The 1990 Pennsylvania gubernatorial election was held on November 6, 1990. Incumbent Democratic governor Robert P. Casey easily defeated

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 ...

Barbara Hafer Barbara Hafer (born August 1, 1943) is an American politician and convicted felon from the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania. She served as a member of the Allegheny County Board of Commissioners from 1984 to 1989, as the Auditor General of Pennsylvan ...

. Governor Casey defeated Hafer by a margin of 35.29%, and carried 66 out of 67 Pennsylvania counties.

Primary elections

Incumbent Bob Casey was challenged by

Philip J. Berg Philip Jay Berg (born April 13, 1944), previously an American attorney, brought a Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Act (RICO) lawsuit charging president George W. Bush and 154 others with complicity in the September 11 attacks, and ...

, an attorney and perennial candidate from Montgomery County. Endorsed Republican candidate

, Auditor General and former candidate for Lt. Governor, won a surprisingly close race over Peg Luksik, outspoken opponent abortion rights.

Candidates

Democratic

* Bob Casey, incumbent Governor **running mate:

Mark Singel Mark Stephen Singel (born September 12, 1953) is an American politician who served as the 27th lieutenant governor of Pennsylvania from 1987 to 1995, alongside Governor Bob Casey. Singel served as the state's acting governor from June 14, 1993 to ...

, incumbent Lieutenant Governor

Republican

, State Auditor General **running mate:

Harold Mowery Harold F. Mowery Jr. (January 4, 1930 – March 3, 2014) was a Republican member of the Pennsylvania State Senate. He also represented the 87th legislative district in the Pennsylvania House of Representatives from 1977 to 1990. Biography ...

, State Representative

Campaign

Casey had maintained enormous popularity in the state and was considered to have a generally positive record from his first term as governor. In addition to having the traditionally strong backing of urban voters and organized labor, Casey performed well in many heavily Republican, rural counties, as he was seen as a relatively conservative populist. Hafer, a pro-choice Republican, oddly often positioned herself as the more liberal candidate; she was unable to gain a funding foothold or to carve out a strong public image, which led to her defeat by a large margin. At one point during the campaign, she referred to Casey as a "redneck Irishman." This was widely reported, and helped to alienate both rural voters and those of Irish descent. Casey, winning with the second-largest gubernatorial landslide in the state in the 20th century, was able to win almost every county, losing only in Montgomery County by 586 votes.

Results

Notes

References

1990 File:1990 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: The 1990 FIFA World Cup is played in Italy; The Human Genome Project is launched; Voyager I takes the famous Pale Blue Dot image- speaking on the fragility of Humankind, humanity on Earth, Astroph ...

Gubernatorial A governor is an politician, administrative leader and head of a polity or Region#Political_regions, political region, ranking under the Head of State, head of state and in some cases, such as governor-general, governors-general, as the head of ...

Pennsylvania Pennsylvania (; ( Pennsylvania Dutch: )), officially the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, is a state spanning the Mid-Atlantic, Northeastern, Appalachian, and Great Lakes regions of the United States. It borders Delaware to its southeast, ...

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