1951 United States gubernatorial elections

1951 United States gubernatorial elections

←  1950 November 6, 1951 (KY and MS); April 22, 1952 (LA) 1952  →
3 governorships
Majority party Minority party   Party Republican Democratic Seats before 25 23 Seats after 25 23 Seat change Seats up 0 3 Seats won 0 3
Democratic hold

United States gubernatorial elections were held in 1951, in three states. Kentucky, Louisiana and Mississippi hold their gubernatorial elections in odd numbered years, every 4 years, preceding the United States presidential election year.

Race summary

Results

State	Incumbent	Party	First elected	Result	Candidates
Kentucky	Lawrence Wetherby	Democratic	1950 [a]	Incumbent elected to full term.	Y Lawrence Wetherby (Democratic) 54.60% Eugene Siler (Republican) 45.40% [1]
Louisiana	Earl Long	Democratic	1939 [b] 1940 (lost nomination) 1948	Incumbent term-limited. New governor elected. Democratic hold.	Y Robert F. Kennon (Democratic) 95.99% Harrison Bagwell (Republican) 4.01% [2]
Mississippi	Fielding L. Wright	Democratic	1946 [c]	Incumbent term-limited. New governor elected. Democratic hold.	Y Hugh L. White (Democratic) Unopposed [3]

Notes

1. Wetherby took office after his predecessor (Earle Clements) resigned.
2. Long took office after his predecessor (Richard W. Leche) resigned.
3. Wright took office after his predecessor (Thomas L. Bailey) died. He was subsequently elected in the 1947 Mississippi gubernatorial election.

References

1. "KY Governor, 1951". Our Campaigns. Retrieved February 17, 2019.
2. "LA Governor, 1952". Our Campaigns. Retrieved February 17, 2019.
3. "MS Governor, 1951". Our Campaigns. Retrieved July 4, 2025.