1938 Tennessee gubernatorial election

none related races 1938 United States gubernatorial elections January 2025 September 2023 1938 Tennessee gubernatorial election Tennessee Presidential no 1936 Tennessee gubernatorial election 1936 1940 Tennessee gubernatorial election 1940 November 8, 1938 File:Prentice Cooper.jpg 150x150px Prentice Cooper Democratic Party (United States) 210,567 71.72% File:Howard Baker Sr.png Howard Baker Sr. Republican Party (United States) 83,031 28.28% 1938 Tennessee gubernatorial election results map by county.svg 300px County resultsCooper: #7996e2 50–60% #6674de 60–70% #584cde 70–80% #3933e5 80–90% #0d056c >90%Baker: #e27f7f 50–60% #d75d5d 60–70% #d72f30 70–80% #c21b18 80–90% Governor Gordon Browning Democratic Party (United States) Prentice Cooper Democratic Party (United States) The 1938 Tennessee gubernatorial election was held on November 8, 1938. Incumbent Democratic governor Gordon Browning lost his re-election bid in the primary and was defeated by Democratic nominee Prentice Cooper. In the general election, Cooper defeated Republican nominee Howard Baker Sr. with 71.7% of the vote. Background In 1937, Gordon Browning signed the Debt Reorganization Act, which consolidated the state's debt and enacted several new taxes. Over the next decade, these measures reduced the state's debt by roughly 40%.Rust Randal Browning, Gordon Weaver https://tennesseeencyclopedia.net/entries/gordon-weaver-browning/ 2026-03-09 Tennessee Encyclopedia en-US He also created the Department of Conservation (now the Tennessee Department of Environment and Conservation), implemented the state portions of several federal programs aimed at providing Depression-era relief, and established a civil service merit system.Rust Randal Browning, Gordon Weaver https://tennesseeencyclopedia.net/entries/gordon-weaver-browning/ 2026-03-09 Tennessee Encyclopedia en-US Browning was, according to one study, “a progressive Roosevelt supporter during his 1937–39 administration.”West Carroll Van https://books.google.com/books?id=wcnl3roLG0AC&newbks=1&newbks_redir=0&printsec=frontcover&pg=PA52&dq=Gordon+browning+progressive+tennessee&hl=en&source=gb_mobile_entity&ovdme=1#v=onepage&q=Gordon%20browning%20progressive%20tennessee&f=false Tennessee's New Deal Landscape: A Guidebook 2001 Univ. of Tennessee Press 978-1-57233-108-2 en In April 1937, Nathan L. Bachman (who had defeated Browning for the Senate seat in the 1934 special election) died in office. Browning devised a plan that would have allowed him to take Bachman's Senate seat while also helping E. H. Crump defeat Kenneth McKellar for Tennessee's other Senate seat, and enabling Lewis S. Pope to become governor. The plan never materialized, however, as Crump refused to run against his longtime friend McKellar. Furthermore, Browning had angered Crump by appointing several of Luke Lea's–the publisher of the Nashville Tennessean–former associates to government positions while ignoring Crump's own requests for appointments.Rust Randal Browning, Gordon Weaver https://tennesseeencyclopedia.net/entries/gordon-weaver-browning/ 2026-03-09 Tennessee Encyclopedia en-USPhillip Langsdon, Tennessee: A Political History (Franklin, Tenn.: Hillsboro Press, 2000), pp. 325-329, 340-350. Browning instead appointed George L. Berry to complete the remainder of Bachman's term. In 1938, Prentice Cooper, with Crump's endorsement, challenged Browning for the Democratic nomination for governor. After learning that Crump had registered more than 100,000 voters in Shelby County, Browning sought to replace the primary system with a "county unit" system that would equalize votes by county, thereby reducing Shelby County's influence. The bill passed, but was declared unconstitutional by the Tennessee Supreme Court prior to the election.Phillip Langsdon, Tennessee: A Political History (Franklin, Tenn.: Hillsboro Press, 2000), pp. 325-329, 340-350. Browning also formed a commission to investigate voter fraud in Shelby County and managed to have more than 13,000 voters removed from the rolls. His efforts fell short, however, and he was defeated by Cooper, 237,853 votes to 158,854.Phillip Langsdon, Tennessee: A Political History (Franklin, Tenn.: Hillsboro Press, 2000), pp. 325-329, 340-350. Following his defeat in the primary, Browning returned to Huntingdon to practice law.Bioguide Search https://bioguide.congress.gov/search/bio/B000959 2026-03-09 bioguide.congress.gov Primary elections Primary elections were held on August 4, 1938.https://books.google.com/books?id=nqAaAQAAMAAJ Guide to U.S. elections - CQ Press, Congressional Quarterly, inc 2005 CQ Press 9781568029818 2020-05-29 Democratic primary center|thumb|300px|County results #7996E2 Cooper #a5b0ff 40–50% #7996e2 50–60% #6674de 60–70% #584cde 70–80% #3933e5 80–90% #d3bc5f Browning #e9ddaf 40–50% #d3bc5f 50–60% #c8ab37 60–70% #a0892c 70–80% Candidates Prentice Cooper, State Senator from Shelbyville Gordon Browning, incumbent governor Roy Wallace J. Bailey Wray Results Democratic primary results Prentice Cooper Democratic Party (United States) 237,853 59.45% Gordon Browning (incumbent) Democratic Party (United States) 158,854 39.70% Roy Wallace Democratic Party (United States) 2,385 0.60% J. Bailey Wray Democratic Party (United States) 1,012 0.25% 400,104 100.00% General election Candidates Prentice Cooper, Democratic Howard Baker Sr., Republican Results 1938 Tennessee gubernatorial election Democratic Party (United States) Prentice Cooper 210,567 71.72% Republican Party (United States) Howard Baker Sr. 83,031 28.28% 127,536 Democratic Party (United States) See also 1938 United States Senate special election in Tennessee References 1938 Tennessee Gubernatorial