Republicans seized control of both houses of the New Jersey legislature in a campaign that became a referendum on the $2.8 billion tax increase that Gov. James Florio won last year.
Democrat Ed Rendell was elected mayor of Philadelphia, succeeding outgoing W. Wilson Goode.
In Indianapolis, former prosecutor Stephen Goldsmith, a Republican, swept to victory in his race to succeed outgoing four-term Mayor William Hudnut III.
Kurt Schmoke won his second term as Baltimore's mayor.
But Kathy Whitmire trailed wealthy developer Bob Lanier and state Rep. Sylvester Turner in her bid for a fifth term in Houston in a race in which the poor local economy was an issue. The two top vote getters would be forced into a runoff.
Waterbury, Conn., had a mayoral race with the twist. Former Democratic Mayor Edward D. Bergin, acquitted in April on state bribery charges, ousted three-term GOP Mayor Joseph J. Santopietro, who faces 21 criminal charges.
Assault Weapons
Washington D.C. voters voted overwhelming to make manufacturers and sellers of certain assault weapons liable for damage caused by their use. The city struggles perpetually with violent crime.
Texans approved a statewide lottery.
Local term limitation measures were on the ballot in Houston, Cincinnati, Worcester, Mass., and White Plains, N.Y., as supporters sought to tap into voter discontent with incumbents at all levels of government.
But the one in Washington state drew most of the attention.
If approved by the voters and sustained in court, it would require the state's entire House delegation to retire in 1994, including Foley, a Democrat first elected in 1964.
The term-limit issue in Washington shaped up as a harbinger of future campaigns, as well.
Coinciding with adverse publicity about bounced checks and unpaid restaurant tabs, it opened Foley and other members of the state's congressional delegation to ridicule if not defeat.
Proponents said the broad issue of term limits, endorsed by voters in California, Colorado and Oklahoma, could resurface on as many as 15 to 20 statewide ballots next year--with the support of Bush and Vice President Dan Quayle.
Opponents called it unconstitutional, and said the campaign was financed by right-wing activists. Foley called it an "arrogant insult" to the voters.
But even opponents conceded its popularity in advance, and noted it provided Republicans with a way to make strong inroads to the Democratic majorities in the House and Senate.
Officials said in advance that Mabus faced a tougher race in Mississippi than the Democratic candidate normally has. The state has two Republican senators and is reliably Republican in presidential races.
Hopkins sought to raise questions about Jones' personal finances in his effort to wrest the Kentucky governorship from Democrats. But his campaign was damaged when his name turned up on a list of lawmakers who had bounced checks at the House bank, and he conceded his overdrafts ran to 32 checks totaling $4,035 for the 12 months ending June 30.