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The 1966 Alabama gubernatorial election took place on November 8, 1966, and saw the election of Lurleen Wallace as the governor over U.S. Representative James D. Martin. Incumbent Democrat George Wallace was term limited and could not seek a second consecutive term.
A.W. Todd, Commissioner of Agriculture and Industries
Lurleen Wallace, First Lady
Charles Woods, businessman
Results[]
The Democratic primary was handily won by Lurleen Wallace, who was running as the proxy of her husband, governor George Wallace. Wallace captured a majority of the vote cast in the first round of the primary and there was therefore no runoff necessary.
Purple denotes a county carried by Wallace, and Green by Flowers.
Democratic primary results
Party
Candidate
Votes
%
Democratic
Lurleen Wallace
480,841
54.10
Democratic
Richmond Flowers, Sr.
172,386
19.40
Democratic
Carl Elliott
71,792
8.10
Democratic
Bob Gilchrist
49,502
5.57
Democratic
Charles Woods
41,148
4.63
Democratic
John Malcolm Patterson
31,011
3.49
Democratic
Jim Folsom
24,145
2.72
Democratic
A.W. Todd
9,013
1.01
Democratic
Sherman Powell
7,231
0.81
Democratic
Eunice Gore
1,589
0.18
Total votes
888,658
100
General election[]
Until 1966, the official election of the Democratic nominee had been a foregone conclusion. This election proved to be a significant departure from that trend, and the showing of James D. Martin proved to the best by a Republican candidate for governor in Alabama since Reconstruction.