1912 United States Senate election in Kentucky

1912 United States Senate election in Kentucky

←  1906 January 16, 1912 1918  →

Nominee Ollie Murray James Edwin P. Morrow Party Democratic Republican Senate ballot 31 (83.8%) 6 (16.2%) House ballot 74 (76.3%) 23 (23.7%)

Senate ballot House ballot Blue denotes members voting for James and red denotes those voting for Morrow.

U.S. senator before election Thomas H. Paynter Democratic Elected U.S. Senator Ollie Murray James Democratic

The 1912 United States Senate election in Kentucky was held on January 16, 1912, after an initial election on January 9, 1912. Democratic representative Ollie Murray James was elected by the Kentucky General Assembly to the United States Senate. The election was held twice due to ambiguity in the law setting the election date. This was the last senate election in Kentucky before the ratification of the Seventeenth Amendment, which mandated the election of senators by popular vote.

Democratic primary

The Democratic Party chose to select its candidate by a primary election, which was not required by law. The election was held Saturday, July 1, 1911. The only candidates to submit their names for the election were James and incumbent senator Thomas H. Paynter. However, Paynter withdrew his candidacy before the election was held, leaving James without opposition. ^[1]

Candidates

• Ollie Murray James, U.S. representative for Kentucky's 1st congressional district (1903–1913)
• Thomas H. Paynter, U.S. senator (1907–1913) (withdrew June 24, 1911)

Republican nominatiom

The Republican Party chose to select its candidate by legislative caucus, with Edwin P. Morrow winning the nomination unanimously on Monday, January 1, 1912. ^[2]

Candidates

• Edwin P. Morrow, U.S. District Attorney for the Eastern District of Kentucky (1910–1913)

Elections

First election

Senate

1912 United States Senate election in Kentucky (first Senate ballot) ^[3]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Democratic	Ollie Murray James	31	88.6
	Republican	Edwin P. Morrow	4	11.4
Total votes			35	100.0

House of Representatives

1912 United States Senate election in Kentucky (first House ballot) ^[3]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Democratic	Ollie Murray James	75	75.8
	Republican	Edwin P. Morrow	24	24.2
Total votes			99	100.0

Second election

Senate

1912 United States Senate election in Kentucky (Senate) ^[4]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Democratic	Ollie Murray James	31	83.8
	Republican	Edwin P. Morrow	6	16.2
Total votes			37	100.0
	Democratic hold

House of Representatives

1912 United States Senate election in Kentucky (House of Representatives) ^[4]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Democratic	Ollie Murray James	74	76.3
	Republican	Edwin P. Morrow	23	23.7
Total votes			97	100.0
	Democratic hold

See also

• 1912–13 United States Senate elections

References

1. "Paynter out of the contest". The Courier-Journal . June 25, 1911. p. 3.
2. "Morrow nominated for U.S. Senator". The Lexington Leader . January 2, 1912. p. 12.
3. Journal of the Senate of the Commonwealth of Kentucky, p. 199.
4. Journal of the Senate of the Commonwealth of Kentucky, p. 323.

Sources

• "Journal of the Senate of the Commonwealth of Kentucky, 1912 v. 1". Journals of the Kentucky General Assembly. Frankfort, Kentucky – via HathiTrust.