Maine gubernatorial election, 1954

Maine gubernatorial election, 1954

1952 ← September 13, 1954 → 1956

Party Democratic Republican Popular vote 135,673 113,298 Percentage 54.49% 45.51%

Election results by county Republican (Red), Democrat (Blue)

Governor before election Burton M. Cross Republican Elected Governor Edmund Muskie Democratic

The 1954 Maine gubernatorial election took place on September 13, 1954. Incumbent Republican Governor Burton M. Cross was seeking a second term which would have made him the fifth consecutive Governor (all Republicans) to be elected twice. Democratic state representative Edmund Muskie, widely viewed as the underdog due to Maine's solidly Republican history, was able to pull an upset victory and become the first Democrat to be elected to the Blaine House since Louis J. Brann in 1934. His election is widely viewed as the beginning of the rise of the Democratic Party in Maine, and the end of Republican dominance in the state.^{[citation needed]}

Results

1954 Gubernatorial Election, Maine[1]
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Democratic	Edmund Muskie	135,673	54.49%	-
	Republican	Burton M. Cross	113,298	45.51%	-
Majority			22,375	8.99%

Notes

1. ^ Guide to US Elections, Fifth Edition, Volume II. CQ Press. 2005. pp. 1497–1499. ISBN 978-1-56802-981-8. http://www.cqpress.com/product/Guide-to-US-Elections-Fifth-Edition.html.