1994 Minnesota gubernatorial election

1994 Minnesota gubernatorial election
November 8, 1994
 
Nominee Arne Carlson John Marty
Party Ind.-Republican Democratic (DFL)
Running mate Joanne Benson Nancy Larson
Popular vote 1,094,165 589,344
Percentage 63.34% 34.12%
Carlson:      30–40%      40–50%      50–60%      60–70%      70–80%      80–90%      >90%
Marty:      30–40%      40–50%      50–60%      60–70%      70–80%      80–90%      >90%
Tie:      40–50%      50%      No votes
Governor before election

Arne Carlson
Republican

Elected Governor

Arne Carlson
Republican

The 1994 Minnesota gubernatorial election took place on November 8, 1994, in the midst of that year's Republican Revolution. Incumbent Republican Arne Carlson easily won re-election over Democrat–Farmer–Labor state senator John Marty.

To date, this is the most recent gubernatorial election in which Hennepin and Ramsey counties voted for the Republican candidate.

This was the first time since 1950 that an incumbent Republican Governor of Minnesota won re-election. It is also the most recent statewide election in which a Republican won a majority of the vote.

Republican Party

While incumbent Arne Carlson was popular in the state, he was not popular with rank-and-file Republicans, who viewed his victory in 1990 as an accident, as he was chosen as a replacement nominee shortly before the general election. Carlson, who was pro-choice and in favor of extending civil rights to homosexuals, was seen as too moderate by delegates to the GOP state convention, who ultimately chose former state representative Allen Quist, a staunch conservative, as their nominee. Ultimately, though, Carlson easily defeated Quist in the state primary, putting himself on the ballot for November.

Candidates

Primary results

Republican primary results by county
  Carlson
  •   50–60%
  •   60–70%
  •   70–80%
  Quist
  •   50–60%
  •   60–70%
  •   70–80%
1994 Republican gubernatorial primary[1]
Party Candidate Votes %
Republican Arne Carlson (incumbent) 321,084 66.5
Republican Allen Quist 161,670 33.5
Total votes 482,754 100.0

Democratic Party

At the DFL convention, Marty received the party endorsement, beating back a strong challenge by three opponents, one of whom Mike Freeman, son of a popular former governor withdrew, but Marty still faced a strong challenge from former Minneapolis Chief of Police Tony Bouza. Bouza faded, however, when it was revealed that he supported severe restrictions on handguns. Marty ultimately won a narrow victory in the primary over former Commerce Commissioner Mike Hatch, who lost his second consecutive gubernatorial primary.

Candidates

  • Tony Bouza, former Minneapolis Chief of Police and director of the Minnesota Gaming Commission
    • Running mate: Kim Stokes, Britt resident
  • Mike Hatch, former commissioner of Commerce and candidate for governor in 1990
    • Running mate: Robert Schmitz, farmer and former state senator from Jordan
  • John Marty, State Senator from Roseville
    • Running mate: Nancy Larson, executive director of the Minnesota Association of Small Cities
  • Richard T. Van Bergen, Buffalo resident and Lyndon LaRouche supporter
    • Running mate: Glenn Mesaros, Minneapolis resident and perennial candidate

Withdrew

  • Michael O. Freeman, Hennepin County Attorney and son of former Governor Orville Freeman (withdrew after DFL Convention)

Primary results

Democratic primary results by county
  Marty
  •   30–40%
  •   40–50%
  Hatch
  •   30–40%
  •   40–50%
  •   50–60%
  •   60–70%
1994 Democratic gubernatorial primary[1]
Party Candidate Votes %
Democratic John Marty 144,462 37.8
Democratic Mike Hatch 139,109 36.4
Democratic Tony Bouza 98,341 25.7
Democratic Richard T. Van Bergen 4,761 1.2
Total votes 382,163 100.0

General election

Campaign

The 1994 election nationwide was noted for a GOP wave of election victories.[2] In Minnesota, that wave wasn't as evident, as half of the statewide elections went for each party. The GOP won the governorship, U.S. Senator, and State Auditor positions, and the DFL won the State Attorney General, Secretary of State, and State Treasurer positions. Additionally, the Minnesota State House remained in DFL control by a 72–64 margin.[3] The results of the gubernatorial general election were: Arne Carlson 1,094,165, John Marty 589,344, Will Shetterly 20,785, Jon Hillson 3,022, Eric Arthur Olson 15,467, Leslie Davis 4,611.[4]

Candidates

  • Arne Carlson, incumbent governor since 1991 (Independent-Republican)
    • Running mate: Joanne Benson, state senator
  • Leslie Davis, Minneapolis environmental activist and perennial candidate (Nutritional Rights)
    • Running mate: Phil Ratté, perennial candidate
  • Jon Hillson, St. Paul railroad switchman (Socialist Workers)
    • Running mate: Leah Finger
  • John Marty, state senator from Roseville (Democratic–Farmer–Labor)
    • Running mate: Nancy Larson, executive director of the Minnesota Association of Small Cities
  • Eric Olson, Minneapolis insurance agent (Libertarian)
    • Running mate: Michael Strand, Minneapolis resident
  • Will Shetterly, Minneapolis fantasy and comic book writer (Grassroots)
    • Running mate: Tim Davis, Minneapolis forklift operator and candidate for state representative in 1990

Polling

Source Date Carlson (R) Marty (D)
St. Paul Pioneer Press Oct. 2, 1994 54% 29%

Debate

1994 Minnesota gubernatorial election debate
No. Date Host Moderator Link Republican Democratic
Key:
 P  Participant   A  Absent   N  Not invited   I  Invited  W  Withdrawn
Arne Carlson John Marty
1 Nov. 1, 1994 League of Women Voters
WCCO (AM)
WCCO-TV 		C-SPAN P P

Results

1994 Gubernatorial Election, Minnesota
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Ind.-Republican Arne Carlson (incumbent) 1,094,165 63.34% +13.24%
Democratic (DFL) John Marty 589,344 34.12% −12.65%
Grassroots Will Shetterly 20,785 1.20% +0.24%
Libertarian Eric Olson 15,467 0.90% n/a
Natural Rights Alliance Leslie Davis 4,611 0.27% n/a
Socialist Workers Jon Hillson 3,022 0.17% n/a
Majority 504,821 29.22%
Turnout 1,727,394
Ind.-Republican hold Swing

Results by county

County Arne Carlson
Republican 		John Marty
DFL 		All Others Margin Total votes cast
# % # % # % # %
Aitkin 3,590 53.5% 2,749 41.0% 371 5.5% 841 12.5% 6,710
Anoka 60,289 64.0% 28,906 30.7% 4,957 5.3% 31,383 33.3% 94,152
Becker 7,038 63.9% 3,446 31.3% 529 4.8% 3,592 32.6% 11,013
Beltrami 6,138 50.6% 5,215 43.0% 768 6.3% 923 7.6% 12,121
Benton 6,176 59.9% 3,589 34.8% 550 5.3% 2,587 25.1% 10,315
Big Stone 1,441 49.3% 1,375 47.1% 105 3.6% 66 2.2% 2,921
Blue Earth 10,688 54.6% 7,383 37.7% 1,507 7.7% 3,305 16.9% 19,578
Brown 6,557 65.1% 2,976 29.5% 541 5.4% 3,581 35.6% 10,074
Carlton 5,394 45.4% 5,892 49.6% 585 4.9% -498 -4.2% 11,871
Carver 15,262 74.2% 4,309 21.0% 985 4.9% 10,953 53.2% 20,556
Cass 6,152 62.2% 3,342 33.8% 390 3.9% 2,810 28.4% 9,884
Chippewa 3,314 60.1% 1,995 36.2% 208 3.8% 1,319 23.9% 5,517
Chisago 8,689 63.2% 4,351 31.6% 711 5.2% 4,338 31.6% 13,751
Clay 10,722 68.4% 4,437 28.3% 508 3.3% 6,285 40.1% 15,667
Clearwater 1,700 54.5% 1,241 39.8% 176 5.6% 459 14.7% 3,117
Cook 1,334 55.2% 943 39.0% 140 5.9% 391 16.2% 2,417
Cottonwood 2,899 54.7% 1,847 34.9% 549 10.3% 1,052 19.8% 5,295
Crow Wing 12,314 62.3% 6,694 33.9% 758 3.8% 5,620 28.4% 19,766
Dakota 81,475 69.9% 29,969 25.7% 5,103 4.4% 51,506 44.2% 116,547
Dodge 4,203 68.0% 1,693 27.4% 285 4.6% 2,510 40.6% 6,181
Douglas 7,826 64.2% 3,926 32.2% 444 3.6% 3,900 32.0% 12,196
Faribault 4,733 64.2% 2,332 31.7% 302 4.1% 2,401 32.5% 7,367
Fillmore 5,417 69.5% 2,001 25.7% 374 4.8% 3,416 43.8% 7,792
Freeborn 8,473 62.9% 4,592 34.1% 404 3.0% 3,881 28.8% 13,469
Goodhue 11,199 69.1% 4,398 27.1% 621 3.8% 6,801 42.0% 16,218
Grant 1,770 56.4% 1,275 40.6% 96 3.1% 495 15.8% 3,141
Hennepin 272,167 64.6% 131,223 31.1% 18,047 4.3% 140,944 33.5% 421,437
Houston 5,101 64.4% 2,362 29.8% 458 5.8% 2,739 34.8% 7,921
Hubbard 4,396 59.2% 2,627 35.4% 397 5.3% 1,769 23.8% 7,420
Isanti 6,239 59.4% 3,680 35.0% 587 5.5% 2,559 24.4% 10,506
Itasca 9,090 49.4% 8,515 46.3% 805 4.3% 575 3.1% 18,410
Jackson 2,801 55.6% 1,891 37.5% 349 7.0% 910 18.1% 5,041
Kanabec 2,880 60.1% 1,675 35.0% 236 4.9% 1,205 25.1% 4,791
Kandiyohi 8,874 57.6% 5,550 36.0% 993 6.4% 3,324 21.6% 15,417
Kittson 1,445 53.2% 1,174 43.2% 95 3.6% 271 10.0% 2,717
Koochiching 2,756 48.3% 2,672 46.9% 273 4.8% 84 1.4% 5,701
Lac qui Parle 2,165 52.8% 1,826 44.6% 106 2.6% 339 8.2% 4,097
Lake 2,503 45.0% 2,837 51.0% 225 4.1% -334 -6.0% 5,565
Lake of the Woods 1,016 57.8% 653 37.2% 88 5.0% 363 20.6% 1,757
Le Sueur 5,435 57.8% 3,475 36.9% 500 5.4% 1,960 20.9% 9,410
Lincoln 1,713 54.2% 1,275 40.4% 171 5.4% 19,60 13.8% 9,410
Lyon 5,304 61.0% 2,924 33.6% 466 5.3% 2,380 26.4% 8,694
Mahnomen 1,119 57.1% 711 36.3% 131 6.6% 408 20.8% 1,961
Marshall 2,556 51.5% 1,982 39.9% 429 8.7% 574 11.6% 4,967
Martin 6,084 65.8% 2,698 29.2% 463 5.0% 3,386 46.6% 9,245
McLeod 8,157 69.7% 2,908 24.9% 634 5.4% 5,249 44.8% 11,699
Meeker 5,301 62.5% 2,801 33.0% 380 4.4% 2,500 29.5% 8,482
Mille Lacs 4,668 59.7% 2,744 35.1% 405 5.2% 1,924 24.6% 7,817
Morrison 5,793 53.2% 4,494 41.3% 601 5.6% 1,299 11.9% 10,888
Mower 8,879 54.9% 6,871 42.5% 429 2.7% 2,008 12.4% 16,179
Murray 2,256 51.2% 1,745 39.6% 402 9.2% 511 11.6% 4,403
Nicollet 6,337 56.3% 4,044 35.9% 879 7.8% 2,293 23.4% 11,260
Nobles 4,396 55.3% 2,881 36.2% 671 8.4% 1,515 19.1% 7,948
Norman 2,099 60.0% 1,265 36.1% 136 3.8% 834 23.9% 3,500
Olmsted 29,118 73.9% 8,693 22.1% 1,570 3.9% 20,425 51.8% 39,381
Otter Tail 13,295 65.2% 6,269 30.7% 833 4.1% 7,026 34.5% 20,397
Pennington 2,639 55.5% 1,962 41.3% 153 3.3% 677 14.2% 4,754
Pine 4,795 53.1% 3,758 41.6% 473 5.3% 1,037 11.5% 9,026
Pipestone 2,139 53.6% 1,508 37.8% 344 8.6% 631 15.8% 3,991
Polk 6,667 58.5% 4,308 37.8% 417 3.7% 2,359 20.7% 11,392
Pope 3,034 60.0% 1,855 36.7% 167 3.3% 1,179 23.3% 5,056
Ramsey 108,001 58.6% 68,095 36.9% 8,303 4.5% 39,906 21.7% 184,399
Red Lake 992 50.4% 910 46.2% 68 3.5% 82 4.2% 1,970
Redwood 4,983 69.1% 1,927 26.7% 297 4.1% 3,056 42.4% 7,207
Renville 4,669 62.9% 2,508 33.6% 262 3.4% 2,191 29.3% 7,469
Rice 10,280 56.8% 7,072 39.1% 745 4.1% 3,208 17.7% 18,097
Rock 2,114 55.8% 1,317 34.8% 357 9.5% 797 21.0% 3,788
Roseau 3,532 57.1% 2,217 35.9% 435 7.0% 1,315 21.2% 6,184
Saint Louis 36,710 43.7% 43,589 51.9% 3,631 4.3% -6,879 -8.2% 83,930
Scott 17,140 69.3% 6,376 25.8% 1,207 4.9% 10,764 12.5% 24,723
Sherburne 11,172 65.3% 5,002 29.3% 924 5.4% 6,170 36.0% 17,098
Sibley 3,653 65.6% 1,614 29.0% 302 5.4% 2,039 37.6% 5,569
Stearns 27,125 61.6% 14,542 33.0% 2,362 5.4% 12,583 28.6% 44,029
Steele 9,257 68.5% 3,743 27.7% 511 3.8% 5,514 40.8% 13,511
Stevens 2,352 56.9% 1,552 37.5% 233 5.6% 800 19.4% 4,137
Swift 2,151 47.8% 2,130 47.4% 216 4.8% 21 0.4% 4,497
Todd 5,258 56.1% 3,537 37.8% 574 6.0% 1,721 16.3% 9,369
Traverse 983 54.2% 731 40.3% 98 5.4% 252 13.9% 1,812
Wabasha 5,271 65.8% 2,453 30.6% 281 3.5% 2,818 35.2% 8,005
Wadena 3,028 58.9% 1,822 35.4% 295 5.8% 1,206 23.5% 5,145
Waseca 4,550 64.0% 2,261 31.8% 296 4.2% 2,289 32.2% 7,107
Washington 47,805 68.6% 18,979 27.2% 2,901 4.2% 28,826 41.4% 69,685
Watonwan 2,592 56.8% 1,666 36.5% 304 6.7% 926 20.3% 4,562
Wilkin 1,877 70.0% 710 26.5% 96 3.6% 1,167 43.5% 2,683
Winona 10,329 60.4% 5,962 34.9% 809 4.8% 4,367 25.5% 17,100
Wright 17,580 65.6% 7,954 29.7% 1,267 4.7% 9,626 35.9% 26,801
Yellow Medicine 2,721 55.8% 1,943 39.8% 212 4.3% 778 16.0% 4,876
Totals 1,094,165 62.0% 589,344 33.4% 82,269 4.7% 504,821 28.6% 1,765,778

Counties that flipped from Democratic to Republican

References

  1. ^ a b Minnesota Election Results 1994, p.5-6 Retrieved Oct 20, 2014
  2. ^ Berke, Richard (November 9, 1994). "THE 1994 ELECTIONS: THE OVERVIEW; G.O.P. WINS CONTROL OF SENATE AND MAKES BIG GAINS IN HOUSE; PATAKI DENIES CUOMO 4TH TERM". New York Times. Retrieved October 20, 2014.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: deprecated archival service (link)
  3. ^ Session Weekly, Minnesota House of Representatives, Published Jan 6, 1995, Vol. 12, Number 1 Retrieved Oct 20, 2014
  4. ^ Minnesota Election Results 1994, p.29-30 Retrieved Oct 20, 2014
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