The 1994 Oklahoma gubernatorial election was held on November 8, 1994, and was a race for Governor of Oklahoma. Former United States Associate Attorney General Frank Keating pulled an upset in the three-way race to become only the third Republican governor in Oklahoma history.
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![]() County results Keating: 30–40% 40–50% 50–60% 60–70% Mildren: 30–40% 40–50% 50–60% Watkins: 30–40% 40–50% 50–60% 60–70% | |||||||||||||||||||||
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The Democratic vote was split between Lieutenant Governor Jack Mildren, an Oklahoma Sooners star quarterback from 1969-71, and former Democratic congressman Wes Watkins, who ran as an independent. Watkins won 24% of the vote and carried numerous counties (by wide margins in some cases); his 233,000 votes far exceeded Keating's 171,000-vote winning margin over Mildren.
This was the first time since Oklahoma statehood that Jackson County, Stephens County, and Grady County voted Republican in a gubernatorial election, and the first time since 1914 that Comanche County voted Republican.
Candidates
editDemocrat
edit- Jack Mildren, Lieutenant Governor of Oklahoma
- Danny Williams
- Bernice Shedrick, state senator
- Joe Vickers
Republican
edit- Frank Keating- Assistant Attorney General, General Counsel member, and Deputy Secretary of Housing and Urban Development under President George H. W. Bush; Assistant Secretary of the Treasury and United States Associate Attorney General under President Ronald Reagan
- Jerry Pierce, state senator
- Virginia Hale
- Thomas H. Lay
- Jerry Kobyluk
Independent
edit- Wes Watkins- former U.S. Congressman
Democratic primary
editLt. Governor Jack Mildren and Bernice Shedrick advanced to the runoff where both candidates received vote totals similar to the first primary, securing the win for Mildren.
Results
editParty | Candidate | Votes | % | |
---|---|---|---|---|
Democratic | Jack Mildren | 214,765 | 48.6 | |
Democratic | Bernice Shedrick | 165,066 | 37.3 | |
Democratic | Danny Williams | 46,571 | 10.6 | |
Democratic | Joe Vickers | 15,821 | 3.6 | |
Total votes | 442,223 | 100.00 |
Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
---|---|---|---|---|
Democratic | Jack Mildren | 223,861 | 58.8 | |
Democratic | Bernice Shedrick | 156,749 | 41.2 | |
Total votes | 380,610 | 100.00 |
Republican primary
editFrank Keating, a former assistant attorney general and member of the Reagan and Bush administrations, defeated four other Republicans to win the GOP nomination.
Results
editParty | Candidate | Votes | % | |
---|---|---|---|---|
Republican | Frank Keating | 117,265 | 56.9 | |
Republican | Jerry Pierce | 60,280 | 29.3 | |
Republican | Virginia Hale | 15,229 | 7.4 | |
Republican | Thomas H. Lay | 7,744 | 3.8 | |
Republican | Jerry Kobyluk | 5,429 | 2.6 | |
Total votes | 205,947 | 100.00 |
General election
editPolling
editSource | Date | Keating (R) | Mildren (D) | Watkins (I) |
---|---|---|---|---|
KSWO-TV | Nov. 4, 1994 | 40% | 39% | 15% |
Tulsa World | Nov. 1, 1994 | 28% | 29% | 21% |
Results
editParty | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Republican | Frank Keating | 466,740 | 46.9 | +14.2% | |
Democratic | Jack Mildren | 294,936 | 29.6 | −27.8% | |
Independent | Wes Watkins | 233,336 | 23.5 | N/A | |
Majority | |||||
Turnout | |||||
Republican gain from Democratic | Swing |
References
edit- ^ a b "Governor, Democratic Primary Election - August 23, 1994" (PDF). Oklahoma State Election Board.
- ^ "Governor - Democratic Runoff Primary Election - September 20, 1994" (PDF). Oklahoma State Election Board.
- ^ "Governor - General Election - November 8, 1994" (PDF). Oklahoma State Election Board.
- ^ "1994 Gubernatorial General Election Results - Oklahoma". uselectionatlas.org.