United States gubernatorial elections were held on November 3, 1981, in two states and one territory. Both state seats were open due to term limits, and both also switched parties, resulting in zero net change for both parties. As of , this is the last time where Virginia and New Jersey's governorships switched to opposite parties.
Election results States State Incumbent Party Firstelected Result Candidates New Jersey Brendan Byrne 1973 Incumbent term-limited. New governor elected. Republican gain. Virginia John N. Dalton 1977 Incumbent term-limited. New governor elected. Democratic gain.
Territories State Incumbent Party Firstelected Result Candidates Northern Mariana Islands Carlos Camacho 1977 Incumbent lost re-election.New governor elected. Republican gain.
Close states States where the margin of victory was under 1%: New Jersey, 0.1%
States where the margin of victory was under 10%: Virginia, 7.2%
New Jersey
The 1981 New Jersey gubernatorial election was held November 3, 1981. Republican Speaker of the New Jersey General Assembly Thomas Kean narrowly defeated Democratic U.S. Representative James Florio, 49.46%-49.38, following a recount. Kean's margin of victory was 1,797 votes out of more than two million votes cast. As of , the 1981 gubernatorial election remains the closest gubernatorial contest in New Jersey history.
Virginia
In the 1981 Virginia gubernatorial election, Republican incumbent Governor John N. Dalton was unable to seek re-election due to term limits. Chuck Robb, the Lieutenant Governor of Virginia, was nominated by the Democratic Party to run against the Republican nominee, state Attorney General J. Marshall Coleman.
Robb's victory ended 12 consecutive years of Republican control of the Governor's Mansion. Fairfax County voted Democratic for Governor for the first time since 1949.
Territories Northern Mariana Islands
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