Texas gubernatorial election, 1986
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County results
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The 1986 Texas gubernatorial election was held on November 4, 1986 to elect the Governor of Texas. The election was a rematch of the 1982 election, with incumbent Democratic Governor Mark White running for re-election against former Republican Governor Bill Clements. Clements was elected to a second, non-consecutive term as governor, winning 53% of the vote to White's 46%.
Incumbent Mark Wells White was inaugurated as Texas' 43rd Governor on January 18, 1983, having been elected to the governorship in the 1982 elections. He lost his re-election bid in 1986. He had been elected to statewide office as the 46th Texas Attorney General in 1978 and served in Governor Dolph Briscoe's administration as Texas Secretary of State, an appointed position, from 1973 until his resignation in 1977.
Under White's administration, he focused his energies on education reform (including no pass/no play) and utility rate regulation. He also concentrated on economic development and the appointment of more minorities to positions on his staff and in the government. Texas' Sesquicentennial occurred in 1986, and the Governor attended and hosted a number of events. The Goddess of Liberty was restored and planning for Capitol restoration began during White's term in office.
However, White's approval ratings began to slide downhill as a result of the enactment of "No Pass/NoPlay" in 1984, which made students ineligible for all extracurricular activities for six weeks if they fail to score at least 70 in any course during the previous six weeks. [1]. Critics of the law including DeKalb Mayor Billy Eubanks said, "I have real mixed emotions about it", stating that the law had robbed his small town team of its shot at a district championship. "I hate to see those kids lose. It's kind of a losing situation when you're trying to teach team concepts, school spirit and all that. "Those kids that failed lost. Those kids that didn't fail, they lost, too, because they had to make up for some kids being out. The coaches lost. The community lost. Eubanks continued, "I don't object to the no-pass, no-play rule. I object to the extent and the punishment aspect of it. When you only have about 28 kids, total, playing football, that hurts."
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