On July 25, Governor Olin Johnston defeated incumbent senator Ellison "Cotton Ed" Smith in the Democratic primary with 55.2% of the vote.
At this time, South Carolina was a one-party state, and the Democratic nomination was tantamount to victory. Johnston won the November general election with only token opposition from Republican James Gaston. A victory by Johnston was never in doubt.
By 1944, Ellison D. Smith had served 35 years in the Senate and was approaching his 80th birthday. He was an ardent foe of the New Deal in the Senate and opposed almost every policy of President Roosevelt. His opponent in the previous Senate election was GovernorOlin D. Johnston, who challenged him once again in the Democratic primary. While Johnston was fully supportive of the New Deal in 1938, he had moderated his enthusiasm towards Roosevelt's domestic policies in 1944. Johnston instead would put a great deal of focus into praising Roosevelt's popular foreign policy which was succeeding in bringing the United States closer to victory in World War II.
Smith had campaigned over the years on a two plank platform: keep the negroes down and the price of cotton up. Yet Johnston was able seize the mantle of white supremacy from Smith in 1944. The Supreme Court had decided early in the year in the case Smith v. Allwright that primary elections must be open to all, regardless of race. Johnston, as governor, had called the General Assembly into session to make the South Carolina Democratic Party a private club so that it could restrict its primaries to white voters. Thus on the campaign trail Johnston was able to prove to the voters that he had acted during a time of crisis to save the Democratic primary from the blacks. Furthermore, Johnston's youthful appearance contrasted sharply with Smith's aged and tired persona. The voters were shocked when Smith failed to deliver a full speech during one debate with Johnston and instead played a recording of a speech he had made six years prior.
Winning the Democratic primary was tantamount to winning the general election, so Johnston was virtually assured of becoming the next senator from South Carolina. The South Carolina Republican Party was controlled by the white faction and they nominated James B. Gaston as their candidate. The Tolbert black and tan faction was rebuffed by the national Republican Party, but they proceeded to nominate B.L. Hendrix for the election. Many of the black civil rights leaders of the state decided to form their own political party in response to the state Democratic party becoming a private entity. Their party, called the Progressive Democratic Party, nominated Osceola E. McKaine for the Senate election with the sole purpose of motivating blacks in the state to register and vote.
Jordan, Frank E. The Primary State: A History of the Democratic Party in South Carolina, 1876-1962. pp. 77–78.
"Supplemental Report of the Secretary of State to the General Assembly of South Carolina." Reports and Resolutions of South Carolina to the General Assembly of the State of South Carolina. Volume I. Columbia, SC: 1945, p. 10.
. Time. 1944-08-07. Archived from the original on October 23, 2012. Retrieved 2008-02-24.
January 31, 2023
1944, united, states, senate, election, south, carolina, 1944, south, carolina, united, states, senate, election, held, november, 1944, select, senator, from, state, south, carolina, 1944, democratic, senate, primary, election, south, carolina, 1938, july, 194. The 1944 South Carolina United States Senate election was held on November 7 1944 to select the U S Senator from the state of South Carolina 1944 Democratic Senate primary election in South Carolina 1938 July 25 1944 1950 Nominee Olin D Johnston Ellison D SmithParty Democratic DemocraticPopular vote 138 440 88 085Percentage 55 2 35 1 U S senator before electionEllison D SmithDemocratic Elected U S Senator Olin D JohnstonDemocraticOn July 25 Governor Olin Johnston defeated incumbent senator Ellison Cotton Ed Smith in the Democratic primary with 55 2 of the vote At this time South Carolina was a one party state and the Democratic nomination was tantamount to victory Johnston won the November general election with only token opposition from Republican James Gaston A victory by Johnston was never in doubt Contents 1 Democratic primary 2 General election campaign 3 General election results 4 See also 5 ReferencesDemocratic primary EditBy 1944 Ellison D Smith had served 35 years in the Senate and was approaching his 80th birthday He was an ardent foe of the New Deal in the Senate and opposed almost every policy of President Roosevelt His opponent in the previous Senate election was Governor Olin D Johnston who challenged him once again in the Democratic primary While Johnston was fully supportive of the New Deal in 1938 he had moderated his enthusiasm towards Roosevelt s domestic policies in 1944 Johnston instead would put a great deal of focus into praising Roosevelt s popular foreign policy which was succeeding in bringing the United States closer to victory in World War II Smith had campaigned over the years on a two plank platform keep the negroes down and the price of cotton up Yet Johnston was able seize the mantle of white supremacy from Smith in 1944 The Supreme Court had decided early in the year in the case Smith v Allwright that primary elections must be open to all regardless of race Johnston as governor had called the General Assembly into session to make the South Carolina Democratic Party a private club so that it could restrict its primaries to white voters Thus on the campaign trail Johnston was able to prove to the voters that he had acted during a time of crisis to save the Democratic primary from the blacks Furthermore Johnston s youthful appearance contrasted sharply with Smith s aged and tired persona The voters were shocked when Smith failed to deliver a full speech during one debate with Johnston and instead played a recording of a speech he had made six years prior Democratic PrimaryCandidate Votes Olin D Johnston 138 440 55 2Ellison D Smith 88 085 35 1John M Daniel 14 572 5 8Carl B Epps 6 861 2 7A S Merrimon 2 858 1 2General election campaign EditWinning the Democratic primary was tantamount to winning the general election so Johnston was virtually assured of becoming the next senator from South Carolina The South Carolina Republican Party was controlled by the white faction and they nominated James B Gaston as their candidate The Tolbert black and tan faction was rebuffed by the national Republican Party but they proceeded to nominate B L Hendrix for the election Many of the black civil rights leaders of the state decided to form their own political party in response to the state Democratic party becoming a private entity Their party called the Progressive Democratic Party nominated Osceola E McKaine for the Senate election with the sole purpose of motivating blacks in the state to register and vote General election results EditSouth Carolina U S Senate Election 1944 Party Candidate Votes Democratic Olin D Johnston 94 556 93 0 5 9Republican James B Gaston 3 807 3 7 N AProgressive Democratic Osceola E McKaine 3 214 3 2 3 2Republican Tolbert B L Hendrix 141 0 1 N ANo party Write Ins 18 0 0 0 0Majority 90 749 89 3 8 5Turnout 101 736Democratic hold 65 won by JohnstonSee also EditList of United States senators from South Carolina United States Senate elections 1944 United States House of Representatives elections in South Carolina 1944References EditJordan Frank E The Primary State A History of the Democratic Party in South Carolina 1876 1962 pp 77 78 Supplemental Report of the Secretary of State to the General Assembly of South Carolina Reports and Resolutions of South Carolina to the General Assembly of the State of South Carolina Volume I Columbia SC 1945 p 10 Curtains for Cotton Ed Time 1944 08 07 Archived from the original on October 23 2012 Retrieved 2008 02 24 Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title 1944 United States Senate election in South Carolina amp oldid 1083621231, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,
