PolitiFinder

1881 Massachusetts Gubernatorial Election

Massachusetts · 2 candidates · See every 1881 Governor race

Who won the 1881 Massachusetts Gubernatorial Election?

John Davis Long won the 1881 Massachusetts Gubernatorial Election. John Davis Long received 96,609 popular votes (61.22%). The main challenger was Charles Perkins Thompson (34.59%).

See the full head-to-head between Long and Thompson

Long +26.6 pts · won by 42,023 votes
John Davis LongRepublicanWINNER61.22%
96,609 votes
Charles Perkins ThompsonDemocratic34.59%
54,586 votes
Other candidates received the remaining 4.2% of the popular vote; only the leading candidates are individually recorded for this election.
Popular-vote totals for governor elections are compiled from official state results (via Wikipedia); Louisiana shows the decisive round of its jungle primary.

Data last verified July 28, 2026.