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 County results Babbitt: 50–60% 60–70% Mecham: 40–50% 50–60% | |||||||||||||||||
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The1978 Arizona gubernatorial election took place on November 7, 1978, for the post ofGovernor of Arizona.DemocratBruce Babbitt defeatedRepublican nomineeEvan Mecham. Babbitt was the former Attorney General of Arizona, but after the death of GovernorWesley Bolin, Babbit became governor. Bolin himself ascended to office from the position of Secretary of State, meaning his replacement,Rose Mofford was not eligible to the office as she was not elected. This drama of exchanging office would continue after Babbitt's term came to an end, as Mofford would become governor and succeeded Evan Mecham, Babbitt's challenger, in 1988.
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Democratic | Bruce Babbitt (incumbent) | 108,548 | 76.80% | |
| Democratic | Dave Moss | 32,785 | 23.20% | |
| Total votes | 141,333 | 100.00% | ||
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Republican | Evan Mecham | 50,713 | 44.07% | |
| Republican | Jack Londen | 40,116 | 34.86% | |
| Republican | Charles King | 24,253 | 21.08% | |
| Total votes | 115,082 | 100.00% | ||
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Democratic | Bruce Babbitt (incumbent) | 282,605 | 52.47% | +2.06% | |
| Republican | Evan Mecham | 241,093 | 44.77% | −4.79% | |
| Libertarian | V. Gene Lewter | 10,421 | 1.93% | +1.93% | |
| Socialist Workers | Jessica Sampson | 4,437 | 0.82% | +0.82% | |
| Majority | 41,512 | 7.71% | |||
| Total votes | 538,556 | 100.00% | |||
| Democratichold | Swing | +6.86% | |||
| County | Bruce Babbitt Democratic | Evan Mecham Republican | V. Gene Lewter Libertarian | Jessica Sampson Socialist Workers | Margin | Total votes cast[2] | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| # | % | # | % | # | % | # | % | # | % | ||
| Apache | 4,498 | 67.90% | 1,761 | 26.59% | 196 | 2.96% | 169 | 2.55% | 2,737 | 41.32% | 6,624 |
| Cochise | 8,963 | 57.96% | 6,251 | 40.42% | 94 | 0.61% | 157 | 1.02% | 2,712 | 17.54% | 15,465 |
| Coconino | 10,446 | 67.74% | 4,411 | 28.60% | 388 | 2.52% | 176 | 1.14% | 6,035 | 39.13% | 15,421 |
| Gila | 5,715 | 59.39% | 3,668 | 38.12% | 160 | 1.66% | 80 | 0.83% | 2,047 | 21.27% | 9,623 |
| Graham | 2,565 | 44.41% | 3,085 | 53.41% | 63 | 1.09% | 63 | 1.09% | -520 | -9.00% | 5,776 |
| Greenlee | 2,229 | 69.25% | 917 | 28.49% | 31 | 0.96% | 42 | 1.30% | 1,312 | 40.76% | 3,219 |
| Maricopa | 141,177 | 46.82% | 151,079 | 50.10% | 6,982 | 2.32% | 2,291 | 0.76% | -9,902 | -3.28% | 301,529 |
| Mohave | 6,042 | 48.24% | 6,133 | 48.96% | 277 | 2.21% | 74 | 0.59% | -91 | -0.73% | 12,526 |
| Navajo | 6,269 | 56.47% | 4,518 | 40.70% | 179 | 1.61% | 136 | 1.23% | 1,751 | 15.77% | 11,102 |
| Pima | 67,904 | 64.03% | 36,197 | 34.13% | 1,165 | 1.10% | 785 | 0.74% | 31,707 | 29.90% | 106,051 |
| Pinal | 9,064 | 54.42% | 7,151 | 42.93% | 284 | 1.70% | 158 | 0.95% | 1,913 | 11.48% | 16,657 |
| Santa Cruz | 2,814 | 68.28% | 1,229 | 29.82% | 33 | 0.80% | 45 | 1.09% | 1,585 | 38.46% | 4,121 |
| Yavapai | 8,386 | 46.85% | 8,978 | 50.16% | 408 | 2.28% | 126 | 0.70% | -592 | -3.31% | 17,898 |
| Yuma | 6,533 | 52.08% | 5,715 | 45.56% | 161 | 1.28% | 135 | 1.08% | 818 | 6.52% | 12,544 |
| Totals | 282,605 | 52.47% | 241,093 | 44.77% | 10,421 | 1.93% | 4,437 | 0.82% | 41,512 | 7.71% | 538,556 |
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