For related races, see 1990 United States gubernatorial elections.
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 First round county results Runoff county resultsSymington: 50–60%Goddard: 40–50% 50–60% 60–70% 70–80% | ||||||||||||||||
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The 1990–91 Arizona gubernatorial election took place on November 6, 1990, for the post of Governor of Arizona. Incumbent Democratic Governor Rose Mofford declined to run for a full term. Republican Fife Symington defeated the Democratic nominee and Mayor of Phoenix Terry Goddard. Because no candidate received a majority of votes, a runoff election was held later on February 26, 1991, which Symington also won. This is the only election where Arizona used a runoff election.
Evan Mecham, a former governor who was removed from office in 1988 upon being convicted in his impeachment trial, unsuccessfully ran for another term. This would be the last gubernatorial election until 2018 when the victorious gubernatorial candidate in the state would be of the same party as the incumbent president.
Democratic primary
Candidates
Declared
- Terry Goddard, mayor of Phoenix
- Dave Moss, perennial candidate
Declined
- Rose Mofford, incumbent governor
Results
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Democratic | Terry Goddard | 212,579 | 84.00% | |
| Democratic | Dave Moss | 40,478 | 16.00% | |
| Total votes | 253,057 | 100.00% | ||
Republican primary
Candidates
Declared
- Bob Barnes, former governor's aide
- Fred Koory, Jr, former State Senator
- Evan Mecham, former governor
- Sam Steiger, former U.S. Representative for Arizona
- Fife Symington, real estate developer
Results
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Republican | Fife Symington | 163,010 | 43.78% | |
| Republican | Evan Mecham | 91,136 | 24.48% | |
| Republican | Fred Koory, Jr | 61,487 | 16.51% | |
| Republican | Sam Steiger | 49,019 | 13.17% | |
| Republican | Bob Barnes | 7,672 | 2.06% | |
| Total votes | 372,324 | 100.00% | ||
General election
Results
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Republican | Fife Symington | 523,984 | 49.65% | +9.98% | |
| Democratic | Terry Goddard | 519,691 | 49.24% | +14.76% | |
| Stop Abortion | Max Hawkins (write-in) | 10,983 | 1.04% | +1.04% | |
| Libertarian | Ed Yetman (write-in) | 316 | 0.03% | +0.03% | |
| Independent | Rick Lee Campbell (write-in) | 163 | 0.02% | ||
| Independent | Allen Weinstein (write-in) | 76 | 0.01% | ||
| Republican | Patrick P. Castronovo (write-in) | 75 | 0.01% | ||
| Independent | Robert P. Winn (write-in) | 64 | 0.01% | ||
| Independent | Peter J. Cojanis (write-in) | 54 | 0.01% | ||
| Majority | 4,293 | 0.41% | |||
| Total votes | 1,055,406 | 100.00% | |||
Results by county
| County | Fife Symington Republican |
Terry Goddard Democratic |
Max Hawkins Stop Abortion |
Ed Yetman Libertarian |
All others Write-in |
Margin | Total votes cast | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| # | % | # | % | # | % | # | % | # | % | # | % | ||
| Apache | 3,638 | 27.49% | 9,485 | 71.67% | 91 | 0.69% | 6 | 0.05% | 14 | 0.11% | -5,847 | -44.18% | 13,234 |
| Cochise | 11,472 | 47.17% | 12,685 | 52.16% | 136 | 0.56% | 13 | 0.05% | 14 | 0.06% | -1,213 | -4.99% | 24,320 |
| Coconino | 11,330 | 39.72% | 17,050 | 59.78% | 123 | 0.43% | 11 | 0.04% | 8 | 0.03% | -5,720 | -20.05% | 28,522 |
| Gila | 6,283 | 43.88% | 7,893 | 55.13% | 128 | 0.89% | 5 | 0.03% | 8 | 0.06% | -1,610 | -11.25% | 14,317 |
| Graham | 3,614 | 48.47% | 3,699 | 49.61% | 141 | 1.89% | 2 | 0.03% | 0 | 0.00% | -85 | -1.14% | 7,456 |
| Greenlee | 1,071 | 36.70% | 1,836 | 62.92% | 11 | 0.38% | 0 | 0.00% | 0 | 0.00% | -765 | -26.22% | 2,918 |
| La Paz | 1,829 | 52.45% | 1,622 | 46.52% | 33 | 0.95% | 1 | 0.03% | 2 | 0.06% | 207 | 5.94% | 3,487 |
| Maricopa | 330,261 | 53.17% | 282,409 | 45.46% | 8,156 | 1.31% | 139 | 0.02% | 234 | 0.04% | 47,852 | 7.70% | 621,199 |
| Mohave | 14,068 | 51.33% | 13,131 | 47.91% | 154 | 0.56% | 11 | 0.04% | 41 | 0.15% | 937 | 3.42% | 27,405 |
| Navajo | 7,708 | 43.31% | 9,867 | 55.44% | 204 | 1.15% | 9 | 0.05% | 11 | 0.06% | -2,159 | -12.13% | 17,799 |
| Pima | 87,701 | 43.53% | 112,572 | 55.87% | 1,028 | 0.51% | 94 | 0.05% | 83 | 0.04% | -24,871 | -12.34% | 201,478 |
| Pinal | 11,762 | 41.13% | 16,562 | 57.92% | 257 | 0.90% | 9 | 0.03% | 7 | 0.02% | -4,800 | -16.78% | 28,597 |
| Santa Cruz | 2,140 | 35.93% | 3,801 | 63.82% | 10 | 0.17% | 2 | 0.03% | 3 | 0.05% | -1,661 | -27.89% | 5,956 |
| Yavapai | 22,682 | 55.69% | 17,567 | 43.13% | 467 | 1.15% | 11 | 0.03% | 4 | 0.01% | 5,115 | 12.56% | 40,731 |
| Yuma | 8,425 | 46.84% | 9,512 | 52.88% | 44 | 0.24% | 3 | 0.02% | 3 | 0.02% | -1,087 | -6.04% | 17,987 |
| Totals | 523,984 | 49.65% | 519,691 | 49.24% | 10,983 | 1.04% | 316 | 0.03% | 432 | 0.04% | 4,293 | 0.41% | 1,055,406 |
Counties that flipped from Republican to Democratic
Runoff election
Prior to 1992, the Arizona State Constitution required a runoff election for the office of governor if no candidate received a majority of the votes. As a result, a runoff election was held on February 26, 1991.
Results
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Republican | Fife Symington | 492,569 | 52.36% | +2.71% | |
| Democratic | Terry Goddard | 448,168 | 47.64% | −1.60% | |
| Majority | 44,401 | 4.72% | |||
| Total votes | 940,737 | 100.00% | |||
| Republican hold | Swing | +4.31% | |||
Results by county
| County | Fife Symington Republican |
Terry Goddard Democratic |
Margin | Total votes cast | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| # | % | # | % | # | % | ||
| Apache | 2,982 | 26.45% | 8,294 | 73.55% | -5,312 | -47.11% | 11,276 |
| Cochise | 9,862 | 48.08% | 10,651 | 51.92% | -789 | -3.85% | 20,513 |
| Coconino | 9,444 | 41.88% | 13,107 | 58.12% | -3,663 | -16.24% | 22,551 |
| Gila | 5,670 | 46.09% | 6,632 | 53.91% | -962 | -7.82% | 12,302 |
| Graham | 3,512 | 56.07% | 2,752 | 43.93% | 760 | 12.13% | 6,264 |
| Greenlee | 1,003 | 41.19% | 1,432 | 58.81% | -429 | -17.62% | 2,435 |
| La Paz | 1,558 | 56.45% | 1,202 | 43.55% | 356 | 12.90% | 2,760 |
| Maricopa | 315,811 | 55.95% | 248,691 | 44.05% | 67,120 | 11.89% | 564,502 |
| Mohave | 13,106 | 55.00% | 10,722 | 45.00% | 2,384 | 10,01% | 23,828 |
| Navajo | 7,081 | 44.81% | 8,721 | 55.19% | -1,640 | -10.38% | 15,802 |
| Pima | 82,594 | 45.79% | 97,773 | 54.21% | -15,179 | -8.42% | 180,367 |
| Pinal | 10,562 | 44.01% | 13,435 | 55.99% | -2,873 | -11.97% | 23,997 |
| Santa Cruz | 1,741 | 44.79% | 2,146 | 55.21% | -405 | -10.42% | 3,887 |
| Yavapai | 21,515 | 58.68% | 15,148 | 41.32% | 6,367 | 17.37% | 36,663 |
| Yuma | 6,128 | 45.09% | 7,462 | 54.91% | -1,334 | -9.82% | 13,590 |
| Totals | 492,569 | 52.36% | 448,168 | 47.64% | 44,4013 | 4.72% | 940,737 |
Counties that flipped from Democratic to Republican
References
- ^ "State of Arizona Official Canvass Primary Election - September 11, 1990". Arizona Secretary of State. Retrieved July 14, 2024.
- ^ "State of Arizona Official Canvass - General Election - November 6, 1990". Arizona Secretary of State. Retrieved July 14, 2024.
- ^ "State of Arizona Official Canvass - Second Election - February 26, 1991". Arizona Secretary of State. Retrieved July 14, 2024.
| (1988 ←) 1990 United States elections (→ 1992) | |
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 Elections in Arizona | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Governor | |||||
| Attorney General | |||||
| Secretary of State | |||||
| State Treasurer | |||||
| Superintendent of Public Instruction | |||||
| U.S. President | |||||
| U.S. Senate |
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| U.S. House | |||||
| See also: Political party strength in Arizona | |||||