The 1906 Texas lieutenant gubernatorial election was held on November 6, 1906, in order to elect the lieutenant governor of Texas. Democratic nominee and incumbent member of the Texas Senate Asbury Bascom Davidson defeated Republican nominee Frederick Hofheinz, Independent Republican nominee James C. Gibbons, Socialist nominee Lee L. Rhodes, Prohibition nominee Thomas Brown and Socialist Labor nominee Carl Schmidt.

Democratic primary

This election marked the first time that the Democratic party held a primary election to select nominees for statewide office. This election was not a primary in the sense that the popular vote directly determined the nominee, instead the vote was used to allocate pledged delegates from each county at the state convention.[1][2] During this period, Texas and other southern states were part of a voting bloc called the "Solid South" and due to the overwhelming success of Democratic party candidates, winning the primary election was tantamount to winning the general election.

Candidates

  • Ashbury Bascom Davidson, state senator, lawyer, former district attorney[3]
  • Fitzhugh Francisco Hill, state representative and lawyer[4]

General election

On election day, November 6, 1906, Democratic nominee Asbury Bascom Davidson won the election by a margin of 124,071 votes against his foremost opponent Republican nominee Frederick Hofheinz, thereby retaining Democratic control over the office of lieutenant governor. Davidson was sworn in as the 22nd lieutenant governor of Texas on January 15, 1907.[5]

Candidates

  • Thomas Brown (Prohibition)[6]
  • Lee Lightfoot Rhodes, labor organizer, Socialist nominee for lieutenant governor in 1904, former Populist state representative, Social Democratic nominee for governor in 1900 (Socialist)[6][7]
  • Friedrich Hofheinz (Republican)[6]
  • James C. Gibbons (Black and Tan Republican)[6]
  • Carl Schmidt (Socialist Labor)[6]

Results

Texas lieutenant gubernatorial election, 1906
Party Candidate Votes %
Democratic Asbury Bascom Davidson 148,264 80.89
Republican Frederick Hofheinz 24,193 13.20
Independent Republican James C. Gibbons 5,252 2.87
Socialist Lee L. Rhodes 2,901 1.58
Prohibition Thomas Brown 2,369 1.29
Socialist Labor Carl Schmidt 319 0.17
Total votes 183,298 100.00
Democratic hold

References

  1. ↑ Winkler, Ernest William (September 20, 1916). Platforms of Political Parties in Texas (PDF). University of Texas. pp. 481–497.
  2. ↑ "State and County Elections Will Show Several Surprises". The Daily Express. San Antonio, TX. July 29, 1906. p. 1 – via Newspapers.com.
  3. ↑ Hyman, Carolyn (1976). "Asbury Bascom Davidson: Texas Lawyer and Lieutenant Governor". Texas State Historical Association. Retrieved June 5, 2026.
  4. ↑ Treadway, Will (June 22, 2016). "Fitzhugh Francisco Hill: Texas Lawyer and State Representative". Texas State Historical Association. Retrieved June 5, 2026.
  5. ↑ "1906 Lt. Gubernatorial General Election Results - Texas". uselectionatlas.org. 1 May 2025. Retrieved 14 April 2026.
  6. 1 2 3 4 5 Winkler, Ernest William (September 20, 1916). Platforms of Political Parties in Texas (PDF). University of Texas. pp. 481–497.
  7. ↑ Green, Michael (April 15, 2015). "Lee Lightfoot Rhodes: A Legacy of Labor and Politics in Texas". Texas State Historical Association. Retrieved 2026-06-29.
source: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1906_Texas_lieutenant_gubernatorial_election