1980Final resultsIncumbent defeated
1980 election for Illinois Representative District 51
Illinois House of Representatives · Illinois
3 seats: Michael J. Tate (R), B. T. Donovan Jr. (D), John F. Dunn (D) won.
3 seatsMichael J. TateRepublican · winner
28.2%69,897
B. T. Donovan Jr.Democrat · winner · incumbent
24.6%61,072
John F. DunnDemocrat · winner · incumbent
24.1%59,936
Webber BorchersRepublican · incumbent
23.0%56,991
248,194 votes
Source: Harvard Dataverse / Carl KlarnerUpdated Sep 30, 2026, 7:29 AM ET
The seat over time
D − R margin in this seat's races around 1980
Races before and after
Source: Harvard Dataverse / Carl KlarnerUpdated Sep 30, 2026, 7:29 AM ET