# 1990 Wyoming state elections

"none" is preferred when the title is sufficiently descriptive; see [[WP:SDNONE]]
A general election was held in the U.S. state of Wyoming on Tuesday, November 6, 1990. All of the state's executive officers—the Governor, Secretary of State, Auditor, Treasurer, and Superintendent of Public Instruction—were up for election. Democrats Mike Sullivan and Kathy Karpan were re-elected as Governor and Secretary of State by landslide margins, while Democrat Lynn Simons was defeated for re-election by Republican Diana Ohman. Republicans also continued their winning streak in the elections for State Auditor and State Treasurer.
Elections in Wyoming :
Federal government
Presidential elections
1892
1896
1900
1904
1908
1912
1916
1920
1924
1928
1932
1936
1940
1944
1948
1952
1956
1960
1964
1968
1972
1976
1980
1984
1988
1992
1996
2000
2004
2008
2012
2016
2020
2024
Presidential caucuses
Democratic
2004
2008
2012
2016
2020
2024
Republican
2008
2012
2016
2024
U.S. Senate elections
1890
1895
1895 sp
1899
1901
1905
1907
1911
1913
1916
1918
1922
1924
1928
1930
1930 sp
1934
1934 sp
1936
1940
1942
1946
1948
1952
1954
1954 sp
1958
1960
1962 sp
1964
1966
1970
1972
1976
1978
1982
1984
1988
1990
1994
1996
2000
2002
2006
2008
2008 sp
2012
2014
2018
2020
2024
2026
U.S. House of Representatives elections
1890
1892
1894
1896
1898
1900
1902
1904
1906
1908
1910
1912
1914
1916
1918
1920
1922
1924
1926
1928
1930
1932
1934
1936
1938
1940
1942
1944
1946
1948
1950
1952
1954
1956
1958
1960
1962
1964
1966
1968
1970
1972
1974
1976
1978
1980
1982
1984
1986
1988
1989 sp
1990
1992
1994
1996
1998
2000
2002
2004
2006
2008
2010
2012
2014
2016
2018
2020
2022
2024 :
State government
General elections
1890
1894
1898
1902
1904
1906
1910
1914
1918
1922
1926
1930
1934
1938
1942
1946
1950
1952
1954
1958
1962
1966
1970
1974
1978
1982
1986
1990
1998
2002
2006
2010
2014
2016
2018
2020
2022
2024
2026
Gubernatorial elections
1890
1892 sp
1894
1898
1902
1904 sp
1906
1910
1914
1918
1922
1924 sp
1926
1930
1932 sp
1934
1938
1942
1946
1950
1954
1958
1962
1966
1970
1974
1978
1982
1986
1990
1994
1998
2002
2006
2010
2014
2018
2022
2026
Secretary of State elections
2014
2018
2022
Senate elections
1992
23 sp
1994
1996
1998
2000
2002
2004
2006
2008
2010
2012
2014
2016
2018
2020
2022
2024
House of Representatives elections
2002
36 sp
2004
2006
2008
22 sp
2010
2012
2014
2016
18 sp
2018
2020
2022
2024
Judicial elections
2024 :
Local government
Local elections
2024
2026
Cheyenne (list of mayors)
2000
2004
2008
2012
2016
2020
2024
Other cities
Gillette :
vte :

## Governor

Incumbent Democratic Governor Mike Sullivan ran for re-election to a second term. He faced Republican nominee Mary Mead, the daughter of former Governor Clifford Hansen, in the general election. Sullivan proved popular, despite being a Democrat in a conservative state, and he defeated Mead in a landslide.
1990 Wyoming gubernatorial election :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Democratic | Mike Sullivan (inc.) | 104,638 | 65.35% | +11.40% |
| | Republican | Mary Mead | 55,471 | 34.65% | −11.40% |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 49,167 | 30.71% | +22.79% |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 160,109 | | |
| | Democratic hold | Democratic hold | Democratic hold | Democratic hold | Democratic hold |

## Secretary of State

Incumbent Democratic Secretary of State Kathy Karpan ran for re-election to a second term. Unopposed in the Democratic primary, she faced Sweetwater County County Attorney Tom Zollinger in the general election. Aided in part by Governor Sullivan's landslide re-election, Karpan defeated Zollinger by a large margin.

### Democratic primary
#### Candidates

* Kathy Karpan, incumbent Secretary of State

#### Results

Democratic Party primary results :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % |
| | Democratic | Kathy Karpan (inc.) | 40,450 | 100.00% |
| Total votes | Total votes | Total votes | 40,450 | 100.00% |

### Republican primary
#### Candidates

* Tom Zollinger, Sweetwater County County Attorney

#### Results

Republican Primary results :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % |
| | Republican | Tom Zollinger | 65,665 | 100.00% |
| Total votes | Total votes | Total votes | 65,665 | 100.00% |

### General election
#### Results

1990 Wyoming Secretary of State election :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Democratic | Kathy Karpan (inc.) | 100,729 | 64.29% | +10.71% |
| | Republican | Tom Zollinger | 55,948 | 35.71% | −10.71% |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 44,781 | 28.58% | +21.41% |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 156,677 | 100.00% | |
| | Democratic hold | Democratic hold | Democratic hold | Democratic hold | Democratic hold |

## Auditor

After considering a bid for Governor or running for re-election, incumbent Republican State Auditor Jack Sidi declined to run for re-election. He endorsed his Deputy State Auditor, Tom Jones, who ran to succeed Sidi in the Republican primary. Jones faced former Deputy State Auditor Dave Ferrari in the primary, and ended up narrowly losing the nomination to him. No Democratic candidates initially filed to run for Auditor, but Charles Carroll announced, prior to the primary election, that he would run as a write-in candidate for Auditor. Carroll was the Democratic nominee for Secretary of State in 1974 and then served as a Deputy Attorney General in the 1970s. After winning 522 votes as a write-in candidate in the Democratic primary, Carroll received the nomination.

### Democratic primary

No Democratic candidate filed to run for State Auditor, but former Deputy Attorney General Charles Carroll received enough votes as a write-in candidate to receive the nomination, which he accepted.

### Republican primary
#### Candidates

* Dave Ferrari, former Deputy State Auditor
* Tom Jones, Deputy State Auditor

#### Results

Republican primary results :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % |
| | Republican | Dave Ferrari | 38,567 | 51.68% |
| | Republican | Tom Jones | 36,062 | 48.32% |
| Total votes | Total votes | Total votes | 74,629 | 100.00% |

### General election
#### Results

1990 Wyoming Auditor election :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Republican | Dave Ferrari | 91,811 | 61.02% | +5.72% |
| | Democratic | Charles Carroll | 58,655 | 38.98% | −5.72% |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 33,156 | 22.04% | +11.43% |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 150,466 | | |
| | Republican hold | Republican hold | Republican hold | Republican hold | Republican hold |

## Treasurer

Incumbent Republican State Treasurer Stan Smith ran for re-election to a third term. He won the Republican nomination unopposed and faced Democratic nominee Ron Redo, a former employee in the State Auditor's office, in the general election. Smith, drawing on his strong electoral record from previous campaigns, easily defeated Redo to win his third term in office.

### Democratic primary
#### Candidates

* Ron Redo, former auditor in the Wyoming Workers' Compensation Division

#### Results

Democratic Party primary results :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % |
| | Democratic | Ron Redo | 32,691 | 100.00% |
| Total votes | Total votes | Total votes | 32,691 | 100.00% |

### Republican primary
#### Candidates

* Stan Smith, incumbent State Treasurer

#### Results

Republican Primary results :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % |
| | Republican | Stan Smith (inc.) | 71,241 | 100.00% |
| Total votes | Total votes | Total votes | 71,241 | 100.00% |

### General election
#### Results

1990 Wyoming Treasurer election :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Republican | Stan Smith (inc.) | 101,194 | 66.67% | +4.86% |
| | Democratic | Ron Redo | 50,587 | 33.33% | −4.86% |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 50,607 | 33.34% | +9.73% |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 151,781 | 100.00% | |
| | Republican hold | Republican hold | Republican hold | Republican hold | Republican hold |

## Superintendent of Public Instruction

Incumbent Democratic Superintendent of Public Instruction Lynn Simons ran for re-election to a fourth term. She faced a strong challenge in the Democratic primary from former teacher Beth Evans, who attacked Simons for delegating too many of the office's responsibilities to others in her office, including her longtime Deputy Superintendent, Audrey Cotherman, and for "abandon[ing]" the Department of Education's "basic mission of making Wyoming schools better" in favor of "merely counting numbers and issuing press relations gimmicks." Simons only narrowly defeated Evans in the Democratic primary and advanced to the general election, where she faced elementary school principal Diana Ohman, the Republican nominee.
In the general election, Ohman attacked Simon for the poor relationships that her office fostered with teachers, state legislators, and Department of Education employees and argued that Wyoming's highly ranked schools were "not because of" Simons. Simons, meanwhile, argued that Ohman would be a "political puppet whose strings are pulled by a few ultraconservatives" and for routinely missing work during her employment as a principal. Ultimately, Ohman defeated Simons by a decisive margin, winning 58% of the vote to Simons's 42%.

### Democratic primary
#### Candidates

* Lynn Simons, incumbent Superintendent of Public Instruction
* Beth Evans, education consultant, former Cheyenne public school teacher

#### Results

Democratic Party primary results :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % |
| | Democratic | Lynn Simons (inc.) | 21,977 | 51.57% |
| | Democratic | Beth Evans | 20,642 | 48.43% |
| Total votes | Total votes | Total votes | 42,619 | 100.00% |

### Republican primary
#### Candidates

* Diana Ohman, former elementary school principal
* Ann Tollefson, Casper teacher
* Don Erickson, former Mayor of Cheyenne
* Alan Stauffer, State Representative from Lincoln County

#### Results

Republican Party primary results :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % |
| | Republican | Diana Ohman | 25,334 | 33.84% |
| | Republican | Ann Tollefson | 17,713 | 23.66% |
| | Republican | Don Erickson | 16,957 | 22.65% |
| | Republican | Alan Stauffer | 14,870 | 19.86% |
| Total votes | Total votes | Total votes | 74,874 | 100.00% |

### General election
#### Results

1990 Wyoming Superintendent of Public Instruction election :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Republican | Diana Ohman | 91,223 | 57.90% | +14.79% |
| | Democratic | Lynn Simons (inc.) | 66,319 | 42.10% | −14.79% |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 24,904 | 15.81% | +2.04% |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 157,542 | 100.00% | |
| | Republican gain from Democratic | Republican gain from Democratic | Republican gain from Democratic | Republican gain from Democratic | Republican gain from Democratic |