# 1956 North Carolina gubernatorial election

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vte :
The 1956 North Carolina gubernatorial election was held on November 6, 1956. Incumbent Democrat Luther H. Hodges defeated Republican nominee Kyle Hayes with 66.95% of the vote.
This election was unusual for North Carolina at the time, in that a sitting Governor ran for another term. The Constitution of North Carolina at the time had a one-term limit for governors, but Hodges, as lieutenant governor, had succeeded William B. Umstead after the latter died in office, and was running for a full four-year term on his own. In 1977, the state's voters approved an amendment to the state constitution permitting the governor to serve two consecutive four-year terms.

## Primary elections

Primary elections were held on May 26, 1956.

### Democratic primary
#### Candidates

* Luther H. Hodges, incumbent Governor
* Thomas B. Sawyer
* Harry P. Stokely
* C.E. Earle Jr.
19.2% of the voting age population participated in the Democratic primary.

#### Results

Democratic primary results :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % |
| | Democratic | Luther H. Hodges (incumbent) | 401,082 | 85.95 |
| | Democratic | Thomas B. Sawyer | 29,248 | 6.27 |
| | Democratic | Harry P. Stokely | 24,416 | 5.23 |
| | Democratic | C.E. Earle Jr. | 11,908 | 2.55 |
| Total votes | Total votes | Total votes | 466,654 | 100.00 |

## General election
### Candidates

* Luther H. Hodges, Democratic
* Kyle Hayes, Republican

### Results

1956 North Carolina gubernatorial election :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % |
| | Democratic | Luther H. Hodges (incumbent) | 760,480 | 66.95% |
| | Republican | Kyle Hayes | 375,379 | 33.05% |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 385,101 | |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 1,135,859 | |
| | Democratic hold | Democratic hold | Swing | |