The 1956 West Virginia gubernatorial election was held on November 6, 1956 to elect the governor of West Virginia. Republican state delegate Cecil H. Underwood won the election over Democratic U.S. representative Bob Mollohan; he was the first Republican elected as governor of West Virginia since 1928 and one of the youngest elected governors in United States history at 34 years old.

Primary elections were held on August 5. In the Democratic primary, Mollohan defeated a divided field led by tax commissioner Milton J. Ferguson and West Virginia Senate clerk J. Howard Myers. In the Republican primary, Underwood narrowly defeated Charleston mayor John T. Coperhaver Sr.

Underwood's campaign was boosted only a week prior to the general election, when it was reported that Mollohan had accepted gifts from a coal operator on a stripe mine while Mollohan was a state prison superintendent at Pruntytown Correctional Center. Underwood won the general election by a surprisingly wide margin.

Democratic primary

Candidates

Joe F. Burdett, president of the West Virginia Board of Control Milton J. Ferguson, commissioner of the West Virginia Tax Division since 1953 and former state delegate from Wayne J. Howard Myers, clerk of the West Virginia Senate Bob Mollohan, U.S. representative from Fairmont Albert D. Viller

Results

Republican primary

Candidates

John T. Coperhaver Sr., mayor of Charleston Millard A. Holliday Sr. Cecil H. Underwood, state delegate from Sistersville

Results

General election

Candidates

Bob Mollohan, U.S. representative from Fairmont (Democratic) Cecil H. Underwood, state delegate from St. Marys (Republican)

Campaign Although in the wake of the United States Supreme Court decision in Brown v. Board of Education, educational desegregation was a live issue across much of the south and the border areas in 1956, it was less salient in West Virginia because Mollohan had not signed the Southern Manifesto and Underwood campaigned on continuing his William C. Marland's policy of desegregation of West Virginia schools and support of civil rights legislation.

Results

Results by county County Cecil Harland UnderwoodRepublican Robert Homer MollohanDemocratic Margin Total votes cast # % # % # % Barbour 4,398 54.49% 3,673 45.51% 725 8.98% 8,071 Berkeley 8,646 59.82% 5,807 40.18% 2,839 19.64% 14,453 Boone 5,390 44.65% 6,681 55.35% -1,291 -10.70% 12,071 Braxton 3,466 47.77% 3,790 52.23% -324 -4.47% 7,256 Brooke 5,550 43.42% 7,233 56.58% -1,683 -13.17% 12,783 Cabell 28,872 61.99% 17,707 38.01% 11,165 23.97% 46,579 Calhoun 2,014 48.95% 2,100 51.05% -86 -2.09% 4,114 Clay 2,846 52.79% 2,545 47.21% 301 5.58% 5,391 Doddridge 2,637 75.04% 877 24.96% 1,760 50.09% 3,514 Fayette 10,906 41.70% 15,249 58.30% -4,343 -16.60% 26,155 Gilmer 1,813 48.46% 1,928 51.54% -115 -3.07% 3,741 Grant 3,321 84.10% 628 15.90% 2,693 68.19% 3,949 Greenbrier 7,975 56.05% 6,254 43.95% 1,721 12.10% 14,229 Hampshire 2,242 46.36% 2,594 53.64% -352 -7.28% 4,836 Hancock 7,764 43.81% 9,956 56.19% -2,192 -12.37% 17,720 Hardy 2,169 50.31% 2,142 49.69% 27 0.63% 4,311 Harrison 21,763 56.19% 16,969 43.81% 4,794 12.38% 38,732 Jackson 4,997 66.41% 2,527 33.59% 2,470 32.83% 7,524 Jefferson 3,073 47.97% 3,333 52.03% -260 -4.06% 6,406 Kanawha 62,142 57.75% 45,455 42.25% 16,687 15.51% 107,597 Lewis 6,143 66.22% 3,133 33.78% 3,010 32.45% 9,276 Lincoln 4,877 49.49% 4,978 50.51% -101 -1.02% 9,855 Logan 10,476 41.68% 14,658 58.32% -4,182 -16.64% 25,134 Marion 15,168 47.49% 16,769 52.51% -1,601 -5.01% 31,937 Marshall 8,464 50.75% 8,215 49.25% 249 1.49% 16,679 Mason 6,272 63.24% 3,646 36.76% 2,626 26.48% 9,918 McDowell 10,264 37.29% 17,258 62.71% -6,994 -25.41% 27,522 Mercer 13,715 50.01% 13,711 49.99% 4 0.01% 27,426 Mineral 5,768 59.02% 4,005 40.98% 1,763 18.04% 9,773 Mingo 7,476 42.32% 10,191 57.68% -2,715 -15.37% 17,667 Monongalia 13,594 55.03% 11,111 44.97% 2,483 10.05% 24,705 Monroe 3,547 56.72% 2,707 43.28% 840 13.43% 6,254 Morgan 2,792 70.65% 1,160 29.35% 1,632 41.30% 3,952 Nicholas 5,413 54.39% 4,539 45.61% 874 8.78% 9,952 Ohio 18,964 54.20% 16,024 45.80% 2,940 8.40% 34,988 Pendleton 2,025 52.02% 1,868 47.98% 157 4.03% 3,893 Pleasants 2,194 59.20% 1,512 40.80% 682 18.40% 3,706 Pocahontas 3,008 55.50% 2,412 44.50% 596 11.00% 5,420 Preston 7,535 68.18% 3,517 31.82% 4,018 36.36% 11,052 Putnam 5,809 57.03% 4,376 42.97% 1,433 14.07% 10,185 Raleigh 16,167 50.28% 15,984 49.72% 183 0.57% 32,151 Randolph 5,676 51.48% 5,349 48.52% 327 2.97% 11,025 Ritchie 4,174 74.98% 1,393 25.02% 2,781 49.96% 5,567 Roane 4,701 60.64% 3,051 39.36% 1,650 21.28% 7,752 Summers 3,781 50.78% 3,665 49.22% 116 1.56% 7,446 Taylor 4,516 58.35% 3,223 41.65% 1,293 16.71% 7,739 Tucker 2,386 54.03% 2,030 45.97% 356 8.06% 4,416 Tyler 3,675 74.11% 1,284 25.89% 2,391 48.22% 4,959 Upshur 5,632 73.95% 1,984 26.05% 3,648 47.90% 7,616 Wayne 8,207 52.05% 7,561 47.95% 646 4.10% 15,768 Webster 2,372 44.25% 2,989 55.75% -617 -11.51% 5,361 Wetzel 4,652 53.37% 4,065 46.63% 587 6.73% 8,717 Wirt 1,413 56.63% 1,082 43.37% 331 13.27% 2,495 Wood 21,000 61.80% 12,978 38.20% 8,022 23.61% 33,978 Wyoming 6,662 47.90% 7,245 52.10% -583 -4.19% 13,907Totals440,502377,13153.88%46.12%63,3717.75%817,633

Aftermath Underwood's first act as governor was to go on television (a relatively new medium for political communication) and inform every state employee that they were fired. He argued that this was the only way to destroy the corrupt "machine" system. He later advocated an organized civil service and retirement pension system and provided temporary employment relief for low-income families.

References

External links Democratic primary results Republican primary results