1979 Louisiana gubernatorial election

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1979 Louisiana gubernatorial election
Flag of Louisiana (1912-2006).svg
  1975 October 27, 1979 (first round)
December 8, 1979 (runoff)
1983  
  Dave Treen.jpg 3x4.svg 3x4.svg
Candidate Dave Treen Louis Lambert Jimmy Fitzmorris
Party Republican Democratic Democratic
First round297,674
21.79%
283,266
20.74%
280,760
20.56%
Runoff690,691
50.35%
681,134
49.65%
Eliminated

 
Candidate Paul Hardy E. L. "Bubba" Henry Edgar G. "Sonny" Mouton, Jr.
Party Democratic Democratic Democratic
First round227,026
16.62%
135,769
9.94%
124,333
9.1%
RunoffEliminatedEliminatedEliminated

1979 Louisiana gubernatorial election first round results map by parish.svg
1979 Louisiana gubernatorial runoff election results map by parish.svg
Parish results
Treen:     20–30%     30–40%     50–60%     60–70%     70–80%
Lambert:     20–30%     30–40%     40–50%     50–60%     60–70%     70–80%     80–90%
Fitzmorris:     20–30%     30–40%     40–50%
Hardy:     20-30%     30-40%     40-50%     50-60%
Henry:     20–30%     30–40%     40–50%
Mouton:     40–50%

Governor before election

Edwin Edwards
Democratic

Elected Governor

Dave Treen
Republican

The 1979 Louisiana gubernatorial election resulted in the election of David Treen as the first Republican governor of Louisiana since Reconstruction in the disputed election of 1872. Incumbent Governor Edwin Edwards was ineligible to run for a third term, making it the only gubernatorial election in Louisiana between 1972 and 1991 to not feature Edwards as a candidate.

Contents

This was the first gubernatorial election held after the adoption of the Louisiana primary in 1978. [1]

Background

Elections in Louisiana—with the exception of U.S. presidential elections—follow a variation of the open primary system called the jungle primary or the nonpartisan blanket primary. Candidates of any and all parties are listed on one ballot; voters need not limit themselves to the candidates of one party. Unless one candidate takes more than 50% of the vote in the first round, a run-off election is then held between the top two candidates, who may in fact be members of the same party. Texas uses this same format for its special elections. In this election, the first round of voting was held on October 27, 1979. The runoff was held on December 8, 1979. [2]

Results

First voting round, October 27

CandidateParty affiliationVotes receivedPercent
David Treen Republican297,67421.79%
Louis Lambert Democrat283,26620.74%
Jimmy Fitzmorris Democrat280,76020.56%
Paul Hardy Democrat227,02616.62%
E.L. "Bubba" Henry Democrat135,7699.94%
Edgar G. "Sonny" Mouton, Jr. Democrat124,3339.10%
Luther Devine "None of the Above" Knox Democrat6,3270.46%
Ken Lewis Democrat5,9420.44%
Greg Nelson No Party4,7830.35%
Total1,365,880100%

Runoff, December 8

CandidateParty affiliationVotes receivedPercent
David Treen Republican690,69150.35%
Louis Lambert Democrat681,13449.65%
Total1,371,825100%
Preceded by
1975 gubernatorial election
Louisiana gubernatorial elections Succeeded by
1983 gubernatorial election

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References

  1. Wayne, Stephen (2008). Parties and Elections in America: The Electoral Process Fifth Edition. Rowman & Littlefield.
  2. "New Count Gives G.O.P. Victory In Louisiana's Race for Governor". The New York Times. December 12, 1979. ISSN   0362-4331 . Retrieved March 17, 2024.

Sources

State of Louisiana. Primary and General Election Returns, 1979.