A Massachusetts general election was held on November 6, 1956, in the Commonwealth of Massachusetts.
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Part of the 1956 United States elections | ||
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The election included:
- statewide elections for governor, lieutenant governor, attorney general, Secretary of the Commonwealth, treasurer, and auditor;
- district elections for U.S. Representatives, state representatives, state senators, and Governor's Councillors; and
- ballot questions at the state and local levels.
Democratic and Republican candidates were selected in party primaries held on September 18, 1956.
Governor
Democrat Foster Furcolo was elected over Republican Sumner G. Whittier, Socialist Labor candidate Henning A. Blomen, and Prohibition candidate Mark R. Shaw.
Lieutenant governor
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Incumbent lieutenant governor Sumner Whitter ran for governor.
Democrat Robert F. Murphy was elected lieutenant governor over Republican Charles Gibbons, Socialist Labor candidate Francis A. Votano, and Prohibition candidate Harold E. Bassett.
Republican primary
Candidates
Results
Gibbons was unopposed for the Republican nomination.
Democratic primary
Candidates
- James A. Burke, former state representative from Milton and candidate for lieutenant Gtovernor in 1954
- Robert F. Murphy, former House Minority Leader and nominee for governor in 1954
- George A. Wells, executive councilor
Results
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Democratic | Robert F. Murphy | 280,781 | 62.06% | |
| Democratic | James A. Burke | 95,111 | 21.02% | |
| Democratic | George A. Wells | 76,514 | 16.92% | |
| Total votes | 452,406 | 100.00% | ||
General election
Results
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Democratic | Robert F. Murphy | 1,158,704 | 51.23% |  4.00 | |
| Republican | Charles Gibbons | 1,082,113 | 47.84% |  4.17 | |
| Socialist Labor | Francis A. Votano | 13,286 | 0.59% | 0.10 | |
| Prohibition | Harold E. Bassett | 7,894 | 0.39% | 0.12 | |
| Total votes | 2,261,997 | 100.00% | |||
Attorney general
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Republican attorney general George Fingold was re-elected over Democrat Edward J. McCormack Jr., Socialist Workers candidate Fred M. Ingersol, and Prohibition candidate Howard Rand in the general election.
Democratic primary
Candidates
- Edward J. McCormack Jr., president of the Boston City Council
- Joseph D. Ward, State Representative from Fitchburg
Results
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Democratic | Edward J. McCormack Jr. | 250,916 | 55.17% | |
| Democratic | Joseph D. Ward | 203,923 | 44.83% | |
| Write-in | 7 | 0.00% | ||
| Total votes | 454,839 | 100.00% | ||
General election
Candidates
- George Fingold, incumbent attorney general (Republican)
- Fred M. Ingersoll (Socialist Workers)
- Edward J. McCormack Jr., president of the Boston City Council (Democratic)
- Howard Rand (Prohibition)
Results
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Republican | George Fingold (incumbent) | 1,152,348 | 50.58% | ||
| Democratic | Edward J. McCormack Jr. | 1,113,105 | 48.86% | ||
| Socialist Workers | Fred M. Ingersoll | 7,983 | 0.35% | ||
| Prohibition | Howard Rand | 4,779 | 0.20% | ||
| Write-in | 7 | 0.00% | |||
| Total votes | 2,278,222 | 100.00% | |||
Secretary of the Commonwealth
Incumbent Secretary of the Commonwealth Edward J. Cronin defeated Republican Senate President Richard I. Furbush, Prohibition candidate Earl Dodge, and Socialist Labor candidate Lawrence Gilfedder in the general election.
Democratic primary
Candidates
- Edward J. Cronin, incumbent Secretary of the Commonwealth
- Robert Emmet Dinsmore
Results
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Democratic | Edward J. Cronin (incumbent) | 366,019 | 83.79% | |
| Democratic | Robert Emmet Dinsmore | 70,813 | 16.21% | |
| Write-in | 1 | 0.00% | ||
General election
Candidates
- Edward J. Cronin, incumbent Secretary of the Commonwealth (Democratic)
- Earl Dodge, executive secretary of the Massachusetts Prohibition Party (Prohibition)
- Richard I. Furbush, president of the Massachusetts Senate (Republican)
- Lawrence Gilfedder (Socialist Workers)
Results
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Democratic | Edward J. Cronin (incumbent) | 1,196,746 | 53.40% | ||
| Republican | Richard I. Furbush | 1,025,295 | 45.75% | ||
| Prohibition | Earl Dodge | 10,030 | 0.45% | ||
| Socialist Workers | Lawrence Gilfedder | 9,181 | 0.41% | ||
| Write-in | 5 | 0.00% | |||
Treasurer and receiver-general
Incumbent treasurer and receiver-general John Francis Kennedy defeated Norwood Selectman Clement A. Riley, John F. Buckley, John M. Kennedy, and Henry Joseph Hurley in the Democratic primary and Republican Robert H. Beaudreau, Socialist Labor candidate Willy N. Hogseth, and Prohibition candidate Isaac Goddard in the general election.
Democratic primary
Candidates
- John F. Buckley
- Henry Joseph Hurley
- John Francis Kennedy, incumbent treasurer and receiver-general
- John M. Kennedy
- Clement A. Riley, Norwood selectman and candidate for treasurer in 1954
Results
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Democratic | John Francis Kennedy (incumbent) | 186,382 | 40.83% | |
| Democratic | Clement A. Riley | 127,242 | 27.87% | |
| Democratic | John F. Buckley | 72,019 | 15.79% | |
| Democratic | John M. Kennedy | 43,925 | 9.62% | |
| Democratic | Henry Joseph Hurley | 26,881 | 5.89% | |
| Write-in | 1 | 0.00% | ||
General election
Candidates
- Robert H. Beaudreau, U.S. Marshal for the District of Massachusetts (Republican)
- Isaac Goddard (Prohibition)
- Willy N. Hogseth (Socialist Workers)
- John Francis Kennedy, incumbent treasurer and receiver-general (Democratic)
Results
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Democratic | John Francis Kennedy (incumbent) | 1,196,626 | 53.04% | ||
| Republican | Robert H. Beaudreau | 1,043,812 | 46.26% | ||
| Socialist Workers | Willy N. Hogseth | 7,970 | 0.35% | ||
| Prohibition | Issac Goddard | 7,887 | 0.35% | ||
| Write-in | 5 | 0.00% | |||
Auditor
Incumbent auditor Thomas J. Buckley defeated Republican Joseph A. Nobile, Socialist Labor candidate Anthony Martin, and Prohibition candidate John B. Lauder in the general election.
General election
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Democratic | Thomas J. Buckley (incumbent) | 1,278,635 | 57.19% | ||
| Republican | Joseph A. Nobile | 937,570 | 41.94% | ||
| Socialist Workers | Anthony Martin | 13,353 | 0.60% | ||
| Prohibition | John B. Lauder | 6,153 | 0.28% | ||
| Write-in | 4 | 0.00% | |||