William O'Connell Bradley - Gubernatorial Election of 1887

Gubernatorial Election of 1887

At their nominating convention in Louisville on May 11, 1887, Kentucky Republicans nominated Bradley for Governor of Kentucky to oppose Democrat Simon B. Buckner, a former Confederate general. In his acceptance speech, Bradley implored Kentuckians to realize that the Civil War was over and to discontinue their practice of electing ex-Confederate Democrats to public office. His platform included proposals for education, implementing of a high protective tariff, and developing the state's resources. He pointed out that, though Kentucky contained more coal than Pennsylvania, the state bought half of its coal from that state. A similar situation existed with regard to lumber. He was also critical of excessive spending during the preceding Democratic administrations. Among his cited examples of extravagance were the creation of a state bureau of agriculture and the construction of a new state penitentiary. Democratic mismanagement of the state's affairs had resulted in able, young Kentuckians leaving the state to seek their fortunes because of a lack of opportunity at home, Bradley lamented.

During the campaign, Buckner relied on party strength and personal popularity to give him an advantage over Bradley, a decidedly superior orator. In the only debate between the two, held at Grayson, Bradley attacked Democrats for creating "useless offices" such as railroad commissioners. He defended the Republican proposal of a high protective tariff and advocated federal aid for education. When Buckner took the platform, he began by asking if Bradley had charged in an earlier speech that one of Buckner's speeches had been written by former governor J. Proctor Knott. Bradley acknowledged that he had heard that Knott had written the speech and that he (Bradley) had repeated this claim in one of his speeches. Buckner rebuked Bradley for circulating this "infamously false" charge, and withdrew his agreement to participate in any further joint debates. He then delivered a discourse attacking the protective tariff and federal aid for education.

True to his word, Buckner never again met Bradley in a joint debate. Rumors began to circulate that Buckner was afraid to meet Bradley in debate again, and Bradley did little to dispel these rumors. The Democrats were not completely united throughout the campaign, with prominent members of the party including Milton J. Durham and State Senator Albert Seaton Berry criticizing the Democratic record in the state. The Democratic Henderson Gleaner was also critical, opining "We should be ashamed of ourselves." Throughout the state, Bradley hammered the issue of the blind trust afforded the perennial Democratic officeholders, specifically calling for an examination of the treasury. Though Bradley lost the election by more than 16,000 votes, he made the best showing of any Republican gubernatorial candidate to that time and garnered strong support from the state's black voters. His concerns about the state treasury proved valid. When Buckner ordered an audit of the treasurer's books in 1888, Treasurer James "Honest Dick" Tate fled with $250,000 from the state treasury. He was never found.

In 1888, Bradley's name was again put before the General Assembly as a candidate for the U.S. Senate, but he was defeated by James B. Beck by a vote of 94–31. Later that year, he received 103 of 832 votes for the Vice-Presidential nomination at the 1888 Republican National Convention, losing the nomination to Levi P. Morton. Upon the unsolicited recommendation of Senator Beck, President Benjamin Harrison nominated Bradley as Minister to Korea in 1889, but Bradley declined the nomination, opting to remain in Kentucky and pursue future political opportunities there. He was elected to the Republican National Committee three times between 1890 and 1896. In 1896, he was the Kentucky delegation's choice for Presidential nominee.