1870 Tennessee gubernatorial election

none 1870 Tennessee gubernatorial election presidential no 1869 Tennessee gubernatorial election 1869 1872 Tennessee gubernatorial election 1872 November 8, 1870 x150px No image.svg John C. Brown 78,979 65.55% Governor DeWitt Clinton Senter Republican Party (United States) John C. Brown Democratic Party (United States) William H. Wisener Democratic Party (United States) 41,500 34.45% John Calvin Brown, Tennessee Governor.jpg Republican Party (United States) File:1870 Tennessee gubernatorial election results map by county.svg County resultsBrown: #7996e2 50–60% #6674de 60–70% #584cde 70–80% #3933e5 80–90% #0d0596ff >90%Wisener: #e27f7f 50–60% #d75d5d 60–70% #D72F30 70–80% #C21B18 80–90% #A80000 >90%No data: #808080 The 1870 Tennessee gubernatorial election was held on November 8, 1870, to elect the governor of Tennessee. The Democratic nominee, former Confederate general John C. Brown overwhelmingly defeated Republican nominee William H. Wisener by a margin of 31.10%. Background Following the Civil War, Tennessee was led Governor Parson Brownlow, a Radical Republican who oversaw the passage of legislation giving rights to freed slaves while removing suffrage from ex-Confederates.Rust Randal Brownlow, William Gannaway 'Parson' https://tennesseeencyclopedia.net/entries/william-gannaway-brownlow/ August 14, 2026 Tennessee Encyclopedia en-USRust Randal Reconstruction https://tennesseeencyclopedia.net/entries/reconstruction/ August 14, 2026 Tennessee Encyclopedia en-US Brownlow's policies were opposed by Conservatives in the state who favored reconciliation with ex-Confederates. Following a strong performance in the 1866 elections,William Hardy "Fare well to all Radicals": Redeeming Tennessee, 1869-1870 2013 August 14, 2026 Doctoral University of Tennessee, Knoxville https://voljournals.utk.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=2938&context=utk_graddiss 9 September 2026 The Conservatives would field former Unionist Emerson Etheridge to oppose Brownlow in the 1867 Tennessee gubernatorial election; however, Brownlow would win re-election by a margin of 53%, significantly aided by the enfranchisement of 40,000 African-Americans earlier in the year.Hardy William "Fare well to all Radicals": Redeeming Tennessee, 1869-1870 2013 August 14, 2026 Doctoral University of Tennessee, Knoxville https://voljournals.utk.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=2938&context=utk_graddiss 13September 2026 Brownlow would leave office in 1869 after winning election to the United States Senate and would be succeeded by Dewitt Clinton Senter, whose conservative policies would cause division in Tennessee's Republican party and embolden Tennessee's conservatives, who won control of the General Assembly in August 1869Hardy William "Fare well to all Radicals": Redeeming Tennessee, 1869-1870 2013 August 14, 2026 Doctoral University of Tennessee, Knoxville https://voljournals.utk.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=2938&context=utk_graddiss 170September 2026 and repealed many of the laws enacted under Brownlow.Hardy William "Fare well to all Radicals": Redeeming Tennessee, 1869-1870 2013 Doctoral University of Tennessee, Knoxville https://voljournals.utk.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=2938&context=utk_graddiss 4September 2026 The conservative-controlled General Assembly would also successfully call for a constitutional convention which restored suffrage to ex-Confederates.Rust Randal Government https://tennesseeencyclopedia.net/entries/government/ August 14, 2026 Tennessee Encyclopedia en-US General election Candidates John C. Brown, Democratic William H. Wisener, Republican Results Tennessee gubernatorial election, 1870The World almanac & book of facts 1871-1873 https://babel.hathitrust.org/cgi/pt?id=mdp.39015049413423&seq=112 HathiTrust August 14, 2026 Democratic Party (United States) John C. Brown 78,979 65.55 Republican Party (United States) William H. Wisener 41,500 34.45 120,479 100.00 Democratic Party (United States) References Further reading Abbott Richard https://archive.org/details/republicanparty00abbo The Republican Party and the South, 1855-1877: The First Southern Strategy 1986 University of North Carolina Press 0807816809 Parker James 1974 Tennessee Gubernatorial Elections, I. 1869--The Victory of the Conservatives https://www.jstor.org/stable/42623426 Tennessee Historical Quarterly Tennessee Historical Society 33 1 34–48 42623426 Hardy William "Fare well to all Radicals": Redeeming Tennessee, 1869-1870 2013 Doctoral University of Tennessee, Knoxville https://voljournals.utk.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=2938&context=utk_graddiss Category:Tennessee gubernatorial elections Category:1870 United States gubernatorial elections Category:November 1870 in the United States