| Flag Image: | File:Flag of Cook County, Illinois (1961–2022).svg |
| Type: | presidential |
| Ongoing: | no |
| Previous Election: | 1990 Cook County, Illinois, elections |
| Previous Year: | 1990 |
| Next Election: | 1994 Cook County, Illinois, elections |
| Next Year: | 1994 |
| Election Date: | November 3, 1992 |
| Turnout: | 75.21% |
The Cook County, Illinois, general election was held on November 3, 1992.[1]
Primaries were held March 17, 1992.[2]
Elections were held for Clerk of the Circuit Court, Recorder of Deeds, State's Attorney, three seats on the Water Reclamation District Board, and judgeships on the Circuit Court of Cook County.
1992 was a presidential election year in the United States. The primaries and general elections for Cook County races coincided with those for federal races (President, House, and Senate) and those for state elections.
Turnout in the primaries was 30.39%, with 1,174,298 ballots cast.[3] Chicago saw 697,781 ballots cast, and suburban Cook County saw 40.20% turnout (with 476,517 ballots cast).[2] [4]
| Primary | Chicago vote totals | Suburban Cook County vote totals | Total Cook County vote totals | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 653,539 | 299,194 | 952,733 | ||
| 41,631 | 168,488 | 210,119 | ||
| 296 | 0 | 296 | ||
| Nonpartisan | 2,315 | 8,835 | 11,150 | |
| Total | 697,781 | 476,517 | 1,174,298 |
The general election saw turnout of 75.21%, with 2,199,608 ballots cast.[5] Chicago saw 1,137,379 ballots cast, and suburban Cook County saw 75.88% turnout (with 1,062,229 ballots cast).[1] [4]
Ballots had a straight-ticket voting option in 1992.[1]
| Party | Number of straight-ticket votes | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Democratic | style=text-align:center | 407,625 | |
| Republican | style=text-align:center | 208,155 | |
| Conservative | style=text-align:center | 4,118 | |
| Economic Recovery | style=text-align:center | 5,219 | |
| Harold Washington | style=text-align:center | 32,956 | |
| Independent Congressional | style=text-align:center | 5,862 | |
| Independent Progressive | style=text-align:center | 6 | |
| Louanner Peters | style=text-align:center | 5,949 | |
| Natural Law | style=text-align:center | 285 | |
| New Alliance Party | style=text-align:center | 52 | |
| Populist | style=text-align:center | 199 | |
| Socialist Workers Party | style=text-align:center | 101 |
| Election Name: | 1992 Clerk of the Circuit Court of Cook County election |
| Type: | presidential |
| Ongoing: | no |
| Previous Election: | 1988 Cook County, Illinois elections#Clerk of the Circuit Court |
| Previous Year: | 1988 |
| Next Election: | 1996 Cook County, Illinois elections#Clerk of the Circuit Court |
| Next Year: | 1996 |
| Election Date: | November 3, 1992 |
| Candidate1: | Aurelia Pucinski |
| Image1: | AureliaPucinski1967 (3x4a).png |
| Party1: | Democratic Party (United States) |
| Popular Vote1: | 1,349,837 |
| Percentage1: | 68.39% |
| Candidate2: | Herbert Schumann |
| Party2: | Republican Party (United States) |
| Popular Vote2: | 486,185 |
| Percentage2: | 24.63% |
| Candidate3: | Dee Jones |
| Image3: | 3x4.svg |
| Party3: | Harold Washington Party |
| Popular Vote3: | 137,642 |
| Percentage3: | 6.97% |
| Clerk | |
| Before Election: | Aurelia Pucinski |
| Before Party: | Democratic Party (United States) |
| After Election: | Aurelia Pucinski |
| After Party: | Democratic Party (United States) |
| Turnout: | 67.49% |
In the 1992 Clerk of the Circuit Court of Cook County election, incumbent first-term clerk Aurelia Pucinski, a Democrat, was reelected.
Pucinski defeated Cook County commissioner and Palos Township Republican Organization chairman Herbert T. Schumann, Jr. and Harold Washington Party nominee Dee Jones.
| Election Name: | 1992 Cook County Recorder of Deeds election |
| Type: | presidential |
| Ongoing: | no |
| Previous Election: | 1988 Cook County, Illinois elections#Recorder of Deeds |
| Previous Year: | 1988 |
| Next Election: | 1996 Cook County, Illinois elections#Recorder of Deeds |
| Next Year: | 1996 |
| Election Date: | November 3, 1992 |
| Candidate1: | Jesse White |
| Party1: | Democratic Party (United States) |
| Popular Vote1: | 1,121,865 |
| Percentage1: | 58.07% |
| Candidate2: | Susan Catania |
| Party2: | Republican Party (United States) |
| Popular Vote2: | 809,963 |
| Percentage2: | 41.93% |
| Recorder of Deeds | |
| Before Election: | Carol Moseley Braun |
| Before Party: | Democratic Party (United States) |
| After Election: | Jesse White |
| After Party: | Democratic Party (United States) |
| Turnout: | 55.55% |
In the 1992 Cook County Recorder of Deeds election, incumbent first-term recorder of deeds Carol Mosely Braun, a Democrat, did not seek reelection, instead running for United States Senate. Democrat Jesse White was elected to succeed her.
White's election made him the second African-American, after Moseley Braun herself, and first African-American man to hold the office of Cook County recorder of deeds.[6]
| Election Name: | 1992 Cook County State's Attorney election |
| Type: | presidential |
| Ongoing: | no |
| Previous Election: | 1990 Cook County, Illinois elections#State's Attorney (special election) |
| Previous Year: | 1990 (special) |
| Next Election: | 1996 Cook County, Illinois elections#State's Attorney |
| Next Year: | 1996 |
| Election Date: | November 3, 1992 |
| Candidate1: | Jack O'Malley |
| Party1: | Republican Party (United States) |
| Popular Vote1: | 1,272,939 |
| Percentage1: | 61.27% |
| Candidate2: | Patrick J. O'Connor |
| Party2: | Democratic Party (United States) |
| Popular Vote2: | 804,528 |
| Percentage2: | 38.73% |
| State's Attorney | |
| Before Election: | Jack O'Malley |
| Before Party: | Republican Party (United States) |
| After Election: | Jack O'Malley |
| After Party: | Republican Party (United States) |
| Turnout: | 71.04% |
In the 1992 Cook County State's Attorney election, incumbent state's attorney Jack O'Malley, a Republican first elected in a special election in 1990, won reelection to a full term.
This is the last time that a Republican has won election to a Cook County executive office.
Chicago alderman Patrick J. O'Connor defeated former assistant state's attorney Jim Gierach, Kenneth A. Malatesta, and public guardian Patrick T. Murphy.[2] [7] [8]
| Election Name: | 1992 Metropolitan Water Reclamation District of Greater Chicago election |
| Ongoing: | no |
| Type: | parliamentary |
| Previous Election: | 1990 Cook County, Illinois elections#Water Reclamation District Board |
| Previous Year: | 1990 |
| Next Election: | 1994 Cook County, Illinois elections#Water Reclamation District Board |
| Next Year: | 1994 |
| Election Date: | November 3, 1992 |
| Seats For Election: | 3 of 9 seats on the Metropolitan Water Reclamation District of Greater Chicago |
| Map Size: | 300px |
In the 1992 Metropolitan Water Reclamation District of Greater Chicago election, three of the nine seats on the Metropolitan Water Reclamation District of Greater Chicago board were up for election in an at-large election.[1] All three Democratic nominees won.[1]
Pasrtisan elections were held for judgeships on the Circuit Court of Cook County due to vacancies.[1] Retention elections were also held for the Circuit Court.[1]
Partisan elections were also held for subcircuit courts judgeships due to vacancies.[1] Retention elections were held for other judgeships.[1]
One ballot question was included on ballots county-wide during the November general election, and another was included in the entirety of suburban Cook County (but not in the city of Chicago).
An advisory referendum on national health insurance was included on ballots county-wide.[1]
An advisory referendum on 9-1-1 was included on ballots in suburban Cook County (the entire county excluding the city of Chicago.[1]
Coinciding with the primaries, elections were held to elect both the Democratic, Republican, and Harold Washington Party committeemen for the wards of Chicago.[2]