1896 North Carolina gubernatorial election

For related races, see 1896 United States gubernatorial elections.

The 1896 North Carolina gubernatorial election was held on November 3, 1896. Republican nominee Daniel Lindsay Russell defeated Democratic nominee Cyrus B. Watson with 46.52% of the vote. This was the only election in North Carolina between 1872 and 1972 in which the Republican nominee won the governor's office,^[1] and the only one until 2016 in which no candidate received over 50% of the vote.

1896 North Carolina gubernatorial election

← 1892 November 3, 1896 1900 →

Nominee Daniel Lindsay Russell Cyrus B. Watson William A. Guthrie Party Fusion Democratic Populist Popular vote 154,025 145,286 30,943 Percentage 46.5% 43.9% 9.4%

County results Russell:      30–40%      40–50%      50–60%      60–70%      70–80% Watson:      30–40%      40–50%      50–60%      60–70% Guthrie:      30–40%

Governor before election Elias Carr Democratic Elected Governor Daniel Lindsay Russell Republican

Democratic convention

The state Democratic Party convention was held on June 25, 1896.^[2]

Candidates

• Cyrus B. Watson, former State Representative and former State Senator^[3]
• Walter Clark, Associate Justice of the North Carolina Supreme Court
• James C. MacRae
• Lee Slater Overman, State Representative

Results

Democratic convention results^[2]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Democratic	Cyrus B. Watson	592	65.41
	Democratic	Walter Clark	173	19.12
	Democratic	James C. MacRae	133	14.70
	Democratic	Lee Slater Overman	7	0.77
Total votes			905	100.00

Republican convention

The state Republican Party convention was held on May 15, 1896.^[2]

Candidates

• Daniel Lindsay Russell, former U.S. Representative
• Oliver H. Dockery, former U.S. Representative
• James E. Boyd
• James M. Moody, State Senator

Results

Republican convention results^[2]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Republican	Daniel Lindsay Russell	120	42.71
	Republican	Oliver H. Dockery	113	40.21
	Republican	James E. Boyd	22	7.83
	Republican	James M. Moody	22	7.83
Total votes			281	100.00

General election

Candidates

Major party candidates

• Daniel Lindsay Russell, Republican
• Cyrus B. Watson, Democratic

Other candidates

• William A. Guthrie, People's
• James R. Jones, National Prohibition
• Jeremiah W. Holt, Prohibition

Results

1896 North Carolina gubernatorial election^[4]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Republican	Daniel Lindsay Russell	154,025	46.52%
	Democratic	Cyrus B. Watson	145,286	43.89%
	Populist	William A. Guthrie	30,943	9.35%
	Independent	James R. Jones	553	0.17%
	Prohibition	Jeremiah W. Holt	246	0.07%
Majority			8,739
Turnout
	Republican gain from Democratic		Swing

References

1. Ourcampaigns.com
2. "North Carolina Manual". 1991. Retrieved July 28, 2020.
3. NCpedia biography: Cyrus Barksdale Watson
4. Kalb, Deborah (December 24, 2015). Guide to U.S. Elections. CQ Press. ISBN 9781483380353. Retrieved July 28, 2020.