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1980 Rhode Island Gubernatorial Election

Rhode Island · 2 candidates · See every 1980 Governor race

Who won the 1980 Rhode Island Gubernatorial Election?

J. Joseph Garrahy won the 1980 Rhode Island Gubernatorial Election. J. Joseph Garrahy received 299,174 popular votes (73.71%). The main challenger was Buddy Cianci (26.29%).

See the full head-to-head between Garrahy and Cianci

Garrahy +47.4 pts · won by 192,445 votes
J. Joseph GarrahyDemocraticWINNER73.71%
299,174 votes
Buddy CianciRepublican26.29%
106,729 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.