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 County results Precinct resultsHelms: 50–60% 60–70% 70–80% 80–90% >90% Gantt: 50–60% 60–70% 70–80% 80–90% >90% Tie: 40–50% 50% | |||||||||||||||||
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TheNorth Carolina United States Senate election of 1990 was held on November 6, 1990, as part of thenationwide elections to the Senate. The general election was fought between theRepublican incumbentJesse Helms and theDemocratic nominee formermayor of CharlotteHarvey Gantt. Helms won re-election to a fourth term by a slightly wider margin than theclose election in 1984.
The election received renewed attention in 2020 with the release ofESPN miniseriesThe Last Dance, which mentionedChicago Bulls superstarMichael Jordan refusing to endorse Gantt, who was seeking to become the firstAfrican-American to representNorth Carolina - Jordan's home state - in theUnited States Senate.[1] When asked to endorse Gantt, Jordan said in jest, "Republicans buy sneakers, too."[2]
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Republican | Jesse Helms (Incumbent) | 157,345 | 84.32% | −6.33% | |
| Republican | L. C. Nixon | 15,355 | 8.23% | N/A | |
| Republican | George Wimbish | 13,895 | 7.45% | −1.90% | |
| Turnout | 186,595 | ||||
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Democratic | Harvey Gantt | 260,179 | 37.52% | N/A | |
| Democratic | Mike Easley | 209,934 | 30.27% | N/A | |
| Democratic | John Ingram | 120,990 | 17.45% | −8.78% | |
| Democratic | R. P. Thomas | 82,883 | 11.95% | N/A | |
| Democratic | Lloyd Gardner | 11,528 | 1.66% | N/A | |
| Democratic | Robert Hannan | 7,982 | 1.15% | N/A | |
| Turnout | 693,496 | ||||
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Democratic | Harvey Gantt | 273,567 | 56.89% | +19.37% | |
| Democratic | Mike Easley | 207,283 | 43.11% | +12.84% | |
| Turnout | 480,850 | ||||
The Helms campaign against black Democratic nomineeHarvey Gantt was racially charged, as he focused on messaging of black people taking jobs from white people.[4] He ran anadvertisement in which a white person was denied a job due to racial quotas. Carter Wrenn, who was involved in the ad's creation, stated that "We played the race card".[5]
60% of white voters supported Helms while 94% of black voters supported Gantt.[6]
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Republican | Jesse Helms (Incumbent) | 1,089,012 | 52.58% | +0.92% | |
| Democratic | Harvey Gantt | 981,573 | 47.39% | −0.42% | |
| Socialist Workers | Rich Stuart | 681 | 0.03% | −0.08% | |
| Turnout | 2,071,266 | ||||
| Republicanhold | |||||
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