The 1926 South Carolina gubernatorial election was held on November 2, 1926, to select the governor of the state of South Carolina. The South Carolina constitution was amended in 1926 to change the term of governor from two years to four years, but also prohibiting governors from consecutive terms. John Gardiner Richards, Jr. won the contested Democratic primary and ran unopposed in the general election becoming the 96th governor of South Carolina.
Democratic primary
Candidates
- Ibra Charles Blackwood, former State Representative from Spartanburg
- John T. Duncan, Columbia attorney and perennial candidate
- Edmund B. Jackson, Lieutenant Governor of South Carolina
- George K. Laney, candidate for Governor in 1922
- John J. McMahan
- Carroll D. Nance
- D.A.G. Ouzts
- Thomas H. Peeples, former Attorney General of South Carolina (1913–18)
- John Gardiner Richards Jr., former Railroad Commissioner, State Representative from Liberty Hill, and candidate for Governor in 1914 and 1918
The South Carolina Democratic Party held their primary for governor in the summer of 1926 and it attracted many politicians because of the recent change to the South Carolina constitution providing for a four-year term. Richards emerged victorious from the runoff and effectively became the next governor of South Carolina because there was no opposition in the general election.
General election
The general election was held on November 2, 1926, and John Richards was elected the next governor of South Carolina without opposition thanks to the state's suppression of parties other than the ruling Democrats. Being a non-presidential election and few contested races, turnout was the lowest ever for a gubernatorial election in South Carolina.
65+% won by Richards