The State Treasurer - The Public's Paymaster
Half the states elected State Treasurers in 1998. It was a tight race. Neither party received a majority of the votes cast. The Democrats elected 13 Treasurers and the Republicans elected 12. Some 34,639,010 votes were cast, with the Democrats receiving 16,701,950 or 48.2%, and the Republicans getting 16,398,135 or 47.3%. The independent candidates won 1,611,777 votes, or 4.5%.
In 23 states, the Governor was elected along with the Treasurer. Only about 1/3rd of the 23 states split party control of the Governor and Treasurer, which means that the voters generally see the Treasurer as a non-discretionary custodian of the public funds. First of all, 12% of the Treasurers ran unopposed. It is rare for statewide officials to be elected without opposition. In Idaho and Vermont, the unopposed Treasurer was a Republican; while in Oklahoma the unopposed Treasurer was a Democrat.
As mentioned above, 15 of the states that elected Governors elected Treasurers of the same political party. Of the other 8 states, Democratic Treasurers were elected in 6 states with Republican Governors: Connecticut, Florida, Massachusetts, Oklahoma, Rhode Island and South Dakota. In Minnesota, a Democratic Treasurer was elected with an Independent Governor. Only in Vermont, where the Republican Treasurer was running unopposed, did the Democratic Governor win with a Republican Treasurer.
While 10 of the 25 Treasurers won with more than 60% of the vote, 3 of those 10 were the unopposed Treasurers. In Idaho, the winning Republican Treasurer who had no Democratic opponent received 75.5% of the ballots, while a Reform Party candidate managed to get almost 1/4 of the vote. In Vermont, too, almost 1 voter in 6 cast ballots against the Treasurer who was endorsed by both the Republican and Democratic Parties. In Oklahoma, no third party candidate made it on to the ballot to oppose the State Treasurer.
Another 10 Treasurers won with more than 50% but less than 60%. And 5 candidates won with less than 50%, the lowest being in Massachusetts with 45.3% of the vote. It is especially outrageous that candidates should be running unopposed in a year when neither the Republicans nor the Democrats were able to win a majority of the vote for State Treasurer. The independents held the balance of power both nationally, and in the 5 races where the victor won with less than 50% of the vote.
Overall, voters don't consider the State Treasurer to be a very important office. The State Treasurer race received the 3rd highest vote total in only 3 states. It ran 4th in 1 state; 5th in 8 states; 6th in 6 states; 7th in 3 states; 8th in 2 states; 9th in 1 state; and received no votes in 1 state (Oklahoma). On average, the State Treasurer's race fell between 5th and 6th in importance, usually well behind Governor; Senator, House of Representatives, and Attorney General. The Secretary of State jockeys with State Treasurer for position in the order of importance of statewide offices.
| Ab. Treas. 98 | Davis (R) | Baxley (D) | Write-in | Treasurer 98 | ||||||||||
| 443,901 | 810,746 | 496 | 1,255,143 | |||||||||||
| 35.3666% | 64.5939% | 0.0395% | 496 | |||||||||||
| Az. Treas. 98 | Springer (R) | No Democrat | Price (I) | Treasurer 90 | ||||||||||
| 714,739 | 0 | 171,769 | 886,508 | |||||||||||
| 80.6241% | 0.0000% | 19.3759% | Ind. total | 171,769 | ||||||||||
| Ca. Treas. 1998 | Pringle (R) | Angelides (D) | Kaiser (AI) | Petersen (Lib) | Tucker (P&F) | Aguirre (NL) | Treasurer 1998 | |||||||
| 3,158,624 | 4,164,708 | 91,764 | 183,356 | 146,134 | 172,744 | 7,917,330 | (700,319) | |||||||
| 39.8951% | 52.6024% | 1.1590% | 2.3159% | 1.8457% | 2.1818% | 0.0000% | Ind. Total | 593,998 | ||||||
| Co. Treas. 1998 | Coffman (R) | Polsfut (D) | Bryant (L) | Burks (NL) | Treasurer 1998 | |||||||||
| 638,521 | 561,329 | 29,560 | 27,424 | 1,327,325 | 1,256,834 | -70491 | ||||||||
| 50.8039% | 44.6621% | 2.3519% | 2.1820% | Ind. total | 56,984 | |||||||||
| Ct. Treas. 98 | Silvester (R) | Nappier (D) | Ciccomascolo (CC) | Garofolo (L) | Treasurer | |||||||||
| 433,889 | 436,573 | 9,051 | 11,375 | 1,022,453 | 890,888 | (131,565) | ||||||||
| 0.49 | 0.49 | 0.01 | -0.09 | Ind. total | 20426 | |||||||||
| Del. Treas. 98 | Rzewnicki (R) | Markell (D) | Treasurer 1998 | |||||||||||
| R to D | 74,633 | 103,407 | 178,040 | |||||||||||
| 41.9192% | 58.0808% | 0 | ||||||||||||
| Fla. Treas. 98 | Ireland (R) | Bill Nelson (D) | Treasurer 98 | |||||||||||
| 1,687,712 | 2,195,283 | 3,882,995 | ||||||||||||
| 43.4642% | 56.5358% | 1.46936793852786E-39 | ||||||||||||
| Id. Treas. 98 | Ron Crane (R) | No Democrat | L. Williams (Ref) | Treasurer 98 | ||||||||||
| 258,755 | 0 | 83,840 | 342,595 | (44,125) | ||||||||||
| 75.5280% | 0.0000% | 24.4720% | Ind. total | 83840 | ||||||||||
| Ill. Treas. 98 | Topinka (R) | McLaughlin (D) | Bain (Ref) | Mastroviovanni (W-I) | Treasurer 98 | |||||||||
| 1,610,498 | 1,548,219 | 64,001 | 226 | 3,222,944 | -318435 | |||||||||
| 49.9698% | 48.0374% | 1.9858% | 0.0070% | 64227 | ||||||||||
| Ind. Treas. 98 | Tim Berry (R) | Washington (D) | McPherson (L) | Treasurer 98 | ||||||||||
| 812,904 | 638,078 | 56,575 | 1,507,557 | |||||||||||
| 53.9219% | 42.3253% | 3.7528% | Ind. Total | 56,575 | ||||||||||
| Iowa Treas. 98 | Bolin (R) | Fitzgerald (D) | Spivak (NL) | Scattering | Voting 1988 | Treasurer 1998 | ||||||||
| 390,054 | 500,853 | 13,135 | 217 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 904,259 | ||||
| 43.1352% | 55.3882% | 1.4526% | 0.0240% | 0.0000% | 0.0000% | 0.0000% | 0.0000% | 0.0000% | 1.46936793852786E-39 | Ind. total | 13,352 | |||
| Kan. Treas. 98 | Shallenburger(R | Rita Cline (D) | Treasurer 98 | |||||||||||
| 431,190 | 264,567 | 695,757 | 406148 | |||||||||||
| 61.9742% | 38.0258% | Ind. total | 1.46936793852786E-39 | |||||||||||
| Ma. Treas. 98 | Maginn (R) | O'Brien (D) | Hardwick (Lib) | Others | Treasurer 98 | |||||||||
| 626,286 | 1,120,757 | 53,299 | 675 | 1,801,017 | ||||||||||
| 34.7740% | 62.2291% | 2.9594% | 0.0375% | Ind. Total | 53,974 | |||||||||
| Minn. Treas. 98 | Knight (R) | Johnson (D) | Dunlop (RP) | Berg (Lib) | Berg (Lib) | Treasurer 1998 | ||||||||
| 792,117 | 887,597 | 235,271 | 37,855 | 2,354 | 1,955,194 | (150,149) | ||||||||
| 40.5135% | 45.3969% | 12.0331% | 1.9361% | 0.1204% | 275,480 | |||||||||
| Neb. Treas. 98 | Heineman (R) | David Tagart (D) | Sam Spilker (R) | Write-in | Treasurer 90 | |||||||||
| 310,881 | 162,762 | 16,400 | 298 | 581,775 | 490,341 | (91,434) | ||||||||
| 63.4010% | 33.1936% | 3.3446% | 0.0608% | Ind. total | 16,698 | |||||||||
| Nv Treas. 98 | Krolicki (R) | No Democrat | Fylstra (L) | Yochum (IA) | None of These | Voting 1998 | Treasurer 98 | |||||||
| 249,594 | 0 | 40,683 | 38,781 | 72,852 | 440,042 | 329,058 | (110,984) | |||||||
| 62.1020% | 0.0000% | 10.1224% | 9.6492% | 18.1264% | Ind. total | 79,464 | ||||||||
| NMex. Treas.98 | Garcia (R) | Montoya (D) | Treasurer 1998 | |||||||||||
| 221,224 | 251,795 | 473,019 | ||||||||||||
| 46.7685% | 53.2315% | 1.46936793852786E-39 | ||||||||||||
| Ohio Treas. 98 | Deters (R) | Donofrio (D) | Treasurer 98 | |||||||||||
| 1,687,771 | 1,444,473 | 3,132,244 | (331,239) | |||||||||||
| 53.8838% | 46.1162% | 0.0000% | ||||||||||||
| Ok. Treas. 98 | No Republican | Butkin (D) | Votin 1990 | Treasurer 98 | ||||||||||
| 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | ||||||||||
| 100.0000% | 100.0000% | Ind. total | 1.46936793852786E-39 | |||||||||||
| RI Treas. 1998 | Bennett (R) | Tavares (D) | Moffitt (Ref) | Write-in | Treasurer 1998 | |||||||||
| 130,832 | 134,518 | 22,043 | 167 | 287,560 | ||||||||||
| 45.4973% | 46.7791% | 7.6655% | 0.0581% | Ind. total | 22,210 | |||||||||
| SC Treasurer 98 | Eckstrom (R) | Patterson (D) | Write-in | Treasurer 98 | ||||||||||
| R to D | 519,754 | 526,538 | 521 | 1,098,484 | 1,046,813 | (51,671) | ||||||||
| 49.6511% | 50.2991% | 0.0498% | Ind. total | 521 | ||||||||||
| SD Treasurer 98 | Drewes (R) | Dick Butler (D) | Treasurer 1998 | |||||||||||
| 109,518 | 142,915 | 252,433 | ||||||||||||
| 43.3850% | 56.6150% | Ind. total | 1.46936793852786E-39 | |||||||||||
| Vt. Treas. 98 | Douglas (R&A) | No Democrat | Peter Baker (L) | Linskey (LU) | Bushey (VG) | Write-in | Treasurer 1998 | |||||||
| 175,026 | 0 | 7,501 | 9,810 | 12,312 | 208 | 204,857 | (16,134) | |||||||
| 85.4381% | 0.0000% | 3.6616% | 4.7887% | 6.0100% | 0.1015% | Ind. total | 29,831 | |||||||
| Wi. Treas. 1998 | Voight (R) | Sass (D) | Peterson (Lib) | Peterson (WGR) | Bernhoft (W-I) | Scattering | Voting 1988 | Wi. Treas. 1998 | ||||||
| 814,380 | 754,177 | 28,561 | 31,452 | 171 | 1,724 | 1,630,465 | ||||||||
| 49.9477% | 46.2553% | 1.7517% | 1.9290% | 0.0105% | 0.1057% | Ind. total | 61,908 | |||||||
| Wy. Treas. 98 | Lummis (R) | Loveridge (D) | Blomquist (L) | Voting 1998 | Treasurer 98 | |||||||||
| 105,332 | 52,655 | 10,024 | 178,401 | 168,011 | (10,390) | |||||||||
| 62.6935% | 31.3402% | 5.9663% | Ind. total | 10,024 | ||||||||||
| Total | 16,398,135 | 16,701,950 | 934,494 | 341,636 | 233,823 | 174,676 | 0 | 0 | 34,639,010 | |||||
| 47.3401% | 48.2172% | Independents | 1,611,777 | |||||||||||
| 4.6531% |