Election Results On the Web: C-SPAN video of the Oct. 16 debate and the Oct. 4 debate (RealVideo required)

Filing Deadline: Dec. 15, 1997
Primary: March 17

Nov. 4, 1998 — Republican Secretary of State George Ryan kept the Illinois governorship in GOP hands, defeating conservative Democratic Rep. Glenn Poshard 51 percent to 47 percent, with 98 percent of precincts reporting.

Issues: Poshard opposed both abortion rights and gun control, rubbing some Democrats the wrong way even as they strove to win the governorship for the first time since 1972. The Republican heir apparent, Ryan opposed abortion except for cases of rape and incest or if the mother's life is endangered. He also supported banning semi-automatic assault weapons.

Polls: A Chicago Tribune poll, conducted Oct. 17-20 by Market Shares Corp. showed Ryan with 49 percent, Poshard with 34 percent and 17 percent undecided. A survey conducted Oct. 24-26 by Mason-Dixon Political/Media Research showed Ryan far in the lead with 48 percent, Poshard with 37 percent and 15 percent undecided.

— Lisa Todorovich, washingtonpost.com

Lisa Todorovich can be reached at lisa.todorovich@washingtonpost.com