1914 Arizona gubernatorial election

The 1914 Arizona gubernatorial election took place on November 3, 1914, for the post of the Governor of Arizona. The Supreme Court of Arizona ruled that there would be no statewide elections in 1912, thus extending the terms to sync up with elections on even years.[1] The Democratic nominee was incumbent governor George W. P. Hunt, his Republican opponent was the final Delegate to Congress from Arizona Territory, Ralph H. Cameron. Cameron was disadvantaged [2] by the same reason the previous Republican nominee Wells was: he had opposed statehood with the present Constitution.

1914 Arizona gubernatorial election

November 3, 1914
 
Nominee George W. P. Hunt Ralph H. Cameron
Party Democratic Republican
Popular vote 25,226 17,602
Percentage 49.46% 34.51%

 
Nominee George U. Young J. R. Barnette
Party Progressive Socialist
Popular vote 5,206 2,973
Percentage 10.20% 5.83%

Governor before election

George W. P. Hunt
Democratic

Elected Governor

George W. P. Hunt
Democratic

Two third parties also made strong challenges, the Progressives polled over 10% with nominee George Young, the final Territorial Secretary and then-mayor of Phoenix. The Socialists held around the same percentage of votes as in 1911, increasing slightly, but would peak here and never reach the same height.

George W. P. Hunt was sworn in again as governor on January 4, 1915.

Democratic primary

Candidates

  • George W. P. Hunt, incumbent governor
  • Henry A. Hughes, physician and former Democratic primary candidate for governor.

Race

As of May 1914, Hunt had still not officially declared his intention to run for re-election. By that point in time, there were already two other Democrats who had announced their intention to run for the Democratic nomination: Fred Sutter and Henry A. Hughes.[3] Sutter had been the Superior Court Judge from Cochise County from 1912 until his resignation in July 1913. When he resigned, he had stated his intention to never run for elected office again. However, in February 1914, when Democratic leaders began to float his name as a possible candidate in the Democratic primary for the governor's seat, he did not disavow those rumors.[4] By March it was reported that he would be the conservative Democratic candidate in the primary, to oppose the more liberal Hunt,[5][6] and he officially announced his candidacy by mid-March.[7] Within a month, Sutter was considered the front runner for the nomination, over the incumbent Hunt.[8][9] There were rumors that Hunt would seek the U.S. Senate seat, rather than another term as governor.[10] Sutter's official announcement that he was a candidate for governor came on May 22 in Tucson.[11] In order not to splinter the party, Sutter withdrew from the race in early July, announcing his support for Hunt.[12] When Hunt officially began his candidacy for re-election in mid-July, with the submission of a petition to put his name on the ballot, the first signature on the petition was that of Sutter.[13]

Results

Democratic primary results [14] [15]
Party Candidate Votes %
Democratic George W. P. Hunt 18,658 65.37
Democratic Henry A. Hughes 9,885 34.63
Total votes 28,543 100.00

General election

Results

Arizona gubernatorial election, 1914 [16]
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Democratic George W. P. Hunt 25,226 49.46% -2.00%
Republican Ralph Cameron 17,602 34.51% -7.90%
Progressive George U. Young 5,206 10.20% N/a
Socialist J. R. Barnette 2,973 5.83% +0.06%
Majority 7,624 14.95% 5.90%
Turnout 51,007
Democratic hold Swing

References

  1. State v. Osborne, 14 Ariz. 185 (1912)
  2. Goff 1973, p. 63.
  3. "Political Resume of the Week". Tombstone Weekly Epitaph. May 3, 1914. p. 1. Retrieved February 4, 2017 via Newspapers.com.
  4. "Sutter May Be a Contestant". The Arizona Republican. February 3, 1914. p. 3. Retrieved February 4, 2017 via Newspapers.com.
  5. "Judge Sutter Will Make Race For Governor". Arizona Daily Star. March 13, 1914. p. 3. Retrieved February 4, 2017 via Newspapers.com.
  6. "Gubernatorial Field is Full". The Arizona Republican. March 13, 1914. p. 9. Retrieved February 4, 2017 via Newspapers.com.
  7. "Judge Sutter's Candidacy". Bisbee Daily Review. March 15, 1914. p. 12. Retrieved February 4, 2017 via Newspapers.com.
  8. "Cassidy May Be Candidate Beat Sutter". Bisbee Daily Review. April 12, 1914. p. 12. Retrieved February 4, 2017 via Newspapers.com.
  9. "A Boy May Alter Political Plans of Democrats". Bisbee Daily Review. April 14, 1914. p. 5. Retrieved February 4, 2017 via Newspapers.com.
  10. "Political Outlook For the Past Week". Tombstone Weekly Epitaph. May 17, 1914. p. 1. Retrieved February 4, 2017 via Newspapers.com.
  11. "Sutter Declares His Candidacy in Tucson". Bisbee Daily Review. May 22, 1914. p. 11. Retrieved February 4, 2017 via Newspapers.com.
  12. "Fred Sutter Will Not Run For Governor". Arizona Daily Star. July 7, 1914. p. 2. Retrieved February 4, 2017 via Newspapers.com.
  13. "Campaign for Hunt is Open in Bisbee". The Copper Era and Morenci Leader. July 17, 1914. p. 1. Retrieved February 4, 2017 via Newspapers.com.
  14. Goff 1973, p. 62.
  15. http://www.ourcampaigns.com/RaceDetail.html?RaceID=47388
  16. Goff 1973, p. 64.

Bibliography

  • Goff, John S. (1973). "The First Years of Statehood". George W. P. Hunt and his Arizona. Phoenix: Socio-Technical Publications. pp. 62–64.
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