1956 South Dakota gubernatorial election

1956 South Dakota gubernatorial election

November 6, 1956

Nominee Joe Foss Ralph Herseth Party Republican Democratic Popular vote 158,819 133,198 Percentage 54.39% 45.61%

County results Foss:      50-60%      60-70%      70-80%      80–90% Herseth:      50–60%      60–70%

Governor before election Joe Foss Republican Elected Governor Joe Foss Republican

The 1956 South Dakota gubernatorial election was held on November 6, 1956.

Incumbent Republican Governor Joe Foss defeated Democratic nominee Ralph Herseth with 54.39% of the vote.

Primary elections

Primary elections were held on June 5, 1956.^[1]

Democratic primary

Candidates

• Ralph Herseth, former State Senator^[2]

Results

Democratic primary results^[3]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Democratic	Ralph Herseth		unopposed

Republican primary

Candidates

• Joe Foss, incumbent Governor

Results

Republican primary results^[3]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Republican	Joe Foss (inc.)		unopposed

General election

Candidates

• Ralph Herseth, Democratic
• Joe Foss, Republican

Results

1956 South Dakota gubernatorial election^[4]^[5]^[6]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Republican	Joe Foss (inc.)	158,819	54.39%
	Democratic	Ralph Herseth	133,198	45.61%
Majority			25,621	8.77%
Turnout			292,017	100.00%
	Republican hold		Swing

References

1. "South Dakota". Voting Information. Washington, D.C.: Prepared by Office of Armed Forces Information & Education, Department of Defense. March 1956. p. 98. Retrieved May 21, 2020.
2. "Ralph E. Herseth". Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC) Museum of South Dakota. May 2020. Retrieved May 21, 2020.
3. Congressional Quarterly 1998, p. 142.
4. Elections (PDF). p. 634. Retrieved May 21, 2020. {{cite book}}: |work= ignored (help)
5. Congressional Quarterly 1998, p. 79.
6. "SD Governor, 1956". Our Campaigns. Retrieved May 21, 2020.

Bibliography

• Gubernatorial Elections, 1787-1997. Washington, D.C.: Congressional Quarterly Inc. 1998. ISBN 1-56802-396-0.