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1928 Massachusetts gubernatorial election

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1928 Massachusetts gubernatorial election

← 1926 November 6, 1928 (1928-11-06) 1930 →
 
Nominee Frank G. Allen Charles H. Cole
Party Republican Democratic
Popular vote 769,372 750,137
Percentage 50.06% 48.81%

County results
Allen:      40–50%      50–60%      60–70%      70–80%
Cole:      60–70%

Governor before election

Alvan T. Fuller
Republican

Elected Governor

Frank G. Allen
Republican

The 1928 Massachusetts gubernatorial election was held on November 6, 1928.

Incumbent Republican Lieutenant Governor Frank G. Allen was elected to a two-year term, defeating Democrat Charles H. Cole.

The 1928 election represents a major turning point in Massachusetts political history. Al Smith's victory in the state's presidential contest and the competitive gubernatorial election marked a departure from decades of Republican dominance.

Republican primary

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Governor

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Candidates

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Results

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Lieutenant Governor Frank Allen was nominated over Frank A. Goodwin.

1928 Republican Gubernatorial primary[1]
Party Candidate Votes %
Republican Frank G. Allen 270,022 61.20%
Republican Frank A. Goodwin 171,167 38.80%
Write-in 6 0.00%
Total votes 441,189 100.00%

Lieutenant governor

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Candidates

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Results

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Treasurer William S. Youngman won the highly competitive primary election by 21,099 votes over Speaker of the Massachusetts House of Representatives John C. Hull.

1928 Republican Lt. Gubernatorial primary[2]
Party Candidate Votes %
Republican William S. Youngman 113,805 26.68%
Republican John C. Hull 92,706 21.73%
Republican Robert M. Leach 66,544 15.60%
Republican John H. Sherburne 64,822 15.20%
Republican Pehr G. Holmes 32,945 7.72%
Republican Charles L. Burrill 26,420 6.19%
Republican George A. Bacon 24,798 5.81%
Republican Wycliffe C. Marshall 4,524 1.06%
Write-in 3 0.00%
Total votes 426,569 100.00%

Democratic primary

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Governor

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Candidates

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Results

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Brigadier General Charles Cole easily defeated John J. Cummings for the Democratic nomination.

1928 Democratic gubernatorial primary[3]
Party Candidate Votes %
Democratic Charles H. Cole 165,174 80.63%
Democratic John J. Cummings 39,643 19.35%
Write-in 40 0.02%
Total votes 204,857 100.00%

Lt. Governor

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Candidates

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Results

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1926 Democratic Lt. gubernatorial primary[4]
Party Candidate Votes %
Democratic John F. Malley 115,912 61.02%
Democratic Charles S. Murphy 74,013 38.97%
Write-in 19 0.01%
Total votes 189,944 100.00%

General election

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Candidates

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  • Frank G. Allen, incumbent Governor (Republican)
  • Chester W. Bixby, founding member of the Communist Party of the United States of America (Workers)
  • Brig. Gen. Charles H. Cole, former Adjutant General of Massachusetts and Commissioner of the Boston Fire and Police Departments (Democratic)
  • Washington Cook, brother of Alonzo B. Cook and independent candidate for United States Senate in 1922 and 1926 (Vigorous Prohibition Enforcement)
  • Mary Donovan Hapgood, Secretary of the Sacco-Vanzetti Defense Committee (Socialist)
  • Edith Hamilton MacFadden, author (Independent Citizen)
  • Stephen Surridge (Socialist Labor)

MacFadden became the first female candidate for governor in the history of Massachusetts. She ran on a platform of reducing tax exemptions. She is the mother of actor Hamilton MacFadden. She stated that she found "no opposition to a woman aspiring to the executive position of Governor."[5]

Results

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1928 Massachusetts gubernatorial election[6][7]
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Republican Frank G. Allen 769,372 50.06% Decrease8.70
Democratic Charles H. Cole 750,137 48.81% Increase8.56
Socialist Mary Donovan Hapgood 7,486 0.49% Increase0.02
Workers Chester W. Bixby 4,495 0.29% Decrease0.01
Prohibition Washington Cook 3,098 0.20% Increase0.20
Socialist Labor Stephen Surridge 1,374 0.09% Decrease0.11
Independent Edith Hamilton MacFadden 928 0.06% N/A
Write-in 9 0.00% Steady
Total votes 1,536,899 100.00%

See also

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References

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  1. ^ Election Statistics 1928, p. 96.
  2. ^ Election Statistics 1928, p. 102.
  3. ^ Election Statistics 1928, p. 135.
  4. ^ Election Statistics 1928, p. 181.
  5. ^ "Candidate Calls Tax Exemption Crying Evil". The Boston Globe. July 31, 1928. Retrieved August 25, 2019.
  6. ^ "MA Governor, 1928". Our Campaigns. Retrieved August 21, 2019.
  7. ^ Election Statistics 1928, p. 341.

Bibliography

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Office of the Secretary of the Commonwealth (1926). Election Statistics, 1928. Boston, MA.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: location missing publisher (link)