Pennsylvania gubernatorial election, 1978
Encyclopedia
The Pennsylvania gubernational election of 1978 was held on November 7, 1978 between Republican
Dick Thornburgh
and Democrat
Pete Flaherty
.
The race began with a primary that slated an impressive field of candidates. Flaherty, the Mayor of Pittsburgh, bested State Auditor General Bob Casey
, who had lost the Democratic nomination for this office twice before. Casey's campaign was greatly hurt by the presence of another Bob Casey
who was running on the ballot for Lieutenant Governor; voters apparently believed they were selecting a ticket of Flaherty and the Auditor General when they chose the Pittsburgh teacher as the Democratic runningmate. Thornburgh's win came over the Republican leaders of both houses of the state legislature (House Minority Leader Robert Butera
and Senate Minority Leader Henry Hager
) and former Philadelphia District Attorney and future senator Arlen Specter
(who was considered the frontrunner in the months preceding the primary).http://books.google.com/books?id=1J_9q-lIWRkC&pg=PA112&lpg=PA112&dq=1998+ridge+itkin&source=bl&ots=AK6b-Ut25d&sig=ln8QefiZodyBTkRiIzEYxTt21Ro&hl=en&ei=cPjETOLTOoOglAenj8EH&sa=X&oi=book_result&ct=result&resnum=6&ved=0CCQQ6AEwBQ#v=onepage&q=1998%20ridge%20itkin&f=false
Flaherty outpolled Thornburgh by double-digit margins for much of the campaign, but the Republican candidate used highly effective strategies to close the gap in the weeks leading up to election night. Thornburgh was successful in recruiting suburban moderates, as fellow liberal Republican Specter encoruaged his metro Philadelphia supporters to rally behind Thornburgh. In contrast, the liberal Flaherty had trouble reaching out to conservative Democrats outside of his Western Pennsylvania base, a problem hindered by Casey's tepid support for the candidate over the lieutenant gubernatorial issue. Thornburgh also aggressively courted traditionally Democratic-leaning groups and gained the endorsements of the NAACP and several labor unions. Democratic support slowly waned under this strategy, which allowed Thornburgh to take a close victory. http://books.google.com/books?id=1J_9q-lIWRkC&pg=PA112&lpg=PA112&dq=1998+ridge+itkin&source=bl&ots=AK6b-Ut25d&sig=ln8QefiZodyBTkRiIzEYxTt21Ro&hl=en&ei=cPjETOLTOoOglAenj8EH&sa=X&oi=book_result&ct=result&resnum=6&ved=0CCQQ6AEwBQ#v=onepage&q=1998%20ridge%20itkin&f=false
Republican Party (United States)
The Republican Party is one of the two major contemporary political parties in the United States, along with the Democratic Party. Founded by anti-slavery expansion activists in 1854, it is often called the GOP . The party's platform generally reflects American conservatism in the U.S...
Dick Thornburgh
Dick Thornburgh
Richard Lewis "Dick" Thornburgh is an American lawyer and Republican politician who served as the 41st Governor of Pennsylvania from 1979 to 1987, and then as the U.S...
and Democrat
Democratic Party (United States)
The Democratic Party is one of two major contemporary political parties in the United States, along with the Republican Party. The party's socially liberal and progressive platform is largely considered center-left in the U.S. political spectrum. The party has the lengthiest record of continuous...
Pete Flaherty
Peter F. Flaherty
Peter Francis "Pete" Flaherty was an American politician from Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.He served as Assistant District Attorney of Allegheny County, Pennsylvania from 1957 to 1964; a City of Pittsburgh Councilman 1966 to 1970; Democratic mayor of Pittsburgh from 1970 to 1977; United States Deputy...
.
The race began with a primary that slated an impressive field of candidates. Flaherty, the Mayor of Pittsburgh, bested State Auditor General Bob Casey
Robert P. Casey
Robert Patrick "Bob" Casey, Sr. was an American politician from Pennsylvania. A member of the Democratic Party, he served as the 42nd Governor of Pennsylvania from 1987 to 1995...
, who had lost the Democratic nomination for this office twice before. Casey's campaign was greatly hurt by the presence of another Bob Casey
Robert P. Casey (teacher)
Robert P. "Bob" Casey is a former Democratic Party politician from Pennsylvania. Casey bears no relation to Robert P. Casey, the former Governor of Pennsylvania. Casey, a political anomaly, famously won the Democratic primary for the 1978 nomination for Pennsylvania Lieutenant Governor by...
who was running on the ballot for Lieutenant Governor; voters apparently believed they were selecting a ticket of Flaherty and the Auditor General when they chose the Pittsburgh teacher as the Democratic runningmate. Thornburgh's win came over the Republican leaders of both houses of the state legislature (House Minority Leader Robert Butera
Robert Butera
Robert J. Butera is a former Republican member of the Pennsylvania House of Representatives.-References:...
and Senate Minority Leader Henry Hager
Henry G. Hager
Henry G. Hager III is a former member of the Pennsylvania State Senate who served from 1973 to 1984. He was the Lycoming County District Attorney from 1964 to 1968.-References:...
) and former Philadelphia District Attorney and future senator Arlen Specter
Arlen Specter
Arlen Specter is a former United States Senator from Pennsylvania. Specter is a Democrat, but was a Republican from 1965 until switching to the Democratic Party in 2009...
(who was considered the frontrunner in the months preceding the primary).http://books.google.com/books?id=1J_9q-lIWRkC&pg=PA112&lpg=PA112&dq=1998+ridge+itkin&source=bl&ots=AK6b-Ut25d&sig=ln8QefiZodyBTkRiIzEYxTt21Ro&hl=en&ei=cPjETOLTOoOglAenj8EH&sa=X&oi=book_result&ct=result&resnum=6&ved=0CCQQ6AEwBQ#v=onepage&q=1998%20ridge%20itkin&f=false
Flaherty outpolled Thornburgh by double-digit margins for much of the campaign, but the Republican candidate used highly effective strategies to close the gap in the weeks leading up to election night. Thornburgh was successful in recruiting suburban moderates, as fellow liberal Republican Specter encoruaged his metro Philadelphia supporters to rally behind Thornburgh. In contrast, the liberal Flaherty had trouble reaching out to conservative Democrats outside of his Western Pennsylvania base, a problem hindered by Casey's tepid support for the candidate over the lieutenant gubernatorial issue. Thornburgh also aggressively courted traditionally Democratic-leaning groups and gained the endorsements of the NAACP and several labor unions. Democratic support slowly waned under this strategy, which allowed Thornburgh to take a close victory. http://books.google.com/books?id=1J_9q-lIWRkC&pg=PA112&lpg=PA112&dq=1998+ridge+itkin&source=bl&ots=AK6b-Ut25d&sig=ln8QefiZodyBTkRiIzEYxTt21Ro&hl=en&ei=cPjETOLTOoOglAenj8EH&sa=X&oi=book_result&ct=result&resnum=6&ved=0CCQQ6AEwBQ#v=onepage&q=1998%20ridge%20itkin&f=false
Democratic
- Pete FlahertyPeter F. FlahertyPeter Francis "Pete" Flaherty was an American politician from Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.He served as Assistant District Attorney of Allegheny County, Pennsylvania from 1957 to 1964; a City of Pittsburgh Councilman 1966 to 1970; Democratic mayor of Pittsburgh from 1970 to 1977; United States Deputy...
, Mayor of Pittsburgh- runningmate: Bob CaseyRobert P. Casey (teacher)Robert P. "Bob" Casey is a former Democratic Party politician from Pennsylvania. Casey bears no relation to Robert P. Casey, the former Governor of Pennsylvania. Casey, a political anomaly, famously won the Democratic primary for the 1978 nomination for Pennsylvania Lieutenant Governor by...
, teacher
- runningmate: Bob Casey
Republican
- Dick ThornburghDick ThornburghRichard Lewis "Dick" Thornburgh is an American lawyer and Republican politician who served as the 41st Governor of Pennsylvania from 1979 to 1987, and then as the U.S...
, former US Attorney- runningmate: Bill Scranton III, newspaper publisher and son of former governor Bill Scranton
Results
| Pennsylvania gubernatorial election, 1978 | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Party | Candidate | Running mate | Votes | Percentage | |
| Republican Republican Party (United States) The Republican Party is one of the two major contemporary political parties in the United States, along with the Democratic Party. Founded by anti-slavery expansion activists in 1854, it is often called the GOP . The party's platform generally reflects American conservatism in the U.S... |
Dick Thornburgh Dick Thornburgh Richard Lewis "Dick" Thornburgh is an American lawyer and Republican politician who served as the 41st Governor of Pennsylvania from 1979 to 1987, and then as the U.S... |
Bill Scranton III | 1,996,042 | 52.54% | |
| Democratic Democratic Party (United States) The Democratic Party is one of two major contemporary political parties in the United States, along with the Republican Party. The party's socially liberal and progressive platform is largely considered center-left in the U.S. political spectrum. The party has the lengthiest record of continuous... |
Pete Flaherty Peter F. Flaherty Peter Francis "Pete" Flaherty was an American politician from Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.He served as Assistant District Attorney of Allegheny County, Pennsylvania from 1957 to 1964; a City of Pittsburgh Councilman 1966 to 1970; Democratic mayor of Pittsburgh from 1970 to 1977; United States Deputy... |
Bob Casey Robert P. Casey (teacher) Robert P. "Bob" Casey is a former Democratic Party politician from Pennsylvania. Casey bears no relation to Robert P. Casey, the former Governor of Pennsylvania. Casey, a political anomaly, famously won the Democratic primary for the 1978 nomination for Pennsylvania Lieutenant Governor by... |
1,737,888 | 46.44% | |
| Socialist Workers Socialist Workers Party (United States) The Socialist Workers Party is a far-left political organization in the United States. The group places a priority on "solidarity work" to aid strikes and is strongly supportive of Cuba... |
Mark Zola | Naomi Berman | 20,062 | 0.54% | |
| Consumer | Lee Frissell | Betty Burkett | 17,593 | 0.47% | |
| Write-ins | Write-in | 384 | 0.01% | ||
| Totals | 3,741,969 | 100.00% | |||
| Voter turnout (Voting age population) | 64.60% | ||||