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1994 Florida Treasurer election

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1994 Florida Treasurer election

← 1990 November 8, 1994 1998 →
 
Nominee Bill Nelson Timothy F. Ireland
Party Democratic Republican
Popular vote 2,070,604 1,933,570
Percentage 51.7% 48.3%

Ireland:      50–60%      60–70%      70–80%      80–90%      >90%
Nelson:      50–60%      60–70%      70–80%      80–90%      >90%
Tie:      50%
     No votes

Treasurer before election

Tom Gallagher
Republican

Elected Treasurer

Bill Nelson
Democratic

The 1994 Florida Treasurer election took place on November 8, 1994 to elect the Treasurer, Insurance Commissioner, and Fire Marshal of Florida, alongside many other elections in the state and around the country.

Incumbent Treasurer Tom Gallagher was term-limited and unable to run again. In his place, Democrat Bill Nelson was elected with 51.7% of the vote, defeating Republican State Rep. Tim Ireland.[1][2]

Candidates

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Democratic primary

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Democratic primary results[3]
Party Candidate Votes %
Democratic Bill Nelson 431,623 54.57%
Democratic Karen Gievers 299,916 37.92%
Democratic Fred Westman 59,436 7.51%

Republican primary

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Republican primary results[5]
Party Candidate Votes %
Republican Timothy F. Ireland 478,760 64.13%
Republican R. K. "Skip" Hunter 267,801 35.87%

General election

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Campaign

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During the general election, Ireland accused Nelson of trying to intimidate insurance agents and company officials who supported Ireland, calling it "political terrorism." Nelson's spokesman flatly denied the accusation, accusing Ireland of trying to pump up a campaign that trails in money and name recognition. Indeed, Nelson had raised five times the amount of money that Ireland had by early October.[6]

Ireland also accused Nelson of taking $84,000 in illegal campaign funds, allegedly acquired during the week before the September 8, 1994 primary, which was prohibited. Nelson campaign manager Brian May claimed that the money was raised before September 1, 1994, but computer problems caused the contributions to be reported after the date. Nelson did not return the money.[7]

Results

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1994 Florida Treasurer election
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Democratic Bill Nelson 2,070,604 51.70%
Republican Tim Ireland 1,933,570 48.28%
Democratic gain from Republican Swing

References

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  1. ^ "1994 State Treasurer General Election Results - Florida". uselectionatlas.org. Retrieved April 16, 2023.
  2. ^ "November 8, 1994 General Election". Florida Department of State, Division of Elections. Retrieved April 20, 2023.
  3. ^ "FL Treasurer - D Primary". OurCampaigns. Retrieved May 11, 2023.
  4. ^ "Nelson, Ireland Will Duke It Out". South Florida Sun Central. Retrieved May 11, 2023.
  5. ^ "FL Treasurer - R Primary". OurCampaigns. Retrieved May 11, 2023.
  6. ^ "Insurance candidate accused of threats". Tampa Bay Times. October 17, 1994. Retrieved May 11, 2023.
  7. ^ "Ireland tells Nelson to give money back". Tampa Bay Times. October 20, 1994. Retrieved May 11, 2023.