1984Final results
1984 election for Illinois's 21st District
U.S. House · Illinois
Melvin Price (D) won with 60.2% of the vote, defeating Robert H. "bob" Gaffner (R) by 20.3 points.
Melvin PriceDemocrat · winner
60.2%127,046
Robert H. "bob" GaffnerRepublican
39.8%84,148
211,194 votes
Source: MIT Election Data and Science LabUpdated Sep 30, 2026, 7:25 AM ET
The seat over time
D − R margin in this seat's races around 1984
Races before and after
Source: Past results: 99chambers results archive (MEDSL, Klarner, state election offices)
Money in this race
Each line compares the two campaigns on one scale.
Melvin PriceRobert H. "bob" Gaffner
$106.8K
Raised by the campaign
$6K
$110.1K
Spent by the campaign
$6K
$19.1K
Cash on hand
$608
Campaign money: FEC, through Dec 31, 1984.
Source: FEC campaign filingsUpdated Dec 31, 1984