The 1946 Tennessee gubernatorial election was held on November 5, 1946. Incumbent Democratic governor Jim Nance McCord defeated Republican nominee William O. Lowe with 65.4% of the vote.
In the primary campaign, McCord faced a primary challenge from former governor Gordon Browning (who was in Germany and did not actively campaign).Phillip Langsdon, Tennessee: A Political History (Franklin, Tenn.: Hillsboro Press, 2000), pp. 336-343. The 1946 primary was marred by an uprising known as the "Battle of Athens," which erupted when several hundred ex-World War II veterans launched an armed assault on the jail in Athens, Tennessee, where the sheriff and several Crump-linked figures had retreated with ballot boxes, presumably to fix local elections. McCord dispatched the state guard to restore order.Jennifer Brooks, "Battle of Athens," Tennessee Encyclopedia of History and Culture, 2009. Retrieved: 17 December 2012.
McCord comfortably defeated Browning, winning the primary with 59.8% of the vote.
Primary elections Primary elections were held on August 1, 1946.
Democratic primary
Candidates Jim Nance McCord, incumbent governor Gordon Browning, former governor John Randolph Neal Jr., attorney Leah Richardson
Results
General election
Candidates Major party candidates Jim Nance McCord, Democratic William O. Lowe, Republican
Other candidates John Randolph Neal Jr., Independent
Results
References