Political Career
In 1935, Johnson was one of three contenders for the Democratic nomination for lieutenant governor. In the primary, he received more votes than his opponents, J. E. Wise and B. F. Wright. However, a newly-enacted election law required a runoff if no candidate received a majority. On September 7, Johnson defeated Wise in the runoff.
In the gubernatorial primary, A. B. "Happy" Chandler defeated Tom Rhea, the candidate favored by sitting governor Ruby Laffoon. Johnson had also favored Rhea, as well as backing Robert T. Crowe over J. C. W. Beckham, Chandler's choice in the 1927 Democratic primary. Nevertheless, the two put aside their differences and won the general election. Chandler defeated Republican King Swope by over 95,000 votes, and Johnson defeated J. J. Kavanaugh by over 100,000 votes.
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