The 1982 Michigan gubernatorial election was held on November 2, 1982. Incumbent Governor William Milliken decided to retire instead of seeking a fourth full term as governor. The primary elections occurred on August 10, 1982. Businessman Richard Headlee narrowly defeated incumbent lieutenant governor James Brickley in a four way race on the Republican side. Congressman James Blanchard defeated Michigan Senate Majority Leader William B. Fitzgerald Jr. by a wide margin a fractured seven way race. Blanchard won the general election by a relatively comfortable 6.31% margin. Blanchard became the first Democrat to win the governor’s mansion in Michigan in 22 years.[1]
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 County results Blanchard: 40–50% 50–60% 60–70% Headlee: 40–50% 50–60% 60–70% | |||||||||||||||||
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Republican primary
editCandidates
edit- James H. Brickley, Lieutenant Governor of Michigan
- Richard Headlee, businessman and anti-tax activist
- L. Brooks Patterson, Oakland County Prosecutor
- Jack Welborn
Results
edit| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Republican | Richard Headlee | 220,378 | 34.36 | |
| Republican | James H. Brickley | 194,429 | 30.31 | |
| Republican | L. Brooks Patterson | 180,065 | 28.07 | |
| Republican | Jack Welborn | 46,505 | 7.25 | |
| Republican | Write-ins | 42 | 0.01 | |
| Total votes | 641,419 | 100.00 | ||
Democratic primary
editCandidates
edit- James Blanchard, U.S. Representative from Pleasant Ridge
- Zolton Ferency, Ingham County Commissioner, law professor, and nominee for governor in 1966
- William B. Fitzgerald Jr., Michigan Senate Majority Leader and nominee for governor in 1978
- Kerry Kammer
- Edward H. Pierce
- David A. Plaweki
- John Safran
Results
edit| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Democratic | James Blanchard | 406,941 | 50.23 | |
| Democratic | William B. Fitzgerald Jr. | 138,453 | 17.09 | |
| Democratic | David A. Plaweki | 95,805 | 11.82 | |
| Democratic | Zolton Ferency | 85,088 | 10.50 | |
| Democratic | Edward H. Pierce | 44,894 | 5.54 | |
| Democratic | Kerry Kammer | 32,221 | 3.98 | |
| Democratic | John Safran | 6,782 | 0.84 | |
| Democratic | Write-ins | 60 | 0.01 | |
| Total votes | 810,244 | 100.00 | ||
General election
editResults
edit| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Democratic | James Blanchard | 1,561,291 | 51.36 | |
| Republican | Richard Headlee | 1,369,582 | 45.05 | |
| Tisch Independent Citizens | Robert Tisch | 80,288 | 2.64 | |
| Libertarian | Dick Jacobs | 15,603 | 0.51 | |
| American Independent | James Phillips | 7,356 | 0.24 | |
| Socialist Workers | Tim Craine | 3,682 | 0.12 | |
| Workers League | Martin P. McLaughlin | 1,980 | 0.07 | |
| Write-ins | 226 | 0.01 | ||
| Majority | 191,709 | |||
| Democratic gain from Republican | ||||
References
edit- ^ a b c Michigan (1985). Michigan manual. 1983/1984 – via HathiTrust.
- ^ Parker, Randy (June 6, 2010). "Our Campaigns: MI Governor". Our Campaigns.
- ^ Dave Leip. "1982 Gubernatorial General Election Results – Michigan". Dave Leip’s U.S. Election Atlas.
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