the 1994 california gubernatorial election was held on november 8, 1994, in the midst of that year's republican revolution. incumbent republican pete wilson easily won re-election over his main challenger, democratic state treasurer kathleen brown, the daughter of pat brown and younger sister of jerry brown, both of whom had previously served as governor. although wilson initially trailed brown in the polls as a result of the state's faltering economy, his signature opposition to affirmative action and state services for illegal immigrants (with the associated proposition 187) eventually led to his win. wilson won 21% of the african american vote and 25% of the latino vote, which was the lowest for an incumbent republican governor due to his hardline stance on illegal immigration in the united states.