Question

HURRY!!      In the 1946 Governor's race, Eugene Talmadge died before taking office. His death led to what became known as the Three Governors Controversy. How was the governorship eventually decided?
A) Ellis Arnall remained governor since he was the sitting governor.
Eliminate
B) Herman Talmadge was declared governor because he was Eugene Talmadge's son.
C) M.E. Thompson was elected as Lieutenant Governor and by the right of succession was declared governor.
D) The Georgia Supreme Court ruled that Thompson was the official governor until a special election could be held.

Answer 1

The Georgia Supreme Court ruled that Thompson was the official governor until a special election could be held.

Further Explanation:

The three Governor’s controversy was the political crisis in Georgia in 1946-47. The Governor-elect of Georgia is Eugene Talmadge died before taking the office. There was confusion regarding the post of Governorship in this situation as there is no mention of such provision in the Constitution. So three men made claims for this post- Ellis Arnall who was the outgoing governor, Melvin E. Thompson, the lieutenant governor-elect, Herman Talmadge, Eugene Talmadge’s son. The Supreme Court of Georgia gave ruling in favor of Thompson. Ben Fortson who was the Secretary of State hid the state seal in the wheelchair to obstruct the business of the house and said no official business could take place till the controversy was resolved. Arnall said he would remain in the office till his successors are sworn in. Thompson said he would be sworn in as the governor in Eugene Talmadge’s place. The Supporters of Talmadge were very insecure and unsure of his survival and started doing research and concluded that if he died then the general assembly would choose between the second and the third-place finishers.

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Answer Details:

Grade: High School

Chapter: Three Governor’s Controversy

Subject: Social Science

Keywords:

Ellis Arnall, Melvin E. Thompson, Herman Talmadge, state seal.

Answer 2

The correct answer is D, as the Georgia Supreme Court ruled that Thompson was the official governor until a special election could be held.

On December 21, 1946, Talmadge died of liver disease, even before he was introduced to the governorship. This resulted in one of the most hilarious situations in American history. The Constitution of Georgia had recently created the post of Lieutenant Governor. This office should be filled for the first time with the new term of office. Talmadge's opponent Melvin Thompson had been elected first deputy governor of Georgia in the 1946 elections. According to the Constitution, the vice-governor should exercise the office of governor if he died during his term of office or left office for other reasons. But Eugene Talmadge was not yet in office at the time of his death, and the discussion about the succession broke out between three groups. For the first, Thompson claimed office as elected vice-governor. The Talmadge supporters were decidedly against this solution. They proposed the election of Herman Talmadge, the late governor's son, by the National Assembly. Finally, the Assembly followed this proposal and on January 15, 1947, elected Herman Talmadge as the new governor. Thompson then sued before the Supreme Court of Georgia.

But that wasn't all. Outgoing Governor Ellis Arnall saw a problem. Since he did not know exactly who his successor was, he refused to hand over the position. This infuriated the Talmadge supporters, they hated Arnall anyway because of his Talmadge hostile policies of the last four years. Among the supporters of the various camps, there were even solid fights. Meanwhile, Herman Talmadge had the governor's building occupied by military forces and declared himself governor of Georgia, while Arnall and Thompson also claimed this office.

For a short time in January 1947, Georgia had three governors at the same time. Finally Arnall gave up and recognized Thompson as new governor. Thus, there were still the two counterparts Thompson and Herman Talmadge, which overthrew the state for another two months in a political mess.

In March 1947, the Supreme Court of Georgia ruled in favor of Thompson. This should act as governor until 1948 new elections should solve the problem. Herman Talmadge gave up surprisingly quickly and prepared himself for the new elections, in which he got elected.