# 1972 Montana gubernatorial election

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The 1972 Montana gubernatorial election took place on November 7, 1972. Incumbent Governor of Montana Forrest H. Anderson, who was first elected in 1968, declined to seek re-election. Thomas Lee Judge, the Lieutenant Governor of Montana, won a competitive Democratic primary, and moved on to the general election, where he faced Ed Smith, a rancher and the Republican nominee. Although then-President Richard Nixon won the state in a landslide in that year's presidential election, Judge managed to handily defeat Smith, winning his first of two terms as governor.

## Democratic primary
### Candidates

* Thomas Lee Judge, Lieutenant Governor of Montana
* Dick Dzivi, Majority Leader of the Montana Senate
* Eva Levengood Shunkwiler
* Dallas E. Howard
* David E. Burnham

### Results

Democratic Party primary results :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % |
| | Democratic | Thomas Lee Judge | 75,917 | 59.87 |
| | Democratic | Dick Dzivi | 38,639 | 30.47 |
| | Democratic | Eva Levengood Shunkwiler | 5,707 | 4.50 |
| | Democratic | Dallas E. Howard | 4,255 | 3.36 |
| | Democratic | David E. Burnham | 2,276 | 1.80 |
| Total votes | Total votes | Total votes | 126,794 | 100.00 |

## Republican primary
### Candidates

* Ed Smith, rancher
* Frank Dunkle, former Director of the Montana Department of Fish, Wildlife and Parks, former State Senator
* Tom A. Selstad, businessman
* Warren McMillan

### Results

Republican Primary results :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % |
| | Republican | Ed Smith | 39,552 | 40.65 |
| | Republican | Frank Dunkle | 37,375 | 38.41 |
| | Republican | Tom A. Selstad | 18,046 | 18.55 |
| | Republican | Warren McMillan | 2,331 | 2.40 |
| Total votes | Total votes | Total votes | 97,304 | 100.00 |

## General election
### Results

Montana gubernatorial election, 1972 :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Democratic | Thomas Lee Judge | 172,523 | 54.12% | +7.58% |
| | Republican | Ed Smith | 146,231 | 45.88% | +4.01% |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 26,292 | 8.25% | −3.99% |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 318,754 | | |
| | Democratic hold | Democratic hold | Swing | | |