1908 West Virginia gubernatorial election
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The 1908 West Virginia gubernatorial election took place on November 3, concurrently with the presidential election. Republican nominee William E. Glasscock was elected Governor of West Virginia, defeating Democratic nominee Louis Bennett Sr.
Democratic nomination[edit]
Candidates[edit]
- Louis Bennett Sr. of Lewis County, former Speaker of the West Virginia House of Delegates.[1]
- Adam Brown Littlepage of Kanawha County, state senator and counsel for the United Mine Workers.[2]
Convention[edit]
Louis Bennett Sr. was nominated on the first ballot on July 30. His competitor, Adam B. Littlepage, was nominated for the position of Secretary of State.[2]
By a wide margin,[a] the convention adopted two planks calling for the continuation of disenfranchisement of black voters and segregation of train cars.[1][3] The adoption of the planks was opposed by former Governor William A. MacCorkle, who warned that they would cause the party's defeat in the general election.[3]
Republican nomination[edit]
Candidates[edit]
- William Hearne of Ohio County, attorney[5]
- Arnold C. Scherr of Grant County, State Auditor[6]
- Charles W. Swisher of Marion County, Secretary of State[7]
Campaign and conventions[edit]
The Republican Party of West Virginia's nomination process in this period was a patchwork of indirect primaries and conventions, all taking place over several months.[8]
Early in the race, Hearne touted that he would go to the convention with the full support of the Northern Panhandle. He was awarded the full slate of delegates from his home state of Ohio County, owing to no other candidates contesting the race. However, after losing the Marshall County primary to Scherr, Hearne dropped out. After the Ohio County Republican Party's executive committee selected a slate of delegates supportive of Scherr, Hearne re-entered the race, demanding to select his own delegates. On July 7, the state party's executive committee ruled in favor of Hearne, leading Scherr's supporters to bolt the convention.[8]
Scherr's supporters, going by the title "Lincoln Republicans", adopted a platform demanding primary elections and nominated a separate set of candidates for statewide office.[9] Within a week, four of the statewide nominees had left the Lincoln Republican ticket - Thomas C. Miller and John T. Harris repudiating the convention that they had attended, James K. Hall and John T. Harris having been nominated by friends without their knowledge.[10]
Compromise[edit]
Scherr, Swisher, and presidential nominee William Howard Taft, among other party leaders, held a conference in Hot Springs, Virginia for several days in August.[11] Taft refused to side with either faction.[12][13]
On September 23, the regular Republicans and Lincoln Republicans agreed to both support William E. Glasscock, as a compromise. Additionally, changes to the nomination process was made, with delegates apportioned based on the county rather than the district, and requiring either a primary or a district convention to be held.[14]
General election[edit]
Results[edit]
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Republican | William E. Glasscock | 130,807 | 50.70 | |
| Democratic | Louis Bennett Sr. | 118,909 | 46.09 | |
| Independent | E. W. Miller | 4,967 | 1.93 | |
| Socialist | I. W. Houston | 3,308 | 1.28 | |
| Total votes | 257,991 | 100 | ||
| Republican hold | ||||
| County | William E. Glasscock Republican |
Louis Bennett Sr. Democratic |
Edward Mills Prohibition |
Harold W. Houston Socialist | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| # | % | # | % | # | % | # | % | |
| Barbour | 2,012 | 54.4% | 1,685 | 45.6% | ||||
| Berkeley | 2,641 | 50.3% | 2,606 | 49.7% | ||||
| Boone | 995 | 49.1% | 1,032 | 50.9% | ||||
| Braxton | 2,365 | 47.9% | 2,573 | 52.1% | ||||
| Brooke | 1,310 | 53.3% | 1,147 | 46.7% | ||||
| Cabell | 4,738 | 50.4% | 4,665 | 49.6% | ||||
| Calhoun | 975 | 44.0% | 1,243 | 56.0% | ||||
| Clay | 1,317 | 61.3% | 832 | 38.7% | ||||
| Doddridge | 1,720 | 62.2% | 1,045 | 37.8% | ||||
| Fayette | 5,594 | 57.8% | 4,082 | 42.2% | ||||
| Gilmer | 918 | 36.6% | 1,587 | 63.5% | ||||
| Grant | 1,220 | 74.3% | 421 | 25.7% | ||||
| Greenbrier | 2,366 | 46.3% | 2,742 | 53.7% | ||||
| Hampshire | 561 | 22.7% | 1,910 | 77.3% | ||||
| Hancock | 1,179 | 61.7% | 733 | 38.3% | ||||
| Hardy | 593 | 31.6% | 1,284 | 68.4% | ||||
| Harrison | 4,542 | 50.8% | 4,404 | 49.2% | ||||
| Jackson | 2,579 | 56.4% | 1,994 | 43.6% | ||||
| Jefferson | 1,235 | 32.9% | 2,519 | 67.1% | ||||
| Kanawha | 9,018 | 54.3% | 7,585 | 45.7% | ||||
| Lewis | 2,028 | 49.4% | 2,081 | 50.6% | ||||
| Lincoln | 2,183 | 55.2% | 1,750 | 44.8% | ||||
| Logan | 723 | 33.9% | 1,409 | 66.1% | ||||
| Marion | 4,095 | 49.1% | 4,251 | 50.9 | ||||
| Marshall | 3,415 | 54.5% | 2,855 | 45.5% | ||||
| Mason | 3,063 | 60.4% | 2,009 | 39.6% | ||||
| McDowell | 5,598 | 69.2% | 2,491 | 30.8% | ||||
| Mercer | 3,787 | 52.2% | 3,468 | 47.8% | ||||
| Mineral | 1,893 | 53.9% | 1,619 | 46.1% | ||||
| Mingo | 2,028 | 56.6% | 1,554 | 43.4% | ||||
| Monongalia | 2,908 | 59.6% | 1,972 | 40.4% | ||||
| Monroe | 1,480 | 49.5% | 1,507 | 50.5% | ||||
| Morgan | 1,116 | 66.3% | 567 | 33.7% | ||||
| Nicholas | 1,763 | 49.7% | 1,781 | 50.3 | ||||
| Ohio | 6,381 | 45.8% | 7,550 | 54.2% | ||||
| Pendleton | 884 | 42.3% | 1,204 | 57.7% | ||||
| Pleasants | 970 | 50.9% | 936 | 49.1% | ||||
| Pocahontas | 1,615 | 54.2% | 1,366 | 45.8% | ||||
| Preston | 3,748 | 69.5% | 1,643 | 30.5% | ||||
| Putnam | 2,073 | 54.1% | 1,760 | 45.9% | ||||
| Raleigh | 2,414 | 54.3% | 2,033 | 45.7% | ||||
| Randolph | 2,220 | 44.0% | 2,829 | 56.0% | ||||
| Ritchie | 2,181 | 60.4% | 1,430 | 39.6% | ||||
| Roane | 2,309 | 54.8% | 1,907 | 45.2% | ||||
| Summers | 1,856 | 45.7% | 2,207 | 54.3% | ||||
| Taylor | 1,901 | 51.9% | 1,772 | 48.1% | ||||
| Tucker | 1,783 | 56.4% | 1,380 | 43.6% | ||||
| Tyler | 2,032 | 58.5% | 1,441 | 41.5% | ||||
| Upshur | 2,502 | 72.8% | 933 | 27.2% | ||||
| Wayne | 2,392 | 47.8% | 2,610 | 52.2% | ||||
| Webster | 914 | 42.9% | 1,216 | 57.1% | ||||
| Wetzel | 2,179 | 42.5% | 2,953 | 57.5% | ||||
| Wirt | 1,013 | 48.9% | 1,060 | 51.1% | ||||
| Wood | 4,238 | 48.8% | 4,439 | 51.2% | ||||
| Wyoming | 1,244 | 59.8% | 837 | 40.1% | ||||
| Totals | 130,807 | 50.7% | 118,909 | 46.1% | 4,967 | 1.9% | 3,308 | 1.3% |
Notes[edit]
References[edit]
- ^ a b Tucker 2008, p. 28.
- ^ a b "WEST VIRGINIA TICKET.; Louis Bennett Nominated for Governor by the Democrats". The New York Times. July 31, 1908. Retrieved August 14, 2020.
- ^ a b c "Louis Bennett Only Nominee". The Daily Telegram. Charleston. July 30, 1908. p. 1. Retrieved August 17, 2020 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ "The Democrats Declare for Jim Crow Cars and Negro Disenfranchisement". The Advocate. Charleston. July 31, 1908. p. 1. Retrieved August 17, 2020 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ Tucker 2008, pp. 19–20.
- ^ Men of West Virginia 1903, pp. 426–427.
- ^ Men of West Virginia 1903, pp. 489–490.
- ^ a b Tucker 2008, p. 21.
- ^ Tucker 2008, p. 22.
- ^ "Scherr is Deserted". The Daily Telegram. July 13, 1908. p. 4. Retrieved August 14, 2020 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ "WILL CONFER WITH TAFT.; West Virginians Seek Decision in Their Factional Fight". The New York Times. August 10, 1908. Retrieved August 14, 2020.
- ^ "TAFT NOT TO MIX IN STATE CONTESTS; Announces Hands-Off Policy After Conference with Chairman Hitchcock". The New York Times. August 13, 1908. Retrieved August 14, 2020.
- ^ Tucker 2008, pp. 19–23.
- ^ "Rival Republican Candidates Out and Agreement on W.E. Glasscock". The New York Times. September 24, 1908. Retrieved August 14, 2020.
- ^ "Our Campaigns - WV Governor Race - Nov 03, 1908". Retrieved May 30, 2016.
- ^ a b Dubin, Michael J. (2010). United States Gubernatorial Elections, 1861-1911. Jefferson: McFarland & Company. pp. 608–609.
- Tucker, Gary Jackson (2008). Governor William Glasscock and Progressive Politics in Virginia (1st ed.). Morgantown: West Virginia University Press. ISBN 9781933202358.
- Men of West Virginia. Vol. II. Chicago: Biographical Publishing Company. 1903. Retrieved August 14, 2020.
