L. Douglas Wilder Celebrates on Election Night

Virginia Governor-elect L. Douglas Wilder celebrates on election night, 1989. Wilder was the first African American elected as governor of a U.S. state. Though polls suggested he led going into election day by as many as ten points, Wilder managed to win by a margin of only 6,741 votes, prompting a recount. This discrepancy has led to some debate over whether white voters would rather lie to pollsters than admit that they would not vote for a black candidate.