1978 Oklahoma gubernatorial election

1978 Oklahoma gubernatorial election

November 7, 1978

Nominee George Nigh Ron Shotts Party Democratic Republican Popular vote 402,240 367,055 Percentage 51.7% 47.2%

County results Nigh:      50–60%      60–70%      70–80% Shotts:      50–60%      60–70%

Governor before election David Boren Democratic Elected Governor George Nigh Democratic

The 1978 Oklahoma gubernatorial election was held on November 7, 1978, to elect the next governor of Oklahoma. Incumbent Democratic governor David Boren chose not to run for re-election to a second term in office. Instead, Boren decided to run for the United States Senate. Former governor, and sitting lieutenant governor George Nigh was elected, defeating Republican nominee Ron Shotts.

Democratic primary

The primary elections took place on August 22, 1978.

Candidates

• Larry Derryberry, state attorney general
• Bob Funston
• George Nigh, lieutenant governor, and former governor of Oklahoma

Results

Democratic primary results[1]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Democratic	George Nigh	276,910	49.94
	Democratic	Larry Derryberry	208,055	37.52
	Democratic	Bob Funston	69,475	12.53
Total votes			554,440	100.00

Runoff

The Runoff election took place on September 19, 1978.

Democratic runoff results[1]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Democratic	George Nigh	269,681	57.64
	Democratic	Larry Derryberry	197,457	42.36
Total votes			467,138	100.00

Republican primary

The primary elections took place on August 22, 1978.

Candidates

• Jim Head
• Jerry L. Mash
• Ron Shotts, former Oklahoma Sooners football player

Results

Republican primary results[1]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Republican	Ron Shotts	82,895	76.85
	Republican	Jerry L. Mash	18,145	12.19
	Republican	Jim Head	11,826	10.96
Total votes			107,866	100.00

Independents

Candidates

• Billy Joe Clegg
• Jim McCuiston
• Floyd Shealy

General election

Results

1978 Oklahoma gubernatorial election results[1]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Democratic	George Nigh	402,240	51.74
	Republican	Ron Shotts	367,055	47.21
	Independent	Billy Joe Clegg	3,887	0.50
	Independent	Floyd Shealy	2,395	0.31
	Independent	Jim McCuiston	1,395	0.18
Total votes			777,414	100.0
	Democratic hold

See also

• 1978 United States elections
• 1978 United States gubernatorial elections
• 1978 United States Senate elections

References

1. "Election Results and Statistics". Oklahoma Department of Libraries and the Office of Management and Enterprise Services. 2008. Retrieved December 26, 2016.