1989 New York City mayoral election
The 1989 New York City mayoral election was held on Tuesday, November 7.
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Borough results Dinkins: 50–60% 60–70% Giuliani: 50–60% 70–80% | |||||||||||||||||||
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Incumbent Mayor Ed Koch, who had served since 1978, ran for an unprecedented fourth term in office but was defeated in the Democratic Party primary by Manhattan Borough President David Dinkins. Dinkins went on to narrowly defeat U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of New York Rudy Giuliani, the candidate of both the Republican Party and Liberal Party of New York.[1] Dinkins won with 50.42% of the vote to Giuliani's 47.84%.[2]
Whereas the two preceding mayoral elections of the 1980s had been landslide victories for Koch, who had not lost a single borough and had received the co-endorsement of the Republican Party in 1981, this election was a closely contested race. Dinkins won majorities in the Bronx, Manhattan, and Brooklyn, while Giuliani carried Queens and won a landslide on Staten Island. Four years later, in the 1993 election, Dinkins and Giuliani would face each other again in a re-match and Dinkins would narrowly lose to Giuliani in his bid for re-election.
Democrats would not win a mayoral election in New York City again until 2013.
Democratic primary
editCandidates
edit- David Dinkins, Manhattan Borough President
- Harrison J. Goldin, New York City Comptroller
- Ed Koch, incumbent Mayor since 1978
- Richard Ravitch, former chairman of the Metropolitan Transportation Authority
Declined
edit- Andrew Stein, President of the New York City Council
Polling
editPoll source | Date(s) | Sample size | Dinkins | Goldin | Koch | Stein |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Johnson/Singer Inc.[3] | Dec. 10, 1988 | 1,204 | 34% | 6% | 29% | 17% |
Results
editParty | Candidate | Votes | % | |
---|---|---|---|---|
Democratic | David Dinkins | 547,901 | 50.71% | |
Democratic | Ed Koch (incumbent) | 456,313 | 42.23% | |
Democratic | Richard Ravitch | 47,534 | 4.40% | |
Democratic | Harrison J. Goldin | 28,809 | 2.67% | |
Total votes | 1,080,557 | 100.0% |
Republican primary
editCandidates
edit- Rudy Giuliani, U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of New York
- Ronald Lauder, son of Estée Lauder and former U.S. Ambassador to Austria
Results
editParty | Candidate | Votes | % | |
---|---|---|---|---|
Republican | Rudy Giuliani | 77,150 | 67.02% | |
Republican | Ronald Lauder | 37,960 | 32.98% | |
Total votes | 115,110 | 100.0% |
General election
editResults
editParty | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Democratic | David Dinkins | 917,544 | 50.42% | −27.6% | |
Republican | Rudy Giuliani | 815,387 | 44.80% | +35.7% | |
Liberal | Rudy Giuliani | 55,077 | 3.02% | −7.1% | |
Total | Rudy Giuliani | 870,464 | 47.84% | +28.5% | |
Right to Life | Henry F. Hewes | 17,460 | 0.96% | −0.3% | |
Conservative | Ronald S. Lauder | 9,271 | 0.51% | −2.5% | |
New Alliance | Lenora Fulani | 1,732 | 0.10% | −0.5% | |
Socialist Workers | James E. Harris | 1,671 | 0.09% | −0.06% | |
Libertarian | Warren L. Baum | 1,118 | 0.06% | N/A | |
Total votes | 1,125,258 | 100.0% | |||
Democratic hold |
References
edit- ^ Roberts, Sam (November 9, 1989). "THE 1989 ELECTIONS: THE NEW YORK VOTE; Almost Lost at the Wire". The New York Times. Retrieved April 17, 2018.
- ^ "New York City Mayoral Election 1989". Our Campaigns. Retrieved April 4, 2014.
- ^ Anekwe, Simon (December 10, 1988). "Poll shows Dinkins can unseat Mayor Ed Koch". The New York Times. p. 1.
- ^ "NYC Mayor - D Primary - Our Campaigns".
- ^ "NYC Mayor - R Primary - Our Campaigns".
- ^ "New York City Mayor - Our Campaigns".