1936 Illinois elections

Elections were held in Illinois on Tuesday, November 3, 1936.^[1]

1936 Illinois elections

← 1934 November 3, 1936 1938 →

Primaries were held April 14, 1936.^[1]

The elections overall saw a strong performance by the Democratic Party.

Democrats retained their control of both chambers of the Illinois General Assembly and all statewide executive offices, winning all the statewide executive offices by broad margins. Democrats swept the election for University of Illinois trustees. Democrats also carried the state in the presidential election. Democratic United States senator J. Hamilton Lewis was reelected. Democrats retained all 21 U.S. congressional seats they held in the state, while Republicans retained all 6 seats they held.

Election information

Turnout

In the primaries, 2,674,613 ballots were cast (1,597,418 Democratic and 1,077,195 Republican).^[1]

In the general election, 3,995,088 ballots were cast.^[1]

Federal elections

United States President

Main article: 1936 United States presidential election in Illinois

See also: 1936 United States presidential election

Illinois voted for the Democratic ticket of Franklin D. Roosevelt and John Nance Garner.

United States Senate

Main article: 1936 United States Senate election in Illinois

See also: 1936 United States Senate elections

Democrat J. Hamilton Lewis won reelection to a second consecutive, and third overall, term in the United States Senate.

United States House

Main article: 1936 United States House of Representatives elections in Illinois

See also: 1936 United States House of Representatives elections

All 27 Illinois seats in the United States House of Representatives were up for election in 1936.

No seats switched parties. The partisan makeup of the state's United States House of Representatives delegation remained 21 Democrats and 6 Republicans.

State elections

Governor

1936 Illinois gubernatorial election

← 1932 November 3, 1936 1940 →

Nominee Henry Horner C. Wayland Brooks Party Democratic Republican Popular vote 2,067,861 1,682,685 Percentage 53.13% 43.24%

County Results Horner:      40–50%      50–60%      60–70% Brooks:      40–50%      50–60%      60–70%

Governor before election Henry Horner Democratic Elected Governor Henry Horner Democratic

Incumbent first-term governor Henry Horner, a Democrat, won reelection.

Democratic primary

The Chicago political machine unsuccessfully ran Chicago Board of Health president Herman Bundesen against the incumbent Henry Horner in retribution for Horner having vetoed a bill that would have allowed bookies to legally operate, a bill favored by Chicago political bosses such as Edward J. Kelly.^[2]

Candidates

• Herman Bundesen, Chicago Board of Health president and Chicago health commissioner, former Cook County coroner^[2]
• Henry Horner, incumbent governor
• James Fred Robertson, 1934 U.S. congress candidate and 1935 Chicago mayoral candidate^[3]

Results

Democratic gubernatorial primary^[1]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Democratic	Henry Horner (incumbent)	820,313	54.39
	Democratic	Herman Bundesen	659,221	43.71
	Democratic	James Fred Robertson	28,600	1.90
	Write-in	Others	1	0.00
Total votes			1,508,135	100

Republican primary

Candidates

• C. Wayland Brooks
• Oscar E. Carlstrom, former Illinois attorney general
• George W. Dowell, Progressive nominee for Illinois's 25th congressional district in 1914^[4][5]
• Thomas P. Gunning, Illinois state senator
• J. Paul Kuhn
• John G. Oglesby, former lieutenant governor of Illinois (publicly withdrew before primary)^[1]
• Len Small, former governor of Illinois

Republican gubernatorial primary^[1]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Republican	C. Wayland Brooks	596,446	59.05
	Republican	Len Small	268,903	26.62
	Republican	Oscar E. Carlstrom	53,266	5.27
	Republican	Thomas P. Gunning	31,194	3.09
	Republican	J. Paul Kuhn	29,423	2.91
	Republican	H. Wallace Caldwell	16,079	1.59
	Republican	John G. Oglesby	7,568	0.75
	Republican	George W. Dowell	7,125	0.71
	Write-in	Others	1	0.00
Total votes			1,010,005	100

General election

Challenging both Democratic nominee Henry Horner and Republican nominee Charles W. Brooks, Republican former Chicago mayor William Hale Thompson ran on the Union Progressive Party of Illinois' ballot line. There were also several other minor candidates.

Gubernatorial election^[1]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Democratic	Henry Horner (incumbent)	2,067,861	53.13
	Republican	C. Wayland Brooks	1,682,685	43.24
	Union Progressive	William Hale Thompson	128,962	0.18
	Socialist	John Fisher	6,966
	Prohibition	Harmon W. Reed	2,896	0.07
	Socialist Labor	O. Alfred Olson	2,602	0.07
	Write-in	Others	4
Total votes			3,891,976	100

Lieutenant governor

1936 Illinois lieutenant gubernatorial election

← 1932 November 3, 1936 1940 →

Nominee John Henry Stelle George Hatzenbuhler Party Democratic Republican Popular vote 2,103,226 1,539,342 Percentage 56.17% 41.11%

Lieutenant Governor before election Thomas Donovan Democratic Elected Lieutenant Governor John Henry Stelle Democratic

Incumbent first-term lieutenant governor Thomas Donovan, a Democrat, did not seek reelection. Democrat John Henry Stelle was elected to succeed him.

Democratic primary

Candidates

• John Edward Cassidy, attorney
• Isaac Epstein
• John Henry Stelle, Illinois treasurer
• John L. McCormack

Results

Democratic lieutenant gubernatorial primary^[1]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Democratic	John Stelle	544,215	42.85
	Democratic	John E. Cassidy	500,347	39.40
	Democratic	John L. McCormack	172,313	13.57
	Democratic	Isaac Epstein	53,118	4.18
Total votes			1,269,993	100

Republican primary

Candidates

• John V. Clinnin
• Harry F. Hamlin
• George Hatzenbuhler
• James A. McCallum
• Theodore D. Smith
• A. Lincoln Wisler

Results

Republican lieutenant gubernatorial primary^[1]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Republican	George Hatzenbuhler	234,884	28.49
	Republican	James A. McCallum	190,009	23.04
	Republican	John V. Clinnin	179,002	21.71
	Republican	Theodore D. Smith	97,118	11.78
	Republican	Harry F. Hamlin	90,837	11.02
	Republican	A. Lincoln Wisler	32,695	3.97
Total votes			824,545	100

General election

Lieutenant gubernatorial election^[1]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Democratic	John Stelle	2,103,226	56.17
	Republican	George Hatzenbuhler	1,539,342	41.11
	Union Progressive	Fred R. Wolf	88,595	2.37
	Socialist	Joseph Goldman	7,487	0.20
	Prohibition	Clay F. Gaumer	3,153	0.08
	Socialist Labor	Jacob Johns	2,324	0.06
Total votes			3,744,127	100

Attorney general

1936 Illinois Attorney General election

← 1932 November 3, 1936 1940 →

Nominee Otto Kerner Sr. Charles W. Hadley Party Democratic Republican Popular vote 2,116,673 1,531,842 Percentage 56.47% 40.87%

Attorney General before election Otto Kerner Sr. Democratic Elected Attorney General Otto Kerner Sr. Democratic

Incumbent first-term Attorney General Otto Kerner Sr., a Democrat, was reelected.

Democratic primary

Attorney General Democratic primary^[1]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Democratic	Otto Kerner (incumbent)	1,126,894	58.20
	Democratic	Charles W. Hadley	405,062	20.92
	Democratic	Thomas V. Sullivan	308,669	15.94
	Democratic	Berthold A. Cronson	95,627	4.94
Total votes			1,936,252	100

Republican primary

No candidates ran in the Republican primary. The party ultimately nominated Charles W. Hadley, who had been the distant runner-up in the Democratic primary.^[1]

General election

Attorney General election^[1]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Democratic	Otto Kerner (incumbent)	2,116,673	56.47
	Republican	Charles W. Hadley	1,531,842	40.87
	Union Progressive	Thomas V. Sullivan	86,351	2.30
	Socialist	Meyer J. Myer	7,708	0.21
	Prohibition	Frank S. Regan	3,254	0.09
	Socialist Labor	Titus Anderson	2,495	0.07
Total votes			3,748,323	100

Secretary of State

1936 Illinois Secretary of State election

← 1932 November 3, 1936 1940 →

Nominee Edward J. Hughes William J. Stratton Party Democratic Republican Popular vote 2,120,071 1,576,939 Percentage 55.95% 41.62%

Secretary of State before election Edward J. Hughes Democratic Elected Secretary of State Edward J. Hughes Democratic

Incumbent first-term Democratic Secretary of State Edward J. Hughes, a Democrat, was reelected.

Hughes faced Republican former secretary of state William J. Stratton in a rematch of the 1932 race.

Democratic primary

Secretary of State Democratic primary^[1]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Democratic	Edward J. Hughes (incumbent)	1,027,919	84.79
	Democratic	Joseph Andrew Lasecki	184,331	15.21
Total votes			1,212,250	100

Republican primary

Secretary of State Republican primary^[1]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Republican	William J. Stratton	632,451	72.22
	Republican	John W. Kapp, Jr.	243,327	27.78
Total votes			875,778	100

General election

Secretary of State election^[1]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Democratic	Edward J. Hughes (incumbent)	2,120,071	55.95
	Republican	William J. Stratton	1,576,939	41.62
	Union Progressive	Stanley J. Piotrowicz	79,310	2.09
	Socialist	Harry A. Crawford	7,553	0.20
	Prohibition	Harriet L. McBride	3,123	0.08
	Socialist Labor	Sam French	2,179	0.06
Total votes			3,789,175	100

Auditor of Public Accounts

1936 Illinois Auditor of Public Accounts election

← 1932 November 3, 1936 1940 →

Nominee Edward J. Barrett Arthur J. Bidwill Party Democratic Republican Popular vote 2,107,911 1,561,920 Percentage 56.06% 41.54%

Auditor of Public Accounts before election Edward J. Barrett Democratic Elected Auditor of Public Accounts Edward J. Barrett Democratic

Incumbent first-term Auditor of Public Accounts Edward J. Barrett, a Democrat, was reelected.

Democratic primary

Auditor of Public Accounts Democratic primary^[1]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Democratic	Edward J. Barrett (incumbent)	573,898	47.36
	Democratic	Homer Mat Adams	397,490	32.80
	Democratic	Thomas J. Barrett	173,954	14.36
	Democratic	Stanley A. Besdon	66,416	5.48
	Write-in	Others	1	0.00
Total votes			1,211,759	100

Republican primary

State senator Arthur J. Bidwill won the Republican nomination, defeating, among others, fellow state senator Earle Benjamin Searcy.

Results

Auditor of Public Accounts Republican primary^[1]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Republican	Arthur J. Bidwill	253,329	30.98
	Republican	Earle B. Searcy	215,697	26.38
	Republican	E. E. Nicholson	114,943	14.06
	Republican	Charles W. Vail	103,992	12.72
	Republican	Amelia Laura Magee	51,222	6.27
	Republican	Oscar George Lehr	48,379	5.92
	Republican	Vandorf Gray	30,044	3.68
Total votes			817,606	100

General election

Auditor of Public Accounts election^[1]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Democratic	Edward J. Barrett (incumbent)	2,107,911	56.06
	Republican	Arthur J. Bidwill	1,561,920	41.54
	Union Progressive	Harry A. Steinmeyer	77,436	2.06
	Socialist	Anton Udovic	7,607	0.20
	Prohibition	Carl T . E. Schultze	3,115	0.08
	Socialist Labor	Gus A. Jenning	2,416	0.06
	Write-in	Others	1	0.00
Total votes			3,760,406	100

Treasurer

1936 Illinois State Treasurer election

← 1934 November 3, 1936 1938 →

Nominee John C. Martin Clarence F. Buck Party Democratic Republican Popular vote 2,090,130 1,561,124 Percentage 55.86% 41.72%

Treasurer before election John Henry Stelle Democratic Elected Treasurer John C. Martin Democratic

Incumbent first-term Treasurer John Henry Stelle, a Democrat, did not seek reelection, instead running for lieutenant governor. Democrat John C. Martin was elected to succeed him in office, granting Martin a second nonconsecutive term as Illinois Treasurer.

Democratic primary

Former Illinois Treasurer, John C. Martin, won the Democratic primary.

Treasurer Democratic primary^[1]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Democratic	John C. Martin	646,300	54.25
	Democratic	Joseph T. Spiker	375,490	31.52
	Democratic	Raymond J. Anderson	169,579	14.23
Total votes			1,191,369	100

Republican primary

Former Illinois state senator Clarence F. Buck won the Republican nomination defeating businessman Anton J. Johnson, former U.S. congressman and former Illinois Treasurer Edward E. Miller, among others.

Treasurer Republican primary^[1]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Republican	Clarence F. Buck	374,324	45.92
	Republican	Anton J. Johnson	103,010	12.64
	Republican	Edward E. Miller	101,519	12.45
	Republican	Deneen A. Watson	84,534	10.37
	Republican	Joseph L. Moore	82,577	10.13
	Republican	Francis A. Horrigan	69,300	8.50
Total votes			815,264	100

General election

Treasurer election^[1]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Democratic	John C. Martin	2,090,130	55.86
	Republican	Clarence F. Buck	1,561,124	41.72
	Union Progressive	H. W. Trovillion	77,031	2.06
	Socialist	Benjamin Williger	7,767	0.21
	Prohibition	Enoch A. Holtwick	3,245	0.09
	Socialist Labor	Frank H. McKinzie	2,433	0.07
Total votes			3,741,730	100

State Senate

Seats of the Illinois Senate were up for election in 1940. Democrats retained control of the chamber.

State House of Representatives

Seats in the Illinois House of Representatives were up for election in 1940. Democrats retained control of the chamber. Cumulative voting and 59 three-seat districts were used in this election. Member(s) of both of the two main parties were elected in each district.

Trustees of University of Illinois

1936 Trustees of University of Illinois election

← 1934 November 3, 1936 1938 →

An election was held for three of the nine seats for Trustees of University of Illinois to six year terms.^[1][6] Democrats swept all three seats.^[1][6]

All three incumbents whose terms were expiring (second-term Republican George A. Barr, first-term Republican Edward E. Barrett, and first-term Democrat Walter W. Winslow) were not nominated for reelection.^[1][6]

New Democratic members Homer Mat Adams, James Mansfield Cleary, and Louis C. Moschel were elected.^[1][6]

Trustees of the University of Illinois election^[1][6]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Democratic	Homer Mat Adams	2,048,328	18.44
	Democratic	James Mansfield Cleary	2,047,680	18.43
	Democratic	Louis C. Moschel	2,042,819	18.39
	Republican	Frank H. McKelvey	1,566,214	14.10
	Republican	Frank M. White	1,565,030	14.09
	Republican	Charles S. Pillsbury	1,557,458	14.02
	Union Progressive	Minnie Clarke Webster	79,468	0.72
	Union Progressive	John L. Wellington	78,788	0.71
	Union Progressive	Elsie B. Johnston	77,824	0.70
	Socialist	Edward L. Adams, Jr.	8,813	0.08
	Socialist	Roy E. Burt	8,648	0.08
	Socialist	Georgia Albright	8,349	0.08
	Prohibition	Mildred E. Young	3,666	0.03
	Prohibition	Lawrence Britton	3,549	0.03
	Prohibition	John Ashe	3,383	0.03
	Socialist Labor	Nels C. Gustafson	2,731	0.03
	Socialist Labor	Mary Starcevic	2,725	0.03
	Socialist Labor	John L. Lindsey	2,631	0.02
Total votes			11,108,104	100

Judicial elections

Supreme Court

One seat on the Illinois Supreme Court had an election on June 1, 1936.

5th district election

Republican Clyde E. Stone was reelected.

Illinois Supreme Court 5th district election^[1]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Republican	Clyde E. Stone (incumbent)	39,091	55.83
	Democratic	Josef T. Skinner	30,922	44.17
Total votes			70,013	100

Circuit Courts

Several special elections were held November 3, 1936 for the Illinois Circuit Courts.

Robert J. Dunne was defeated John F. Tyrrell (1,157,312 votes to 709,625 votes) in a nonpartisan race to fill the vacancy left on the Circuit Court of Cook County by the resignation of fellow Democrat Francis S. Wilson.^[1]

Democratic nominee Grendel F. Bennett defeated Republican nominee V. W. McIntire (50,216 votes to 42,026 votes) to fill the 5th district vacancy left by the resignation of Craig Van Meter.^[1]

Democratic nominee Horace H. Baker defeated Republican nominee Lester H. Martin (43,987 votes to 43,877 votes) to fill the 11th district vacancy left by death of Peter Murphy.^[1]

Democratic nominee Francis J. Coyle defeated Republican nominee Albert M. Crampton (51,609 votes to 50,163 votes) to fill the 14th district vacancy left by death of J. Paul Califf.^[1]

Despite dying before the election, Republican nominee William J. Emerson defeated Democratic nominee James B. Sheean (38,712 votes to 30,184 votes) to fill the 15th district vacancy left by death of Frank T. Sheean.^[1]

Local elections

Local elections were held.

References

1. "OFFICIAL VOTE OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS CAST AT THE GENERAL ELECTION, NOV. 3, 1936 PRIMARY ELECTIONS GENERAL PRIMARY, APRIL 14, 1936 PRESIDENTIAL PREFERENCE, APRIL 14, 1936" (PDF). Illinois State Board of Elections. Retrieved August 2, 2020.^{[permanent dead link‍]}
2. Grossman, Ron (October 20, 2017). "The Chicago public health czar who craved celebrity". chicagotribune.com. Chicago Tribune. Retrieved December 20, 2020.
3. "James Fred Robertson". The Pantagraph. Bloomington, Illinois. March 24, 1936. p. 11. Retrieved June 19, 2022 – via Newspapers.com.
4. "George W. Dowell of Duquoin, 25th congressional district". The Pearl City News. Pearl City, Illinois. July 16, 1914. p. 7. Retrieved June 19, 2022 – via Newspapers.com.
5. "Dowell Out For Governor". Perry County Advocate. Pinckneyville, Illinois. January 24, 1936. p. 1. Retrieved June 19, 2022 – via Newspapers.com.
6. "Trustees, University of Illinois Board of Trustees" (PDF). University of Illinois. Retrieved April 1, 2020.