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County results 
Township resultsVoinovich: 50–60% 60–70% Celebrezze: 50–60% 60–70% | |||||||||||||||||
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The 1990 Ohio gubernatorial election was held on November 6, 1990. Incumbent Democratic governor Dick Celeste was unable to run for a third consecutive term due to term limits. Former mayor of Cleveland George Voinovich, who also ran for the United States Senate in 1988, was uncontested for the Republican nomination, while Ohio Attorney General Anthony J. Celebrezze Jr. emerged from the Democratic primary. In the end, Voinovich was able to defeat Celebrezze by a fairly wide margin, winning his first term in office.
Abortion was a key issue of the election. Celebrezze switched from his lifelong anti-abortion position to a pro-choice position nine days before declaring his candidacy. Assuming that this would help him in a mostly pro-choice state, he raised the issue frequently. Because of this, the topic of abortion made the news. This allowed Voinovich to have an issue to criticize Celebrezze's integrity, contributing to Voinovich's win.
Democratic primary
Candidates
- Anthony J. Celebrezze Jr., Attorney General of Ohio
- Michael Hugh Lord, businessman
Results
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Democratic | Anthony J. Celebrezze, Jr. | 683,932 | 83.85 | |
| Democratic | Michael Hugh Lord | 131,564 | 16.13 | |
| Democratic | Write-ins | 191 | 0.02 | |
| Total votes | 815,687 | 100.00 | ||
Republican primary
Candidates
- George Voinovich, former mayor of Cleveland, former lieutenant governor and nominee for the U.S. Senate in 1988
Results
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Republican | George Voinovich | 645,224 | 100.00 | |
| Total votes | 645,224 | 100.00 | ||
General election
Results
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Republican | George Voinovich | 1,938,103 | 55.73% | +16.36% | |
| Democratic | Anthony J. Celebrezze Jr. | 1,539,416 | 44.27% | −16.33% | |
| Write-ins | 131 | 0.00% | |||
| Majority | 398,687 | 11.46% | −9.77% | ||
| Turnout | 3,477,650 | ||||
| Republican gain from Democratic | Swing | ||||
References
- Hershey, Marjorie Randon (2000). "Constructing Explanations for U.S. State Governors' Races: The Abortion Issue and the 1990 Gubernatorial Election". Political Communication. 17 (3): 239–262. doi:10.1080/105846000414269. S2CID 143420185. Retrieved January 31, 2022.
- Election results
- Election results 1990
- Election results 1990
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