| Election Name: | 1994 Illinois gubernatorial election |
| Country: | Illinois |
| Type: | presidential |
| Ongoing: | no |
| Previous Election: | 1990 Illinois gubernatorial election |
| Previous Year: | 1990 |
| Next Election: | 1998 Illinois gubernatorial election |
| Next Year: | 1998 |
| Election Date: | November 8, 1994 |
| Image1: | File:Jim Edgar (Illinois Blue Book Portrait 1993-1994).jpg |
| Nominee1: | Jim Edgar |
| Running Mate1: | Bob Kustra |
| Party1: | Republican Party (United States) |
| Popular Vote1: | 1,984,318 |
| Percentage1: | 63.87% |
| Nominee2: | Dawn Clark Netsch |
| Party2: | Democratic Party (United States) |
| Running Mate2: | Penny Severns |
| Popular Vote2: | 1,069,850 |
| Percentage2: | 34.44% |
| Map Size: | x300px |
| Governor | |
| Before Election: | Jim Edgar |
| Before Party: | Republican Party (United States) |
| After Election: | Jim Edgar |
| After Party: | Republican Party (United States) |
| Turnout: | 50.77% 3.23 pp |
The 1994 Illinois gubernatorial election was held on November 8, 1994. Incumbent Republican Governor Jim Edgar won reelection in the largest landslide in over a century, after the elections of 1818 and 1848.
Edgar carried 101 of the state's 102 counties over the Democratic nominee, State Comptroller Dawn Clark Netsch, with Netsch only winning Gallatin County by a narrow margin. This was the first time in Illinois that a woman was a major party's nominee for governor, with 2006 being the only other time.
To date, this is the most recent statewide election in which Cook County voted for a Republican candidate, a Republican governor won a second term in Illinois, and the last time any candidate received over 60% of the vote.
The primaries and general elections coincided with those for congress, as well as those for other state offices. The election was part of the 1994 Illinois elections.
The 1994 midterm elections saw a strong showing by the Republican Party, which was dubbed the "Republican Revolution".
For the primaries, turnout for the gubernatorial primaries was 29.16%, with 1,794,357 votes cast and turnout for the lieutenant gubernatorial primaries was 23.44% with 1,442,160 votes cast.[1] For the general election, turnout was 50.77%, with 3,106,556 votes cast.[2]
| Source | Date | Jim Edgar (R) | Dawn Clark Netsch (D) | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| align=left | Chicago Tribune | October 30, 1994 | 60% | 25% | ||
| align=left | Chicago Tribune | October 23, 1994 | 61% | 22% |