Election Name: | 1938 South Dakota gubernatorial election |
Country: | South Dakota |
Flag Year: | 1909 |
Type: | presidential |
Ongoing: | no |
Previous Election: | 1936 South Dakota gubernatorial election |
Previous Year: | 1936 |
Next Election: | 1940 South Dakota gubernatorial election |
Next Year: | 1940 |
Election Date: | November 8, 1938 |
Nominee1: | Harlan J. Bushfield |
Party1: | Republican Party (United States) |
Popular Vote1: | 149,362 |
Percentage1: | 53.95% |
Nominee2: | Oscar Fosheim |
Party2: | Democratic Party (United States) |
Popular Vote2: | 127,485 |
Percentage2: | 46.05% |
Map Size: | 250px |
Governor of South Dakota | |
Before Election: | Leslie Jensen |
Before Party: | Republican Party (United States) |
After Election: | Harlan J. Bushfield |
After Party: | Republican Party (United States) |
The 1938 South Dakota gubernatorial election was held on November 8, 1938. Incumbent Republican Governor Leslie Jensen declined to seek re-election and instead unsuccessfully ran for the U.S. Senate. Harlan J. Bushfield, the former Chairman of the South Dakota Republican Party, won the Republican primary to succeed Jensen. In the general election, he faced Democratic nominee Oscar Fosheim, a State Representative from Miner County, in the general election. Bushfield defeated Fosheim by a relatively close margin, winning his first term as governor.