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 County results Stephens: 40–50% 50–60 60–70% 70–80% 80–90% Bell: 40–50% 50–60% 60–70% | ||||||||||||||||||||
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| Elections in California |
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The 1918 California gubernatorial election was held on November 5, 1918. William Stephens had defeated James Rolph for the Republican nomination.
Primary election[edit]
San Francisco mayor James Rolph, a Republican, cross-filed in both the Republican and Democratic primaries, won the Democratic primary, and received the most overall votes of any candidate in the primary election across all parties. However, because he failed to win his own party's nomination, he was barred from receiving the Democratic nomination thanks to the 1917 Hawson amendment to California electoral law, leaving the Democratic Party without a candidate. Incumbent Republican governor William Stephens won the Republican, Prohibition, and Progressive nominations. The only other primary candidate to advance to the general election was Socialist Henry H. Roser, running unopposed.
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Democratic primary | |||||
| Republican | James Rolph | 74,955 | 45.56% | ||
| Democratic | Francis J. Heney | 60,662 | 36.87% | ||
| Democratic | Thomas L. Woolwine | 28,897 | 17.57% | ||
| Progressive primary | |||||
| Republican | William Stephens | 5,142 | 60.07% | ||
| Democratic | Francis J. Heney | 3,418 | 39.93% | ||
| Prohibition primary | |||||
| Republican | William Stephens | 12,853 | 100.00% | ||
| Republican primary | |||||
| Republican | William Stephens | 168,942 | 45.06% | ||
| Republican | James Rolph | 146,990 | 39.21% | ||
| Republican | Jay Orley Hayes | 24,676 | 6.58% | ||
| Republican | Walter Bordwell | 17,038 | 4.54% | ||
| Republican | Charles Fickert | 13,259 | 3.54% | ||
| Republican | Charles McGee | 4,014 | 1.07% | ||
| Socialist primary | |||||
| Socialist | Henry H. Roser | 7,931 | 100.00% | ||
| Primary total | |||||
| Republican | James Rolph | 221,945 | 39.02% | ||
| Republican | William Stephens | 186,937 | 32.87% | ||
| Democratic | Francis J. Heney | 64,080 | 11.27% | ||
| Democratic | Thomas L. Woolwine | 28,897 | 5.08% | ||
| Republican | Jay Orley Hayes | 24,676 | 4.34% | ||
| Republican | Walter Bordwell | 17,038 | 3.00% | ||
| Republican | Charles Fickert | 13,259 | 2.33% | ||
| Socialist | Henry H. Roser | 7,931 | 1.39% | ||
| Republican | Charles McGee | 4,014 | 0.71% | ||
| Source Melendy, H. Brett (1964). "California's Cross-Filing Nightmare: The 1918 Gubernatorial Election". Pacific Historical Review. 33 (3). University of California Press: 317–330. doi:10.2307/3636839. ISSN 0030-8684. JSTOR 3636839. | |||||
General election results[edit]
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Republican | William Stephens (incumbent) | 387,547 | 56.28% | +26.93% | |
| Independent | Theodore Arlington Bell | 251,189 | 36.48% | N/A | |
| Socialist | Henry H. Roser | 29,003 | 4.21% | -1.26% | |
| Republican | James Rolph (write-in) | 20,605 | 2.99% | N/A | |
| Total votes | 688,344 | 100.0% | |||
| Republican gain from Progressive | Swing | ||||
References[edit]