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Agubernatorial election was held inVirginia on December 5, 1811.[4] Theactinggovernor of VirginiaGeorge W. Smith defeated thespeaker of the Virginia House of DelegatesJames Barbour.[5]
The previous governorJames Monroe resigned on April 3, 1811, to accept an appointment asU.S. secretary of state. Smith succeeded to office in his capacity as president of theCouncil of State and acted as governor for the remainder of the unexpired term.[6] Barbour had been mentioned as a possible candidate in thepreceding special election to succeedJohn Tyler Sr., but declined to challenge Monroe, who defeated Smith on the joint ballot. With Monroe's resignation, Barbour's allies now believed his election was assured.[7]
The election was conducted by theVirginia General Assembly in joint session.[8] No candidate had a majority after the first ballot, requiring a second round of voting.[9] Smith was elected with a majority on the second ballot.[5] Barbour was disheartened by the defeat and considered retiring from politics, but would shortly succeed Smith in thenext election following the latter's death three weeks later.[10]
| Candidate | First ballot | Second ballot | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Count | Percent | Count | Percent | |
| George W. Smith | 98 | 50.00 | 100 | 50.76 |
| James Barbour | 97 | 49.49 | 97 | 49.24 |
| Others | 1 | 0.51 | — | |
Total | 196 | 100.00 | 197 | 100.00 |
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