1971 United States gubernatorial elections

1971 United States gubernatorial elections

←  1970 November 2, 1971; February 1, 1972 (LA) 1972  →
3 governorships
Majority party Minority party   Party Democratic Republican Seats before 29 21 Seats after 30 20 Seat change 1 1 Seats up 2 1 Seats won 3 0
Democratic hold   Democratic gain

United States gubernatorial elections were held in three states. In Mississippi and Kentucky, general elections took place on 2 November 1971. In Louisiana, their general election took place on 1 February 1972 after the party primaries on 6 November 1971 and a Democratic primary runoff on 18 December 1971. In Mississippi and Louisiana, Democrats held both open seats. In Kentucky, Democrats flipped the open seat from Republicans.

In Kentucky, Louie B. Nunn was not allowed to run for a second term under the term limits rule at the time, a rule that was changed in 1992. ^[1] In Mississippi, John Bell Williams was also barred from a second term under the term limits rule at the time, a rule that was changed in the mid-1980s. ^[2] In Louisiana, John McKeithen had been allowed a second term due to a new rule enacted that allowed governors two consecutive terms, and thus was allowed to run for a second term (see Louisiana gubernatorial election, 1967). ^[3] Thus, he too was term-limited.

Election results

State	Incumbent	Party	First elected	Result	Candidates
Kentucky	Louie Nunn	Republican	1967	Incumbent term-limited. New governor elected. Democratic gain.	Y Wendell Ford (Democratic) 50.56% Tom Emberton (Republican) 44.35% Happy Chandler (Independent) 4.24% William Smith (American) 0.85%
Louisiana	John McKeithen	Democratic	1964	Incumbent term-limited. New governor elected. Democratic hold.	Y Edwin Edwards (Democratic) 57.2% Dave Treen (Republican) 42.8%
Mississippi	John Bell Williams	Democratic	1967	Incumbent term-limited. New governor elected. Democratic hold.	Y Bill Waller (Democratic) 77.02% Charles Evers (Independent) 22.13% Charles L. Sullivan (Independent) 0.85%

Closest races

States where the margin of victory was under 10%:

1. Kentucky, 6.21%

Kentucky

1971 Kentucky gubernatorial election

←  1967 November 2, 1971 1975  →

Nominee Wendell Ford Thomas Emberton Party Democratic Republican Popular vote 470,420 412,653 Percentage 50.56% 44.35%

County results Congressional district results Ford:      30–40%     40–50%     50–60%     60–70%     70–80% Emberton:      40–50%     50–60%     60–70%     70–80%

Governor before election Louie Nunn Republican Elected Governor Wendell Ford Democratic

The 1971 Kentucky gubernatorial election was held on November 2, 1971. Incumbent Republican Louie Nunn, was ineligible for a second term due to term limits, a rule that was later repealed in 1992. ^[4]

In the Democratic primary, Lieutenant Governor Wendell Ford ran against former Governor Bert Combs and 6 other opponents. Ford would win in an easy victory that wasn't expected. In the Republican primary, Thomas Emberton easily won his primary and was endorsed by Governor Nunn. ^[5]

In the general election, Ford and Emberton were joined by former Governor A. B. "Happy" Chandler, running as an Independent, as well as American Party candidate William Smith. The Republicans had hoped that Chandler would help Emberton's chances, but Ford ultimately won the general election. ^[6]

Louisiana

1972 Louisiana gubernatorial election

←  1968 February 1, 1972 1975  →

Nominee Edwin Edwards David Treen Party Democratic Republican Popular vote 641,146 480,424 Percentage 57.17% 42.83%

Parish results Edwards:      50–60%     60–70%     70–80%     80–90% Treen:      50–60%     60–70%

Governor before election John McKeithen Democratic Elected Governor Edwin Edwards Democratic

The 1972 Louisiana gubernatorial election was held on February 1, 1972. Edwin Edwards defeated Republican candidate David Treen to become Governor of Louisiana.

Party primaries were held on November 6, 1971, and a run-off was held for the Democratic nomination on December 18, 1971. These were the last closed primaries for Governor of Louisiana before the state adopted its current primary election system. This was also the last gubernatorial election not to take place in an off-year, as all elections starting from 1975 would take place 1 year before a presidential election.

Mississippi

1971 Mississippi gubernatorial election

←  1967 November 2, 1971 1975  →

Nominee Bill Waller Charles Evers Party Democratic Independent Popular vote 601,222 172,762 Percentage 77.0% 22.1%

County results Waller:     50-60%     60-70%     70-80%     80-90%     >90% Evers:     40-50%     50-60%     60-70%

Governor before election John Bell Williams Democratic Elected Governor Bill Waller Democratic

The 1971 Mississippi gubernatorial election took place on 2 November 1971 for the post of Governor of Mississippi. The incumbent governor, Democrat John Bell Williams, was ineligible due to term limits, a rule that was changed to two back-to-back terms in the 1980s. ^[7]

Democrat Bill Waller, the former District Attorney of Hinds County, was chosen as his party's nominee in a contested primary. Running as an independent, Mayor of Fayette Charles Evers became the first African-American candidate for governor of Mississippi. ^[8]

References

1. "Kentucky Constitution Section 71". Archived from the original on July 27, 2009. Retrieved July 2, 2012.
2. "Gov.-elect Bryant's 8 appointments could impact college board". November 22, 2011. Retrieved July 2, 2012.
3. Honan, William (June 5, 1999). "J. J. McKeithen, 81, Governor Of Louisiana, 1964 to 1972". The New York Times . Retrieved November 3, 2013.
4. "Kentucky Constitution Section 71". Archived from the original on July 27, 2009. Retrieved June 27, 2012.
5. "Ford Wins Surprising Victory in Kentucky". Sumter Daily Item. May 25, 1971. Retrieved June 28, 2012.
6. "Ford Wins In Kentucky, Carries Dem Slate". Williamson Daily News. November 3, 1971. Retrieved June 28, 2012.
7. "Gov.-elect Bryant's 8 appointments could impact college board". November 22, 2011. Retrieved July 2, 2012.
8. McFadden, Robert D. (July 22, 2020). "Charles Evers, Businessman and Civil Rights Leader, Dies at 97". The New York Times. ISSN   0362-4331 . Retrieved February 13, 2022.