1954 New Mexico gubernatorial election

1954 New Mexico gubernatorial election

←  1952 November 2, 1954 1956  →

Nominee John F. Simms Alvin Stockton Party Democratic Republican Popular vote 110,583 83,373 Percentage 57.01% 42.99%

County results Simms:      50–60%     60–70%     70–80% Stockton:      50–60%

Governor before election Edwin L. Mechem Republican Elected Governor John F. Simms Democratic

The 1954 New Mexico gubernatorial election took place on November 2, 1954, in order to elect the Governor of New Mexico. Incumbent Republican Edwin L. Mechem was term-limited, and could not run for reelection to a third consecutive term. Democrat John F. Simms defeated Republican Alvin Stockton, winning the largest share of the vote for any candidate since Clyde Tingley in 1936. Simms was the first Democrat since Tingley in 1936 to carry Torrance County and Valencia County.

General election

Results

1954 New Mexico gubernatorial election ^{[1] [2]}

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Democratic	John F. Simms	110,583	57.01%	+10.78%
	Republican	Alvin Stockton	83,373	42.99%	−10.78%
Majority			27,210	14.03%
Total votes			193,956	100.00%
	Democratic gain from Republican		Swing	+21.56%

Results by county

County	John F. Simms Democratic		Alvin Stockton Republican		Margin		Total votes cast
	#	%	#	%	#	%
Bernalillo	24,695	54.19%	20,874	45.81%	3,821	8.39%	45,569
Catron	573	48.60%	606	51.40%	-33	-2.80%	1,179
Chaves	4,291	52.94%	3,815	47.06%	476	5.87%	8,106
Colfax	2,751	51.43%	2,598	48.57%	153	2.86%	5,349
Curry	3,489	60.42%	2,286	39.58%	1,203	20.83%	5,775
De Baca	674	61.55%	421	38.45%	253	23.11%	1,095
Doña Ana	4,803	58.44%	3,415	41.53%	1,388	16.89%	8,218
Eddy	7,064	69.65%	3,078	30.35%	3,986	39.30%	10,142
Grant	3,798	70.73%	1,572	29.27%	2,226	41.45%	5,370
Guadalupe	1,514	54.64%	1,257	45.36%	257	9.27%	2,771
Harding	520	49.90%	522	50.10%	-2	-0.19%	1,042
Hidalgo	735	70.27%	311	29.73%	424	40.54%	1,046
Lea	4,221	69.81%	1,825	30.19%	2,396	39.63%	6,046
Lincoln	1,319	49.27%	1,358	50.73%	-39	-1.46%	2,677
Los Alamos	2,051	59.14%	1,417	40.86%	634	18.28%	3,468
Luna	1,542	62.89%	910	37.11%	632	25.77%	2,452
McKinley	3,342	64.58%	1,833	35.42%	1,509	29.16%	5,175
Mora	1,348	45.51%	1,614	54.49%	-266	-8.98%	2,962
Otero	2,402	59.03%	1,667	40.97%	735	18.06%	4,069
Quay	2,396	64.39%	1,325	35.61%	1,071	28.78%	3,721
Rio Arriba	4,612	53.27%	4,045	46.73%	567	6.55%	8,657
Roosevelt	2,859	72.12%	1,105	27.88%	1,754	44.25%	3,964
San Juan	2,173	48.63%	2,295	51.37%	-122	-2.73%	4,468
San Miguel	4,809	54.19%	4,066	45.81%	743	8.37%	8,875
Sandoval	1,718	52.28%	1,568	47.72%	150	4.56%	3,286
Santa Fe	7,548	53.39%	6,590	46.61%	958	6.78%	14,138
Sierra	1,480	52.26%	1,352	47.74%	128	4.52%	2,832
Socorro	2,010	55.31%	1,624	44.69%	386	10.62%	3,634
Taos	3,246	58.57%	2,296	41.43%	950	17.14%	5,542
Torrance	1,479	52.88%	1,318	47.12%	161	5.76%	2,797
Union	1,383	51.66%	1,294	48.34%	89	3.32%	2,677
Valencia	3,738	54.54%	3,116	45.46%	622	9.07%	6,854
Total	110,583	57.01%	83,373	42.99%	27,210	14.03%	193,956

Counties that flipped from Republican to Democratic

• Bernalillo
• Chaves
• Colfax
• Curry
• De Baca
• Doña Ana
• Guadalupe
• Luna
• McKinley
• Otero
• Quay
• Roosevelt
• San Miguel
• Sandoval
• Santa Fe
• Sierra
• Socorro
• Taos
• Torrance
• Union
• Valencia

References

1. New Mexico State Records Center & Archives, Canvass of Returns of General Election Held November 2, 1954 - State of New Mexico
2. New Mexico Secretary of State. New Mexico Election Returns 1911-1969. Santa Fe, New Mexico.