1936 Louisiana gubernatorial election


The 1936 Louisiana gubernatorial election was held on January 21, 1936. Like most Southern states between the Reconstruction Era and the Civil Rights Movement, Louisiana's Republican Party was virtually nonexistent in terms of electoral support. This meant that the Democratic Party primary held on this date was the real contest over who would be governor. The election resulted in the victory of Richard W. Leche of New Orleans as governor. Leche was supported by the Longite faction of the party and Cleveland Dear of Alexandria by the anti-Longs' "Home Rule" ticket. State Representative Mason Spencer of Tallulah dropped out of the race and endorsed Dear, but the ballots had already been printed, and he received nearly two thousand votes.

Results

Democratic Party Primary, January 21
CandidateVotes receivedPercent
Richard W. Leche362,50267.08%
Cleveland Dear176,15032.60%
Leonard Mason Spencer1,7180.32%