1970 Ohio gubernatorial election

The 1970 Ohio gubernatorial election was held on November 3, 1970. Democratic nominee John J. Gilligan defeated Republican nominee Roger Cloud with 54.19% of the vote.

1970 Ohio gubernatorial election

← 1966 November 3, 1970 1974 →

Nominee John J. Gilligan Roger Cloud Party Democratic Republican Popular vote 1,725,560 1,382,659 Percentage 54.19% 43.42%

County results Gilligan:      40–50%      50–60%      60–70% Cloud:      40–50%      50–60%      60–70%

Governor before election Jim Rhodes Republican Elected Governor John J. Gilligan Democratic

Primary elections

Primary elections were held on May 5, 1970.^[1]

Democratic primary

Candidates

• John J. Gilligan, former U.S. Representative
• Robert E. Sweeney, former U.S. Representative
• Mark McElroy, former Ohio Attorney General

Results

Democratic primary results^[1]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Democratic	John J. Gilligan	547,675	59.69
	Democratic	Robert E. Sweeney	216,195	23.56
	Democratic	Mark McElroy	153,702	16.75
Total votes			917,572	100.00

Republican primary

Candidates

• Roger Cloud, Ohio State Auditor
• Donald "Buz" Lukens, U.S. Representative
• Paul W. Brown, Ohio Attorney General
• Albert Sealy

Results

Republican primary results^[2]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Republican	Roger Cloud	468,369	50.46
	Republican	Donald "Buz" Lukens	283,257	30.52
	Republican	Paul W. Brown	164,672	17.74
	Republican	Albert Sealy	11,825	1.27
Total votes			928,131	100.00

General election

Candidates

Major party candidates

• John J. Gilligan, Democratic
• Roger Cloud, Republican

Other candidates

• Edward T. Lawton, American Independent
• Joseph Pirincin, Socialist Labor

Results

1970 Ohio gubernatorial election^[3]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Democratic	John J. Gilligan	1,725,560	54.19%
	Republican	Roger Cloud	1,382,659	43.42%
	American Independent	Edward T. Lawton	61,300	1.93%
	Socialist Labor	Joseph Pirincin	14,087	0.44%
Majority			342,903
Turnout			3,184,131
	Democratic gain from Republican		Swing