# 1991 Mississippi gubernatorial election

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The 1991 Mississippi gubernatorial election took place on November 5, 1991 to elect the Governor of Mississippi. Incumbent Democrat Ray Mabus unsuccessfully ran for reelection to a second term. This election marked the first time a Republican was elected Governor of Mississippi since Reconstruction, when Adelbert Ames won the office in 1873.
This is the last gubernatorial election where the Democratic candidate carried any of three counties (Hancock, Harrison and Jackson) along the Mississippi Gulf Coast.

## Democratic primary

Incumbent Democrat Ray Mabus won the Democratic primary, defeating former U.S. Representative Wayne Dowdy and George "Wagon Wheel" Blair. According to The New York Times, Mabus had to fend off charges that he was "arrogant and out of touch with Mississippi politically", and was perceived as a "Porsche politician in a Chevy pickup state".

### Results

Mississippi Democratic gubernatorial primary, 1991 :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % |
| | Democratic | Ray Mabus (incumbent) | 368,679 | 50.75 |
| | Democratic | Wayne Dowdy | 299,172 | 41.18 |
| | Democratic | George "Wagon Wheel" Blair | 58,614 | 8.07 |
| Total votes | Total votes | Total votes | 726,465 | 100.00 |

## Republican primary

No candidate received a majority in the Republican primary, so a runoff was held between the top two candidates. The runoff election was won by businessman Kirk Fordice, who defeated State Auditor Pete Johnson.

### Results

Mississippi Republican gubernatorial primary, 1991 :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % |
| | Republican | Kirk Fordice | 28,411 | 44.64 |
| | Republican | Pete Johnson | 27,651 | 43.44 |
| | Republican | Bobby Clanton | 7,589 | 11.92 |
| Total votes | Total votes | Total votes | 63,651 | 100.00 |

### Runoff

Mississippi Republican gubernatorial primary runoff, 1991 :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % |
| | Republican | Kirk Fordice | 31,753 | 60.63 |
| | Republican | Pete Johnson | 20,622 | 39.37 |
| Total votes | Total votes | Total votes | 52,375 | 100.00 |

## General election

Fordice won 65 legislative districts against the 54 won by Mabus. This was above the 62 districts required to win. Fordice spent $901,823 during the campaign while Mabus spent $3.59 million. Fordice was the first successful gubernatorial candidate since 1975 to spend less than $1 million during their campaign.

### Results

Mississippi gubernatorial election, 1991 :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % |
| | Republican | Kirk Fordice | 361,500 | 50.83% |
| | Democratic | Ray Mabus (incumbent) | 338,459 | 47.59% |
| | Independent | Shawn O'Hara | 11,253 | 1.58% |
| Total votes | Total votes | Total votes | 711,212 | 100.00 |
| | Republican gain from Democratic | Republican gain from Democratic | Republican gain from Democratic | Republican gain from Democratic |