1950 United States Senate elections in Kentucky

1950 United States Senate election in Kentucky
	County results (regular election); Clements: 50–60% 60–70% 70–80% 80–90%; Dawson: 50–60% 60–70% 70–80% 80–90%
U.S. senator before election; Earle Clements; Democratic	Elected U.S. Senator ; Earle Clements; Democratic

Two United States Senate elections for the Class 3 U.S. Senate seat from Kentucky were held simultaneously on November 7, 1950.

After Senator Alben Barkley resigned on January 19, 1949, to become Vice President of the United States, Governor Earle Clements appointed Garrett L. Withers to fill the vacant seat until a successor could be duly elected to complete the expired term. The special election was scheduled for November 7, 1950, concurrent with the regular election to the next term. Clements appointed Withers with the intention of running for the seat himself, which he did, defeating Republican former judge Charles I. Dawson in both elections.

General election

Candidates

Earle Clements, Governor of Kentucky (Democratic)
Charles I. Dawson, Louisville attorney and former Judge of the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Kentucky (Republican)
James E. Olson (Independent)^[a]

^ Olson did not contest the special election for the remainder of the term.

Results

1950 U.S. Senate election in Kentucky^[1]
Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Democratic	Earle Clements	334,249	54.16%
	Republican	Charles I. Dawson	278,368	45.11%
	Independent	James E. Olson	4,496	0.73%
Majority			55,881	9.05%
Turnout			617,113
	Democratic hold

Special election results

1950 U.S. Senate special election in Kentucky^[1]
Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Democratic	Earle Clements	317,320	54.40%
	Republican	Charles I. Dawson	265,994	45.60%
Majority			51,326	8.80%
Turnout			583,314	19.82%
	Democratic hold

References

^ ^a ^b Clerk of the House of Representatives (1951). "Statistics of the Presidential and Congressional Election of November 7, 1950" (PDF). U.S. Government Printing Office. Retrieved March 11, 2024.

Bibliography

Congressional Elections, 1946-1996. Washington, D.C.: Congressional Quarterly Inc. 1998. ISBN 1-56802-248-4.
Jewell, Malcolm E. (1963). Kentucky Votes. Vol. 1. University of Kentucky Press.

[1] Olson did not contest the special election for the remainder of the term.

[clerk-2] Clerk of the House of Representatives (1951). "Statistics of the Presidential and Congressional Election of November 7, 1950" (PDF). U.S. Government Printing Office. Retrieved March 11, 2024.

[a]

[1]

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