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The 1998 New Mexico gubernatorial election was a contest to elect the next governor of New Mexico. The winner of the election would serve a term from January 1, 1999 until January 1, 2003. Incumbent Republican (now Libertarian) Governor Gary Johnson was re-elected to a second term. As of 2023, this is the last time a non-Hispanic was elected governor of New Mexico.
In his campaign, Johnson promised to continue the policies of his first term: improving schools; cutting state spending, taxes, and bureaucracy; and frequent use of his veto and line-item veto power.[1] Fielding a strong Hispanic candidate in a 40% Hispanic state, the Democrats were expected to oust Johnson,[2] but Johnson won by a margin of 55% to 45%.[3] This made him the first governor of New Mexico to serve two successive four-year terms after term limits were expanded to two terms in 1991.[4] Johnson made the promotion of a school voucher system a "hallmark issue" of his second term.[5] This election is the first time since 1968 that an incumbent Republican Governor of New Mexico was re-elected or won re-election.
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Democratic | Martin J. Chávez | 82,147 | 48.1 | |
| Democratic | Gary K. King | 51,847 | 30.4 | |
| Democratic | Jerry Apodaca | 16,303 | 9.6 | |
| Democratic | Robert E. Vigil | 10,483 | 6.1 | |
| Democratic | Reese P. Fullerton | 5,800 | 3.4 | |
| Democratic | Ben Chavez | 4,127 | 2.4 | |
| Democratic | Frances Salas (write-in) | 29 | nil | |
| Total votes | 170,736 | 100 | ||
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Republican | Gary Johnson (incumbent) | 64,669 | 100 | |
| Total votes | 64,669 | 100 | ||
In his campaign, Johnson promised to continue the policies of his first term: improving schools; cutting state spending, taxes, and bureaucracy; and frequent use of his veto and line-item veto power.[1] Fielding a strong Hispanic candidate in a 40% Hispanic state, the Democrats were expected to oust Johnson,[2] but Johnson won by a margin of 55% to 45%.[3] This made him the first governor of New Mexico to serve two successive four-year terms after term limits were expanded to two terms in 1991.[4] Johnson made the promotion of a school voucher system a "hallmark issue" of his second term.[5]
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Republican | Gary Johnson (incumbent) | 271,948 | 54.5% | +4.7% | |
| Democratic | Martin Chávez | 226,755 | 45.5% | +5.6% | |
| Majority | 45,193 | 9.06% | −0.8% | ||
| Turnout | 498,703 | ||||
| Republican hold | Swing | ||||
{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
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