1800 Kentucky gubernatorial election
May 5–7, 1800
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| Elections in Kentucky |
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 Government |
The 1800 Kentucky gubernatorial election was held from May 5 through May 7, 1800, to elect the governor of Kentucky. Incumbent governor James Garrard won a second term with a plurality of 8,390 votes, defeating Christopher Greenup, Benjamin Logan and Thomas Todd.[1]
The election was the first Kentucky gubernatorial contest decided by direct popular vote. The Kentucky Constitution of 1792 had assigned the choice of governor to an electoral body selected by voters, but the constitution adopted in 1799 abolished that system and provided that the candidate receiving the highest popular-vote total would become governor.[2][3] Garrard consequently won despite receiving less than a majority of the vote.
Background
[edit]Garrard had first been selected governor in the disputed 1796 election. Benjamin Logan led the first electoral-college ballot that year, but did not receive a majority. The electors conducted a second ballot between Logan and Garrard, which Garrard won. Logan maintained that the constitution had not authorized the second ballot and unsuccessfully challenged the result.[4]
Controversy over that election contributed to wider dissatisfaction with Kentucky's first constitution. The 1799 constitution replaced indirect gubernatorial elections with popular voting. It also made governors ineligible to serve again for seven years after completing a term, but its transitional provisions exempted Garrard from that restriction and permitted him to seek immediate reelection.[5][6]
During his first term, Garrard supported laws addressing land claims, the militia, penal reform and education. He also aligned himself with the national Democratic-Republican opposition to the Alien and Sedition Acts and supported the Kentucky Resolutions of 1798 and 1799.[7]
Candidates and campaign
[edit]The four candidates belonged to the broad Jeffersonian or Democratic-Republican political coalition, and the race was not organized through a modern party-primary or nomination system.
- James Garrard, the incumbent governor, was a farmer, Baptist minister and veteran of Kentucky's statehood conventions. He emphasized his administration's record and benefited from the advantages of incumbency.[8]
- Christopher Greenup was a lawyer, former member of the Virginia House of Delegates and former United States representative from Kentucky.
- Benjamin Logan was a prominent frontier military leader and veteran of Kentucky's statehood movement. He sought a rematch after challenging the result of the 1796 election.
- Thomas Todd was an attorney and former secretary to Kentucky's statehood conventions. He later served on the Kentucky Court of Appeals and the Supreme Court of the United States.
The candidates generally avoided direct personal attacks, although their supporters raised objections to their opponents. Late in the campaign, Garrard was criticized for refusing to pardon Henry Field, a politically connected man convicted of murdering his wife. Garrard defended the refusal by maintaining that the conviction was supported by the evidence, but the accusation appeared too late for his response to circulate widely.[8]
Results
[edit]
Voting occurred over three days, from May 5 through May 7. Garrard won 8,390 votes, or 39.40 percent, and defeated Greenup by 1,645 votes. Greenup received 31.67 percent, Logan 18.76 percent and Todd 10.17 percent.[1]
| Candidate | Affiliation | Votes | % |
|---|---|---|---|
| James Garrard (incumbent) | Democratic-Republican | 8,390 | 39.40 |
| Christopher Greenup | Democratic-Republican | 6,745 | 31.67 |
| Benjamin Logan | Democratic-Republican | 3,995 | 18.76 |
| Thomas Todd | Democratic-Republican | 2,166 | 10.17 |
| Total | 21,296 | 100.00 | |
Surviving county returns show Garrard winning pluralities in much of western Kentucky and in several populous Bluegrass counties, including Bourbon and Mason. Greenup ran strongly in Fayette, Clark and several central counties, while Logan's largest concentrations of support included Lincoln, Madison and Shelby counties. Todd did not carry any county for which complete returns survive.[1] Some figures reported in contemporary newspapers differ from the totals retained by A New Nation Votes, particularly for individual counties and by one vote in Logan's statewide total.[1]
Aftermath
[edit]Garrard began his second term in June 1800. He was the last Kentucky governor permitted to win consecutive terms until a 1992 constitutional amendment allowed governors to seek one immediate reelection; Paul E. Patton became the next governor reelected consecutively in 1999.[9]
Garrard subsequently appointed Todd to the Kentucky Court of Appeals in 1801 and Greenup to a circuit-court judgeship in 1802. Greenup succeeded Garrard as governor after winning the 1804 Kentucky gubernatorial election.[8]
References
[edit]- 1 2 3 4 5 Lampi, Philip. "Kentucky 1800 Governor". A New Nation Votes: American Election Returns, 1787–1825. American Antiquarian Society and Tufts Archival Research Center. Retrieved August 7, 2026.
- ↑ Citizens' Guide to the Kentucky Constitution (PDF) (Report). Kentucky Legislative Research Commission. 2013. p. 41. Retrieved August 7, 2026.
- ↑ Dietzman, Richard Priest (1927). "The Four Constitutions of Kentucky". Kentucky Law Journal. 15 (2): 116–127. Retrieved August 7, 2026.
- ↑ Everman, H. E. (1981). Governor James Garrard. Cooper's Run Press. pp. 30–36. OCLC 7978938.
- ↑ Everman, H. E. (1981). Governor James Garrard. Cooper's Run Press. pp. 47–59. OCLC 7978938.
- ↑ Harrison, Lowell H.; Klotter, James C. (1997). A New History of Kentucky. University Press of Kentucky. pp. 76–78. ISBN 978-0-8131-2008-9.
- ↑ Everman, H. E. (1981). Governor James Garrard. Cooper's Run Press. pp. 37–58. OCLC 7978938.
- 1 2 3 Everman, H. E. (1981). Governor James Garrard. Cooper's Run Press. pp. 63–65. OCLC 7978938.
- ↑ "Gubernatorial History". Office of the Governor of Kentucky. Retrieved August 7, 2026.
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