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1892 Wisconsin gubernatorial election

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1892 Wisconsin gubernatorial election

← 1890 November 8, 1892 1894 →
 
Nominee George Wilbur Peck John Coit Spooner
Party Democratic Republican
Popular vote 178,095 170,497
Percentage 47.93% 45.89%

County results
Peck :      40-50%      50–60%      60–70%      70–80%
Spooner :      40–50%      50–60%      60–70%

Governor before election

George Wilbur Peck
Democratic

Elected Governor

George Wilbur Peck
Democratic

The 1892 Wisconsin gubernatorial election was held on November 8, 1892. Incumbent Democratic Governor George Wilbur Peck narrowly defeated Republican nominee John Coit Spooner, becoming the first Democratic governor of Wisconsin to be reelected since Nelson Dewey in 1849.[a]

During this era, Wisconsin leaned Republican but was competitive, with all but two gubernatorial elections since the Civil War having been decided by single digits. The Democrats had been swept to power in the state in 1890 due to backlash against the Bennett Law and other national Republican policies such as the McKinley Tariff. The state election was held at the same time as the presidential election, with Peck eking out a similar plurality to that of Grover Cleveland. After this election, however, the state would swing heavily in favor of the Republican Party as the existing Democratic Party's coalition disintegrated during the mid-1890s. Wisconsin would not elect another Democrat as governor until 1932.

General election

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Candidates

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Major party candidates

Other candidates

Results

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1892 Wisconsin gubernatorial election[1][2][b]
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Democratic George W. Peck (incumbent) 178,095 47.93% −3.93%
Republican John C. Spooner 170,497 45.89% +3.18%
Prohibition Thomas C. Richmond 13,185 3.55% −0.09%
Populist Cyrus M. Butt 9,638 2.59% +0.83%
Scattering 2 0.00%
Blank 142 0.04%
Majority 7,598 2.04%
Turnout 371,559 100.00%
Democratic hold Swing -7.12%

Results by county

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Peck was the first Democrat since James B. Cross in 1857 to win Juneau County. However, Juneau County, along with Oconto County and Shawano County would not vote Democratic again until the next Democratic victory in 1932. Marinette County would also not vote Democratic again until 1934.

This was the last election until 1958 in which Clark County, Green County, and Waupaca County voted for the losing candidate. Even more impressively, however, this was the last time until 1978 that St. Croix County failed to vote for the statewide winner; its bellwether streak that would begin in the next election would reach 40 consecutive elections of voting for the winning candidate.

County[1][2] George W. Peck
Democratic
John C. Spooner
Republican
Thomas C. Richmond
Prohibition
Cyrus M. Butt
Populist
Margin Total votes cast
# % # % # % # % # %
Adams 408 28.94% 967 68.58% 22 1.56% 13 0.92% -559 -39.65% 1,410
Ashland 2,444 48.52% 2,396 47.57% 144 2.86% 53 1.05% 48 0.95% 5,037
Barron 781 24.70% 1,784 56.42% 196 6.20% 399 12.62% -1,003 -31.72% 3,162[c]
Bayfield 1,391 47.80% 1,421 48.83% 68 2.34% 30 1.03% -30 -1.03% 2,910
Brown 3,682 54.61% 2,842 42.15% 181 2.68% 37 0.55% 840 12.46% 6,742
Buffalo 1,396 45.43% 1,513 49.24% 63 2.05% 101 3.29% -117 -3.81% 3,073
Burnett 55 7.70% 403 56.44% 165 23.11% 91 12.75% -238[d] -33.33% 714
Calumet 1,871 64.63% 919 31.74% 24 0.83% 81 2.80% 952 32.88% 2,895
Chippewa 2,573 51.27% 1,950 38.85% 190 3.79% 306 6.10% 623 12.41% 5,019
Clark 1,728 43.54% 2,046 51.55% 155 3.91% 40 1.01% -318 -8.01% 3,969
Columbia 2,994 44.45% 3,288 48.82% 404 6.00% 49 0.73% -294 -4.37% 6,735
Crawford 1,612 46.52% 1,727 49.84% 52 1.50% 74 2.14% -115 -3.32% 3,465
Dane 6,738 46.88% 6,588 45.83% 976 6.79% 71 0.49% 150 1.04% 14,374[e]
Dodge 6,833 70.39% 2,631 27.10% 202 2.08% 41 0.42% 4,202 43.29% 9,707
Door 1,020 37.39% 1,574 57.70% 66 2.42% 68 2.49% -554 -20.31% 2,728
Douglas 2,231 39.02% 2,932 51.29% 194 3.39% 360 6.30% -701 -12.26% 5,717
Dunn 1,279 29.86% 2,176 50.81% 221 5.16% 607 14.17% -897 -20.94% 4,283
Eau Claire 2,419 42.45% 2,709 47.54% 391 6.86% 179 3.14% -290 -5.09% 5,698
Florence 198 29.95% 447 67.62% 11 1.66% 5 0.76% -249 -37.67% 661
Fond du Lac 5,318 54.67% 4,077 41.91% 240 2.47% 93 0.96% 1,241 12.76% 9,728
Forest 239 49.90% 221 46.14% 14 2.92% 5 1.04% 18 3.76% 479
Grant 3,690 43.92% 4,206 50.07% 433 5.15% 71 0.85% -516 -6.14% 8,401[e]
Green 2,071 40.88% 2,311 45.62% 363 7.17% 321 6.34% -240 -4.74% 5,066
Green Lake 1,817 53.88% 1,434 42.53% 99 2.94% 22 0.65% 383 11.36% 3,372
Iowa 2,346 46.93% 2,260 45.21% 364 7.28% 29 0.58% 86 1.72% 4,999
Jackson 1,189 34.07% 2,066 59.20% 208 5.96% 27 0.77% -877 -25.13% 3,490
Jefferson 4,676 61.74% 2,668 35.23% 213 2.81% 17 0.22% 2,008 26.51% 7,574
Juneau 2,014 48.68% 1,929 46.63% 146 3.53% 48 1.16% 85 2.05% 4,137
Kenosha 1,959 51.74% 1,608 42.47% 72 1.90% 13 0.34% 351 9.27% 3,786[f]
Kewaunee 2,039 78.42% 530 20.38% 7 0.27% 24 0.92% 1,509 58.04% 2,600
La Crosse 3,816 44.17% 3,713 42.98% 352 4.07% 758 8.77% 103 1.19% 8,639
Lafayette 2,295 46.34% 2,367 47.79% 214 4.32% 77 1.55% -72 -1.45% 4,953
Langlade 1,298 58.76% 853 38.61% 46 2.08% 12 0.54% 445 20.14% 2,209
Lincoln 1,479 50.22% 981 33.31% 85 2.89% 400 13.58% 498 16.91% 2,945
Manitowoc 4,347 65.06% 2,254 33.73% 28 0.42% 53 0.79% 2,093 31.32% 6,682
Marathon 3,820 64.72% 1,901 32.21% 74 1.25% 107 1.81% 1,919 32.51% 5,902
Marinette 1,985 46.56% 1,817 42.62% 202 4.74% 259 6.08% 168 3.94% 4,263
Marquette 1,205 56.33% 875 40.91% 53 2.48% 6 0.28% 330 15.43% 2,139
Milwaukee 24,465 48.23% 24,480 48.26% 495 0.98% 1,282 2.53% -15 -0.03% 50,722
Monroe 2,479 46.00% 2,530 46.95% 270 5.01% 110 2.04% -51 -0.95% 5,389
Oconto 1,521 51.44% 1,268 42.88% 39 1.32% 129 4.36% 253 8.56% 2,957
Oneida 1,322 51.90% 1,143 44.88% 36 1.41% 46 1.81% 179 7.03% 2,547
Outagamie 4,612 60.30% 2,718 35.53% 221 2.89% 98 1.28% 1,894 24.76% 7,649
Ozaukee 2,121 75.80% 620 22.16% 10 0.36% 47 1.68% 1,501 53.65% 2,798
Pepin 535 35.88% 860 57.68% 86 5.77% 10 0.67% -325 -21.80% 1,491
Pierce 1,244 30.79% 2,319 57.40% 300 7.43% 177 4.38% -1,075 -26.61% 4,040
Polk 599 24.48% 1,450 59.26% 183 7.48% 215 8.79% -851 -34.78% 2,447
Portage 2,605 50.72% 2,265 44.10% 218 4.24% 48 0.93% 340 6.62% 5,136
Price 891 42.82% 1,090 52.38% 73 3.51% 27 1.30% -199 -9.56% 2,081
Racine 3,762 44.11% 3,924 46.01% 353 4.14% 489 5.73% -162 -1.90% 8,528
Richland 1,696 38.57% 2,200 50.03% 233 5.30% 268 6.10% -504 -11.46% 4,397
Rock 4,251 38.78% 6,017 54.88% 578 5.27% 117 1.07% -1,766 -16.11% 10,963
Sauk 3,183 46.30% 3,250 47.27% 398 5.79% 44 0.64% -67 -0.97% 6,875
Sawyer 330 42.09% 411 52.42% 37 4.72% 6 0.77% -81 -10.33% 784
Shawano 2,055 55.63% 1,326 35.90% 47 1.27% 266 7.20% 729 19.73% 3,694
Sheboygan 5,142 56.99% 3,618 40.10% 99 1.10% 164 1.82% 1,524 16.89% 9,023
St. Croix 2,218 42.78% 2,512 48.45% 388 7.48% 67 1.29% -294 -5.67% 5,185
Taylor 921 53.99% 724 42.44% 30 1.76% 31 1.82% 197 11.55% 1,706
Trempealeau 1,526 38.61% 2,113 53.47% 274 6.93% 39 0.99% -587 -14.85% 3,952
Vernon 1,417 27.34% 3,071 59.25% 240 4.63% 455 8.78% -1,654 -31.91% 5,183
Walworth 2,148 32.34% 3,911 58.89% 508 7.65% 74 1.11% -1,763 -26.55% 6,641
Washburn 322 38.29% 472 56.12% 32 3.80% 15 1.78% -150 -17.84% 841
Washington 2,650 60.93% 1,672 38.45% 20 0.46% 7 0.16% 978 22.49% 4,349
Waukesha 3,625 47.96% 3,603 47.67% 241 3.19% 83 1.10% 22 0.29% 7,558[g]
Waupaca 2,206 37.16% 3,385 57.02% 304 5.12% 42 0.71% -1,179 -19.86% 5,937
Waushara 788 25.74% 2,097 68.51% 144 4.70% 32 1.05% -1,309 -42.76% 3,061
Winnebago 5,955 50.17% 5,305 44.70% 337 2.84% 272 2.29% 650 5.48% 11,869
Wood 2,250 54.97% 1,759 42.98% 53 1.29% 31 0.76% 491 12.00% 4,093
Total 178,095 47.93% 170,497 45.89% 13,185 3.55% 9,638 2.59% 7,598 2.04% 371,559

Counties that flipped from Republican to Democratic

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Counties that flipped from Democratic to Republican

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Notes

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  1. ^ William A. Barstow's reelection in 1855 was declared illegitimate by the state Supreme Court in early 1856, although Barstow had begun serving the new term before being forced to resign.
  2. ^ The Blue Book is an unreliable source for election data in Wisconsin from about 1890 to 1920. In this case, it has the correct totals but contains many mistakes in the county figures.
  3. ^ Includes 2 Blank votes
  4. ^ Spooner's margin over Richmond
  5. ^ a b Includes 1 Scattering vote
  6. ^ Includes 134 Blank votes
  7. ^ Includes 6 Blank votes

References

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  1. ^ a b Wisconsin Historical Society, Tabular Statement of votes given for Governor, Lieutenant Governor, Secretary of State, State Treasurer, Attorney General, State Superintendent, Railroad Commissioner and Commissioner of Insurance, at the General Election held in the several towns, wards, villages and election districts in the several counties of the State of Wisconsin on the Tuesday next succeeding the first Monday being the 8th day of November, A.D. 1892
  2. ^ a b Cunningham, Thomas J., ed. (1893). "Tabular Statement of votes given for Governor, Lieutenant Governor, Secretary of State, State Treasurer, Attorney General, State Superintendent, Railroad Commissioner and Commissioner of Insurance, at the General Election held in the several towns, wards, villages and election districts in the several counties of the State of Wisconsin on the Tuesday next succeeding the first Monday being the 8th day of November, A.D. 1892". The Blue Book of the State of Wisconsin. Milwaukee, Wisconsin: The Milwaukee Litho. & Engr. Co. pp. 300–301.