1950 Oregon gubernatorial election explained

Election Name:1950 Oregon gubernatorial election
Country:Oregon
Type:presidential
Ongoing:no
Previous Election:1948 Oregon gubernatorial special election
Previous Year:1948 (special)
Next Election:1954 Oregon gubernatorial election
Next Year:1954
Election Date:November 7, 1950
Nominee1:Douglas McKay
Party1:Republican Party (United States)
Popular Vote1:334,160
Percentage1:66.1%
Nominee2:Austin F. Flegel
Party2:Democratic Party (United States)
Popular Vote2:171,750
Percentage2:33.9%
Map Size:250px
Governor
Before Election:Douglas McKay
Before Party:Republican Party (United States)
After Election:Douglas McKay
After Party:Republican Party (United States)

The 1950 Oregon gubernatorial election took place on November 7, 1950 to elect the governor of the U.S. state of Oregon. Incumbent Republican governor Douglas McKay defeated Democratic nominee Austin F. Flegel.

Background

McKay had been elected in a 1948 gubernatorial special election to replace interim governor John Hubert Hall. Hall, as Speaker of the Oregon House of Representatives, had succeeded to the governorship following the death of governor Earl Snell, Oregon Secretary of State Robert S. Farrell, Jr., and State Senate President Marshall E. Cornett in a plane crash on October 30, 1947.

Campaign

In his reelection bid, McKay was unopposed in the Republican primary. In the Democratic primary, Portland attorney and state senator Austin F. Flegel defeated Oregon State Treasurer Walter J. Pearson and former state senator and 1942 and 1948 Democratic gubernatorial nominee Lew Wallace.[1] [2] In the general election, McKay defeated Flegel by a nearly 2–1 margin.

McKay would step down less than two years into his term to become United States Secretary of the Interior under President Dwight Eisenhower.

Notes and References

  1. News: Flegel enters governor's race. The Register-Guard. March 1, 1950. August 22, 2011.
  2. News: Democratic choice for governorship still not clear. The Register-Guard. May 21, 1950. August 22, 2011.