1936 Georgia gubernatorial election
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410 county unit votes 206 unit votes needed to win | |||||||||||||||||||||||||
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County results Rivers: 30-40% 40-50% 50-60% 60-70% 70-80% 80-90% Redwine: 40-50% 50-60% 60-70% Fortson: 40-50% 80-90% | |||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Elections in Georgia |
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The 1936 Georgia gubernatorial election took place on November 3, 1936, in order to elect the Governor of Georgia.
Incumbent
As was common at the time, the Democratic candidate ran with only token opposition in the general election so therefore the Democratic primary was the real contest, and winning the primary was considered
Democratic primary
The Democratic primary election was held on September 9, 1936. As Rivers won a majority of county unit votes, there was no run-off.
County unit system
From 1917 until 1962, the Democratic Party in the U.S. state of Georgia used a voting system called the county unit system to determine victors in statewide primary elections.[2]
The system was ostensibly designed to function similarly to the
Under the county unit system, the 159 counties in Georgia were divided by population into three categories. The largest eight counties were classified as "Urban", the next-largest 30 counties were classified as "Town", and the remaining 121 counties were classified as "Rural". Urban counties were given 6 unit votes, Town counties were given 4 unit votes, and Rural counties were given 2 unit votes, for a total of 410 available unit votes. Each county's unit votes were awarded on a winner-take-all basis.[3][4]
Candidates were required to obtain a
Candidates
- Blanton Fortson, Georgia Superior Court judge[6]
- Charles D. Redwine, President of the Georgia State Senate[7]
Results
Candidate | Popular vote | County unit vote | ||
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Votes | % | Votes | % | |
Eurith D. Rivers | 233,503 | 59.98 | 372 | 90.73 |
Charles D. Redwine | 123,095 | 31.62 | 30 | 7.32 |
Blanton Fortson | 32,715 | 8.40 | 8 | 1.95 |
Total | 389,313 | 100.00 | 410 | 100.00 |
Source: [8][9][10] |
General election
In the general election, Rivers faced token opposition.
Results
Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
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Democratic | Eurith D. Rivers | 263,140 | 99.67% | ||
Prohibition | L. P. Glass | 873 | 0.33% | ||
Turnout | 264,013 | 100.00% | |||
Democratic hold | Swing |
References
- ^ "1877 Georgia constitution, Article V, Section I, Paragraph II" (PDF). Georgia State Archive.
The Executive power shall be vested in a Governor, who shall hold his office during the term of two years, and until his successor shall be chosen and qualified. He shall not be eligible to re-election, after the expiration of a second term, for the period of four years.
- ^ "County Unit System". Georgia County Clerks Association. Archived from the original on May 31, 2008. Retrieved June 8, 2020.
- ^ a b "Eugene Talmadge". The Jim Crow Encyclopedia. The African American Experience. Archived from the original on January 23, 2015. Retrieved August 12, 2013.
- ^ a b "County Unit System, eh?". Richard B. Russell Library for Political Research and Studies. October 6, 2011. Retrieved June 8, 2020.
- ^ Buchanan, Scott (June 13, 2017). "County Unit System". New Georgia Encyclopedia. Retrieved June 8, 2020.
- ^ "Primary will test Talmadge record". Evening Star. Washington, D.C. September 6, 1936. p. A-5. Retrieved June 13, 2020.
- ^ a b "Talmadge beaten in Georgia race". Evening Star. Washington, D.C. September 10, 1936. p. 1. Retrieved June 13, 2020.
- ^ Congressional Quarterly 1998, p. 107.
- ^ "GA Governor, 1936 - D Primary". Our Campaigns. Retrieved June 13, 2020.
- ^ Georgia Register 1937, pp. 542–545.
- ^ Congressional Quarterly 1998, p. 48.
- ^ "GA Governor, 1936". Our Campaigns. Retrieved June 13, 2020.
- ^ Glashan 1979, pp. 68–69.
- ^ Georgia Register 1937, pp. 657.
Bibliography
- Gubernatorial Elections, 1787-1997. Washington, D.C.: Congressional Quarterly Inc. 1998. ISBN 1-56802-396-0.
- Glashan, Roy R. (1979). American Governors and Gubernatorial Elections, 1775-1978. Meckler Books. ISBN 0-930466-17-9.
- Compiled by Mrs. J.E. Hays, State Historian and Director (1937). Georgia's Official Register, 1933-1935-1937 (PDF). Atlanta, GA: State of Georgia, Department of Archives and History.