2008 United States gubernatorial elections

United States gubernatorial elections were held on November 4, 2008, in 11 states and two territories. Prior to the election, eight of the total seats were held by Democrats and five by Republicans. Two governors were prohibited by term limits from seeking re-election in 2008. The only governorship to change party was the open seat in Missouri, which was won by a Democrat after being previously held by a Republican.

2008 United States gubernatorial elections

November 4, 2008

13 governorships
11 states; 2 territories
  Majority party Minority party
 
Party Democratic Republican
Seats before 28 22
Seats after 29 21
Seat change Increase 1 Decrease 1
Popular vote 8,395,587 7,901,188
Percentage 50.22% 47.26%
Seats up 6 5
Seats won 7 4

Map of the results
     Democratic gain      Democratic hold
     Republican hold
     New Progressive gain       Nonpartisan politician
     No election

These elections coincided with the presidential election, as well as the elections of the United States Senate and the United States House of Representatives and many local elections, state elections, and ballot propositions.

Election predictions

State Incumbent Last
race
Cook
October 16,
2008
[1]
Sabato
November 3,
2008
[2]
Rothenberg
November 2,
2008
[3]
RCP
November 4,
2008
[4]
Result
Delaware Ruth Ann Minner(term-limited) 50.9% D Safe D Safe D Safe D Safe D Markell
(67.5%)
Indiana Mitch Daniels
53.2% R Lean R Lean R Likely R Lean R Daniels
(57.8%)
Missouri Matt Blunt (retired) 50.8% R Lean D (flip) Lean D (flip) Likely D (flip) Likely D (flip) Nixon
(58.4%)
Montana Brian Schweitzer
50.4% D Safe D Safe D Safe D Safe D Schweitzer
(65.5%)
New Hampshire John Lynch
74.0% D Safe D Safe D Safe D Safe D Lynch
(70.1%)
North Carolina Mike Easley
55.6% D Tossup Lean D Tossup Tossup Perdue
(50.3%)
North Dakota John Hoeven 71.3% R Safe R Safe R Safe R Safe R Hoeven
(74.4%)
Utah Jon Huntsman Jr. 57.7% R Safe R Safe R Safe R Safe R Huntsman Jr.
(77.6%)
Vermont Jim Douglas 56.3% R Likely R Likely R Safe R Safe R Douglas
(53.4%)
Washington Christine Gregoire
48.9% D Tossup Lean D Tossup Tossup Gregoire
(53.0%)
West Virginia Joe Manchin 63.5% D Safe D Safe D Safe D Safe D Manchin
(69.8%)

Race Summary

States

State Incumbent Party First
elected
Result Candidates
Delaware Ruth Ann Minner Democratic 2000 Incumbent term-limited.
New governor elected.
Democratic hold.
Indiana Mitch Daniels Republican 2004 Incumbent re-elected.
Missouri Matt Blunt Republican 2004 Incumbent retired.
New governor elected.
Democratic gain.
  • Green tickY Jay Nixon (Democratic) 58.4%
  • Kenny Hulshof (Republican) 39.5%
  • Andrew Finkenstadt (Libertarian) 1.1%
  • Gregory Thompson (Constitution) 1.0%
Montana Brian Schweitzer Democratic 2004 Incumbent re-elected.
New Hampshire John Lynch Democratic 2004 Incumbent re-elected.
North Carolina Mike Easley Democratic 2000 Incumbent term-limited.
New governor elected.
Democratic hold.
North Dakota John Hoeven Republican 2000 Incumbent re-elected.
  • Green tickY John Hoeven (Republican) 74.4%
  • Tim Mathern (Democratic–NPL) 23.5%
  • DuWayne Hendrickson (Independent) 2.0%
Utah Jon Huntsman Jr. Republican 2004 Incumbent re-elected.
  • Green tickY Jon Huntsman Jr. (Republican) 77.6%
  • Bob Springmeyer (Democratic) 19.7%
  • Dell Schanze (Libertarian) 2.6%
Vermont Jim Douglas Republican 2002 Incumbent re-elected.
Washington Christine Gregoire Democratic 2004 Incumbent re-elected.
West Virginia Joe Manchin Democratic 2004 Incumbent re-elected.

Territories

Territory Incumbent Party First
elected
Result Candidates
American Samoa Togiola Tulafono Democratic 2004 Incumbent re-elected.
Puerto Rico Aníbal Acevedo Vilá Popular Democratic 2004 Incumbent lost re-election.
New governor elected.
New Progressive gain.

Closest races

States where the margin of victory was under 5%:

  1. North Carolina, 3.39%

States where the margin of victory was under 10%:

  1. Washington, 6.45%

Blue denotes states won by Democrats.

Delaware

2008 Delaware gubernatorial election

November 4, 2008
 
Nominee Jack Markell William Swain Lee
Party Democratic Republican
Popular vote 266,861 126,662
Percentage 67.5% 32.0%

County results

Governor before election

Ruth Ann Minner
Democratic

Elected Governor

Jack Markell
Democratic

Ruth Ann Minner was term-limited in 2008. As of 2008, Democrats had controlled the Delaware governorship for 16 years. In an upset, state Treasurer Jack Markell defeated Lieutenant Governor John Carney by 51 to 49% for the Democratic nomination on September 9. The Republican nominee was former state Superior Court Judge William Swain "Bill" Lee, defeating airline pilot Michael Protrack. Lee was the Republican nominee for governor in 2004, and lost to Minner by a narrow margin.

The race got more attention due to the vice presidential candidacy of U.S. Senator Joe Biden. Since Biden, a senator, was elected to be Vice President, he needed to resign his Senate seat. The new governor was then called upon to appoint someone to replace Biden in the Senate. Since Lee would naturally have been more inclined to select a Republican, his election could have caused a Republican pickup in the Senate by proxy. However, he was defeated by a wide margin on election day by Markell. Senator Biden resigned his seat in the United States Senate on January 15, 2009, and Governor Minner appointed Ted Kaufman to Biden's seat. Kaufman had previously served as Senator Biden's Chief of Staff during his tenure in the United States Senate.

Delaware election[5]
Party Candidate Votes %
Democratic Jack Markell 266,861 67.52
Republican William Swain Lee 126,662 32.05
Blue Enigma Jeffrey Brown 1,681 0.43
Total votes 395,204 100.00
Democratic hold

Indiana

2008 Indiana gubernatorial election

November 4, 2008
 
Nominee Mitch Daniels Jill Long Thompson
Party Republican Democratic
Running mate Becky Skillman Dennie Oxley
Popular vote 1,563,885 1,082,463
Percentage 57.8% 40.1%

County results

Governor before election

Mitch Daniels
Republican

Elected Governor

Mitch Daniels
Republican

Incumbent Republican Mitch Daniels[6] faced Democratic nominee former Congresswoman and Undersecretary of Agriculture Jill Long Thompson,[7] and Libertarian nominee engineer Andy Horning,[8] who also ran for governor in 2000.

Some pundits thought Mitch Daniels was vulnerable in 2008, but polling taken by SurveyUSA on October 21 and 22, 2008 showed him with a significant 54-35 lead. He won re-election easily, confirming these predictions.

While Indiana had not voted Democratic for president since 1964, Daniels was the first Republican elected governor in 16 years there. Daniels was also endorsed by the state's largest newspapers, the Indianapolis Star, the Evansville Courier & Press, the Fort Wayne Journal Gazette, the Times of Northwest Indiana, the Gary Post-Tribune and the Louisville Courier-Journal.

Indiana election[9]
Party Candidate Votes %
Republican Mitch Daniels (incumbent) 1,563,885 57.84
Democratic Jill Long Thompson 1,082,463 40.04
Libertarian Andy Horning 57,376 2.12
Write-in 27 0.00
Total votes 2,703,751 100.00
Republican hold

Missouri

2008 Missouri gubernatorial election

November 4, 2008
 
Nominee Jay Nixon Kenny Hulshof
Party Democratic Republican
Popular vote 1,680,611 1,136,364
Percentage 58.4% 39.5%

County results

Governor before election

Matt Blunt
Republican

Elected Governor

Jay Nixon
Democratic

Matt Blunt was considered to be the most vulnerable incumbent in the 2008 election cycle, but decided on January 22, 2008 not to seek re-election.[10] Blunt's approval rating was the nation's second-lowest after Governor Ernie Fletcher of Kentucky for much of 2007, though his approval rating improved and approached 50% in a May poll conducted by SurveyUSA.

The Republican nominee was Congressman Kenny Hulshof. The Democratic nominee was four-term Missouri Attorney General Jay Nixon, who ran unsuccessfully for the U.S. Senate in 1998. Nixon defeated Hulshof comfortably, despite the fact that Missouri ultimately voted for John McCain, a Republican, for president. Missouri was the only state not to re-elect the incumbent party for governor in 2008.

Missouri election
Party Candidate Votes %
Democratic Jay Nixon 1,680,611 58.40
Republican Kenny Hulshof 1,136,364 39.49
Libertarian Andrew Finkenstadt 31,850 1.11
Constitution Gregory Thompson 28,941 1.01
Write-in 12 0.00
Total votes 2,877,778 100.00
Democratic gain from Republican

Montana

2008 Montana gubernatorial election

November 4, 2008
 
Nominee Brian Schweitzer Roy Brown
Party Democratic Republican
Running mate John Bohlinger Steve Daines
Popular vote 318,670 158,268
Percentage 65.5% 32.5%

County results

Governor before election

Brian Schweitzer
Democratic

Elected Governor

Brian Schweitzer
Democratic

Democrat Brian Schweitzer of Montana (running with Lt. Governor John Bohlinger) was heavily favored to win re-election as he had better funding and high approval ratings as current Governor. The Republican nominee was State Senator Roy Brown (running with Steve Daines), and the Libertarian nominee was Stan Jones (running with Michael Baker).[11] Schweitzer won some press coverage with his well-received speech to the 2008 Democratic National Convention.[12] He was criticized, however, for a speech in July in which he jested that he helped defeat U.S. Senator Conrad Burns in 2006 by tampering with the vote totals,[13] which he insisted was purely a joke. Schweitzer won re-election by a comfortable margin despite the criticism.

Montana election[14]
Party Candidate Votes %
Democratic Brian Schweitzer (incumbent) 318,670 65.47
Republican Roy Brown 158,268 32.52
Libertarian Stan Jones 9,796 2.01
Total votes 486,734 100.00
Democratic hold

New Hampshire

2008 New Hampshire gubernatorial election

November 4, 2008
 
Nominee John Lynch Joseph Kenney
Party Democratic Republican
Popular vote 479,042 188,555
Percentage 70.1% 27.6%

County results

Governor before election

John Lynch
Democratic

Elected Governor

John Lynch
Democratic

In New Hampshire, Democrat John Lynch easily won re-election against State Senator Joseph D. Kenney, the Republican nominee.[15]

NOTE: New Hampshire's gubernatorial elections are held every in alternate (even-numbered) years, instead of every fourth year.

New Hampshire election[16]
Party Candidate Votes %
Democratic John Lynch (incumbent) 479,042 70.15
Republican Joseph Kenney 188,555 27.61
Libertarian Susan Newell 14,987 2.19
Write-in 326 0.05
Total votes 682,910 100.00
Democratic hold

North Carolina

2008 North Carolina gubernatorial election

November 4, 2008
 
Nominee Bev Perdue Pat McCrory
Party Democratic Republican
Popular vote 2,146,189 2,001,168
Percentage 50.3% 46.9%

County results

Governor before election

Mike Easley
Democratic

Elected Governor

Bev Perdue
Democratic

Mike Easley was term-limited in 2008, in another state whose governorship had been held by Democrats for 16 years. Democratic Lieutenant Governor Beverly Perdue was the Democratic nominee, defeating Charlotte Mayor Pat McCrory, the Republican nominee.

North Carolina election[17]
Party Candidate Votes %
Democratic Bev Perdue 2,146,189 50.27
Republican Pat McCrory 2,001,168 46.88
Libertarian Michael Munger 121,584 2.85
Total votes 4,268,941 100.00
Democratic hold

North Dakota

2008 North Dakota gubernatorial election

November 4, 2008
 
Nominee John Hoeven Tim Mathern
Party Republican Democratic–NPL
Running mate Jack Dalrymple Merle Boucher
Popular vote 235,009 74,279
Percentage 74.4% 23.5%

County results

Governor before election

John Hoeven
Republican

Elected Governor

John Hoeven
Republican

Republican John Hoeven announced he would seek re-election for a third term in 2008.[18] He won re-election with 74% of the vote. Soundly defeating the Democratic gubernatorial nominee, State Senator Tim Mathern,[19] (24%) and independent candidate DuWayne Hendrickson (2%).

North Dakota election[20]
Party Candidate Votes %
Republican John Hoeven (incumbent) 235,009 74.44
Democratic–NPL Tim Mathern 74,279 23.53
Independent DuWayne Hendrickson 6,404 2.03
Total votes 315,692 100.00
Republican hold

Utah

2008 Utah gubernatorial election

November 4, 2008
 
Nominee Jon Huntsman Jr. Bob Springmeyer
Party Republican Democratic
Running mate Gary Herbert Josie Valdez
Popular vote 735,049 186,503
Percentage 77.6% 19.7%

County results

Governor before election

Jon Huntsman Jr.
Republican

Elected Governor

Jon Huntsman Jr.
Republican

Jon Huntsman, Jr. was heavily favored to win re-election in Utah. As of 2008, Republicans had controlled the Utah governorship for 24 years. Democrat Bob Springmeyer challenged Huntsman,[21] but was decisively defeated.

Utah election[22]
Party Candidate Votes %
Republican Jon Huntsman Jr. (incumbent) 735,049 77.63
Democratic Bob Springmeyer 186,503 19.72
Libertarian Dell Schanze 24,820 2.62
Write-in 153 0.02
Total votes 945,525 100.00
Republican hold

Vermont

2008 Vermont gubernatorial election

November 4, 2008
 
Nominee Jim Douglas Anthony Pollina Gaye Symington
Party Republican Independent Democratic
Popular vote 170,492 69,791 69,534
Percentage 53.4% 21.8% 21.7%

County results

Governor before election

Jim Douglas
Republican

Elected Governor

Jim Douglas
Republican

Three-term incumbent Jim Douglas ran as a Republican, and House Speaker Gaye Symington ran as a Democrat. Other candidates included Anthony Pollina of the Vermont Progressive Party and Cris Ericson of the Marijuana Party.[23] Douglas was re-elected.

Vermont election
Party Candidate Votes %
Republican Jim Douglas (incumbent) 170,492 53.43
Independent Anthony Pollina 69,791 21.87
Democratic Gaye Symington 69,534 21.79
Independent Tony O'Connor 3,106 0.97
Independent Sam Young 2,490 0.78
Liberty Union Peter Diamondstone 1,710 0.54
Independent Cris Ericson 1,704 0.53
Write-in 258 0.08
Total votes 319,085 100.00
Republican hold

Washington

2008 Washington gubernatorial election

November 4, 2008
 
Nominee Christine Gregoire Dino Rossi
Party Democratic Republican
Popular vote 1,598,738 1,404,124
Percentage 53.0% 46.6%

County results

Governor before election

Christine Gregoire
Democratic

Elected Governor

Christine Gregoire
Democratic

Democrat Christine Gregoire[24] is perhaps best known for having won in 2004 by 133 votes in the third official count, after having lost the initial count by 261 votes and the first recount by 24 votes. Her 2004 opponent, Republican former State Senator Dino Rossi,[25] officially announced his candidacy on October 25, 2007.[26] Pre-election SurveyUSA polls showed Gregoire leading Rossi with a 50% to 47% margin.[27] A September 10 poll by Rasmussen Reports showed Rossi pulling ahead by a 52% to 46% margin.[28] The race was expected to be extremely close, but Gregoire was reelected by a wider than expected margin of 6.45%.[29]

Washington election[30]
Party Candidate Votes %
Democratic Christine Gregoire (incumbent) 1,598,738 53.00
Republican Dino Rossi 1,404,124 46.55
Write-in 13,502 0.45
Total votes 3,016,364 100.00
Democratic hold

West Virginia

2008 West Virginia gubernatorial election

November 4, 2008
 
Nominee Joe Manchin Russ Weeks
Party Democratic Republican
Popular vote 492,697 181,612
Percentage 69.8% 25.7%

County results

Governor before election

Joe Manchin
Democratic

Elected Governor

Joe Manchin
Democratic

Democrat Joe Manchin ran for re-election in West Virginia and was heavily favored according to pre-election polls. On November 4, he faced former State Senator Russ Weeks, a Republican, and Mountain Party candidate Jesse Johnson, who ran in 2004.[31] Butch Paugh of the Constitution Party also attempted a run but failed to qualify for the ballot.[32] Manchin won re-election by a landslide.

West Virginia election[33]
Party Candidate Votes %
Democratic Joe Manchin (incumbent) 492,697 69.81
Republican Russ Weeks 181,612 25.73
Mountain Jesse Johnson 31,486 4.46
Total votes 705,795 100.00
Democratic hold

Territories

American Samoa

2008 American Samoa gubernatorial election

November 18, 2008
 
Candidate Togiola Tulafono Utu Abe Malae
Party Nonpartisan Nonpartisan
Popular vote 6,590 5,084
Percentage 56.4% 43.6%

Governor before election

Togiola Tulafono
Democratic

Elected Governor

Togiola Tulafono
Democratic

American Samoa's Togiola Tulafono sought re-election in 2008 with Lieutenant Governor Ipulasi Aitofele Sunia. He won his first term 55.7% to 44.3% in the 2004 run-off against Afoa Moega Lutu.[34] Tulafono was again challenged by Afoa Moega Lutu and Velega Savali, who ran as a nonpartisan team for governor and lieutenant governor respectively.[35] Utu Abe Malae and Tuika Tuika also ran to become the next Governor on separate, nonpartisan tickets.[36] Tulafono won in a close vote that split three ways.

American Samoa election[37]
Party Candidate Votes %
Nonpartisan Togiola Tulafono (incumbent) 6,590 56.45
Nonpartisan Utu Abe Malae 5,084 43.55
Total votes 11,674 100.00
Democratic hold

Puerto Rico

2008 Puerto Rico gubernatorial election

November 4, 2008
 
Nominee Luis Fortuño Aníbal Acevedo Vilá
Party PNP PPD
Popular vote 1,025,965 801,071
Percentage 52.8% 41.3%

Municipality results

Governor before election

Aníbal Acevedo Vilá
PPD

Elected Governor

Luis Fortuño
PNP

Aníbal Acevedo Vilá of Puerto Rico ran for a second term in 2008. In 2004, Acevedo narrowly beat former Governor and Senator Pedro Rosselló, also a Democrat, by a mere 3,566 votes.

Republican at-large Resident Commissioner Luis Fortuño, who announced in December 2006 that he would not again seek re-election to his current post, ran against him. There was also a movement to elect Senator Rosselló as a write-in choice for governor.

The Puerto Rican Independence Party's candidate was Edwin Irizarry Mora, while a fourth candidate, Rogelio Figueroa (Puerto Ricans for Puerto Rico Party), ran on an environmentalist platform.

Acevedo was defeated by Fortuño on election day. The federal indictment against Acevedo for alleged corruption schemes when he was in Congress, and generally low approval, may have been a drag on his candidacy and chances of winning re-election.

Puerto Rico election
Party Candidate Votes %
PNP Luis Fortuño 1,025,965 52.77
PPD Aníbal Acevedo Vilá (incumbent) 801,071 41.29
Puerto Ricans for Puerto Rico Rogelio Figueroa 53,693 2.76
PIP Edwin Irizarry Mora 39,590 2.04
Write-in 13,215 0.64
Total votes 1,933,534 100.00
PNP gain from PPD

Overall results

At the 2008 Elections, all 55 governorships of the states and territories were occupied. However, in the 2008 election cycle, only thirteen seats were up for election - eleven were statewide, and two were territorial. Eight seats were held by Democrats, and the remaining five were held by Republicans.

See also

References

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  3. "2008 Gubernatorial Ratings". Gubernatorial Ratings. The Rothenberg Political Report. Archived from the original on May 26, 2021. Retrieved May 25, 2021.
  4. "2008 Governor races". RealClearPolitics. November 4, 2008. Retrieved March 5, 2021.
  5. "Indiana General Election November 4, 2008, Statewide". Indiana Secretary of State. 2008-11-04. Retrieved 2008-11-07.
  6. Mitch Daniels campaign website
  7. Jill Long Thompson campaign website
  8. "campaign website Andy Horning". Archived from the original on 2008-10-29. Retrieved 2008-04-26.
  9. "Indiana General Election November 4, 2008, Statewide". Indiana Secretary of State. 2008-11-04. Retrieved 2008-11-07.
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  13. "Schweitzer catches heat over July speech".
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  15. "Kenney for Governor". www.kenney08.com. Archived from the original on 9 May 2008. Retrieved 15 January 2022.
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  20. "ND Secretary of State Election Management System - Statewide Election Results". Archived from the original on 2011-07-28. Retrieved 2011-05-23.
  21. "A daunting task: Springmeyer to challenge popular Gov. Huntsman". sltrib.com. Archived from the original on 15 March 2008. Retrieved 9 April 2018.
  22. "Archived copy". Archived from the original on June 11, 2009. Retrieved November 28, 2008.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
  23. Gunzburger, Ron. "Politics1 - Online Guide to Vermont Politics". www.politics1.com. Retrieved 9 April 2018.
  24. "Christine Gregoire campaign website". Archived from the original on 2009-09-30. Retrieved 2008-07-04.
  25. Dino Rossi campaign website
  26. Garber, Andrew (October 23, 2007). "Rossi due to make rematch official". The Seattle Times.
  27. "SurveyUSA Election Poll #13982". www.surveyusa.com. Retrieved 9 April 2018.
  28. "Rasmussen Reports™: The most comprehensive public opinion coverage ever provided for a presidential election". www.rasmussenreports.com. Archived from the original on 5 April 2008. Retrieved 15 January 2022.
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  30. "November 4, 2008 General Election – State Executive". Washington Office of the Secretary of State. 2008-11-12. Archived from the original on 2010-11-15. Retrieved 2008-11-12.
  31. Gunzburger, Ron. "Politics1 - Online Guide to West Virginia Elections, Candidates & Politics". www.politics1.com. Retrieved 9 April 2018.
  32. "Constitution Party West Virginia Petition - Ballot Access News". www.ballot-access.org. Retrieved 9 April 2018.
  33. "Archived copy" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on 2011-03-04. Retrieved 2021-12-25.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
  34. "CSC graduate wins runoff election in American Samoa". Southwest Nebraska News. 2004-11-24. Archived from the original on 2008-12-08. Retrieved 2008-09-19.
  35. "Togiola, Ipulasi Announce Re-election Bid". Pacific Magazine. 2008-05-11. Archived from the original on 2008-10-12. Retrieved 2008-09-14.
  36. Sagapolutele, Fili (2008-10-31). "17,000 Registered Voters Ready For The Polls In American Samoa". Pacific Magazine. Retrieved 2008-11-02.
  37. "UNOFFICIAL RESULTS GENERAL ELECTION 2008: GOVERNOR & LT. GOVERNOR NOVEMBER 4, 2008". American Samoa Government Election Office. Archived from the original on 26 November 2008. Retrieved 3 December 2008.
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