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1976 Illinois Gubernatorial Election

Illinois · 2 candidates · See every 1976 Governor race

Who won the 1976 Illinois Gubernatorial Election?

Jim Thompson won the 1976 Illinois Gubernatorial Election. Jim Thompson received 3,000,395 popular votes (64.68%). The main challenger was Michael Howlett (34.71%).

See the full head-to-head between Thompson and Howlett

Thompson +30.0 pts · won by 1,390,137 votes
Jim ThompsonRepublicanWINNER64.68%
3,000,395 votes
Michael HowlettDemocratic34.71%
1,610,258 votes
Popular-vote totals for governor elections are compiled from official state results (via Wikipedia); Louisiana shows the decisive round of its jungle primary.

Data last verified July 28, 2026.