Alabama gubernatorial election, 1994

Alabama gubernatorial election, 1994

November 8, 1994

Nominee Fob James Jim Folsom, Jr. Party Republican Democratic Popular vote 604,926 594,169 Percentage 50.3% 49.4%

Governor before election Jim Folsom, Jr. Democratic Elected Governor Fob James Republican

The 1994 Alabama gubernatorial election was held on 8 November 1994 to select the governor of the state of Alabama. The election saw Republican Fob James defeat Democratic incumbent Governor Jim Folsom, Jr. in an upset.

Democratic primary

The Democratic primary saw Jim Folsom defeat Paul Hubbert for the Democratic nomination. Lieutenant Governor Folsom became Governor on April 22, 1993 after Republican Governor H. Guy Hunt was removed from office.^[1]

Candidates

• Tom Hayden
• Paul Hubbert, Executive Secretary of the Alabama Education Association and nominee for Governor in 1990
• Jim Folsom, Jr., incumbent Governor
• F. Ross Stewart

Results

Democratic primary results^[2]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Democratic	Jim Folsom, Jr.	380,227	54.04
	Democratic	Paul Hubbert	285,554	40.58
	Democratic	F. Ross Stewart	24,354	3.46
	Democratic	Tom Hayden	13,532	1.92
Total votes			703,667	100

Republican primary

Fob James defeated five other candidates for the Republican nomination.

Candidates

• Ann Bedsole, State Senator
• Winton Blount III, businessman and son of former Postmaster General Winton Blount
• Fob James, former Democratic Governor
• Mickey Kirkland, pastor
• Jack Pollard, candidate for Governor in 1990
• Robin Swift, businessman

Results

Republican primary results^[3]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Republican	Fob James	84,021	39.54
	Republican	Ann Bedsole	54,450	25.63
	Republican	Winton Blount III	51,795	24.38
	Republican	Mickey Kirkland	18,538	8.72
	Republican	Robin Swift	3,138	1.48
	Republican	Jack Pollard	543	0.26
Total votes			212,485	100.00

Republican runoff results

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Republican	Fob James	130,233	62.44
	Republican	Ann Bedsole	78,338	37.56
Total votes			208,571	100.00

General election results

Polling

Source	Date	James (R)	Folsom (D)
WSFA-TV	Nov. 6, 1994	40%	47%
WALA-TV	Oct. 23, 1994	38%	49%

Results

Folsom led in the polls during the campaign which showed him 10 to 12 percent ahead of James on the last weekend before the election. However James pulled off a narrow upset victory in the election.^[4]

1994 gubernatorial election, Alabama

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±
	Republican	Fob James	604,926	50.3
	Democratic	Jim Folsom, Jr.	594,169	49.4
		Write-In	2,874	0.2
Majority			10,757	0.9
Turnout			1,201,969	38.2

References

1. "James Elisha Folsom, Jr.". Alabama Department of Archives & History. Retrieved 2008-07-06.
2. http://uselectionatlas.org/RESULTS/state.php?fips=1&year=1994&f=0&off=5&elect=1 1994 Gubernatorial Democratic Primary Election Results - Alabama
3. http://uselectionatlas.org/RESULTS/state.php?fips=1&year=1994&f=0&off=5&elect=2 1994 Gubernatorial Republican Primary Election Results – Alabama
4. "Jim Folsom learned his lesson". The Tuscaloosa News. 2006-11-12. Retrieved 2008-07-06.

• Recent Alabama gubernatorial election results