 
The 1978 Michigan Secretary of State election was held on November 7, 1978. Incumbent Democrat Richard H. Austin defeated Republican nominee Melvin L. Larsen with 65.57% of the vote.
Larsen conceded the election early, before 10% of the return votes were counted.
General election.
Candidates.
Major party candidates
Results.
! scope="col" colspan="2" style="width: 15em" |Party
! scope="col" style="width: 17em" |Candidate
! scope="col" style="width: 5em" |Votes
! scope="col" style="width: 3.5em" |%
! colspan="3" style="text-align:right;" | Total votes
References.
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