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 County results Briscoe: 40–50% 50–60% 60–70% 70–80% 80–90% Grover: 40–50% 50–60% 60–70% Muñiz: 40–50% 50–60% | |||||||||||||||||||||
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The1972 Texas gubernatorial election was held on November 7, 1972, to elect thegovernor of Texas.IncumbentDemocratic governorPreston Smith ran for reelection, but lost renomination to businessmanDolph Briscoe. Smith was overwhelmingly rejected in the Democratic primary, taking fourth place with only 8% of the vote amid the fallout from theSharpstown scandal. Briscoe went on to win the general election by a relatively small margin, winning 48% of the vote toRepublicanHenry Grover's 45%.Raza Unida candidateRamsey Muniz won 6%.
As of 2022, this is the last timeJim Hogg andBrooks counties did not vote for the Democratic candidate, instead voting for the Raza Unida party.
The 1972 election marked the last time that a gubernatorial election was held concurrently with a presidential election and the last time that a governor was elected for a two-year term.
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Democratic | Dolph Briscoe | 963,397 | 43.93% | |
| Democratic | Frances Farenthold | 612,051 | 27.91% | |
| Democratic | Ben Barnes | 392,356 | 17.89% | |
| Democratic | Preston Smith (incumbent) | 190,709 | 8.70% | |
| Democratic | William H. Posey | 13,727 | 0.62% | |
| Democratic | Gordon F. Wills | 10,438 | 0.48% | |
| Democratic | Robert E. Looney | 10,225 | 0.47% | |
| Total votes | 2,192,903 | 100.00% | ||
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Democratic | Dolph Briscoe | 1,095,168 | 55.32% | |
| Democratic | Frances Farenthold | 884,594 | 44.68% | |
| Total votes | 1,979,762 | 100.00% | ||
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Republican | Henry Grover | 37,118 | 32.56% | |
| Republican | Albert B. Fay | 24,329 | 21.34% | |
| Republican | David Reagan | 20,119 | 17.65% | |
| Republican | Tom McElroy | 19,559 | 17.16% | |
| Republican | John A. Hall Sr. | 8,018 | 7.03% | |
| Republican | J. A. Jenkins | 4,864 | 4.27% | |
| Total votes | 114,007 | 100.00% | ||
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Republican | Henry Grover | 37,842 | 66.38% | |
| Republican | Albert B. Fay | 19,166 | 33.62% | |
| Total votes | 57,008 | 100.00% | ||
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Democratic | Dolph Briscoe | 1,633,493 | 47.91% | |
| Republican | Henry Grover | 1,533,986 | 44.99% | |
| Raza Unida | Ramsey Muniz | 214,118 | 6.28% | |
| Socialist Workers | Deborah Leonard | 24,103 | 0.71% | |
| Others | 3,891 | 0.11% | ||
| Total votes | 3,409,501 | 100.00% | ||
| Democratichold | ||||
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