The 1940 South Dakota gubernatorial election was held on November 5, 1940. Incumbent Republican Governor

Harlan J. Bushfield Harlan John Bushfield (August 6, 1882September 27, 1948) was an American politician from South Dakota. He served as the 16th governor of South Dakota and as a United States senator. A native of Iowa, Bushfield was raised in Miller, South Dakot ...

sought re-election to a second term. After winning the Republican primary by a large margin, he faced Democrat Lewis W. Bicknell, former Day County State's Attorney, in the general election. Though Bushfield underperformed Republican presidential nominee

Wendell Willkie Wendell Lewis Willkie (born Lewis Wendell Willkie; February 18, 1892 – October 8, 1944) was an American lawyer, corporate executive and the 1940 Republican nominee for President. Willkie appealed to many convention delegates as the Republican ...

, who won the state in a landslide, he nonetheless defeated Bicknell by a wide margin to easily win re-election.

Democratic Primary

Candidates

* Lewis W. Bicknell, former Day County State's Attorney, former Chairman of the State Department of Public Welfare,

1932 Events January * January 4 – The British authorities in India arrest and intern Mahatma Gandhi and Vallabhbhai Patel. * January 9 – Sakuradamon Incident (1932), Sakuradamon Incident: Korean nationalist Lee Bong-chang fails in his effort ...

Democratic candidate for the U.S. Senate * Almer O. Steensland, former State Representative from

Charles Mix County Charles Mix County is a county in the U.S. state of South Dakota. As of the 2020 United States Census, the population was 9,373. Its county seat is Lake Andes. The county was created in 1862 and organized in 1879. It was named for Charles Eli ...

Results

Republican Primary

Candidates

, incumbent Governor * Adolph N. Graff, former Mayor of

Sioux Falls, South Dakota Sioux Falls () is the most populous city in the U.S. state of South Dakota and the 130th-most populous city in the United States. It is the county seat of Minnehaha County and also extends into Lincoln County to the south, which continues up ...

, former State Representative 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

General election

Results

References

{{1940 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 ...

1940 A calendar from 1940 according to the Gregorian calendar, factoring in the dates of Easter and related holidays, cannot be used again until the year 5280. Events Below, the events of World War II have the "WWII" prefix. January *January ...

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 1940 events