1978 South Carolina gubernatorial election

none January 2025 September 2023 1978 South Carolina gubernatorial election South Carolina presidential no 1974 South Carolina gubernatorial election 1974 1982 South Carolina gubernatorial election 1982 November 7, 1978 Image:Portrait of SC Governor Dick Riley.jpg 150x150px Richard Riley Democratic Party (United States) 384,898 61.33% File:Edward Lunn Young.jpg Edward Lunn Young Republican Party (United States) 236,946 37.74% 1978 South Carolina gubernatorial election results map by county.svg 230px County resultsRiley: #7996e2 50–60% #6674de 60–70% #584cde 70–80%Young: #e27f7f 50–60% Governor James B. Edwards Republican Party (United States) Richard Riley Democratic Party (United States) The 1978 South Carolina gubernatorial election was held on November 7, 1978, to select the governor of the state of South Carolina. Richard Riley, the Democratic nominee, defeated Republican Edward Lunn Young and became the 111th governor of South Carolina. Democratic primary The South Carolina Democratic Party held their primary for governor on June 13, featuring three high tier candidates. Richard Riley, a former member of the General Assembly, emerged as the winner of the runoff election over Lieutenant Governor W. Brantley Harvey Jr. on June 27. Democratic PrimaryCandidateVotes% W. Brantley Harvey, Jr. 142,785 37.5 Richard Riley 125,184 32.9 William Jennings Bryan Dorn 112,793 29.6 Democratic Primary RunoffCandidateVotes%±% Richard Riley 180,882 53.3 +20.4 W. Brantley Harvey, Jr. 158,655 46.7 +9.2 Republican primary The South Carolina Republican Party held their primary for governor on June 13. The race between Edward Lunn Young and Raymon Finch drew little interest compared to the Democratic primary and turnout for the Republican primary was less than that of 1974. Young defeated Finch in a close contest and earned the right to face Riley in the general election. Republican PrimaryCandidateVotes% Edward Lunn Young 12,143 51.4 Raymon Finch 11,501 48.6 General election The general election was held on November 7, 1978, and Richard Riley was elected as the next governor of South Carolina. Turnout was higher than the previous gubernatorial election because of the increasingly competitive nature of the race between the two parties. South Carolina Gubernatorial Election, 1978 Democratic Party (United States) Richard Riley 384,898 61.33 +14.3 Republican Party (United States) Edward Lunn Young 236,946 37.74 -12.6 Independent Judy Reynolds 5,338 0.9 -0.7 No party Write-Ins 731 0.1 -1.0 147,952 23.6 +20.3 627,913 57.2 +4.2 |- | Democratic Party (United States) | colspan=5 |Democratic gain from Republican |- See also Governor of South Carolina List of governors of South Carolina South Carolina gubernatorial elections External links SCIway Biography of Governor Richard Wilson Riley 1974 South Carolina gubernatorial elections 1982 1978 Category:1978 United States gubernatorial elections Gubernatorial Category:November 1978 in the United States