PolitiFinder

1982 Michigan Gubernatorial Election

Michigan · 2 candidates · See every 1982 Governor race

Who won the 1982 Michigan Gubernatorial Election?

James J. Blanchard won the 1982 Michigan Gubernatorial Election. James J. Blanchard received 1,561,291 popular votes (51.4%). The main challenger was Richard Headlee (45.1%).

See the full head-to-head between Blanchard and Headlee

Blanchard +6.3 pts · won by 191,709 votes
James J. BlanchardDemocraticWINNER51.4%
1,561,291 votes
Richard HeadleeRepublican45.1%
1,369,582 votes
Other candidates received the remaining 3.5% of the popular vote; only the leading candidates are individually recorded for this election.
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.