PolitiFinder

1938 New York Gubernatorial Election

New York · 2 candidates · See every 1938 Governor race

Who won the 1938 New York Gubernatorial Election?

Herbert H. Lehman won the 1938 New York Gubernatorial Election. Herbert H. Lehman received 2,391,286 popular votes (49.6%). The main challenger was Thomas E. Dewey (48.3%).

See the full head-to-head between Lehman and Dewey

Lehman +1.3 pts · won by 64,394 votes
Herbert H. LehmanDemocraticWINNER49.6%
2,391,286 votes
Thomas E. DeweyRepublican48.3%
2,326,892 votes
Other candidates received the remaining 2.1% 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.