The 1952 Illinois gubernatorial election was held on November 4, 1952. Incumbent

Governor A governor is an administrative leader and head of a polity or political region, ranking under the head of state and in some cases, such as governors-general, as the head of state's official representative. Depending on the type of political ...

Adlai Stevenson II Adlai Ewing Stevenson II (; February 5, 1900 – July 14, 1965) was an American politician and diplomat who was twice the Democratic nominee for President of the United States. He was the grandson of Adlai Stevenson I, the 23rd vice president of ...

, a Democrat, ultimately did not seek a second term, instead opting to run as his party's nominee for President of the United States. Republican

William Stratton William Grant Stratton (February 26, 1914 – March 2, 2001), was the 32nd governor of Illinois from 1953 to 1961. Early life and career Born February 26, 1914 in Ingleside, Lake County, Illinois, the son of William J. Stratton, an Illinoi ...

was elected to succeed him in office. Before receiving the Democratic presidential nomination at the

Democratic National Convention The Democratic National Convention (DNC) is a series of presidential nominating conventions held every four years since 1832 by the United States Democratic Party. They have been administered by the Democratic National Committee since the 1852 ...

, Stevenson had been running for reelection as governor, even winning the Democratic primary. He was replaced as Democratic nominee for Governor by Lieutenant Governor

Sherwood Dixon John Sherwood Dixon (better known as Sherwood Dixon) (June 19, 1896 – May 17, 1973) was an US, American politician from Illinois, a member of the US Democratic Party, Democratic Party. Sherwood Dixon was born in Dixon, Illinois, Dixon, Le ...

. Stratton was considered to have ridden the

coattails The coattail effect or down-ballot effect is the tendency for a popular political party leader to attract votes for other candidates of the same party in an election. For example, in the United States, the party of a victorious presidential cand ...

Dwight D. Eisenhower Dwight David "Ike" Eisenhower (born David Dwight Eisenhower; ; October 14, 1890 – March 28, 1969) was an American military officer and statesman who served as the 34th president of the United States from 1953 to 1961. During World War II, ...

landslide victory A landslide victory is an election result in which the victorious candidate or party wins by an overwhelming margin. The term became popular in the 1800s to describe a victory in which the opposition is "buried", similar to the way in which a geol ...

in the state in the

presidential election A presidential election is the election of any head of state whose official title is President. Elections by country Albania The president of Albania is elected by the Assembly of Albania who are elected by the Albanian public. Chile The pre ...

. After being elected, at the age of 38, Stratton became the youngest governor in the country, and the youngest to have served as governor of Illinois in seven decades. The

primaries Primary elections, or direct primary are a voting process by which voters can indicate their preference for their party's candidate, or a candidate in general, in an upcoming general election, local election, or by-election. Depending on the c ...

and general election both coincided with those for federal offices (

United States President The president of the United States (POTUS) is the head of state and head of government of the United States of America. The president directs the executive branch of the federal government and is the commander-in-chief of the United State ...

and

House A house is a single-unit residential building. It may range in complexity from a rudimentary hut to a complex structure of wood, masonry, concrete or other material, outfitted with plumbing, electrical, and heating, ventilation, and air condi ...

, and those for other state offices. The election was part of the

1952 Illinois elections Elections were held in Illinois on Tuesday, November 4, 1952. Primaries were held on April 8. The elections, in large part, saw a strong performance by the Republican Party. The Republican Party retained control both chambers of the Illinois ...

Democratic primary

Republican primary

General election

References

{{Illinois elections Illinois gubernatorial elections

Illinois Illinois ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern United States. Its largest metropolitan areas include the Chicago metropolitan area, and the Metro East section, of Greater St. Louis. Other smaller metropolita ...

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 ...