The 1938 Minnesota gubernatorial election took place on November 8, 1938. Republican Party of Minnesota candidate Harold Stassen defeated Farmer–Labor Party incumbent Elmer Benson. Martin A. Nelson and George E. Leach unsuccessfully ran for the Republican nomination, while Hjalmar Petersen unsuccessfully ran for the Farmer-Labor nomination.
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 County results Stassen: 40-50% 50-60% 60-70% 70-80% 80-90% Benson 40-50% 50-60% | |||||||||||||||||||||
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Results
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Republican | Harold Stassen | 678,839 | 59.92% | +21.37% | |
| Farmer–Labor | Elmer Benson (incumbent) | 387,263 | 34.18% | -26.55% | |
| Democratic | Thomas F. Gallagher | 65,875 | 5.81% | n/a | |
| Industrial | John William Castle | 899 | 0.08% | -0.63% | |
| Majority | 291,576 | 25.74% | |||
| Turnout | 1,132,876 | ||||
| Republican gain from Farmer–Labor | Swing | ||||
Further reading
- Benson, Elmer A. "Politics in My Lifetime." Minnesota History 47 (1980): 154–60. online
- Haynes, John Earl. Dubious alliance: the making of Minnesota's DFL Party (U of Minnesota Press, 1984)
- Kirby, Ales, David G. Dalin and John F. Rothmann. Harold E. Stassen: The Life and Perennial Candidacy of the Progressive Republican (2012)
- Lovin, Hugh T. "The Fall of Farmer–Labor Parties, 1936-1938." Pacific Northwest Quarterly (1971): 16–26. in JSTOR
- Sofchalk, Donald G. "Union and Ethnic Group Influence in the 1938 Election on the Minnesota Iron Ranges." Journal of the West (2003) 42#3 pp: 66–74.
See also
External links
- http://www.sos.state.mn.us/home/index.asp?page=653
- http://www.sos.state.mn.us/home/index.asp?page=657