The 1924 South Dakota gubernatorial election was held on November 4, 1924. Incumbent Republican Governor

William H. McMaster William Henry McMaster (May 10, 1877September 14, 1968) was an American Republican politician who served as the tenth Governor of South Dakota, serving from 1921 until 1925. He also served as a member of the United States Senate from South Dako ...

declined to run for re-election to a third term, instead opting to run for the U.S. Senate. Lieutenant Governor

Carl Gunderson Carl Gunderson (June 20, 1864February 26, 1933)''Biographical Directory of the South Dakota Legislature, 1889–1989'' (1989), p. 400 was an American politician who served as the 11th Governor of South Dakota. Gunderson, a Republican from Mit ...

won the Republican primary unopposed. In the general election, he faced three prominent opponents: Democratic nominee

William J. Bulow William John Bulow (January 13, 1869February 26, 1960) was an American politician and lawyer. He was the first Democratic Governor of South Dakota, serving from 1927 to 1931. He received the highest number of votes of any Democratic candidate fo ...

, a former State Senator and Mayor of Beresford; Farmer–Labor nominee A. L. Putnam; and perennial candidate Richard O. Richards. Gunderson. With the left-leaning vote split, Gunderson won the election in a landslide.

Primary elections

Democratic primary

Candidates

* Andrew S. Anderson, former State Senator from

Clay County Clay County is the name of 18 counties in the United States. Most are named for Henry Clay, U.S. Senator and statesman: * Clay County, Alabama * Clay County, Arkansas (named for John Clayton, and originally named Clayton County) * Clay County, Flor ...

* Eric J. Ellefson, State Senator from

Minnehaha County Minnehaha County is a county on the eastern border of the state of South Dakota. As of the 2020 census, the population was 197,214, making it the state's most populous county. It contains over 20% of the state's population. Its county seat is S ...

Results

On August 11, 1924, Anderson was killed by a bull on his farm. The

South Dakota Democratic Party The South Dakota Democratic Party is the affiliate of the Democratic Party in the U.S. state of South Dakota. History 1914 was a milestone for the Democrats when they won South Dakota's first U.S. Senate election by popular vote with their first ...

's central committee met to select a replacement for Anderson on August 20, 1924. However, few candidates wanted to accept the nomination. State Senator John B. Johnson declined to be a candidate, though the committee viewed him as their preferred candidate. Ultimately,

—a former State Senator, Union County Judge, and Mayor of Beresford—was selected by the committee as its replacement nominee.

Republican primary

Lieutenant Governor

was the only Republican candidate to file for Governor, removing the race from the primary election ballot.

Farmer–Labor primary

Candidates

* A. L. Putnam * Eric J. Ellefson, State Senator from

Results

General election

Results

References

{{1924 United States elections

South Dakota South Dakota (; Sioux language, Sioux: , ) is a U.S. state in the West North Central states, North Central region of the United States. It is also part of the Great Plains. South Dakota is named after the Lakota people, Lakota and Dakota peo ...

1924 Events January * January 12 – Gopinath Saha shoots Ernest Day, whom he has mistaken for Sir Charles Tegart, the police commissioner of Calcutta, and is arrested soon after. * January 20– 30 – Kuomintang in China hol ...

Gubernatorial A governor is an politician, administrative leader and head of a polity or Region#Political_regions, political region, ranking under the Head of State, head of state and in some cases, such as governor-general, governors-general, as the head of ...

November 1924 events