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3 governorships 2 states; 1 territory | |||||||||||||||||||||||||
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 Republican gain Democratic gain | |||||||||||||||||||||||||
United States gubernatorial elections were held on November 3, 1981, in two states and one territory. Both state seats were open due to term limits, and both also switched parties, resulting in zero net change for both parties. As of 2025, this is the last time where Virginia and New Jersey's governorships switched to opposite parties.
| State | Incumbent | Party | First elected | Result | Candidates |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| New Jersey[1] | Brendan Byrne | Democratic | 1973 | Incumbent term-limited. New governorelected. Republican gain. |
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| Virginia[2] | John N. Dalton | Republican | 1977 | Incumbent term-limited. New governorelected. Democratic gain. |
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| State | Incumbent | Party | First elected | Result | Candidates |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Northern Mariana Islands[3][4] | Carlos Camacho | Democratic | 1977 | Incumbent lost re-election. New governor elected. Republican gain. |
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States where the margin of victory was under 1%:
States where the margin of victory was under 10%:
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 County results Congressional district resultsKean: 50–60% 60–70% Florio: 40–50% 50–60% 60–70% 70–80% | ||||||||||||||||
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The1981 New Jersey gubernatorial election was held November 3, 1981.Republican Speaker of the New Jersey General AssemblyThomas Kean narrowly defeatedDemocratic U.S. RepresentativeJames Florio, 49.46%-49.38, following a recount.[5] Kean's margin of victory was 1,797 votes out of more than two million votes cast. As of 2025, the 1981 gubernatorial election remains the closest gubernatorial contest in New Jersey history.[6]
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| Turnout | 64.8% (voting eligible)[7] | ||||||||||||||||
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 County and independent city results Robb: 50–60% 60–70% 70–80% 80–90% Coleman: 40–50% 50–60% 60–70% | |||||||||||||||||
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In the1981 Virginia gubernatorial election,Republican incumbent GovernorJohn N. Dalton was unable to seek re-election due to term limits.Chuck Robb, theLieutenant Governor of Virginia, was nominated by theDemocratic Party to run against theRepublican nominee, stateAttorney GeneralJ. Marshall Coleman.
Robb's victory ended 12 consecutive years of Republican control of the Governor's Mansion. Fairfax County voted Democratic for Governor for the first time since 1949.
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Republican | Pedro Tenorio | {{{votes}}} | 56.68% | |
| Independent | Carlos Camacho | {{{votes}}} | 23.07% | |
| Democratic | Herman R. Guerrero | {{{votes}}} | 20.26% | |
| Total votes | {{{votes}}} | 100.00 | ||
| Republicanhold | ||||
With all the absentee votes counted and challenges disposed of, the results of the Nov. 1 election remain the same.
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