1978 Illinois elections

none February 2026 September 2023 1978 Illinois elections Illinois presidential no 1976 Illinois elections 1976 1980 Illinois elections 1980 November 7, 1978 57.55% Elections were held in Illinois on Tuesday, November 7, 1978.OFFICIAL VOTE Cast at the GENERAL ELECTION NOVEMBER 7, 1978 https://www.elections.il.gov/DocDisplay.aspx?doc=Downloads/ElectionOperations/VoteTotals/Archived/1978/1978%20GE.PDF Illinois State Board of Elections 25 June 2020 February 2021 InternetArchiveBot yes Primaries were held on March 21, 1978.OFFICIAL VOTE Cast at the GENERAL PRIMARY ELECTION MARCH 21, 1978 https://www.elections.il.gov/DocDisplay.aspx?doc=Downloads/ElectionOperations/VoteTotals/Archived/1978/1978%20PE.PDF https://web.archive.org/web/20220327112515/https://www.elections.il.gov/DocDisplay.aspx?doc=Downloads/ElectionOperations/VoteTotals/Archived/1978/1978%20PE.PDF dead March 27, 2022 www.elections.il.gov Illinois State Board of Elections 25 June 2020 This was the first election that the 1970 Constitution of Illinois' change took effect that all statewide executive offices would be elected in national midterm years. 3 Election information 1978 was a midterm election year in the United States. This was the first election that the 1970 Constitution of Illinois' change took effect that all statewide executive offices would be elected in national midterm years.Illinois Constitution - Article V http://www.ilga.gov/commission/lrb/con5.htm www.ilga.gov Illinois General Assembly 27 March 2020 To accommodate this, in 1976, all statewide executive offices that were up for election were elected to two-year terms that would expire following the 1978 elections. Turnout Turnout in the primary election was 25.14%, with a total of 1,482,034 ballots cast. 911,290 Democratic and 570,744 Republican primary ballots were cast. Turnout during the general election was 57.55%, with 3,342,985 ballots cast. Federal elections United States Senate 1978 United States Senate election in Illinois 1978 United States Senate elections Incumbent Republican Charles H. Percy was reelected to a third term. United States House 1978 United States House of Representatives elections in Illinois 1978 United States House of Representatives elections All 24 Illinois seats in the United States House of Representatives were up for election in 1978. The Republican Party flipped one seat, leaving the composition of Illinois' House delegation to consist of 13 Republicans and 11 democrats. State elections Governor and Lieutenant Governor 1978 Illinois gubernatorial election 1978 Illinois gubernatorial election Illinois presidential no 1976 Illinois gubernatorial election 1976 1982 Illinois gubernatorial election 1982 November 7, 1978 File:Governor James Thompson (3x4).jpg James R. Thompson Republican Party (United States) David C. O'Neal 1,859,684 59.0% File:Comptroller Michael Bakalis (3x4).jpg Michael Bakalis Democratic Party (United States) Dick Durbin 1,263,134 40.1% 1978 Illinois gubernatorial election results map by county.svg 160px County Results Thompson: #e27f7f 50-60% #d75d5d 60-70% #d72f30 70-80% Bakalis: #a5b0ff 40–50% #7996e2 50–60% Governor James R. Thompson Republican Party (United States) James R. Thompson Republican Party (United States) 54.23% Incumbent Governor James R. Thompson and Lieutenant Governor David C. O'Neal, Republicans, jointly won reelection to a second term. 1978 gubernatorial election, Illinois1978 Gubernatorial General Election Results - Illinois https://uselectionatlas.org/RESULTS/state.php?year=1978&fips=17&f=0&off=5&elect=0&minper=0 uselectionatlas.org Dave Leip's Atlas of U.S. Elections 27 March 2020 Republican Party (United States) James Thompson / Dave O'Neal (incumbents) 1,859,684 59.04 Democratic Party (United States) Michael Bakalis / Dick Durbin 1,263,134 40.10 Libertarian Party (US) Georgia Shields 11,420 0.36 Socialist Workers Party (United States) Cecil Lampkin 11,026 0.35 U.S. Labor Party Melvin Klenetsky 4,737 0.15 Write-in Others 106 0.00 3,150,107 Attorney General 1978 Illinois Attorney General election Illinois presidential no 1976 Illinois Attorney General election 1976 1982 Illinois Attorney General election 1982 November 7, 1978 x150px William J. Scott, circa 1976 (3x4).jpg William J. Scott Republican Party (United States) 1,989,758 64.81% 3x4.svg Richard J. Troy Democratic Party (United States) 1,050,085 34.20% 1978 Illinois attorney general election results map by county.svg County results Scott:#e27f7f 50–60% #d75d5d 60–70% #d72f30 70–80% #C21B18 80–90%Troy: #a5b0ff 40–50% #7996e2 50–60% 150px Attorney General William J. Scott Republican Party (United States) William J. Scott Republican Party (United States) 52.85% Incumbent Attorney General William J. Scott, a Republican, was elected to a fourth term. Democratic primary Richard J. Troy, a Commissioner of the Metropolitan Water Reclamation District of Greater Chicago,Opponent demands tax https://videttearchive.ilstu.edu/?a=d&d=vid19780113-01.2.6&e=-------en-20--1--txt-txIN------- videttearchive.ilstu.edu UPI 90 91 13 January 1978 won the Democratic primary, running unopposed. Attorney General Democratic primary Democratic Party (United States) Richard J. Troy 538,632 100 Write-in Others 24 0.01 538,656 100 Republican primary Incumbent William J. Scott won the Republican primary, running unopposed. Attorney General Republican primary Republican Party (United States) William J. Scott (incumbent) 444,505 100 Write-in Others 35 0.01 444,540 100 General election Attorney General election Republican Party (United States) William J. Scott (incumbent) 1,989,758 64.81 Democratic Party (United States) Richard J. Troy 1,050,085 34.20 Socialist Workers Party (United States) Guy C. Miller 13,366 0.44 Libertarian Party (United States) Sheldon Waxman 11,917 0.39 U.S. Labor Party Richard D. Leebove 4,874 0.16 Write-in Others 31 0.00 3,070,031 100 Secretary of State 1978 Illinois Secretary of State election Illinois presidential no 1976 Illinois elections#Secretary of State 1976 1982 Illinois elections#Secretary of State 1982 November 7, 1978 x150px Alan Dixon (Illinois Blue Book Portrait 1977-1978) (cropped).png Alan J. Dixon Democratic Party (United States) 2,314,546 73.82% 3x4.svg Sharon Sharp Republican Party (United States) 797,560 25.44% 1978 Illinois Secretary of State election results map by county.svg 250px County resultsDixon: #7996e2 50–60% #6674de 60–70% #584CDE 70–80% Secretary of State Alan J. Dixon Democratic Party (United States) Alan J. Dixon Democratic Party (United States) 53.98% Incumbent Secretary of State Alan J. Dixon, a Democrat, was reelected to a second term. Dixon's margin-of victory was considered to be a landslide.Former Illinois Lottery director Sharon Sharp dies https://www.sj-r.com/story/news/2009/07/07/former-illinois-lottery-director-sharon/43101187007/ The State Journal-Register October 17, 2024 en July 7, 2009 Democratic primary Incumbent Alan J. Dixon won the Democratic primary, running unopposed. Secretary of State Democratic primary Democratic Party (United States) Alan J. Dixon (incumbent) 602,852 100 Write-in Others 9 0.00 602,861 100 Republican primary Sharon Sharp, the Clerk of Elk Grove Township, was nominated in the Republican primary without opposition. Secretary of State Republican primary Republican Party (United States) Sharon Sharp 415,789 100 Write-in Others 9 0.00 415,799 100 General election Secretary of State election Democratic Party (United States) Alan J. Dixon (incumbent) 2,314,546 73.82 Republican Party (United States) Sharon Sharp 797,560 25.44 Socialist Workers Party (United States) Marie Cobbs 10,247 0.33 Libertarian Party (United States) Ed May 9,104 0.29 U.S. Labor Party Edward Waffle 4,058 0.13 Write-in Others 12 0.00 3,135,527 100 Comptroller 1978 Illinois State Comptroller election Illinois presidential no 1976 Illinois Comptroller election 1976 1982 Illinois Comptroller election 1982 November 7, 1978 x150px Roland Burris circa 1979 (3x4).jpg Roland Burris Democratic Party (United States) 1,542,983 51.67% 3x4.svg John W. Castle Republican Party (United States) 1,389,049 46.52% 1978 Illinois Comptroller general election results map by county.svg County resultsBurris: #a5b0ff 40–50% #7996e2 50–60% #6674de 60–70% Castle: #ffb2b2 40–50% #e27f7f 50–60% #d75d5d 60–70% #d72f30 70–80% State Comptroller Michael Bakalis Democratic Party (United States) Roland Burris Democratic Party (United States) 51.40% Incumbent Comptroller Michael Bakalis, a Democrat, did not seek a second term, instead opting to run for governor. Democrat Roland Burris was elected to succeed him. In winning the election, Burris became the first American American to be elected to statewide office in Illinois.Kimmel Leigh Roland Burris: The First African-American National Bank Examiner https://www.occ.treas.gov/about/who-we-are/history/1936-1966/1936-1966-roland-burris.html www.occ.treas.gov Office of the Comptroller of Currency 27 March 2020 14 March 2019 Democratic primary With more than 64% of the vote, Roland Burris defeated State Representative Richard Luft in the Democratic primary. Burris was a Chicago attorney that had formerly served as director of the Department of General Services under Governor Dan Walker. Luft had been the early favorite for the party to slate, but at the last minute was beaten out by Burris when the party finally slated candidates. It was reported that black Chicago Democrats had pressured the party to slate a black candidate for statewide office. During the campaign, Burris and Luft argued over Burris' record as director of the Department of General Services. Secretary of State Democratic primary Democratic Party (United States) Roland W. Burris 418,735 64.03 Democratic Party (United States) Richard N. Luft 235,192 35.97 653,927 100 Republican primary With more than 52% of the vote, John W. Castle, director of the Department of Local Government Affairs, defeated W. Robert Blair, former Speaker of the Illinois House of Representatives, in the Republican primary. Governor James R. Thompson, who had convinced Castle to abandon his declared plans to run for treasurer and instead run for comptroller, publicly endorsed Castle. Blair criticized Castle for this endorsement, alleging that he would not be able to operate the comptroller's office independently of the governor, while Castle denied that his decisions would be influenced by his political ties to Thompson. Secretary of State Republican primary Republican Party (United States) John W. Castle 238,086 52.02 Republican Party (United States) W. Robert Blair 219,570 47.98 Write-in Others 2 0.00 457,656 100 General election Comptroller election Democratic Party (United States) Roland W. Burris 1,542,983 51.67 Republican Party (United States) John W. Castle 1,389,049 46.52 Libertarian Party (United States) Mark B. Wallace 21,645 0.72 Socialist Workers Party (United States) John Eriksen 17,116 0.57 U.S. Labor Party Carol Leebove 15,181 0.51 Write-in Others 14 0.00 2,985,988 100 Treasurer 1978 Illinois State Treasurer election Illinois presidential no 1974 Illinois elections#Treasurer 1974 1982 Illinois elections#Treasurer 1982 November 7, 1978 x150px Jerome Constentino 1989 (3x4).jpg Jerome Cosentino Democratic Party (United States) 1,548,605 51.95% 3x4.svg James M. Skelton Republican Party (United States) 1,383,966 46.42% Treasurer Donald R. Smith Illinois Republican Party Jerome Cosentino Illinois Democratic Party 51.32% 1978 Illinois state treasurer election results map by county.svg County resultsCosentino: #a5b0ff 40–50% #7996e2 50–60% #6674de 60–70% #584cde 70–80%Skelton: #ffb2b2 40–50% #e27f7f 50–60% #d75d5d 60–70% #d72f30 70–80% Incumbent Treasurer was Donald R. Smith, a Republican who had been appointed in 1977, did not seek reelection. Democrat Jerome Cosentino was elected to succeed him in office. This election made Cosentino the first Italian-American to be elected to statewide office in Illinois.Illinois Blue Book: 1989-1990 1990 Illinois Secretary of State Springfield, Ill. 33 Democratic primary In the Democratic primary, the party establishment had slated Metropolitan Water Reclamation District of Greater Chicago commissioner Jerome Cosentino as its preferred candidate.Maher Sharon Illinois Issues Comptroller, treasurer races — too close to call https://www.lib.niu.edu/1978/ii780804.html August 1978 27 March 2020 He won the primary with 60% of the vote, defeating Nina T. Shepherd, a trustee of the University of Illinois. Shepherd received the endorsement of Independent Voter of Illinois in the primary. She ran largely due to the failure of the party of slate a woman for any statewide office. The primary was not overly heated. One issue that haunted Cosentino was that his trucking firm was under investigation by the Interstate Commerce Commission for possible violations of the Interstate Commerce Act. While the investigation found no evidence of wrongdoing, it was not completed until after the primary was over. Treasurer Democratic primary Democratic Party (United States) Jerome A. Cosentino 402,489 60.71 Democratic Party (United States) Nina T. Shepherd 260,512 39.29 Write-in Others 1 0.00 663,002 100 Republican primary James M. Skelton, the incumbent county treasurer of Champaign County,Easterwood Ray GOP State Treasurer's race hotly contested The Post Loves Park, Illinois March 15, 1978 40 81 26 October 17, 2024 https://idnc.library.illinois.edu/?a=d&d=POS19780315-01.1.26&e=-------en-20--1--txt-txIN---------- Illinois Digital Newspaper Collections won a narrow 52% victory over Bradley M. Glass in the Republican primary. With Skelton being a downstate politician, and Glass being an upstate politician, the race had the dynamics of "downstate vs. upstate". John W. Castle had originally announced that he would run for the Republican nomination for Treasurer, before being convinced by Governor James R. Thompson to instead run for comptroller. thumb|County map of the 1978 Illinois Republican Treasurer primary Skelton: #FFB380 50-60% #FF9955 60-70% #FF7F2A 70-80% #FF6600 80-90% #D45500 90-100% Glass: #8DA9E2 50-60% #678CD7 60-70% #4170CD 70-80%|246x246px Treasurer Republican primary Republican Party (United States) James M. Skelton 236,802 52.82 Republican Party (United States) Brad Glass 211,591 47.19 Write-in Others 1 0.00 448,394 100 General election Treasurer election Jerome A. "Jerry" Cosentino Democratic Party (United States) 1,548,605 51.95 Republican Party (United States) James M. Skelton 1,383,966 46.42 Libertarian Party (United States) Everett Moffat 17,496 0.59 U.S. Labor Party John H. Brown, Jr. 15,682 0.53 Socialist Workers Party (United States) Randi Lawrence 15,411 0.52 Write-in Others 22 0.00 2,981,182 100 State Senate One-third of the seats of the Illinois Senate were up for election in 1982. Democrats retained control of the chamber. State House of Representatives All of the seats in the Illinois House of Representatives were up for election in 1978. Democrats retained control of the chamber. Trustees of University of Illinois 1978 Trustees of University of Illinois election presidential no 1976 Illinois elections#Trustees of University of Illinois 1976 1980 Illinois elections#Trustees of University of Illinois 1980 November 7, 1978 An election was held for three of nine seats for Trustees of University of Illinois system. The election saw the reelection incumbent second-term Republican Ralph Crane Hahn and the election of new members, Democrats Edmund Roche Donoghue and Paul Stone. Incumbent Republican Park Livingston and incumbent first-term Republican Jane Hayes Rader lost reelection. Trustees of the University of Illinois electionTrustees, University of Illinois Board of Trustees https://www.bot.uillinois.edu/UserFiles/Servers/Server_694865/File/UI-trustees-chronological.pdf University of Illinois 1 April 2020 Democratic Party (United States) Paul Stone 1,409,086 17.04 Democratic Party (United States) Edmund R. Donoghue 1,348,011 16.30 Republican Party (United States) Ralph C. Hahn (incumbent) 1,324,857 16.02 Robert J. "Bob" Webb Democratic Party (United States) 1,302,741 15.75 Jane Hayes Rader (incumbent) Republican Party (United States) 1,285,296 15.54 Park Livingston (incumbent) Republican Party (United States) 1,281,284 15.49 Suzanne Rose U.S. Labor Party 53,630 0.65 Jo-Ann Della-Guistina Socialist Workers Party (United States) 47,191 0.57 William Mitchell Libertarian Party (United States) 44,303 0.54 James McCawley Libertarian Party (United States) 37,298 0.45 John Adrian Libertarian Party (United States) 34,514 0.42 John Pottinger Socialist Workers Party (United States) 29,480 0.36 Mitchell F. Hirsch U.S. Labor Party 28,220 0.34 Maureen Ravenscroft U.S. Labor Party 25,424 0.31 Lee Kail Socialist Workers Party (United States) 20,071 0.24 Others Write-in 15 0.00 8,271,421 100 Judicial elections Multiple judicial positions were up for election in 1978. Ballot measures Illinois voters voted on a two legislatively referred constitutional amendment ballot measures in 1978.Illinois Constitution - Amendments Proposed http://www.ilga.gov/commission/lrb/conampro.htm www.ilga.gov Illinois General Assembly 26 March 2020 In order to be approved, the measures required either 60% support among those specifically voting on the measure or 50% support among all ballots cast in the elections. Personal Property Tax Amendment The Personal Property Tax Amendment (also known as "Amendment 1") was a legislatively referred constitutional amendment which would have amended Article IX, Section 5 of the Constitution of Illinois to eliminate the provision that required the legislature to abolish the personal property tax by January 1, 1979.Illinois Personal Property Tax Amendment (1978) https://ballotpedia.org/Illinois_Personal_Property_Tax_Amendment_(1978) Ballotpedia 29 March 2020 en It failed to meet either threshold to amend the constitution. Personal Property Tax Amendment Option Votes % of voteson measures % of all ballotscast Yes 952,416 56.48 28.49 No 733,845 43.52 21.95 Total votes 1,686,261 100 50.44 Voter turnout 29.03% 300px|thumb|Amendment 1 results by county Yes: #47729E 70–80% #7D9CBB 60–70% #B6C8D9 50–60% No: #DEDEBD 50–60% Exempt Veterans' Organizations from Property Taxes Amendment The Exempt Veterans' Organizations from Property Taxes Amendment (also known as "Property Tax Exemption for Veterans' Organizations Amendment" and "Amendment 2") was a legislatively referred constitutional amendment which would have amended Article IX, Section 6 of the Constitution of Illinois to exempt veterans' associations from paying property taxes on their meeting halls.Illinois Property Tax Exemption for Veterans' Organizations (1978) https://ballotpedia.org/Illinois_Property_Tax_Exemption_for_Veterans%27_Organizations_(1978) Ballotpedia 29 March 2020 It failed to meet either threshold to amend the constitution. Exempt Veterans' Organizations from Property Taxes Amendment Option Votes % of voteson measures % of all ballotscast Yes 747,907 48.11 22.37 No 806,579 51.89 24.13 Total votes 1,554,486 100 46.50 Voter turnout 26.76% 300px|thumb|Amendment 2 results by county No: #DEDEBD 50–60% Yes: #7D9CBB 60–70% #B6C8D9 50–60% Local elections Local elections were held. References Illinois