Florida gubernatorial election, 1994

Florida gubernatorial election, 1994

1990 ← November 8, 1994 → 1998

Nominee Lawton Chiles Jeb Bush Party Democratic Republican Running mate Buddy MacKay Tom Feeney Popular vote 2,135,008 2,071,068 Percentage 50.75% 49.23%

Governor before election Lawton Chiles Democratic Elected Governor Lawton Chiles Democratic

Elections in Florida
Federal government Presidential elections 1860 1980 1984 1988 1992 1996 2000 2004 2008 Presidential primaries Democratic 2008 2012 Republican 2008 2012 U.S. Senate elections 1968 1970 1976 1980 1982 1986 1988 1992 1994 1998 2000 2004 2006 2010 2012 U.S. House elections 2006 5th 8th 9th 16th 2008 2010 2012 2014
State government Gubernatorial elections 1966 1970 1974 1986 1990 1994 1998 2002 2006 2010 2014 Attorney General elections 2002 2006 2010 2014 Chief Financial Officer elections 2006 2010 Agriculture Commissioner of Florida 1994 2006 2010 Ballot measures Other elections 2006 2010
Jacksonville Mayoral elections 2003 2007 2011
Tampa Mayoral elections 2011
Orlando Mayoral elections 2012

The 1994 Florida Gubernatorial Election was held on November 8, 1994. Governor Lawton Chiles (D) survived a strong challenge from businessman Jeb Bush (R) to win re-election. This race was the second closest gubernatorial election in Florida history since Reconstruction due to the strong Republican wave of 1994. However, Democrats would still maintain the Governor's mansion until 1999.

Candidates

Democratic

• Lawton Chiles, incumbent Governor of Florida
• Jack Gargan, retired financial planner

Republican

• Jeb Bush, former Florida Secretary of Commerce, businessman
• James C. Smith, Florida Secretary of State, former Attorney General of Florida
• Tom Gallagher, Treasurer of Florida
• Ander Crenshaw, State Senator
• Kenneth L. Connor
• Josephine A. Arnold
• Bob Bell

Primary results

Democratic primary

Democratic primary results
Party		Candidate	Votes	Percentage
	Democratic	Lawton Chiles	603,657	72.17%
	Democratic	Jack Gargan	232,757	27.83%
Totals			836,414	100%

Republican primary

A run-off primary election was scheduled to be held between leading candidate Jeb Bush and second-place candidate James C. Smith because no candidate received a majority of the vote. However, Smith dropped out of the race a few days later, leaving Bush as the Republican nominee for Governor.

Republican primary results
Party		Candidate	Votes	Percentage
	Republican	Jeb Bush	411,680	45.68%
	Republican	Jim Smith	165,869	18.40%
	Republican	Tom Gallagher	117,067	12.99%
	Republican	Ander Crenshaw	109,148	12.11%
	Republican	Kenneth L. Connor	83,945	9.31%
	Republican	Josephine A. Arnold	8,326	0.92%
	Republican	Bob Bell	5,202	0.58%
Totals			901,237	100%

Polling

Source	Date	Chiles (D)	Bush (R)
Mason-Dixon	Nov. 1-3, 1994	48%	45%
Orlando Sentinel	Nov. 1, 1994	48%	45%
Associated Industries of Florida	Oct. 30, 1994	45%	45%
St. Petersburg Times	Oct. 16, 1994	39%	49%
Mason-Dixon	Oct. 7, 1994	43%	48%
Mason-Dixon	Sep. 1-3, 1994	43%	48%
Mason-Dixon	Aug. 1-3, 1994	44%	41%
Mason-Dixon	July. 1-3, 1994	46%	35%
Mason-Dixon	Feb. 1-3, 1994	42%	38%
Mason-Dixon	Oct. 1-3, 1993	41%	32%

Results

Florida gubernatorial election, 1994
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Democratic	Lawton Chiles	2,135,008	50.75	-5.76
	Republican	Jeb Bush	2,071,068	49.23	+5.75
	Write-ins		583	0.0	0
Majority			63,940	1.52	-11.51
Turnout			4,206,659
	Democratic hold		Swing