1982 Ohio Secretary of State election

The 1982 Ohio Secretary of State election was held on November 2, 1982, to elect the Ohio Secretary of State. Democratic Ohio State Representative Sherrod Brown defeated his opponent, Republican Cuyahoga County Commissioner Virgil Brown, with 53.60% of the vote.

1982 Ohio Secretary of State election

November 2, 1982 (1982-11-02)

Nominee Sherrod Brown Virgil Brown Party Democratic Republican Popular vote 1,739,602 1,362,079 Percentage 53.60% 41.97%

County results Brown:      40-50%      50–60%      60–70%      70–80% Brown:      40-50%      50–60%

Secretary of State before election Anthony J. Celebrezze Jr. Democratic Elected Secretary of State Sherrod Brown Democratic

Background

The incumbent Ohio Secretary of State, Anthony J. Celebrezze Jr., chose not to run for re-election in order to run for Ohio Attorney General, leaving the seat open.

Democratic primary

Candidates

• Sherrod Brown, Ohio State Representative (1975–1983)
• Dennis Kucinich, Mayor of Cleveland (1977–1979)
• Anthony O. Calabrese, Ohio State Senator (1956–1980)
• Frank Gaul, Cuyahoga County Treasurer (1976–1995)

Campaign

The Democratic primary was held on June 8, 1982. The primary was crowded, but Brown managed to win with a plurality of the vote, six points ahead of his closest opponent, Kucinich.

Results

Democratic primary results

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Democratic	Sherrod Brown	304,952	33.77%
	Democratic	Dennis Kucinich	246,618	27.31%
	Democratic	Anthony O. Calabrese	214,901	23.8%
	Democratic	Frank Gaul	136,568	15.12%
Total votes			903,039	100.00%

Republican primary

Candidates

• Virgil Brown, Cuyahoga County Commissioner (1979–1991)

Campaign

The Republican primary was held on June 8, 1982. Virgil Brown won the Republican nomination unopposed.

Results

Republican primary results

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Republican	Virgil Brown	538,801	100%
Total votes			538,801	100.00%

General election

Candidates

• Sherrod Brown, Ohio State Representative (1975–1983) (Democratic)
• Virgil Brown, Cuyahoga County Commissioner (1979–1991) (Republican)
• Margaret Ann Leech (Libertarian)

Results

1982 Ohio Secretary of State election results

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Democratic	Sherrod Brown	1,739,602	53.60%	+3.45
	Republican	Virgil Brown	1,362,079	41.97%	−7.88%
	Libertarian	Margaret Ann Leech	143,943	4.43%	N/A
Total votes			3,245,624	100.00%
	Democratic hold