Louisiana gubernatorial election, 1952

Louisiana Democratic gubernatorial primary, 1952

February 19, 1952

Nominee Robert F. Kennon Carlos Spaht Party Democratic Democratic Popular vote 482,302 302,743 Percentage 61.44% 38.56%

Governor before election Earl K. Long Democratic Elected Governor Robert F. Kennon Democratic

The Louisiana gubernatorial election of 1952 was held in two rounds on January 15 and February 19, 1952. Like most Southern states between Reconstruction and the civil rights era, Louisiana's Republican Party was virtually nonexistent in terms of electoral support.

This meant that the two Democratic Party primary elections held on these dates were the real contest over who would be governor of Louisiana. The 1952 election saw the defeat of Long candidate Carlos Spaht, and the election of Robert F. Kennon as governor.

In the low-turnout general election held on April 22, 1952, Kennon defeated Harrison Bagwell, a Baton Rouge lawyer and only the second Louisiana Republican gubernatorial nominee since Reconstruction. Kennon received 118,723 votes (96 percent) to Bagwell's 4,958 votes (4 percent).^[1]

Results

First Democratic Party Primary, January 15

Candidate	Votes received	Percent
Carlos Spaht	173,987	22.84%
Robert F. Kennon	163,434	21.46%
Hale Boggs	142,542	18.71%
James M. McLemore	116,405	15.28%
William J. "Bill" Dodd	90,925	11.94%
Dudley J. LeBlanc	62,906	8.26%
Kermit Parker	5,470	0.72%
Lucille May Grace	4,832	0.63%
Cliff Liles	1,233	0.16%
Total	761,734

Second Democratic Party Primary, February 19

Candidate	Votes received	Percent
Robert F. Kennon	482,302	61.44%
Carlos Spaht	302,743	38.56%
Total	785,045

References

1. Michael J. Dubin. United States Gubernatorial Elections, 1932-1952: The Official Results by State and County. Jefferson, North Carolina: McFarland and Company. pp. 103–104. ISBN 978-0-7864-7034-1. Retrieved January 6, 2015.

Sources

Louisiana Secretary of State. Democratic Primary Election Returns, 1952.