1976_Illinois_Attorney_General_election
Elections were held in Illinois on Tuesday, November 2, 1976.[1]
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Primaries were held on March 16, 1976.[1]
In order to, per Constitution of Illinois, allow for all statewide executive offices to be up for election in the 1978 midterms, all statewide executive offices up for election in 1976 were only elected to two-year terms.
In order to, per Constitution of Illinois, allow for all statewide executive offices to be up for election in the 1978 midterms, all statewide executive offices up for election in 1976 were only elected to two-year terms.
This is would be the last time that any election for a nstatewide executive office would be held in Illinois during a presidential election year, until 2016, when a special election was held for comptroller.
Turnout
Turnout in the primary election was 21.55%, with a total of 1,239,487 ballots cast. 669,210 Democratic and 570,277 Republican primary ballots were cast.[1]
Turnout during the general election was 77.38%, with 4,838,182 ballots cast.[1]
United States President
Illinois voted for the Republican ticket of Gerald Ford and Bob Dole.[1]
United States House
All 24 Illinois seats in the United States House of Representatives were up for election in 1976.
Republicans flipped one seat, making the composition of Illinois' House delegation consist of 12 Democrats and 12 Republicans.
Governor and Lieutenant Governor
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| Turnout | 74.18%[1] | |||||||||||||||||||
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County Results Thompson: 50-60% 60-70% 70-80% 80-90% Howlett: 50–60% | ||||||||||||||||||||
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Incumbent Governor Dan Walker, a Democrat, had been defeated by Michael J. Howlett in the Democratic primary, while incumbent Lieutenant Governor Neil Hartigan was renominated in the Democratic lieutenant gubernatorial primary. The Republican ticket of James R. Thompson and David C. O'Neal won the election.
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Republican | James R. Thompson/Dave O'Neal | 3,000,365 | 64.68 | |
| Democratic | Michael J. Howlett/Neil F. Hartigan | 1,610,258 | 34.71 | |
| Communist | Ishmael Flory/Linda R. Appelhans | 10,091 | 0.22 | |
| Libertarian | F. Joseph McCaffrey/Georgia E. Shields | 7,552 | 0.16 | |
| Socialist Workers | Suzanne Haig/Dennis Brasky | 4,926 | 0.11 | |
| Socialist Labor | George LaForest/Stanley A. Prorok | 3,147 | 0.07 | |
| U.S. Labor | Edward Waffle/Peter Matni | 2,302 | 0.05 | |
| Write-in | Other | 369 | 0.01 | |
| Total votes | 4,639,010 | 100 | ||
Attorney General
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| Turnout | 72.15%[1] | ||||||||||||||||
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Incumbent Attorney General William J. Scott, a Republican, was elected to a third term.
Democratic primary
President of the Illinois Senate Cecil Partee narrowly defeated Superintendent of the Illinois Department of Registration and Education[2] Ronald E. Stackler in the Democratic primary.
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Democratic | Cecil A. Partee | 270,741 | 50.56 | |
| Democratic | Ronald E. Stackler | 264,701 | 49.44 | |
| Total votes | 535,442 | 100 | ||
Republican primary
Incumbent William J. Scott won the Republican primary, running unopposed.
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Republican | William J. Scott (incumbent) | 485,940 | 100 | |
| Total votes | 485,940 | 100 | ||
General election
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Republican | William J. Scott (incumbent) | 2,795,013 | 61.95 | |
| Democratic | Cecil Partee | 1,678,800 | 37.21 | |
| Communist | Theodore Pearson | 11,150 | 0.25 | |
| Socialist Workers | Nancy J. Cohen | 9,333 | 0.21 | |
| Libertarian | John C. Reis | 9,165 | 0.20 | |
| Socialist Labor | George P. Milonas | 4,344 | 0.10 | |
| U.S. Labor | Richard D. Leebove | 3,918 | 0.16 | |
| Write-in | Others | 45 | 0.00 | |
| Total votes | 4,511,768 | 100 | ||
Secretary of State
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| Turnout | 72.00%[1] | ||||||||||||||||
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Incumbent Secretary of State Michael Howlett, a Democrat, did not seek a second term, instead opting to run for governor. Democrat Alan J. Dixon was elected to succeed him in office.
Democratic primary
Illinois Treasurer Alan J. Dixon won the Democratic primary, defeating Illinois State Senator Vince Demuzio.
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Democratic | Alan J. Dixon | 984,934 | 77.35 | |
| Democratic | Vince Demuzio | 288,354 | 22.65 | |
| Total votes | 1,273,288 | 100 | ||
Republican primary
Illinois State Senator William C. Harris won the Republican primary, running unopposed.
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Republican | William C. Harris | 615,932 | 100 | |
| Total votes | 615,932 | 100 | ||
General election
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Democratic | Alan J. Dixon | 2,906,311 | 64.55 | |
| Republican | William C. Harris | 1,562,028 | 34.69 | |
| Libertarian | Ellyn Powelson | 10,461 | 0.23 | |
| Communist | Frances Gabow | 8,271 | 0.18 | |
| Socialist Workers | Eva Lynn Masterson | 6,356 | 0.14 | |
| U.S. Labor | John H. Brown, Jr. | 5,212 | 0.12 | |
| Socialist Labor | Ben Leonik | 3,876 | 0.09 | |
| Write-in | Others | 30 | 0.00 | |
| Total votes | 4,502,545 | 100 | ||
Comptroller
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| Turnout | 71.25%[1] | ||||||||||||||||
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Incumbent Comptroller George W. Lindberg, a Republican running for a second term, was defeated by Democrat Michael Bakalis.
Democratic primary
Former Illinois Superintendent of Public Instruction Michael Bakalis won the Democratic primary, defeating Director of the Illinois State Department of General Services[3] Roland Burris.
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Democratic | Michael J. Bakalis | 900,294 | 71.82 | |
| Democratic | Roland W. Burris | 353,252 | 28.18 | |
| Total votes | 1,253,546 | 100 | ||
Republican primary
Incumbent George W. Lindberg won the Republican primary, running unopposed.
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Republican | George W. Lindberg (incumbent) | 619,698 | 100 | |
| Total votes | 619,698 | 100 | ||
General election
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Democratic | Michael Bakalis | 2,298,074 | 51.58 | |
| Republican | George W. Lindberg (incumbent) | 2,117,977 | 47.53 | |
| Libertarian | Mark B. Wallace | 13,789 | 0.31 | |
| Communist | Charles Hunter | 10,992 | 0.25 | |
| U.S. Labor | Michael Braun | 5,635 | 0.13 | |
| Socialist Workers | Clemens R. Bak | 5,071 | 0.11 | |
| Socialist Labor | Gregory P. Lyngas | 4,064 | 0.09 | |
| Write-in | Others | 22 | 0.00 | |
| Total votes | 4,455,624 | 100 | ||
State Senate
Seats of the Illinois Senate were up for election in 1976. Democrats retained control of the chamber.
State House of Representatives
Seats in the Illinois House of Representatives were up for election in 1976. Democrats retained control of the chamber.
Trustees of University of Illinois
An election was held for three of nine seats for Trustees of University of Illinois system.
The election saw the reelection of first-term Democrats William D. Forsyth Jr., George W. Howard III, and Earl L. Neal.[1][4]
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Democratic | Earl L. Neal (incumbent) | 2,221,506 | 18.17 | |
| Democratic | William D. Forsyth Jr. (incumbent) | 2,056,442 | 16.82 | |
| Democratic | George W. Howard, III (incumbent) | 1,971,033 | 16.12 | |
| Republican | Timothy W. Swain | 1,968,391 | 16.10 | |
| Republican | Robert E. Allen | 1,893,695 | 15.49 | |
| Republican | Dean Ennis Madden | 1,789,409 | 14.64 | |
| Libertarian | Anne McCracken | 44,472 | 0.36 | |
| U.S. Labor | Carol Leebove | 30,233 | 0.25 | |
| Libertarian | James D. McCawley | 27,542 | 0.23 | |
| Communist | Mark J. Almberg | 25,641 | 0.21 | |
| Libertarian | Milton Altschuler | 25,532 | 0.21 | |
| U.S. Labor | Helen Ratzlow | 25,351 | 0.21 | |
| Socialist Labor | Doris Churchill | 24,595 | 0.20 | |
| U.S. Labor | Shari Waffle | 22,498 | 0.18 | |
| Communist | Altherna Medith | 18,948 | 0.16 | |
| Communist | Jack Kling | 17,414 | 0.14 | |
| Socialist Labor | Edwin L. Williams | 14,970 | 0.12 | |
| Socialist Workers | Mark Harris | 13,314 | 0.11 | |
| Socialist Workers | David W. Tucker | 11,982 | 0.10 | |
| Socialist Workers | John Pottinger | 10,752 | 0.09 | |
| Socialist Labor | Clarys L. Essex | 10,671 | 0.09 | |
| Write-in | Others | 113 | 0.00 | |
| Total votes | 12,224,504 | 100 | ||
Judicial elections
Multiple judicial positions were up for election in 1976.[1]
Local elections were held.
- "OFFICIAL VOTE Cast at the GENERAL ELECTION NOVEMBER 2, 1976 JUDICIAL PRIMARY ELECTION GENERAL PRIMARY, MARCH, 16, 1976" (PDF). Illinois State Board of Elections. Archived from the original (PDF) on July 14, 2021. Retrieved June 26, 2020.
- "BURRIS , Roland | US House of Representatives: History, Art & Archives". history.house.gov. United States House of Representatives. Retrieved June 27, 2020.
- "Trustees, University of Illinois Board of Trustees" (PDF). University of Illinois. Retrieved April 1, 2020.