Elections were held in Illinois on Tuesday, November 3, 1998. Primary elections were held on March 17, 1998.[1]

1998 Illinois elections

← 1996 November 3, 1998 2000 →
Turnout52.43%

These elections saw Democrats make gains. The Democratic Party went from holding no statewide offices, to holding two.

Election information

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1998 was a midterm election year in the United States.

Turnout

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Primary election

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For the primary election, turnout was 27.04%, with 1,824,806 votes cast.[2]

Turnout by county[2]

General election

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For the general election, turnout was 52.43%, with 3,541,379 votes cast.[2]

Turnout by county[2]

Federal elections

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United States Senate

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Incumbent Democratic United States Senator Carol Moseley Braun lost reelection, being unseated by Republican Peter Fitzgerald.

United States House

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All 20 of Illinois' seats in the United States House of Representatives were up for election in 1998.

No seats switched parties, leaving the composition of Illinois' House delegation 10 Democrats and 10 Republicans.

State elections

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Governor and Lieutenant Governor

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1998 Illinois gubernatorial election
 
← 1994 November 3, 1998 2002 →
Turnout49.72%
     
Nominee George Ryan Glenn Poshard
Party Republican Democratic
Running mate Corinne Wood Mary Lou Kearns
Popular vote 1,714,094 1,594,191
Percentage 51.0% 47.8%

 
County results
Ryan:      40–50%      50–60%      60–70%      70–80%
Poshard:      50–60%      60–70%      70–80%      80–90%

Governor before election

Jim Edgar
Republican

Elected Governor

George Ryan
Republican

Incumbent Governor Jim Edgar, a Republican, did not seek a third term. Republican George Ryan was elected to succeed him.

Governor/Lieutenant Governor election[3]
Party Candidate Votes %
Republican George Ryan / Corinne Wood 1,714,094 51.03
Democratic Glenn Poshard / Mary Lou Kearns 1,594,191 47.46
Reform Lawrence Redmond / Phyllis Nirchi 50,372 1.50
Write-in Other 0.00 0.00
Total votes 3,358,705 100

Attorney General

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1998 Illinois Attorney General election
 
← 1994 November 3, 1998 2002 →
Turnout49.25%
 
Nominee Jim Ryan Miriam Santos
Party Republican Democratic
Popular vote 2,026,781 1,242,979
Percentage 60.92% 37.36%

 
County results
Ryan:      50–60%      60–70%      70–80%      80–90%
Santos:      50–60%

Attorney General before election

Jim Ryan
Republican

Elected Attorney General

Jim Ryan
Republican

Incumbent Attorney General Jim Ryan, a Republican, was reelected to a second term. As of 2022 this is the last time a Republican was elected Illinois Attorney General.

Democratic primary

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Attorney General Democratic primary[3]
Party Candidate Votes %
Democratic Miriam Santos 647,099 100
Democratic Mister Kawa 3 0.00
Total votes 647,099 100

Republican primary

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Attorney General Republican primary[3]
Party Candidate Votes %
Republican Jim Ryan (incumbent) 643,487 100
Total votes 643,487 100

Reform primary

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Attorney General Reform primary[3]
Party Candidate Votes %
Reform Jesse M. Dowell, Jr. 332 50.53
Reform Daniel J. Kairis 325 49.47
Total votes 657 100

General election

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Attorney General election[3]
Party Candidate Votes %
Republican Jim Ryan (incumbent) 2,026,781 60.92
Democratic Miriam Santos 1,242,979 37.36
Reform Jesse M. Dowell, Jr. 56,944 1.71
Total votes 3,326,704 100

Secretary of State

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1998 Illinois Secretary of State election
 
← 1994 November 3, 1998 2002 →
Turnout50.04%
     
Nominee Jesse White Al Salvi
Party Democratic Republican
Popular vote 1,874,626 1,437,420
Percentage 55.46% 42.53%

 
County results
White:      40–50%      50–60%      60–70%      70–80%
Salvi:      40–50%      50–60%      60–70%

Secretary of State before election

George Ryan
Republican

Elected Secretary of State

Jesse White
Democratic

Incumbent Secretary of State George Ryan, a Republican, did not seek reelection to a third term in office, instead opting to run for governor. Democrat Jesse White was elected to succeed him in office.

Democratic primary

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Secretary of State Democratic primary[3]
Party Candidate Votes %
Democratic Jesse White 484,798 55.76
Democratic Tim McCarthy 384,603 44.24
Total votes 869,401 100

Republican primary

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Secretary of State Republican primary[3]
Party Candidate Votes %
Republican Al Salvi 365,880 52.99
Republican Robert W. Churchill 324,529 47.01
Total votes 690,409 100

Reform primary

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Secretary of State Reform primary[3]
Party Candidate Votes %
Reform Sandra Millatti 426 66.46
Reform Maryam Omar 215 33.54
Total votes 641 100

General election

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Secretary of State election[3]
Party Candidate Votes %
Democratic Jesse White 1,874,626 55.46
Republican Al Salvi 1,437,420 42.53
Reform Sandra Millatti 67,696 2.00
Independent Therese M. Battaglia 229 0.01
Total votes 3,379,971 100

Comptroller

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1998 Illinois State Comptroller election
 
← 1994 November 3, 1998 2002 →
Turnout47.85%
     
Nominee Daniel Hynes Chris Lauzen
Party Democratic Republican
Popular vote 1,895,273 1,280,860
Percentage 58.63% 39.63%

 
County results
Hynes:      40–50%      50–60%      60–70%      70–80%
Lauzen:      40–50%      50–60%      60–70%

State Comptroller before election

Loleta Didrickson
Republican

Elected State Comptroller

Daniel Hynes
Democratic

Incumbent Comptroller Loleta Didrickson, a Republican, did not seek reelection to a second term, instead opting to (ultimately unsuccessfully) run for the Republican nomination for United States Senate. Democrat Daniel Hynes was elected to succeed her in office.

Democratic primary

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Comptroller Democratic primary[3]
Party Candidate Votes %
Democratic Daniel Hynes 632,141 100
Total votes 632,141 100

Republican primary

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Comptroller Republican primary[3]
Party Candidate Votes %
Republican Chris Lauzen 317,766 51.48
Republican Harry Seigle 299,469 48.52
Total votes 617,235 100

Reform primary

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Comptroller Reform primary[3]
Party Candidate Votes %
Reform Houstoun McIntosh Sadler II 579 100
Total votes 579 100

General election

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Comptroller election[3]
Party Candidate Votes %
Democratic Daniel Hynes 1,895,273 58.63
Republican Chris Lauzen 1,280,860 39.63
Reform Houstoun McIntosh Sadler II 56,219 1.74
Total votes 3,232,352 100

Treasurer

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1998 Illinois State Treasurer election
 
← 1994 November 3, 1998 2002 →
Turnout47.71%
     
Nominee Judy Baar Topinka Daniel J. McLaughlin
Party Republican Democratic
Popular vote 1,610,498 1,548,219
Percentage 49.97% 48.04%

 
County results
Topinka:      40–50%      50–60%      60–70%      70–80%
McLaughlin:      40–50%      50–60%      60–70%      70–80%

Treasurer before election

Judy Baar Topinka
Republican

Elected Treasurer

Judy Baar Topinka
Republican

Incumbent Treasurer Judy Baar Topinka, a Republican, was reelected to a second term.

Democratic primary

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Orland Park mayor Daniel J. McLaughlin defeated Calumet City mayor Jerry Genova.[3][4][5]

Treasurer Democratic primary[3]
Party Candidate Votes %
Democratic Daniel J. McLaughlin 419,735 57.51
Democratic Jerry Genova 310,052 42.49
Total votes 729,787 100

Republican primary

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Treasurer Republican primary[3]
Party Candidate Votes %
Republican Judy Baar Topinka (incumbent) 591,932 100
Total votes 591,932 100

Reform primary

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Treasurer Reform primary[3]
Party Candidate Votes %
Reform Valorie Bain 338 50.90
Reform William P. Rakes 326 49.10
Total votes 664 100

General election

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Treasurer election
Party Candidate Votes %
Republican Judy Baar Topinka (incumbent) 1,610,498 49.97
Democratic Daniel J. McLaughlin 1,548,219 48.04
Reform Valorie Bain 64,001 1.99
Independent Mark A. Mastrogiovanni 226 0.01
Total votes 3,222,944 100

State Senate

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Some of the seats of the Illinois Senate were up for election in 1998. Republicans retained control of the chamber.[6]

State House of Representatives

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All of the seats in the Illinois House of Representatives were up for election in 1998. Democrats retained control of the chamber.[6]

Judicial elections

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Multiple judicial positions were up for election in 1998.

Ballot measure

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Illinois voters voted on a single ballot measure in 1998.[7] In order to be approved, the measures required either 60% support among those specifically voting on the amendment or 50% support among all ballots cast in the elections.[7]

Illinois Courts Commission Amendment

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Voters approved the Illinois Courts Commission Amendment, a legislatively referred constitutional amendment which amended Article VI, Section 15 of the Constitution of Illinois to make modifications to the courts commission.[7][8]

Illinois Courts Commission Amendment[2][7]
Option Votes % of votes
on measure
% of all ballots
cast
Yes 1,677,109 80.47 47.37
No 407,014 19.53 11.49
Total votes 2,084,123 100 58.85
Voter turnout 30.85%

Local elections

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Local elections were held. These included county elections, such as the Cook County elections.

Notes

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  1. ^ For more on Cook County primary election turnout, see 1998 Cook County, Illinois elections#Primary election
  2. ^ For more on Cook County general election turnout, see 1998 Cook County, Illinois elections#General election

References

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  1. ^ "Illinois Primary Results - March 17, 1998". www.cnn.com. CNN. Retrieved March 26, 2020.
  2. ^ a b c d e "Voter Turnout". www.elections.il.gov. Illinois State Board of Elections. Archived from the original on May 30, 2021. Retrieved March 25, 2020.
  3. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q "Election Results". www.elections.il.gov. Illinois State Board of Elections. Archived from the original on February 22, 2020. Retrieved March 23, 2020.
  4. ^ "ORLAND MOVES TO CONTROL GROWTH". Crain's Chicago Business. August 6, 1994. Retrieved April 7, 2020.
  5. ^ O'Connor, Matt (March 14, 2002). "Ex-Cal City chief gets prison term". chicagotribune.com. Chicago Tribune. Retrieved March 26, 2020.
  6. ^ a b "Party control of Illinois state government". Ballotpedia. Retrieved March 26, 2020.
  7. ^ a b c d "Illinois Constitution - Amendments Proposed". www.ilga.gov. Illinois General Assembly. Retrieved March 26, 2020.
  8. ^ "Illinois Courts Commission, Amendment 1 (1998)". Ballotpedia. Retrieved March 29, 2020.