1946 Mississippi U.S. Senate Primary Voting Data by Race

As part of the investigation into Senator Bilbo, investigators travelled to Mississippi in October 1946 and conducted 382 interviews with residents of 22 different counties from across the state, gathering evidence related to the charges against the Senator. This chart, included in the investigators’ report to the committee, includes voting data from the 1946 Democratic primary for the counties in which the interview subjects lived, with additional data on voter registration taken from the 1940 U.S. census. (According to the 1940 census, Mississippi had 82 counties and a total population of almost 2.2 million, 49% of which was African American. Statewide, approximately 560,000 Black Mississippians were of voting age in 1940).

Source: Report of the Special Committee to Investigate Senatorial Campaign Expenditures, 1946, pursuant to S. Res. 224, A Resolution to Appoint a Special Committee to Investigate Senatorial Campaign Contributions and Expenditures in the 1946 Elections, Together with the Views of Mr. Bridges and Mr. Hickenlooper (United States Government Printing Office, Washington: 1947), 22.