1838 Pennsylvania gubernatorial election
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County Results Porter: 50-60% 60-70% 70-80% 80-90% Ritner: 50-60% 60-70% 70-80% | |||||||||||||||||
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The 1838 Pennsylvania gubernatorial election was a statewide contest for the office of Governor of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania in the United States.
Incumbent Governor Joseph Ritner, who was the last governor to serve under Pennsylvania's Constitution of 1790, ran as an Anti-Masonic candidate. He was defeated by Jacksonian Democrat David R. Porter by less than 5,500 votes, following a divisive campaign marred by rising public prejudice against Freemasonry and a disinformation campaign that distributed biographical booklets with inaccurate information about Porter.
Unhappy with the election's outcome, a group of Ritner supporters subsequently challenged the election results, sparking statewide violence that culminated in the Buckshot War.