1993 United States gubernatorial elections
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3 governorships 2 states; 1 territory | |||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Democratic gain Republican gain | |||||||||||||||||||||||||
United States gubernatorial elections were held on November 2, 1993, in two states and one territory, as well as other statewide offices and members of state legislatures. Both seats were originally held by Democrats, but they switched parties following the elections.
Election results
States
| State | Incumbent | Party | First elected |
Result | Candidates |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| New Jersey | James Florio | Democratic | 1989 | Incumbent lost re-election. New governor elected. Republican gain.[1] |
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| Virginia | Douglas Wilder | Democratic | 1989 | Incumbent term-limited. New governor elected. Republican gain.[2] |
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Territory
| Territory | Incumbent | Party | First elected |
Result | Candidates |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Northern Mariana Islands | Lorenzo I. De Leon Guerrero | Republican | 1989 | Incumbent retired. New governor elected.[3] Democratic gain. |
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Closest races
States where the margin of victory was under 5%:
- New Jersey, 1.0%
New Jersey
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Whitman: 40–50% 50–60% 60–70% Florio: 40–50% 50–60% 60–70% | |||||||||||||||||
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The 1993 New Jersey gubernatorial election was held on November 2, 1993. Incumbent Democratic governor James Florio was narrowly defeated by Republican former Somerset County freeholder and 1990 U.S. Senate nominee Christine Todd Whitman. Primary elections were held on June 8, 1993. In the Democratic primary, Governor Florio's only challenger, anti-tax activist John Budzash, was disqualified from the ballot due to invalid petition signatures. In the Republican primary, Whitman defeated W. Cary Edwards and James Wallwork.
Florio's defeat followed backlash from voters against his administration's tax increases.
Virginia
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| Turnout | 61.1% (voting eligible)[4] | ||||||||||||||||
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County and independent city results Allen: 50–60% 60–70% 70–80% 80–90% Terry: 50–60% 60–70% | |||||||||||||||||
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The 1993 Virginia gubernatorial election was held on November 2, 1993. Barred from seeking a second term due to term limits restricting consecutive terms for Virginia governor, incumbent Democratic governor L. Douglas Wilder was replaced by Republican nominee and former U.S. representative George Allen. Allen, who had defeated Clinton Miller for the Republican nomination, defeated longtime attorney general of Virginia Mary Sue Terry, the Democratic nominee by 58.27% to 40.89%, which ended 12 consecutive years of Democratic control of the governor's mansion.
Territories
Northern Mariana Islands
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Democratic | Froilan Tenorio | {{{votes}}} | 100% | |
Notes
- ^ Jim Folsom, Jr. (D) succeeded Alabama governor H. Guy Hunt (R) following Hunt's resignation due to criminal indictments and conviction for theft, conspiracy, and ethics violations.
- ^ Only top two candidates
References
- ^ "1993 Gubernatorial General Election Results - New Jersey". Dave Leip's Atlas of U.S. Elections. Retrieved March 3, 2025.
- ^ "1993 Gubernatorial General Election Results - Virginia". Dave Leip's Atlas of U.S. Elections. Retrieved March 3, 2025.
- ^ "Northern Mariana Islands Governor Race - Nov 02, 1993". Our Campaigns. January 21, 2006.
- ^ Virginia Department of Elections (2016). "Registration/Turnout Statistics". The Commonwealth of Virginia. Archived from the original on August 16, 2016. Retrieved July 25, 2016.