The 1972 Washington gubernatorial election was held on November 7, 1972. Incumbent
Governor of Washington
The governor of Washington is the head of government of Washington and commander-in-chief of the state's military forces.WA Const. art. III, § 2. The officeholder has a duty to enforce state laws,WA Const. art. III, § 5. the power to either a ...
Daniel J. Evans, who was first elected eight years earlier, and then re-elected in 1968, was eligible for re-election, as Washington does not have gubernatorial term limits.
A total of nine candidates filed for the primary on September 19. In the general election, incumbent
Republican
Republican can refer to:
Political ideology
* An advocate of a republic, a type of government that is not a monarchy or dictatorship, and is usually associated with the rule of law.
** Republicanism, the ideology in support of republics or agains ...
Governor Evans was challenged by former governor
Albert Rosellini
Albert Dean Rosellini (January 21, 1910 – October 10, 2011) was an American politician who served as the 15th governor of Washington from 1957 to 1965 and was both the first Italian-American and Roman Catholic governor elected west of the ...
, who ran as a
Democrat
Democrat, Democrats, or Democratic may refer to:
Politics
*A proponent of democracy, or democratic government; a form of government involving rule by the people.
*A member of a Democratic Party:
**Democratic Party (United States) (D)
**Democratic ...
, and by businessman Vick Gould, who ran with the Taxpayers' Party, a third party of Gould's own creation.
Evans and Rosellini received 24.66% and 30.27% of the votes in the primary, respectively. On election day, Evans defeated Rosellini by a comfortable margin of 50.78%-42.82% in a rematch of the
1964 contest.
Primary
Candidates
Republican Party
*
Daniel J. Evans, incumbent
Governor
A governor is an administrative leader and head of a polity or political region, ranking under the head of state and in some cases, such as governors-general, as the head of state's official representative. Depending on the type of political ...
*L. R. Kemore, candidate for governor in 1948
*Earl Monaghan
*
John "Hugo Frye" Patric,
perennial candidate
A perennial candidate is a political candidate who frequently runs for elected office and rarely, if ever, wins. Perennial candidates' existence lies in the fact that in some countries, there are no laws that limit a number of times a person can ...
*
Perry Woodall
Perry Benjamin Woodall (November 26, 1912 – April 25, 1975) was a U.S. politician. A Republican from Toppenish, began his legislative career in 1939 as a member of the Washington State House of Representatives. In 1957 he was chosen to fill an u ...
,
State Senator
Democratic Party
*
Martin Durkan Sr.,
State Senator
*
Jim McDermott
James Adelbert McDermott (born December 28, 1936) is an American politician and psychiatrist who was the U.S. representative for from 1989 to 2017. He is a member of the Democratic Party. The 7th District includes most of Seattle, Vashon I ...
, psychiatrist and
State Representative
*
Albert Rosellini
Albert Dean Rosellini (January 21, 1910 – October 10, 2011) was an American politician who served as the 15th governor of Washington from 1957 to 1965 and was both the first Italian-American and Roman Catholic governor elected west of the ...
, former governor
*Rudolfo Valdez
Results
General election
Candidates
*
Albert Rosellini
Albert Dean Rosellini (January 21, 1910 – October 10, 2011) was an American politician who served as the 15th governor of Washington from 1957 to 1965 and was both the first Italian-American and Roman Catholic governor elected west of the ...
(D), former governor
*
Daniel J. Evans (R), incumbent
Governor
A governor is an administrative leader and head of a polity or political region, ranking under the head of state and in some cases, such as governors-general, as the head of state's official representative. Depending on the type of political ...
Results
See also
*
Arthur B. Langlie – A former governor of Washington who made a successful comeback in 1940
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Washington Gubernatorial Election, 1972
1972
Within the context of Coordinated Universal Time (UTC) it was the longest year ever, as two leap seconds were added during this 366-day year, an event which has not since been repeated. (If its start and end are defined using mean solar tim ...
1972 United States gubernatorial elections
Gubernatorial
A governor is an administrative leader and head of a polity or political region, ranking under the head of state and in some cases, such as governors-general, as the head of state's official representative. Depending on the type of political ...