1972 Louisiana gubernatorial election

none January 2025 September 2023 1972 Louisiana gubernatorial election Louisiana presidential No 1968 Louisiana gubernatorial election 1968 1975 Louisiana gubernatorial election 1975 February 1, 1972 1912 Image:Edwin Edwards.jpg 150x150px Edwin Edwards Democratic Party (United States) 641,146 57.17% Image:Dave Treen.jpg David Treen Republican Party (United States) 480,424 42.83% 1972 Louisiana gubernatorial election results map by parish.svg 280px Parish resultsEdwards: #7996e2 50–60% #6674de 60–70% #584cde 70–80% #3933e5 80–90% Treen: #e27f7f 50–60% #d75d5d 60–70% Governor John McKeithen Democratic Party (United States) Edwin Edwards Democratic Party (United States) The 1972 Louisiana gubernatorial election was held on February 1, 1972. Edwin Edwards defeated Republican candidate David Treen to become Governor of Louisiana. Edwards's victory was the first time a Roman Catholic had been elected to the state's governorship since Francis T. Nicholls left office in 1892. Party primaries were held on November 6, 1971, and a run-off was held for the Democratic nomination on December 18, 1971. These were the last closed primaries for governor of Louisiana before the state adopted its current primary election system. This was also the last gubernatorial election not to take place in an off-year, as all elections starting from 1975 would take place one year before a presidential election. Democratic primary Candidates Taddy Aycock, lieutenant governor Samuel Bell Sr. Harold Lee Bethune II David L. Chandler Huey P. Coleman Jimmie Davis, former governor, 1944–1948 and 1960–1964 Edwin Edwards, U.S. representative from Crowley J. Bennett Johnston, state senator from Shreveport Gillis Long, former U.S. representative from Alexandria Speedy Long, U.S. representative from LaSalle Parish Warren J. "Puggy" Moity James Moore Frank T. Salter Jr. John G. Schwegman, grocery store magnate and state senator from Metairie Jimmy Strain, pediatrician and state representative from Shreveport Addison Roswell Thompson, perennial candidate and white supremacist Campaign Early in the campaign, many political analysts predicted that the race's top candidates would be Gillis Long, Jimmie Davis, and C.C. "Taddy" Aycock.8 November 1971 2 New Faces Top Primary In Louisiana Toledo Blade https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=svFOAAAAIBAJ&sjid=2gEEAAAAIBAJ&pg=7061,3261456&dq=edwards+johnston&hl=en 28 June 2012 However, the two candidates to make the runoff, Edwin Edwards and J. Bennett Johnston, were relative newcomers to the Louisiana political scene, despite Edwards' congressional tenure.8 November 1971 New Faces Winning In Louisiana Miami News https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=zcolAAAAIBAJ&sjid=HPMFAAAAIBAJ&pg=4827,3030754&hl=en 28 June 2012July 2026 InternetArchiveBot Cousins Gillis and Speedy Long both ran in a rematch of their 1964 primary race for Congress, when Speedy unseated Gillis. Ironically, Gillis reclaimed that House seat the next year, when Speedy retired after Edwards and the Louisiana Legislature redistricted him into the same district as longtime incumbent Otto Passman. Results 1971 Democratic gubernatorial primary Edwin Edwards Democratic Party (US) 276,397 23.54% J. Bennett Johnston Democratic Party (US) 208,830 17.79% Gillis William Long Democratic Party (US) 164,276 13.99% Jimmie H. Davis Democratic Party (US) 138,756 11.82% John G. Schwegmann Democratic Party (US) 92,072 7.84% Taddy Aycock Democratic Party (US) 88,465 7.54% Samuel Bell Sr. Democratic Party (US) 72,486 6.17% Speedy Long Democratic Party (US) 61,359 5.23% Frank T. Salter Jr. Democratic Party (US) 32,203 2.74% James Moore Democratic Party (US) 9,408 0.80% Warren J. "Puggy" Moity Democratic Party (US) 8,965 0.76% David L. Chandler Democratic Party (US) 7,244 0.62% Huey P. Coleman Democratic Party (US) 4,833 0.41% Harold Lee Bethune II Democratic Party (US) 3,032 0.26% Wilford L. Thompson Sr. Democratic Party (US) 2,535 0.21% Addison Roswell Thompson Democratic Party (US) 1,924 0.16% Jimmy Strain Democratic Party (US) 1,258 0.11% 1,182,043 100.00% Run-off 1971 Democratic gubernatorial run-off Edwin Edwards Democratic Party (US) 584,262 50.19% 26.65 J. Bennett Johnston Democratic Party (US) 579,774 49.81% 32.02 1,164,036 100.00% Republican primary Candidates Robert Max Ross Dave Treen, congressman who eventually served as Louisiana governor from 1980 to 1984 (defeated in 1983 for re-election by Edwin W. Edwards, who was making a return to the governorship after having been term-limited from running for re-election in 1979) Campaign The GOP primary with only two candidates and a lopsided victory for Treen led the New York Times to characterize it as "the most concentrated Republican campaign for state office in recent history."Democrat Is Winner in Election For Governorship of Louisiana https://www.nytimes.com/1972/02/02/archives/democrat-is-winner-in-election-for-governorship-of-louisiana.html?searchResultPosition=1 September 7, 2025 New York Times February 2, 1972 Results 1971 Republican gubernatorial primary Dave Treen Republican Party (US) 9,732 92.06% Robert Max Ross Republican Party (US) 839 7.94% 10,571 100.00% General election Campaign Edwards and Treen both "jabbed consistently at corruption and in efficiency in government and promised to shore up the state's financial condition." Treen had never previously been elected to public office, and Edwards focused on his experience in contrast to Treen's lack of it. Treen argued that Edwards could not be a true reform candidate, due to his experience. If Treen had been elected, he would have been the first Republican occupant of the Louisiana governorship since 1877. Results 1972 Louisiana gubernatorial election Edwin Edwards Democratic Party (US) 641,146 57.2% 42.8 Dave Treen Republican Party (US) 480,424 42.8% N/A 1,121,570 100.00% Sources Louisiana Secretary of State. Primary Election Returns, 1971 References 1971 Category:1971 United States gubernatorial elections Category:1972 United States gubernatorial elections Gubernatorial Gubernatorial Category:February 1972 in the United States