| |||||||||||||||||
| |||||||||||||||||
 County results Brown: 50–60% 60–70% 70–80% 80–90% >90% Freeman: 50–60% 60–70% 70–80% 80–90% >90% No data: | |||||||||||||||||
| |||||||||||||||||
The1872 Tennessee gubernatorial election was held on November 2, 1872, to elect thegovernor of Tennessee. IncumbentDemocratic governorJohn C. Brown won re-election, defeatingRepublican candidateAlfred A. Freeman with 53.74% of the vote.[1][2][3]
In September 1872, Alfred A. Freeman was nominated as the Republican Party candidate for governor.[4] He spent September and October of that year campaigning and debating the Democratic Party incumbent, former Confederate generalJohn C. Brown. At a debate inLebanon, Governor Brown blamed the state's growing debt crisis on Republicans, specifically theBrownlow administration. He opposed fixing the debt or funding public schools with tax increases. He blasted the administration of PresidentUlysses S. Grant as corrupt. In response, Freeman blamed the debt on pre-war Democratic governors, and argued that debts incurred under Brownlow were to rebuild railroads destroyed during the war. He supported a tax to fund public schools, and accused Democrats of stealing the state's school fund when they fled Nashville in early 1862.[5]
On election day, Brown defeated Freeman, 97,700 votes to 84,089 votes.[6]
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Democratic | John C. Brown (incumbent) | 97,700 | 53.74% | ||
| Republican | William H. Wisener | 84,089 | 46.26% | ||
| Total votes | 181,789 | 100.00% | |||
