounced his party affiliation. The Democrats won 10 seats previously held by the Republicans, as well as the seat previously held by Maine governor Angus King, an independent. The elections were held concurrently with the other United States elections of 2002.
In the United States, term limits, also referred to as rotation in office, restrict the number of terms of office an officeholder may serve. At the federal level, the 22nd Amendment to the United States Constitution limits the president of the United States to two four-year terms. State government offices in some, but not all, states are term-limited, including executive, legislative, and judicial offices.
In the United States, a governor serves as the chief executive and commander-in-chief in each of the fifty states and in the five permanently inhabited territories, functioning as head of state and head of government therein. As such, governors are responsible for implementing state laws and overseeing the operation of the state executive branch. As state leaders, governors advance and pursue new and revised policies and programs using a variety of tools, among them executive orders, executive budgets, and legislative proposals and vetoes. Governors carry out their management and leadership responsibilities and objectives with the support and assistance of department and agency heads, many of whom they are empowered to appoint. A majority of governors have the authority to appoint state court judges as well, in most cases from a list of names submitted by a nominations committee.
The following table indicates the party of elected officials in the U.S. state of Maryland:
United States gubernatorial elections were held on November 4, 2014, in 36 states and three territories, concurrent with other elections during the 2014 United States elections.
United States gubernatorial elections were held on 7 November 1972 in 18 states and two territories, concurrent with the House, Senate elections and presidential election.
United States gubernatorial elections were held on 5 November 1968, in 21 states and one territory, concurrent with the House, Senate elections and presidential election. These were the last gubernatorial elections for Arizona, New Mexico, and Wisconsin to take place in a presidential election year, as all would extend their governors' terms from two to four years.
United States gubernatorial elections were held on Tuesday November 8, in 35 states. 12 governors Democrats and 23 governors Republicans won election, bringing the partisan reflection of the nation's states to 25 Democrats and 25 Republicans. This election coincided with the Senate and the House elections. As of 2023, this is the last time the amount of governorships each party held was tied.
United States gubernatorial elections were held on November 8, 2022, in 36 states and three territories. As most governors serve four-year terms, the last regular gubernatorial elections for all but two of the seats took place in 2018 U.S. gubernatorial elections. The gubernatorial elections took place concurrently with several other federal, state, and local elections, as part of the 2022 midterm elections.
Elections were held in Illinois on Tuesday, November 6, 1956.
United States gubernatorial elections are scheduled to be held on November 5, 2024, in 11 states and two territories. The previous gubernatorial elections for this group of states took place in 2020, except in New Hampshire and Vermont where governors only serve two-year terms and elected their governors in 2022. In addition to state gubernatorial elections, the territories of American Samoa and Puerto Rico will also hold elections for their governors.
The Government of the U.S. State of Nebraska, established by the Nebraska Constitution, is a republican democracy modeled after the Federal Government of the United States. The state government has three branches: the executive, the legislative, and the judicial. Through a system of separation of powers, or "checks and balances," each of these branches has some authority to act on its own, and also some authority to regulate the other two branches, so that all three branches can limit and balance the others' authority. The State Government is based in Lincoln, the capital city of Nebraska.
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