1922 United States Senate election in Texas

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1922 United States Senate election in Texas
Flag of Texas.svg
  1916 November 7, 1922 1928  
  Earlebmayfield.jpg G.E.B. Peddy LCCN2014715240.jpg
Nominee Earle Mayfield George Peddy
(write-in)
Party Democratic Independent Democratic
Alliance Republican
Popular vote264,260130,744
Percentage66.90%33.10%

1922 United States Senate election in Texas results map by county.svg
County Results [1]

Mayfield:      50–60%     60–70%     70–80%     80–90%     >90%
Peddy:      50–60%     60–70%     70–80%     80–90%

Contents

No vote:      

U.S. senator before election

Charles Culberson
Democratic

Elected U.S. Senator

Earle Mayfield
Democratic

The 1922 United States Senate election in Texas was held on November 7, 1922. Incumbent Democratic U.S. Senator Charles Culberson ran for re-election to a fifth term, but lost the Democratic primary. [2] A runoff was held between former Governor Pa Ferguson and Railroads Commissioner Earle Bradford Mayfield.

In the runoff, Mayfield, a member of the Texas Railroad Commission defeated Ferguson for the Democratic nomination, then tantamount to election in Texas as a legacy of the American Civil War. Mayfield had the support of the resurgent Ku Klux Klan, and anti-Klan activists in the Democratic Party including George Peddy were unable to have him stripped of the nomination. [3] Peddy agreed to run against Mayfield as the candidate of the "Independent Democrats," members of the party who opposed the Klan. [4] The Texas Republican Party also backed Peddy, but after a lengthy court battle, they were unable to have him included on the general election ballot as their official nominee. [5]

Peddy ran a write-in campaign as the candidate of the Independent Democrats and Republicans. [6] Peddy also ran with the endorsements of Senator Culberson and President Warren G. Harding. [5] [7] In the general election, he ran a surprisingly strong race and held Mayfield to a smaller margin than was usual for Texas Democrats, but Mayfield defeated him 264,260 votes (66.9%) to 130,744 (33.1%). [8] Peddy challenged Mayfield's election, and the subsequent Senate investigation prevented Mayfield from taking his seat as scheduled on March 4, 1923. [3] Mayfield assumed his seat on December 3, 1923, [9] [10] and was sworn in pending a resolution to Peddy's challenge, which was ultimately denied on February 4, 1925. [11]

Democratic primary

Candidates

Withdrawn

Results

1922 Democratic U.S. Senate primary [13]
PartyCandidateVotes%
Democratic Earle B. Mayfield 153,538 26.78%
Democratic Pa Ferguson 127,07122.16%
Democratic Charles Culberson (incumbent)99,63517.38%
Democratic Cullen F. Thomas88,02615.35%
Democratic Charles Ousley62,45110.89%
Democratic Robert Lee Henry 41,5677.25%
Democratic Sterling P. Strong (withdrew)1,0850.19%
Total votes573,373 100.00%

Runoff

1922 Democratic U.S. Senate runoff [14]
PartyCandidateVotes%
Democratic Earle B. Mayfield 273,308 54.44%
Democratic Pa Ferguson 228,70145.56%
Total votes502,009 100.00%

General election

Results

1922 United States Senate election in Texas [15]
PartyCandidateVotes%±%
Democratic Earle B. Mayfield 264,260 66.90% Decrease2.svg14.40
Ind. Democratic George Peddy (write-in)130,74433.10%Increase2.svg20.01
Total votes395,004 100.00%
Democratic hold

See also

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References

  1. Heard, Alexander; Strong, Donald (1950). Southern Primaries and Elections 1920-1949. University of Alabama Press. pp. 167–169. ISBN   9780836955248.
  2. "CULBERSON ADMITS DEFEAT; Texan Senator Tells Friends to Support Whom They Please". The New York Times. July 27, 1922. p. 4. ISSN   0362-4331 . Retrieved April 28, 2023.
  3. 1 2 Fleming, Richard T. "Biography, George Edwin Bailey Peddy (1892–1951)". Handbook of Texas. Austin, TX: Texas State Historical Association. Retrieved January 9, 2021.
  4. "PARIES JOIN IN TO OPPOSE: George E. B. Peddy Senatorial Nominee by licans and Independent Democrats". St. Louis Post - Dispatch. September 17, 1922. p. 4. ProQuest   578909309 . Retrieved April 28, 2023.
  5. 1 2 "KEEP PEDDY'S NAME OFF TEXAS BALLOT; Federal Judges Decline to Order Fusion Senatorial Nominee Placed on Ticket". The New York Times . October 24, 1922. p. 17. ISSN   0362-4331 . Retrieved April 28, 2023.
  6. "TEXAS PARTIES JOIN IN ANTI-KLAN FIGHT: George B. Peddy Nominated to Oppose E.B. Mayfield for Senatorship". The Christian Science Monitor. September 19, 1922. p. 1. ProQuest   510775232 . Retrieved April 28, 2023.
  7. "Culberson Out To Drive Klan From Texas". New - York Tribune. September 24, 1922. p. 3. ProQuest   576673937 . Retrieved April 28, 2023.
  8. Clerk of the U.S. House of Representatives (1923). "Statistics of the Presidential and Congressional Election of November 6, 1922" (PDF). U.S. Government Printing Office.
  9. "He's Senator Now", San Angelo (Texas) Evening Standard, December 4, 1923, p. 1 ("Oath of office as member of the United States Senate from Texas was administered Monday to Earle B. Mayfield, elected over George E. B. Peddy...")
  10. "Crooker's Protest Not Heard From", Boston Globe, December 4, 1923, p.12 ("Senator Mayfield of Texas, who was sworn in today, will have to face the committee...")
  11. Lester, Carole N. (February 9, 2020). "Duly Elected? The Texas Senate Race of 1922, the Ku Klux Klan and Texas Newspapers". What Do You Know About History?. Dallas, TX. Retrieved January 9, 2021.
  12. "Obituary: Cullen F. Thomas". The New York Times. December 9, 1938. p. 25.
  13. "Our Campaigns – TX US Senate – D Primary Race – July 22, 1922". www.ourcampaigns.com.
  14. "Our Campaigns – TX US Senate – D Primary Race – August 26, 1922". www.ourcampaigns.com.
  15. "Our Campaigns – TX US Senate Race – Nov 07, 1922". www.ourcampaigns.com.