1837 Georgia gubernatorial election

none January 2025 January 2025 1837 Georgia gubernatorial election Georgia (U.S. state) presidential 1835 Georgia gubernatorial election 1835 1839 Georgia gubernatorial election 1839 October 2, 1837 x150px George R. Gilmer State Rights Whig 34,181 50.60% x150px William Schley Democratic Union Party 33,364 49.40% 1837 Georgia gubernatorial election results map by county.svg Results by CountyDubin Michael J. United States Gubernatorial Elections, 1776 1860: The Official Results By State And County McFarland 2003 9780786414390 34–35Gilmer: #c0a32f 50–60% #a88600 60–70% #907300 70–80% #735c00 80–90% #564500 >90%Schley: #8da9e2 50–60% #678cd7 60–70% #4170cd 70–80% #3358a2 80–90% #244079 >90% Governor William Schley Democratic George R. Gilmer Whig The 1837 Georgia gubernatorial election was held on October 2, 1837, to elect the governor of Georgia. In a major upset, thanks in part to the Panic of 1837, Whig State Rights candidate and Ex-Governor George R. Gilmer beat incumbent Democratic Union Governor Willam Schley.Murray Paul Party Organization in Georgia Politics 1825–1853 https://www.jstor.org/stable/40576991 The Georgia Historical Quarterly 29 4 200–201 40576991 Background During this time, Georgian politics were dominated by two local parties, the Union party and the State Rights party. The Union party was the product of the forces of liberal democracy that brought white manhood suffrage and popular elections in the 1800s. The State Rights party, on the other hand, was a political anomaly whose conservative politics and organization were more closely related to those of the late 1800s. Panic of 1837 Panic of 1837 The Panic of 1837 was a major hit to the already weakening Union party as it brought attention to the Union administered Central Bank of Georgia. Created in 1828, the state-owned bank was the most powerful financial institution in Georgia. Upcountry Democrats were supporters of the bank while the Whigs were skeptical of it.Scott Carole E. 2016 The Troubled World of Antebellum Banking in Georgia https://www.westga.edu/~bquest/2000/antebellumGAbanks.pdf 11 The panic also highlighted disagreements between the liberal democratic wing of the Union party and the conservative machine element close to Governor Schley. The latter of these two groups was led by Tomlinson Fort, owner of the Democratic newspaper The Federal Union and president of the Central Bank since 1831. As head of both of these positions, it effectively made him the political and financial "dictator" of the Union administration. Dissatisfaction with Fort and his conservative machine caused many Union leaders to desert the governor and support the opposition. The State Rights party nominated former Governor George R. Gilmer. Election 1837 Georgia gubernatorial election Whig Party (United States) George R. Gilmer 34,181 50.60 +2.82 Democratic Party (United States) William Schley 33,364 49.40 -2.82 67,545 100.00 References Category:Georgia (U.S. state) gubernatorial elections Georgia Gubernatorial Category:October 1837