1936 Illinois elections

← 1934 November 3, 1936 1938 →

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

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

The elections overall saw a strong performance by theDemocratic Party.

Democrats retained their control of both chambers of theIllinois General Assembly and all statewide executive offices, winning all the statewide executive offices by broad margins. Democrats swept the election forUniversity of Illinois trustees. Democrats also carried the state in the presidential election. DemocraticUnited States senatorJ. Hamilton Lewis was reelected. Democrats retained all 21 U.S. congressional seats they held in the state, whileRepublicans retained all six seats they held.

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

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

Illinois voted for the Democraticticket ofFranklin D. Roosevelt andJohn Nance Garner.

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

All 27 Illinois seats in theUnited 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 six Republicans.

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-termgovernorHenry Horner, aDemocrat, won reelection.

The Chicagopolitical machine unsuccessfully ranChicago Board of Health presidentHerman Bundesen against the incumbentHenry Horner in retribution for Horner havingvetoed a bill that would have allowedbookies to legally operate, a bill favored by Chicagopolitical bosses such asEdward J. Kelly.^[2]

• Herman Bundesen, Chicago Board of Health president and Chicago health commissioner, formerCook County coroner^[2]
• Henry Horner, incumbent governor
• James Fred Robertson, 1934 U.S. Congress candidate and1935 Chicago mayoral candidate^[3]

• C. Wayland Brooks, former Cook County assistant state's attorney.^[4]
• Oscar E. Carlstrom, formerIllinois attorney general
• George W. Dowell, former judge of theIllinois Court of Claims andProgressive nominee forIllinois's 25th congressional district in1914.^[5][6]
• Thomas P. Gunning, incumbentIllinois state senator
• J. Paul Kuhn, former member of theIllinois Commerce Commission.^[7]
• John G. Oglesby, formerlieutenant governor of Illinois (publicly withdrew before primary)^[1]
• Len Small, former governor of Illinois

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

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-termlieutenant governorThomas Donovan, a Democrat, did not seek reelection. DemocratJohn Henry Stelle was elected to succeed him.

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

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

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-termAttorney GeneralOtto Kerner Sr., a Democrat, was reelected.

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]

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%

County results Hughes:     40–50%     50–60%     60–70% Stratton:     50–60%     60–70%

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

Incumbent first-term DemocraticSecretary of StateEdward J. Hughes, a Democrat, was reelected.

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

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-termAuditor of Public AccountsEdward J. Barrett, aDemocrat, was reelected.

State senatorArthur J. Bidwill won the Republican nomination, defeating, among others, fellow state senatorEarle Benjamin Searcy.

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

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

FormerIllinois state senatorClarence F. Buck won the Republican nomination defeating businessmanAnton J. Johnson, former U.S. congressman and former Illinois TreasurerEdward E. Miller, among others.

Seats of theIllinois Senate were up for election in 1936. Democrats retained control of the chamber.

Seats in theIllinois House of Representatives were up for election in 1936. Democrats retained control of the chamber.Cumulative voting and 59 three-seat districts were used in this election. Members of both of the two main parties were elected in each district.

An election was held for three of the nine seats for Trustees ofUniversity of Illinois to six year terms.^[1][8]Democrats swept all three seats.^[1][8]

All three incumbents whose terms were expiring (second-termRepublican George A. Barr, first-term Republican Edward E. Barrett, and first-term Democrat Walter W. Winslow) were not nominated for reelection.^[1][8]

New Democratic members Homer Mat Adams, James Mansfield Cleary, and Louis C. Moschel were elected.^[1][8]

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

RepublicanClyde E. Stone was reelected.

Several special elections were held November 3, 1936 for theIllinois 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 theCircuit Court of Cook County by the resignation of fellow DemocratFrancis 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 nomineeAlbert 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 were held.

• 1936 Illinois elections
• 1936 elections in the United States by state
• 1936 state legislature elections in the United States

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