1950 South Carolina gubernatorial election

The 1950 South Carolina gubernatorial election was held on November 7, 1950, to select the governor of the state of South Carolina. James F. Byrnes won the Democratic primary and ran unopposed in the general election becoming the 104th governor of South Carolina.

1950 South Carolina Democratic gubernatorial primary

July 11, 1950

Nominee James F. Byrnes Lester L. Bates Thomas H. Hope Party Democratic Democratic Democratic Popular vote 248,069 63,143 29,622 Percentage 71.8% 18.2% 8.6%

County results Byrnes:      50-60%      60-70%      70-80%      80-90% Hope:      40-50%

Governor before election Strom Thurmond Democratic Elected Governor James F. Byrnes Democratic

Democratic primary

Candidates

• Lester L. Bates, Columbia insurance executive
• James F. Byrnes, former United States Secretary of State (1945–47), Associate Justice of the United States Supreme Court (1941–42), and United States Senator (1931–41)
• Thomas H. Pope Jr., Speaker of the South Carolina House of Representatives
• Marcus A. Stone

The South Carolina Democratic Party held their primary for governor on July 11. The race was a cakewalk for the popular James F. Byrnes as he faced minimal opposition in the Democratic primary.

Democratic Primary
Candidate	Votes	%
James F. Byrnes	248,069	71.6
Lester L. Bates	63,143	18.2
Thomas H. Pope Jr.	29,622	8.6
Marcus A. Stone	5,495	1.6

General election

The general election was held on November 7, 1950 and James F. Byrnes was elected the next governor of South Carolina without opposition. Being a non-presidential election and few contested races, turnout was much lower than the Democratic primary election.

South Carolina Gubernatorial Election, 1950

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Democratic	James F. Byrnes	50,633	100.0	0.0
	No party	Write-Ins	9	0.0	0.0
Majority			50,624	100.0	0.0
Turnout			50,642
	Democratic hold

  65+% won by Byrnes

See also

• Governor of South Carolina
• List of governors of South Carolina
• South Carolina gubernatorial elections

References

• Jordan, Frank E. The Primary State: A History of the Democratic Party in South Carolina, 1876–1962. pp. 46–47.
• "Supplemental Report of the Secretary of State to the General Assembly of South Carolina." Reports and Resolutions of South Carolina to the General Assembly of the State of South Carolina. Columbia, South Carolina: 1951, p. 11.

External links

• SCIway Biography of Governor James Francis Byrnes

Preceded by 1946

South Carolina gubernatorial elections

Succeeded by 1954