Joseph Lyter Donaldson was the Democratic nominee for Governor of Kentucky

Governor of Kentucky

The Governor of the Commonwealth of Kentucky is the head of the executive branch of government in the U.S. state of Kentucky. Fifty-six men and one woman have served as Governor of Kentucky. The governor's term is four years in length; since 1992, incumbents have been able to seek re-election once...

 in 1943. Donaldson, of Carrollton, Kentucky

Carrollton, Kentucky

Carrollton is a town in Carroll County, Kentucky, at the confluence of the Ohio River and the Kentucky River. Its population was 3,846 at the 2000 census. It is the county seat of Carroll County....

 served as state highway commissioner. In the 1943 Democratic primary for governor Donaldson defeated Rodes K. Myers

Rodes K. Myers

Rodes Kirby Myers was an active Kentucky Democrat and served as Lieutenant Governor of Kentucky 1939-1943.Myers' hometown was Bowling Green, Kentucky. Myers was a Kentucky delegate to the Democratic National Convention in 1936, 1940, 1944, 1948 and 1956.In 1939 Myers ran for Lieutenant Governor...

, the incumbent Lieutenant Governor of Kentucky

Lieutenant Governor of Kentucky

The office of lieutenant governor of Kentucky has existed under the last three of Kentucky's four constitutions, beginning in 1797. The lieutenant governor serves as governor of Kentucky under circumstances similar to the Vice President of the United States assuming the powers of the presidency...

, and Ben Kilgore. Donaldson, however, proved to be a lackluster candidate in the general election. Although no Republican had won that office since the height of national Republican strength in 1927, before the Great Depression

Great Depression

The Great Depression was a severe worldwide economic depression in the decade preceding World War II. The timing of the Great Depression varied across nations, but in most countries it started in about 1929 and lasted until the late 1930s or early 1940s...

, Donaldson lost the general election to Republican Simeon S. Willis

Simeon S. Willis

Simeon Slavens Willis was the 46th Governor of Kentucky, United States, serving from 1943 to 1947. He was the only Republican elected governor of Kentucky between 1927 and 1967....

, 279,144 to 270,525, with 3,239 votes going to the Prohibition Party candidate.