Georgia gubernatorial election, 1966

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Georgia gubernatorial election of 1966
Flag of the State of Georgia (1956-2001).svg
←  1962 November 8, 1966 1970  →

  Lester Maddox.jpg Howard Callaway.jpg
Nominee Lester Maddox (elected by state legislature) Howard Callaway Ellis Arnall
Party Democratic Republican Independent
Popular vote 450,626453,665 69,025
Percentage 46.2%46.5% 7.1%
Governor before election

Carl Sanders
Democratic

Elected Governor

Lester Maddox
Democratic

The 1966 Georgia gubernatorial election was held on November 10, 1966. After an election that exposed divisions within the Georgia Democratic Party (giving the Georgia Republican Party a shot at the Governor's Mansion for the first time in the twentieth century), segregationist Democrat Lester Maddox was elected Governor of Georgia by the Georgia General Assembly. The voting also brought future President Jimmy Carter to statewide prominence for the first time.

Georgia Republican Party

The Georgia Republican Party is one of the two major political parties in the U.S. state of Georgia. It is affiliated with the United States Republican Party (GOP).

Lester Maddox Georgia politician

Lester Garfield Maddox Sr. was an American politician who served as the 75th Governor of the U.S. state of Georgia from 1967 to 1971. A populist Democrat, Maddox came to prominence as a staunch segregationist when he refused to serve black customers in his Atlanta restaurant, in defiance of the Civil Rights Act. He later served as Lieutenant Governor during the time that Jimmy Carter was Governor.

Georgia General Assembly


The Georgia General Assembly is the state legislature of the U.S. state of Georgia. It is bicameral, consisting of the Senate and the House of Representatives.

Contents

Democratic nomination

Former Governor Ernest Vandiver was considered the favorite to return to his former job (although governors could not then succeed themselves, they could run again after leaving office), but he dropped out of the race because of health problems. That opened the door for former Governor Ellis Arnall, former Lieutenant Governor Garland T. Byrd, state Senator Jimmy Carter, and two segregationist businessmen, Lester Maddox and James H. Gray, Sr., to run for the Democratic nomination. [1]

Ernest Vandiver politician from Georgia, USA

Samuel Ernest Vandiver Jr. was an American politician who was the 73rd Governor of the U.S. state of Georgia from 1959 to 1963.

Ellis Arnall American politician, Governor of Georgia

Ellis Gibbs Arnall was an American politician who served as the 69th Governor of Georgia from 1943 to 1947. A liberal Democrat, he is considered one of Georgia's greatest governors for his efforts to modernize the state. Following his departure from office, he became a highly successful attorney and businessman.

Lieutenant Governor of Georgia position

The Lieutenant Governor of Georgia is a constitutional officer of the State of Georgia, elected to a 4-year term by popular vote. Unlike in some other U.S. states, the Lieutenant Governor is elected on a separate ticket from the Georgia Governor.

Gray, a Massachusetts native, publisher of the Albany Herald and founder of what is now Gray Television, was a former Georgia Democratic state chairman who defended segregation in his northern accent before the 1960 Democratic National Convention in Los Angeles. In the primary race, Maddox had often called upon Gray to leave the race, having said that his opponent was "going down like the Titanic ". Gray remained in the race and finished fourth in the primary. He declared neutrality in the Maddox-Arnall runoff election, not openly supporting either candidate. However, one of Gray's associates, Roy V. Harris of Augusta, a member of the Georgia State Board of Regents, supported Maddox over Arnall. Gray supporters attempted to entice Maddox to leave the race with a $100,000 payment. Gray denied involvement in the scheme but would not, on Maddox's request, take a lie detector test. [2]

Massachusetts State of the United States of America

Massachusetts, officially the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, is the most populous state in the New England region of the northeastern United States. It borders on the Atlantic Ocean to the east, the states of Connecticut and Rhode Island to the south, New Hampshire and Vermont to the north, and New York to the west. The state is named after the Massachusett tribe, which once inhabited the east side of the area, and is one of the original thirteen states. The capital of Massachusetts is Boston, which is also the most populous city in New England. Over 80% of Massachusetts's population lives in the Greater Boston metropolitan area, a region influential upon American history, academia, and industry. Originally dependent on agriculture, fishing and trade, Massachusetts was transformed into a manufacturing center during the Industrial Revolution. During the 20th century, Massachusetts's economy shifted from manufacturing to services. Modern Massachusetts is a global leader in biotechnology, engineering, higher education, finance, and maritime trade.

Gray Television American television broadcast company

Gray Television, Inc. is an American publicly traded television broadcasting company based in Atlanta, Georgia. Founded in 1946 by James Harrison Gray as Gray Communications Systems, the company owns or operates 145 stations across the United States, based primarily in small- and medium-sized markets.

The 1960 Democratic National Convention was held in Los Angeles, California, on July 11–July 15, 1960. It nominated Senator John F. Kennedy of Massachusetts for President and Senator Lyndon B. Johnson of Texas for Vice President.

Democratic primary election results

Arnall won the first primary, but because no candidate received a majority, he and Maddox were forced into a runoff, per Georgia law.

Primary (September 13, 1966): [3]

Runoff (September 27, 1966): [4]

Lieutenant Governor

State House Speaker George T. Smith was the Democratic nominee for Lieutenant Governor of Georgia, after he defeated incumbent Peter Zack Geer in the primary. He went on to win the general election. [5]

George T. Smith American judge

George Thornewell Smith was an American Democratic Party politician and jurist from the state of Georgia. The sixth Lieutenant Governor, state legislator, Speaker of the State House of Representatives, was the only person in Georgia to win contested elections in all three branches of state government - legislative, executive, and judicial.

Peter Zack Geer was a lawyer and a Democratic politician from the U.S. state of Georgia.

Republican nomination

The Republican nominee was U.S. Representative Howard "Bo" Callaway. He was the first Republican Representative from Georgia since Reconstruction.

Republican Party (United States) Major political party in the United States

The Republican Party, also referred to as the GOP, is one of the two major political parties in the United States; the other is its historic rival, the Democratic Party.

No other Republicans sought down-ballot constitutional offices. State Senator Holden Eugene "Gene" Sanders of DeKalb County, a moderate Republican, sought to run for lieutenant governor, but Callaway said that Sanders did not follow the proper procedures. The Republican strategy was to shun all other statewide races for fear that a full ticket would unify the Democrats. The Atlanta Journal , which ultimately endorsed Callaway, claimed that key Republicans were a clique who hoped to build the party from the governor's office. The Athens Daily News depicted traditional Georgia Republican leaders as "would-be politicians [who viewed the party as] personal property and who made no real effort to expand into a broad-based and effective political organization." [6]

DeKalb County, Georgia County in the United States

DeKalb County is a county in the U.S. state of Georgia. As of the 2010 census, the population was 691,893, making it Georgia's fourth-most populous county. Its county seat is Decatur.

General election results

Georgia gubernatorial election, 1966
PartyCandidateVotes%±
Democratic Lester Maddox 450,62646.22%
Republican Bo Callaway 453,665 46.53%
Independent (write-in) Ellis Arnall 69,025 7.08%

Some people, unhappy with both major nominees, took the "Go Bo" of Callaway's campaign and expanded it to "Go Bo, and take Lester with you". A write-in campaign for Arnall prevented any candidate from winning the majority. Georgia law at the time allowed the Georgia General Assembly to select the governor if no candidate received more than 50 percent of the popular vote. The legislature, dominated by Democrats, selected Maddox, although Callaway received more popular votes. [7]

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References

  1. ↑ New Georgia Encyclopedia
  2. ↑ Billy Hathorn, "The Frustration of Opportunity: Georgia Republicans and the Election of 1966", Atlanta History: A Journal of Georgia and the South , Vol. XXXI (Winter 1987-1988), pp. 38-39
  3. ↑ Georgia Official and Statistical Register, 1965–1966 – page 1738
  4. ↑ Georgia Official and Statistical Register, 1965–1966 – page 1779
  5. ↑ "The Advocate", University of Georgia School of Law
  6. ↑ Atlanta History, p. 39
  7. ↑ OurCampaigns.com: GA Governor general election
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