1956 Montana gubernatorial election

1956 Montana gubernatorial election
Turnout	83.20%2.50
	County results; Aronson: 50–60% 60–70%; Olsen: 50–60% 60–70% 70–80%
Governor before election; J. Hugo Aronson; Republican	Elected Governor ; J. Hugo Aronson; Republican

The 1956 Montana gubernatorial election took place on November 6, 1956. Incumbent governor of Montana J. Hugo Aronson, who was first elected Governor in 1952, ran for re-election. He was unopposed in the Republican primary and advanced to the general election, where he faced Arnold Olsen, the Attorney General of Montana and the Democratic nominee. Despite the fact that then-President Dwight D. Eisenhower won the state in a landslide that year in the presidential election, Aronson only narrowly defeated Arnold to win his second and final term as governor.

Democratic primary

Democratic Party primary results^[2]
Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Democratic	Arnold Olsen	55,269	44.94
	Democratic	John W. Bonner	51,306	41.72
	Democratic	Danny O'Neill	14,777	12.01
	Democratic	J. M. Nickey	1,639	1.33
Total votes			122,991	100.00

Republican Primary results^[2]
Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Republican	J. Hugo Aronson (incumbent)	50,444	100.00
Total votes			50,444	100.00

Montana gubernatorial election, 1956^[3]
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Republican	J. Hugo Aronson (incumbent)	138,878	51.37%	+0.41%
	Democratic	Arnold Olsen	131,488	48.63%	−0.41%
Majority			7,390	2.73%	+0.82%
Turnout			270,366
	Republican hold		Swing

^ "Montana Voter Turnout". Montana Secretary of State. Retrieved May 26, 2022.
^ ^a ^b "Report of the Official Canvass of the Vote Cast at the Primary election Held in the State of Montana, June 5, 1956" (PDF). Montana Secretary of State. Archived from the original (PDF) on December 28, 2013. Retrieved July 5, 2014.
^ "Official Montana General Election Results, November 6, 1956" (PDF). Montana Secretary of State. Archived from the original (PDF) on December 28, 2013. Retrieved July 5, 2014.