California gubernatorial election, 1978

Infobox Election
election_name = California gubernatorial election, 1978
country = California
type = presidential
ongoing = no
previous_election = California gubernatorial election, 1974
previous_year = 1974
next_election = California gubernatorial election, 1982
next_year = 1982
election_date = November 7 1978


nominee1 = Jerry Brown
party1 = California Democratic Party
popular_vote1 = 3,878,812
percentage1 = 56.05


nominee2 = Evelle J. Younger
party2 = California Republican Party
popular_vote2 = 2,526,534
percentage2 = 36.50
map_

map_size = 300px
map_caption = Election results by county
title = Governor
before_election = Jerry Brown
before_party = California Democratic Party
after_election = Jerry Brown
after_party = California Democratic Party

The 1978 California gubernatorial election occurred on November 7, 1978. The Democratic incumbent, Jerry Brown, defeated the Republican nominee, Attorney General Evelle J. Younger, in a landslide.

Primary election summary

In the Republican gubernatorial primary, California Attorney General Evelle Younger (who was the only Republican elected to a statewide office in the post-Watergate Democratic onslaught in the 1974 California general election) defeated Ed Davis (State Senator and former Los Angeles Police Chief), Ken Maddy (State Senate Minority Leader from Fresno), and Pete Wilson (Mayor of San Diego). Incumbent Jerry Brown was unchallenged in the Democratic Primary. The most newsworthy battle in this primary election was Proposition 13, the initiative authored by Howard Jarvis which sought to drastically reduce property taxes and change the way property taxes were calculated. Younger and most Republicans supported Proposition 13 while Brown and most Democrats opposed it. The initiatve passed with almost 70% of the vote; it is still in effect, and many other states passed similar laws.

Primary Election-Republican June 6, 1978

References

* [http://www.joincalifornia.com/election/1978-11-07 California Elections Page]