1872 Pennsylvania gubernatorial election

1872 Pennsylvania gubernatorial election
	County results Hartranft: 40–50% 50–60% 60–70% Buckalew: 40–50% 50–60% 60–70% 70–80% 80–90%
Governor before election; John W. Geary; Republican	Elected Governor ; John F. Hartranft; Republican

The 1872 Pennsylvania gubernatorial election occurred on October 8, 1872. Incumbent governor John W. Geary, a Republican, was not a candidate for re-election.

Republican candidate John F. Hartranft defeated Democratic candidate Charles R. Buckalew to become Governor of Pennsylvania. George Washington Cass, William McClelland, and Hendrick Bradley Wright unsuccessfully sought the Democratic nomination.

Background

Hartranft had become an important figure in the history of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania and the United States during the American Civil War. A colonel in the Union Army who was awarded the U.S. Medal of Honor for the valor he displayed on July 21, 1861, during the First Battle of Bull Run, he rose through the ranks to become a major general, and was also the United States Army officer who read the death warrant to Mary Surratt, George Atzerodt, David Herold, and Lewis Powell before they were executed on July 7, 1865, for conspiring to assassinate American President Abraham Lincoln.^[1] Post-war, he was elected twice as Pennsylvania's auditor general before choosing to run for the governor's office.^[2]^[3]

After winning the 1872 gubernatorial election, Hartranft was inaugurated as Pennsylvania's 17th governor on January 21, 1873.^[4]

Results

Pennsylvania gubernatorial election, 1872^[5]
Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Republican	John F. Hartranft	353,287	52.55
	Democratic	Charles R. Buckalew	317,700	47.26
	Prohibition	Salmon B. Chase	1,250	0.19
	Independent	Winthrop W. Ketchum	1	0.00
Total votes			672,238	100.00

References

^ Eicher, John H. and David J. Eicher. Civil War High Commands. Stanford University Press, 2001, pp. 57–58, 89 and 284.
^ "Our Standard Bearer: Nomination of Gen. John F. Hartranft." Harrisburg, Pennsylvania: The Daily Telegraph, April 11, 1872, p. 2 (subscription required).
^ "An Address: To the Voters of Pennsylvania: Chas. R. Buckalew and John F. Hartranft." Harrisburg, Pennsylvania: The Daily Telegraph, August 30, 1872, p. 1 (subscription required).
^ "Inauguration Day." Lancaster, Pennsylvania: The Daily Evening Express, January 21, 1873, p. 3 (subscription required).
^ "PA Governor General Election". OurCampaigns. Retrieved May 2, 2013.

[1] Eicher, John H. and David J. Eicher. Civil War High Commands. Stanford University Press, 2001, pp. 57–58, 89 and 284.

[2] "Our Standard Bearer: Nomination of Gen. John F. Hartranft." Harrisburg, Pennsylvania: The Daily Telegraph, April 11, 1872, p. 2 (subscription required).

[3] "An Address: To the Voters of Pennsylvania: Chas. R. Buckalew and John F. Hartranft." Harrisburg, Pennsylvania: The Daily Telegraph, August 30, 1872, p. 1 (subscription required).

[4] "Inauguration Day." Lancaster, Pennsylvania: The Daily Evening Express, January 21, 1873, p. 3 (subscription required).

[5] "PA Governor General Election". OurCampaigns. Retrieved May 2, 2013.

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