1970 Oregon gubernatorial election
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November 3, 1970
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 County results McCall: 50–60% 60–70% Straub: 40–50% 50–60% 60–70% | |||||||||||||||||
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| Elections in Oregon |
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The 1970 Oregon gubernatorial election took place on November 3, 1970. In a rematch of the 1966 contest, Republican incumbent Tom McCall defeated Democratic nominee Robert W. Straub to win re-election.
Primary election
[edit]Oregon held primary elections on May 26, 1970.
Republican party
[edit]Candidates
[edit]- Andrew R. Gigler, small business owner from Klamath Falls[1]
- Tom McCall, incumbent governor
- Robert H. Wampler, former officer of the Oregon State Police[1] and independent candidate for governor in 1962
Results
[edit]| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Republican | Tom McCall (inc.) | 183,298 | 74.39% | |
| Republican | Robert H. Wampler | 38,322 | 15.55% | |
| Republican | Andrew R. Gigler | 24,797 | 10.06% | |
| Total votes | 236,245 | 100.00% | ||
Democratic party
[edit]Candidates
[edit]- L. B. Baxter
- Gracie Hansen
- Al Holdiman Sr.
- James Gordon Morris
- Arthur Pearl
- E. Allen Propst, farmer from Linn County
- Robert W. Straub, Oregon State Treasurer and nominee for governor in 1966
- M. A. Yegge
Results
[edit]| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Democratic | Robert W. Straub | 182,683 | 65.87% | |
| Democratic | Arthur Pearl | 33,716 | 12.16% | |
| Democratic | Gracie Hansen | 20,329 | 7.33% | |
| Democratic | Al Holdiman Sr. | 18,180 | 6.56% | |
| Democratic | James Gordon Morris | 8,735 | 3.15% | |
| Democratic | L. B. Baxter | 6,477 | 2.34% | |
| Democratic | E. Allen Propst | 5,923 | 2.14% | |
| Democratic | M. A. Yegge | 1,296 | 0.47% | |
| Total votes | 277,339 | 100.00% | ||
General election
[edit]Results
[edit]| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Republican | Tom McCall (inc.) | 369,964 | 55.52% | +0.26% | |
| Democratic | Robert W. Straub | 293,892 | 44.10% | −0.56% | |
| Write-in | Doug Yeager | 1,545 | 0.23% | ||
| Write-in | Scattering | 993 | 0.15% | ||
| Total votes | 666,394 | 100.00% | |||
| Majority | 76,072 | 11.42% | |||
| Republican hold | Swing | +0.82% | |||
Results by county
[edit]Straub was the first Democrat to win Klamath County in a gubernatorial election since Sylvester Pennoyer in 1890. Additionally, Grant County voted Democratic for the first time since 1922 and Gilliam County, Lake County, and Morrow County did so for the first time since 1934.
| County[4] | Tom McCall Republican |
Robert W. Straub Democratic |
Doug Yeager Write-in |
Scattering Write-in |
Margin | Total votes cast | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| # | % | # | % | # | % | # | % | # | % | ||
| Baker | 1,895 | 37.57% | 3,085 | 61.16% | 53 | 1.05% | 11 | 0.22% | -1,190 | -23.59% | 5,044 |
| Benton | 10,796 | 69.73% | 4,596 | 29.68% | 15 | 0.10% | 76 | 0.49% | 6,200 | 40.04% | 15,483 |
| Clackamas | 29,289 | 54.78% | 23,961 | 44.82% | 179 | 0.33% | 35 | 0.07% | 5,328 | 9.97% | 53,464 |
| Clatsop | 6,009 | 56.25% | 4,646 | 43.49% | 23 | 0.22% | 5 | 0.05% | 1,363 | 12.76% | 10,683 |
| Columbia | 4,298 | 45.60% | 5,079 | 53.89% | 20 | 0.21% | 28 | 0.30% | -781 | -8.29% | 9,425 |
| Coos | 8,213 | 45.10% | 9,989 | 54.85% | 0 | 0.00% | 8 | 0.04% | -1,776 | -9.75% | 18,210 |
| Crook | 1,680 | 52.50% | 1,512 | 47.25% | 2 | 0.06% | 6 | 0.19% | 168 | 5.25% | 3,200 |
| Curry | 2,044 | 50.46% | 1,995 | 49.25% | 0 | 0.00% | 12 | 0.30% | 49 | 1.21% | 4,051 |
| Deschutes | 5,555 | 57.62% | 4,064 | 42.16% | 12 | 0.12% | 9 | 0.09% | 1,491 | 15.47% | 9,640 |
| Douglas | 9,795 | 48.18% | 10,322 | 50.77% | 212 | 1.04% | 2 | 0.01% | -527 | -2.59% | 20,331 |
| Gilliam | 409 | 46.32% | 474 | 53.68% | 0 | 0.00% | 0 | 0.00% | -65 | -7.36% | 883 |
| Grant | 1,054 | 48.15% | 1,125 | 51.39% | 3 | 0.14% | 7 | 0.32% | -71 | -3.24% | 2,189 |
| Harney | 1,112 | 50.82% | 1,066 | 48.72% | 9 | 0.41% | 1 | 0.05% | 46 | 2.10% | 2,188 |
| Hood River | 2,303 | 55.19% | 1,845 | 44.21% | 4 | 0.10% | 21 | 0.50% | 458 | 10.98% | 4,173 |
| Jackson | 16,057 | 58.84% | 11,203 | 41.05% | 21 | 0.08% | 9 | 0.03% | 4,854 | 17.79% | 27,290 |
| Jefferson | 1,583 | 59.80% | 1,053 | 39.78% | 0 | 0.00% | 11 | 0.42% | 530 | 20.02% | 2,647 |
| Josephine | 6,530 | 54.43% | 5,321 | 44.35% | 135 | 1.13% | 11 | 0.09% | 1,209 | 10.08% | 11,997 |
| Klamath | 6,617 | 47.44% | 7,178 | 51.46% | 150 | 1.08% | 4 | 0.03% | -561 | -4.02% | 13,949 |
| Lake | 1,003 | 49.51% | 1,016 | 50.15% | 0 | 0.00% | 7 | 0.35% | -13 | -0.64% | 2,026 |
| Lane | 35,903 | 55.93% | 28,090 | 43.76% | 27 | 0.04% | 170 | 0.26% | 7,813 | 12.17% | 64,190 |
| Lincoln | 5,185 | 56.83% | 3,840 | 42.09% | 27 | 0.30% | 72 | 0.79% | 1,345 | 14.74% | 9,124 |
| Linn | 9,854 | 48.93% | 10,275 | 51.02% | 0 | 0.00% | 12 | 0.06% | -421 | -2.09% | 20,141 |
| Malheur | 3,832 | 60.46% | 2,421 | 38.20% | 43 | 0.68% | 42 | 0.66% | 1,411 | 22.26% | 6,338 |
| Marion | 26,579 | 58.78% | 18,530 | 40.98% | 54 | 0.12% | 52 | 0.12% | 8,049 | 17.80% | 45,215 |
| Morrow | 825 | 46.48% | 843 | 47.49% | 4 | 0.23% | 103 | 5.80% | -18 | -1.01% | 1,775 |
| Multnomah | 108,161 | 55.55% | 86,072 | 44.20% | 289 | 0.15% | 192 | 0.10% | 22,089 | 11.34% | 194,714 |
| Polk | 5,998 | 56.83% | 4,542 | 43.04% | 7 | 0.07% | 7 | 0.07% | 1,456 | 13.80% | 10,554 |
| Sherman | 486 | 56.25% | 373 | 43.17% | 0 | 0.00% | 5 | 0.58% | 113 | 13.08% | 864 |
| Tillamook | 3,794 | 60.71% | 2,434 | 38.95% | 6 | 0.10% | 15 | 0.24% | 1,360 | 21.76% | 6,249 |
| Umatilla | 6,708 | 51.41% | 6,266 | 48.02% | 74 | 0.57% | 0 | 0.00% | 442 | 3.39% | 13,048 |
| Union | 3,096 | 47.46% | 3,415 | 52.35% | 12 | 0.18% | 1 | 0.02% | -319 | -4.89% | 6,524 |
| Wallowa | 1,319 | 55.47% | 1,059 | 44.53% | 0 | 0.00% | 0 | 0.00% | 260 | 10.93% | 2,378 |
| Wasco | 3,506 | 53.48% | 3,016 | 46.00% | 8 | 0.12% | 26 | 0.40% | 490 | 7.47% | 6,556 |
| Washington | 31,252 | 62.88% | 18,292 | 36.81% | 128 | 0.26% | 27 | 0.05% | 12,960 | 26.08% | 49,699 |
| Wheeler | 238 | 38.64% | 376 | 61.04% | 0 | 0.00% | 2 | 0.32% | -138 | -22.40% | 616 |
| Yamhill | 6,986 | 60.56% | 4,518 | 39.16% | 28 | 0.24% | 4 | 0.03% | 2,468 | 21.39% | 11,536 |
| Total | 369,964 | 55.52% | 293,892 | 44.10% | 1,545 | 0.23% | 993 | 0.15% | 76,072 | 11.42% | 666,394 |
Counties that flipped from Republican to Democratic
[edit]References
[edit]- 1 2 State of Oregon Voters' Pamphlet Republican Party Primary Nominating Election May 26, 1970. Oregon Secretary of State. 1970. Retrieved April 11, 2026.
- 1 2 Official Abstract of Votes Primary Election 1970. Oregon Secretary of State. 1970. pp. 2–3. Retrieved April 11, 2026.
- ↑ State of Oregon Voters' Pamphlet Democratic Party Primary Nominating Election May 26, 1970. Oregon Secretary of State. 1970. pp. 60–67. Retrieved April 11, 2026.
- 1 2 Official Abstract of Votes General Election 1970. Oregon Secretary of State. 1970. p. 4. Retrieved April 11, 2026.