The 1988 Utah gubernatorial election was held on November 8, 1988. Republican nominee and incumbent Governor

Norman H. Bangerter Norman Howard Bangerter (January 4, 1933 – April 14, 2015) was an American politician and businessman who served as the 13th governor of Utah from 1985 to 1993. He was the first Republican elected to the position since 1960, and the first to h ...

defeated

Democratic Democrat, Democrats, or Democratic may refer to: Politics *A proponent of democracy, or democratic government; a form of government involving rule by the people. *A member of a Democratic Party: **Democratic Party (United States) (D) **Democratic ...

nominee Ted Wilson and independent Merrill Cook with 40.13% of the vote. As of 2023, this is the closest a Democrat has come to winning the governorship in Utah since

Scott M. Matheson Scott Milne Matheson Jr. (January 8, 1929 – October 7, 1990) was an American politician who served as the 12th Governor of Utah from 1977 to 1985. He is the most recent Democrat to serve in that position. Biography Matheson was born on Janu ...

left office in 1985.

Republican nomination

Candidates

Declared

, incumbent Governor *Dean Samuels, teacher

Withdrawn

Jon Huntsman Sr. Jon Meade Huntsman Sr. (June 21, 1937 – February 2, 2018) was an American businessman and philanthropist. He was the founder and executive chairman of Huntsman Corporation, a global manufacturer and marketer of specialty chemicals. Huntsman p ...

, industrialist and former

White House Staff Secretary The Staff Secretary ("Staff Sec") is a position in the White House Office responsible for managing paper flow to the President and circulating documents among senior staff for comment. It has been referred to as "the nerve center of the White H ...

Results

Bangerter defeated Samuels at the state convention on June 11 with over 70% of the vote and therefore avoided a primary.

Democratic nomination

Candidates

Declared

* Ted Wilson, former

Mayor of Salt Lake City This is a list of mayors of Salt Lake City, Utah, USA. Salt Lake City was incorporated on January 6, 1851. The mayor of Salt Lake City is a non-partisan position. See also *Mayoral elections in Salt Lake City References *Harold Schindler, (N ...

*David E. Hewett, physician

Results

Wilson defeated Hewett at the state convention on June 25 with over 70% of the vote and therefore avoided a primary.

American Party nomination

Candidates

Declared

*Arly H. Pedersen, National Chairman *Lawrence Ray Topham, perennial candidate

Results

Pedersen defeated Topham at the state convention on June 25 with over 70% of the vote and therefore avoided a primary.

General election

Polling

Candidates

*Ted Wilson, Democratic *Norm Bangerter, Republican *Arly H. Pedersen, American *Merrill Cook, Independent *Kitty K. Burton, Libertarian

Results

References

Bibliography

* * {{US Third Party Election

1988 File:1988 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: The oil platform Piper Alpha explodes and collapses in the North Sea, killing 165 workers; The USS Vincennes (CG-49) mistakenly shoots down Iran Air Flight 655; Australia celebrates its Australian ...

Utah Gubernatorial November 1988 events in the United States