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1944 Montana gubernatorial election

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1944 Montana gubernatorial election

← 1940 November 7, 1944 1948 →
Turnout79.40%Decrease2.10[1]
 
Nominee Sam C. Ford Leif Erickson
Party Republican Democratic
Popular vote 116,461 89,224
Percentage 56.36% 43.18%

County results
Ford:      50–60%      60–70%      70–80%
Erickson:      50–60%      60–70%

Governor before election

Sam C. Ford
Republican

Elected Governor

Sam C. Ford
Republican

The 1944 Montana gubernatorial election took place on November 7, 1944. Incumbent Governor of Montana Sam C. Ford, who was first elected Governor in 1940, ran for re-election. He won the Republican primary and moved on to the general election, where he was opposed by Leif Erickson, a former Chief Justice of the Montana Supreme Court and the Democratic nominee. Although then-President Franklin D. Roosevelt comfortably won the state in that year's presidential election, Ford defeated Erickson by a wide margin to win his second and final term as governor. This election is the first time that an incumbent Republican Governor of Montana was re-elected or won re-election.

Democratic primary

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Candidates

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Results

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Democratic Party primary results[2]
Party Candidate Votes %
Democratic Leif Erickson 28,292 47.05
Democratic Austin B. Middleton 17,756 29.53
Democratic Roy E. Ayers 14,082 23.42
Total votes 60,130 100.00

Republican primary

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Candidates

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Results

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Republican Primary results[2]
Party Candidate Votes %
Republican Sam C. Ford (incumbent) 39,826 88.24
Republican Jacob Thorkelson 5,306 11.76
Total votes 45,132 100.00

General election

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Results

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Montana gubernatorial election, 1944[3]
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Republican Sam C. Ford (incumbent) 116,461 56.36% +5.69%
Democratic Leif Erickson 89,224 43.18% −5.46%
Prohibition Charles R. Miller 960 0.46%
Majority 27,237 13.18% +11.15%
Turnout 222,964
Republican hold Swing

References

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  1. ^ "Montana Voter Turnout". Montana Secretary of State. Retrieved May 26, 2022.
  2. ^ a b "Report of the Official Canvass of the Vote Cast at the Primary Election Held in the State of Montana, July 18, 1944" (PDF). Montana Secretary of State. Archived from the original (PDF) on May 28, 2013. Retrieved July 5, 2014.
  3. ^ "Official Montana General Election Returns, November 7, 1944" (PDF). Montana Secretary of State. Archived from the original (PDF) on May 28, 2013. Retrieved July 5, 2014.