June 2, 1962 - John B. Connally Jr. (pictured), a conservative Democrat who was formerly Secretary of the Navy, won his party’s nomination for Governor of Texas in a run-off primary today. On the basis of unofficial returns from all 254 of the state’s counties, Mr. Connally polled 564,276 votes to 538,223 for his liberal Democratic rival, Don Yarborough of Houston. Mr. Yarborough, a 36-year-old lawyer who ran as a supporter of President Kennedy and the New Frontier, made it close all the way. Mr. Connally, 44, led from the start. He piled up big leads in Dallas, Fort Worth, and San Antonio. He ran well in most sections of the state. Mr. Yarborough was strong in rural East Texas, in his home city of Houston, in El Paso, and along the Gulf Coast. He was unable, however, to win impressive support among Negroes and Latin-American voters in Fort Worth, San Antonio, and the Rio Grande Valley.
Comments