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 County results Milliken: 50–60% 60–70% 70-80% Fitzgerald: 40–50% 50–60% 60–70% 70–80% | |||||||||||||||||
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The 1978 Michigan gubernatorial election was held on November 7, 1978. Incumbent Republican William Milliken was elected to a third term as Michigan Governor.
As of 2023[update], this remains the last election in which the Republican candidate for Governor carried Wayne County.
The primary elections occurred on August 8, 1978.[1] Milliken was unopposed, while Fitzgerald defeated a four-man field including law professor and perennial candidate Zolton Ferency.
Republican primary[edit]
Candidates[edit]
- William Milliken, incumbent Governor
Results[edit]
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Republican | William Milliken (incumbent) | 393,010 | 99.98 | |
| Republican | Write-ins | 89 | 0.02 | |
| Total votes | 393,099 | 100.00 | ||
Democratic primary[edit]
Candidates[edit]
- Zolton Ferency, Michigan State University law professor and 1966 nominee for Governor
- William B. Fitzgerald Jr., State Senator from Detroit and former Senate Majority Leader
- Patrick McCollough
- William Ralls
Results[edit]
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Democratic | William B. Fitzgerald Jr. | 240,641 | 39.79% | |
| Democratic | Zolton Ferency | 151,062 | 24.98% | |
| Democratic | Patrick McCollough | 108,742 | 17.98% | |
| Democratic | William Ralls | 104,364 | 17.25% | |
| Democratic | Write-ins | 52 | 0.01 | |
| Total votes | 604,861 | 100.00 | ||
General election[edit]
Results[edit]
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Republican | William Milliken (incumbent) | 1,628,485 | 56.80 | |
| Democratic | William B. Fitzgerald Jr. | 1,237,256 | 43.15 | |
| Write-ins | 1,471 | 0.05 | ||
| Majority | 2,867,212 | |||
| Republican hold | ||||
References[edit]
- ^ a b c Michigan (1981). Michigan manual. 1979/1980 – via HathiTrust.
- ^ Parker, Randy (June 6, 2010). "Our Campaigns: MI Governor". Our Campaigns.
