The 1938 California gubernatorial election was held on November 8, 1938. This was the first election since

1894 Events January–March * January 4 – A military alliance is established between the French Third Republic and the Russian Empire. * January 7 – William Kennedy Dickson receives a patent for motion picture film in the United S ...

in which a

Democrat Democrat, Democrats, or Democratic may refer to: Politics *A proponent of democracy, or democratic government; a form of government involving rule by the people. *A member of a Democratic Party: **Democratic Party (United States) (D) **Democratic ...

was elected

Governor of California The governor of California is the head of government of the U.S. state of California. The governor is the commander-in-chief of the California National Guard and the California State Guard. Established in the Constitution of California, the g ...

, as well as the first election since

1882 Events January–March * January 2 ** The Standard Oil Trust is secretly created in the United States to control multiple corporations set up by John D. Rockefeller and his associates. ** Irish-born author Oscar Wilde arrives in ...

in which a Democrat won with more than 50% of the vote.

Culbert L. Olson Culbert Levy Olson (November 7, 1876 – April 13, 1962) was an American lawyer and politician. A United States Democratic Party, Democratic Party member, Olson was involved in Utah and California politics and was elected as the List of Governo ...

had defeated John F. Dockweiler and

James Francis Thaddeus O'Connor James Francis Thaddeus O'Connor (November 10, 1886 – September 28, 1949) was a United States district judge of the United States District Court for the Southern District of California. Education and career Born in Grand Forks, Dakota Territ ...

for the Democratic nomination, while

Frank F. Merriam Frank Finley Merriam (December 22, 1865 – April 25, 1955) was an American Republican politician who served as the 28th governor of California from June 2, 1934 until January 2, 1939. Assuming the governorship at the height of the Great Depressi ...

defeated

George J. Hatfield George Juan Hatfield (October 29, 1887 – November 15, 1953) served as U.S. Attorney for the Northern District of California from 1925–33 and was the 32nd Lieutenant Governor of California from 1935 to 1939 serving under Governor Frank Merr ...

for the Republican nomination. This was the last time until

Gray Davis Joseph Graham "Gray" Davis Jr. (born December 26, 1942) is an American attorney and former politician who served as the 37th governor of California from 1999 to 2003. In 2003, only a few months into his second term, Davis was recalled and remov ...

in 1998 that a Democrat who was not a member of the Brown family won the governorship. Excluding Davis, this was the last time until Gavin Newsom in 2018.

General election results

References

Our Campaigns
California

1938 Events January * January 1 ** The Constitution of Estonia#Third Constitution (de facto 1938–1940, de jure 1938–1992), new constitution of Estonia enters into force, which many consider to be the ending of the Era of Silence and the a ...

Gubernatorial November 1938 events {{California-election-stub