1978 Wisconsin Secretary of State election

1978 Wisconsin Secretary of State election
	November 7, 1978
	Phillips: 40–50% 50–60% 60–70% 80–90%; Seefeldt: 40–50% 50–60% 60–70%
Secretary of State before election; Doug La Follette; Democratic	Elected Secretary of State ; Vel Phillips; Democratic

The 1978 Wisconsin Secretary of State election took place on November 7, 1978, to elect the Secretary of State of Wisconsin. Incumbent Democrat Doug La Follette declined to seek re-election, instead running in the primary for Lieutenant Governor. Milwaukee Alderwoman and civil rights activist Vel Phillips was nominated in a field of 9 candidates and defeated Republican Frederic A. Seefeldt. Her election made her the first African American to be elected to a statewide office in Wisconsin.

Democratic primary

Candidates

Nominee

Vel Phillips, former Milwaukee Alderwoman and civil rights activist

Eliminated in primary

Harvey J. Cooper
Ada Deer, Native American activist and scholar
Michael Jaliman
Janet Soergel Mielke, former state representative and union officer
Jan A. Olson
Thomas F. St. John
Benjamin Southwick
Rita Wlodarczyk, former staffer for Frank Zeidler's mayoral campaign

Results

Democratic primary results^[1]
Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Democratic	Vel Phillips	78,797	25.58%
	Democratic	Ada Deer	46,696	15.16%
	Democratic	Benjamin Southwick	37,791	12.27%
	Democratic	Harvey J. Cooper	31,444	10.21%
	Democratic	Jan A. Olson	31,027	10.07%
	Democratic	Rita Wlodarczyk	30,473	9.89%
	Democratic	Janet Soergel Mielke	25,251	8.20%
	Democratic	Thomas F. St. John	14,182	4.60%
	Democratic	Michael Jaliman	12,315	3.40%
Total votes			307,976	100.0%

Republican primary

Frederic A. Seefeldt ran unopposed in the primary

Constitution primary

George A. Myers ran unopposed in the primary

General election

Results

1978 Wisconsin Secretary of State election^[2]
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Democratic	Vel Phillips	697,945	50.37%	%
	Republican	Frederic A. Seefeldt	663,474	47.88%	%
	Constitution	George A. Meyers	24,272	1.75%	%
Plurality			34,471	2.49%	-%
Total votes			1,385,691	100.0%	-%
	Democratic hold

References

^ "Vote for State Officers by County - primary". University of Wisconsin Madison - Libraries.
^ "Vote for State Officers by County - general". University of Wisconsin Madison - Libraries.

[1] "Vote for State Officers by County - primary". University of Wisconsin Madison - Libraries.

[2] "Vote for State Officers by County - general". University of Wisconsin Madison - Libraries.

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