The 1978 Tennessee gubernatorial election was held on November 7, 1978.

Republican Republican can refer to: Political ideology * An advocate of a republic, a type of government that is not a monarchy or dictatorship, and is usually associated with the rule of law. ** Republicanism, the ideology in support of republics or agains ...

nominee

Lamar Alexander Andrew Lamar Alexander Jr. (born July 3, 1940) is a retired American lawyer and politician who served as a United States Senator from Tennessee from 2003 to 2021. A member of the Republican Party, he also was the 45th governor of Tennessee from ...

defeated Democratic nominee

Jake Butcher Jacob Franklin Butcher (May 8, 1936 – July 19, 2017) was an American banker and politician. He built a financial empire in East Tennessee and was the Democratic Party nominee for governor of Tennessee in 1978. He was also the primary pro ...

with 55.8% of the vote.

Primary elections

Primary elections were held on August 3, 1978.

Democratic primary

Candidates

, businessman *

Bob Clement Robert Nelson Clement (born September 23, 1943) is an American politician and a member of the Democratic Party. He served in the United States House of Representatives, representing Tennessee, from 1988 until 2003, when he retired to run (unsucc ...

, Public Service Commissioner *

Richard Fulton Richard Harmon Fulton (January 27, 1927 – November 28, 2018) was an American Democratic politician who served as a member of the Tennessee State Senate and of the United States House of Representatives, and the second mayor of the Metropolit ...

Mayor of Nashville The Mayor of Nashville is the chief executive of Nashville Tennessee's government. The current mayor is John Cooper, a member of the Democratic party. Each mayor serves a term of four years, with a limit of two terms, unless this is interrupt ...

*Roger Murray *Shelley Stiles *Bill Jacox *William K. Jackson *Ben Miller

Results

Republican primary

Candidates

, attorney *Harold Sterling, State Representative *John H. Harper *Hubert David Patty,

perennial candidate A perennial candidate is a political candidate who frequently runs for elected office and rarely, if ever, wins. Perennial candidates' existence lies in the fact that in some countries, there are no laws that limit a number of times a person can ...

Results

General election

Candidates

*Lamar Alexander, Republican *Jake Butcher, Democratic

Results

References

{{United States elections, 1978 1978

Tennessee Tennessee ( , ), officially the State of Tennessee, is a landlocked state in the Southeastern region of the United States. Tennessee is the 36th-largest by area and the 15th-most populous of the 50 states. It is bordered by Kentucky to th ...

Gubernatorial A governor is an administrative leader and head of a polity or political region, ranking under the head of state and in some cases, such as governors-general, as the head of state's official representative. Depending on the type of political ...

November 1978 events in the United States