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1998 Iowa gubernatorial election

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1998 Iowa gubernatorial election

← 1994 November 3, 1998 2002 →
 
Nominee Tom Vilsack Jim Ross Lightfoot
Party Democratic Republican
Popular vote 500,231 444,787
Percentage 52.3% 46.5%

County results
Vilsack:      40–50%      50–60%      60–70%
Lightfoot:      40–50%      50–60%      60–70%      70–80%      80–90%

Governor before election

Terry Branstad
Republican

Elected Governor

Tom Vilsack
Democratic

The 1998 Iowa gubernatorial election took place on November 3, 1998. Incumbent Republican Governor Terry Branstad did not seek re-election to a fifth consecutive term; he later successfully ran again in 2010 and 2014.

To replace him, State Senator Tom Vilsack narrowly won the nomination of the Democratic Party while former United States Congressman Jim Ross Lightfoot, who was previously the Republican nominee for the United States Senate in 1996, won his party's nomination. Lightfoot was the odds-on favorite win and polling consistently showed him in the lead,[1] but Vilsack won the general election in a stunning upset, becoming the first Democrat to serve as governor of Iowa since 1969 and the 5th Democrat to hold the office in the 20th century. Lightfoot never conceded defeat.[2]

Democratic primary

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Candidates

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Results

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Primary results by county:
Vilsack
  •   Vilsack—91-100%
  •   Vilsack—81-90%
  •   Vilsack—71-80%
  •   Vilsack—61-70%
  •   Vilsack—51-60%
McCormick
  •   McCormick—81-90%
  •   McCormick—71-80%
  •   McCormick—61-70%
  •   McCormick—51-60%
  •   McCormick—41-50%
Tie
  •   Tie between Vilsack and McCormick-49%
Democratic primary results[3]
Party Candidate Votes %
Democratic Tom Vilsack 59,130 51.20
Democratic Mark McCormick 55,950 48.45
Democratic Write-ins 410 0.36
Total votes 115,490 100.00

Republican primary

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Candidates

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Results

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Republican primary results[3]
Party Candidate Votes %
Republican Jim Ross Lightfoot 113,499 69.89
Republican David A. Oman 35,402 21.80
Republican Paul Pate 13,299 8.19
Republican Write-ins 193 0.12
Total votes 162,393 100.00

Reform Party primary

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Candidates

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  • Jim Hennager
  • Edward Moses
  • Jeffrey L. Hughes Sr.

Results

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Reform Party primary results[3]
Party Candidate Votes %
Reform Jim Hennager 131 35.60
Reform Edward Moses 99 26.90
Reform Jeffrey L. Hughes, Sr. 99 26.90
Reform Write-ins 39 10.60
Total votes 368 100.00

General election

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Results

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Iowa gubernatorial election, 1998[4]
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Democratic Tom Vilsack 500,231 52.30% +10.74%
Republican Jim Ross Lightfoot 444,787 46.51% −10.29%
Reform Jim Hennager 5,606 0.59%
Natural Law Jim Schaefer 3,144 0.33% −0.05%
Independent Mark Kennis 2,006 0.21%
Write-in 641 0.07%
Majority 55,444 5.80% −9.44%
Turnout 956,415
Democratic gain from Republican Swing

See also

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References

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  1. ^ "Despite tight race for Iowa governor, Lightfoot ahead among most likely voters". Archived from the original on September 1, 2006. Retrieved October 20, 2014.
  2. ^ Henderson, O. Kay. "Meet the Press, November 29, 2020". NBC News. Retrieved November 29, 2020.
  3. ^ a b c "Iowa Primary Election - June 2, 1998" (PDF). Iowa Publications.
  4. ^ "Iowa General Election - November 3, 1998" (PDF). Iowa Secretary of State.