1872 Alabama gubernatorial election

The 1872 Alabama gubernatorial election took place on November 5, 1872, in order to elect the governor of Alabama. Republican David P. Lewis, a former Democrat and Confederate deputy, narrowly defeated former Confederate Army officer Thomas H. Herndon of the Democratic party by a margin of 4.48%. Alabama became the only state in the former Confederacy where Republicans regained power during Reconstruction after the state had been "redeemed" by the Democrats. This would be the last time until 1986 in which a Republican was elected governor of Alabama.