# 1972 Texas gubernatorial election

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Government :
vte :
The 1972 Texas gubernatorial election was held on November 7, 1972, to elect the governor of Texas. Incumbent Democratic governor Preston Smith ran for reelection, but lost renomination to businessman Dolph Briscoe. Smith was overwhelmingly rejected in the Democratic primary, taking fourth place with only 8% of the vote amid the fallout from the Sharpstown scandal. Briscoe went on to win the general election by a relatively small margin, winning 48% of the vote to Republican Henry Grover's 45%. Raza Unida candidate Ramsey Muniz won 6%.
As of 2022, this is the last time Jim Hogg and Brooks counties did not vote for the Democratic candidate, instead voting for the Raza Unida party.
The 1972 election marked the last time that a gubernatorial election was held concurrently with a presidential election and the last time that a governor was elected for a two-year term.

## Democratic primary
### Candidates

* Ben Barnes, lieutenant governor and former speaker of the Texas House of Representatives
* Dolph Briscoe, former state representative from Uvalde and candidate for governor in 1968
* Frances Farenthold, state representative from Corpus Christi
* Robert E. Looney
* William H. Posey
* Preston Smith, incumbent governor
* Gordon F. Wills

### Results

Democratic primary results :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % |
| | Democratic | Dolph Briscoe | 963,397 | 43.93% |
| | Democratic | Frances Farenthold | 612,051 | 27.91% |
| | Democratic | Ben Barnes | 392,356 | 17.89% |
| | Democratic | Preston Smith (incumbent) | 190,709 | 8.70% |
| | Democratic | William H. Posey | 13,727 | 0.62% |
| | Democratic | Gordon F. Wills | 10,438 | 0.48% |
| | Democratic | Robert E. Looney | 10,225 | 0.47% |
| Total votes | Total votes | Total votes | 2,192,903 | 100.00% |

### Runoff

Democratic runoff results :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % |
| | Democratic | Dolph Briscoe | 1,095,168 | 55.32% |
| | Democratic | Frances Farenthold | 884,594 | 44.68% |
| Total votes | Total votes | Total votes | 1,979,762 | 100.00% |

## Republican primary
### Candidates

* Albert B. Fay, Houston oilman
* Henry Grover, former state representative from Harris County
* John A. Hall Sr.
* J. A. Jenkins
* Tom McElroy
* David Reagan

### Results

Republican primary results :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % |
| | Republican | Henry Grover | 37,118 | 32.56% |
| | Republican | Albert B. Fay | 24,329 | 21.34% |
| | Republican | David Reagan | 20,119 | 17.65% |
| | Republican | Tom McElroy | 19,559 | 17.16% |
| | Republican | John A. Hall Sr. | 8,018 | 7.03% |
| | Republican | J. A. Jenkins | 4,864 | 4.27% |
| Total votes | Total votes | Total votes | 114,007 | 100.00% |

### Runoff

Republican runoff results :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % |
| | Republican | Henry Grover | 37,842 | 66.38% |
| | Republican | Albert B. Fay | 19,166 | 33.62% |
| Total votes | Total votes | Total votes | 57,008 | 100.00% |

## Results

General election results :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % |
| | Democratic | Dolph Briscoe | 1,633,493 | 47.91% |
| | Republican | Henry Grover | 1,533,986 | 44.99% |
| | Raza Unida | Ramsey Muniz | 214,118 | 6.28% |
| | Socialist Workers | Deborah Leonard | 24,103 | 0.71% |
| | Others | | 3,891 | 0.11% |
| Total votes | Total votes | Total votes | 3,409,501 | 100.00% |
| | Democratic hold | Democratic hold | Democratic hold | Democratic hold |