 | |||||||||||||||||
| Turnout | 24.6% 27.0%[1] | ||||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
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 County results Sterling: 50–60% 60–70% 70–80% 80–90% >90% Talbot: 60–70% | |||||||||||||||||
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The1930 Texas gubernatorial election was held on November 4, 1930, in order to elect theGovernor of Texas.Democratic nomineeRoss S. Sterling defeatedRepublican nominee William E. Talbot.[2]
The Democraticprimary election was held on July 26, 1930. As no candidate won a majority of votes, there was arun-off on August 23, 1930, between the two highest ranking candidates formerGovernor of TexasMiriam A. Ferguson andRoss S. Sterling. Sterling would eventually win the primary with 55.19% against Ferguson.
| Candidate | First Round | Run-off | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Votes | % | Votes | % | |
| Ross S. Sterling | 170,754 | 20.49 | 473,371 | 55.19 |
| Miriam A. Ferguson | 242,959 | 29.15 | 384,402 | 44.81 |
| Clint C. Small | 138,934 | 16.67 | ||
| Thomas B. Love | 87,068 | 10.45 | ||
| James Young | 73,385 | 8.81 | ||
| Barry Miller | 54,652 | 6.56 | ||
| Earle Bradford Mayfield | 54,459 | 6.53 | ||
| C. C. Moody | 4,382 | 0.53 | ||
| Paul Loven | 2,724 | 0.33 | ||
| Frank Putnam | 2,365 | 0.28 | ||
| C. E. Walker | 1,760 | 0.21 | ||
| Total | 833,442 | 100.00 | 857,773 | 100.00 |
| Source:[3] | ||||
The Republicanprimary election was also held on July 26, 1930. It was only the second Republican primary in state history, coming off of W. H. Holmes' run for governor in1928 which garnered over 120,000 votes.George Butte, the Republican nominee in1924 won the parties primary in absentia but doubts remained as to whether Butte, who was a special assistant to the attorney general inWashington, D.C. at the time, would accept the nomination.
After being nominated by the state convention inSan Angelo, Butte wrote a letter to the executive committee resigning as nominee; explaining that he had tried to prior to the convention but his resignation had not been accepted. After his resignation the committee nominated William E. Talbot on September 24, but he was not certified as the nominee until September 27 because of Butte's delayed resignation. Talbot, a colonel inWorld War One and sales manager at Southland Life Insurance, advocated for an old age pension, state development of river navigation, protection of independent oil producers, and prioritization of small trucks over large ones to protect thestate's new highways.[4][5][6]
| Candidate | Votes | % |
|---|---|---|
| George Butte[a] | 5,001 | 51.15 |
| H.E. Exum | 2,773 | 28.36 |
| John F. Grant | 1,800 | 18.41 |
| John P. Gaines | 203 | 2.08 |
| Total | 9,777 | 100.00 |
| Source:[7] | ||
TheSocialist Party nominatedLee Lightfoot Rhodes for a second consecutive time (and fourth time overall) as did theCommunist Party with their nominee J. Stedham, after their shared election loss in the1928 Texas gubernatorial election. On election day, November 4, 1930,Democratic nomineeRoss S. Sterling won the election by a margin of 190,514 votes against his foremost opponentRepublican nominee William E. Talbot, thereby retaining Democratic control over the office of Governor. Sterling was sworn in as the 31st Governor ofTexas on January 20, 1931.[8]
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Democratic | Ross S. Sterling | 252,738 | 79.98 | |
| Republican | William E. Talbot | 62,224 | 19.69 | |
| Socialist | Lee Lightfoot Rhodes | 829 | 0.26 | |
| Communist | J. Stedham | 231 | 0.07 | |
| Total votes | 316,022 | 100.00 | ||
| Democratichold | ||||
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