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1912 South Carolina gubernatorial election
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1912 South Carolina Democratic gubernatorial primary South Carolina 1912 presidential Popular Democratic Party (US) 1910 South Carolina gubernatorial election 1910 1912 08 27 1914 South Carolina gubernatorial election 1914 x150px File:Coleman L Blease (cropped).jpg Cole Blease Democratic Party (US) 71,552 50.96% File:Justice Jones.PNG Ira B. Jones Democratic Party (US) 66,478 47.34% Governor of South Carolina Cole Blease Democrat Cole Blease Democrat
The 1912 South Carolina gubernatorial election was held on November 5, 1912, to select the governor of the state of South Carolina. Governor Coleman Livingston Blease won the Democratic primary. As South Carolina was dominated by the Democratic Party, he faced no significant opposition in the general election.
Democratic primary
Candidates
Cole L. Blease, incumbent Governor since 1911
John T. Duncan, candidate for Governor in 1910
Ira B. Jones, Chief Justice of the South Carolina Supreme Court
Campaign
Governor Coleman Livingston Blease ran for a second term, but he faced a credible challenge in the state Democratic primary against Ira B. Jones. Senator Ben Tillman felt that Blease had greatly damaged the reputation of the state and was morally unfit to be governor, but because his re-election was on the same ballot he feared to openly oppose Blease so as to cause his own political downfall. Nevertheless, Tillman published a letter at the last minute stating his opposition to Blease. It was rather ironic because Tillman was essentially aiding the very people he had opposed in his 1890 gubernatorial contest. Despite Tillman's objection, Blease won the primary election on August 27 and avoided a runoff election by obtaining more than 50 percent of the vote.
Results
Democratic PrimaryCandidateVotes% Coleman Livingston Blease
71,552
51.0 Ira B. Jones
66,478
47.3 John T. Duncan
2,385
1.7
General election
The general election was held on November 5, 1912, when Coleman Livingston Blease was officially re-elected governor of South Carolina. Turnout increased over the previous gubernatorial election because there was also a presidential election on the ballot.
South Carolina Gubernatorial Election, 1912
Democratic Party (United States)
Coleman Livingston Blease (incumbent)
44,122
99.53
-0.3
Socialist Party of America
R.B. Britton
208
0.47
+0.3
43,914
99.06
-1.0
44,330
|-
| Democratic Party (United States)
| colspan=5 |Democratic hold
|-
#00f 65+% won by Blease
See also
Governor of South Carolina
List of governors of South Carolina
South Carolina gubernatorial elections
References
Ernest McPherson Jr. Lander A History of South Carolina, 1865–1960 1970 University of South Carolina Press 0-87249-169-2 52 https://archive.org/details/historyofsouthca0000land/page/52
Jordan Frank E The Primary State: A History of the Democratic Party in South Carolina, 1876–1962 28–30
"Report of the Secretary of State to the General Assembly of South Carolina. Part II." Reports and Resolutions of the General Assembly of the State of South Carolina. Volume III. Columbia, South Carolina: 1913, pp. 422–423.
Blease's Majority is 4,000 Votes The News and Courier 30 August 1912 1
External links
SCIway Biography of Coleman Livingston Blease
1910 South Carolina gubernatorial elections 1914
1912
Gubernatorial
Category:1912 United States gubernatorial elections
Category:November 1912 in the United States