1982 South Carolina gubernatorial election
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County results Riley:50–60%60–70%70–80%80–90% | |||||||||||||||||
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Elections in South Carolina |
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The1982 South Carolina gubernatorial electionwas held on November 2, 1982 to select thegovernorof the state ofSouth Carolina.The state constitution was amended by the voters on November 4, 1980 to allow for the governor to serve a second consecutive four-year term. GovernorRichard Riley,the popularDemocraticincumbent, easily defeatedRepublicanW. D. Workman, Jr. and became the first governor sinceThomas Gordon McLeodin1924to be elected to a second consecutive term.
As of 2024[update],this is the only time a Democratic governor won a second term since the constitution was amended to allow for two consecutive terms. It was also the last election that a Democrat has carried every county in South Carolina.[original research?]
Democratic primary
[edit]GovernorRichard Rileyfaced no opposition fromSouth Carolina Democratsand avoided aprimary election.
Republican primary
[edit]TheSouth Carolina Republican Partyheld theirprimaryfor governor in the summer of 1982. The lack of a Democratic primary for Governor gave the Republicans an opportunity to increase interest in their party, but the popularity of Governor Richard Riley prevented many additional voters from participating in the primary.W. D. Workman, Jr.decisively defeated Roddy T. Martin and earned the right to face Riley in the general election.
Republican Primary | ||
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Candidate | Votes | % |
W. D. Workman, Jr. | 17,128 | 81.8 |
Roddy T. Martin | 3,816 | 18.2 |
General election
[edit]The general election was held on November 2, 1982 and Richard Riley was elected as the nextgovernor of South Carolina.Turnoutdecreased from the previous gubernatorial election because of the uncompetitive nature of the race. Riley won every County in the state.
Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
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Democratic | Richard Riley(incumbent) | 468,787 | 69.78 | +8.5 | |
Republican | W. D. Workman, Jr. | 202,806 | 30.19 | −7.5 | |
No party | Write-Ins | 184 | 0.0 | −0.1 | |
Majority | 265,981 | 39.6 | +16.0 | ||
Turnout | 671,777 | 54.6 | −2.6 | ||
Democratichold |
See also
[edit]- Governor of South Carolina
- List of governors of South Carolina
- South Carolina gubernatorial elections
External links
[edit]Preceded by 1978 |
South Carolina gubernatorial elections | Succeeded by 1986 |