Wikipedia talk:Featured article candidates/Kentucky gubernatorial election, 1899/archive1

Harper's Weekly depiction of Goedel's assassination
Harper's Weekly depiction of Goedel's assassination

The 1899 Kentucky gubernatorial election was held on November 7, 1899. The incumbent, Republican William Bradley, was term-limited. The Democrats chose William Goebel. Republicans nominated William Taylor, though Bradley did not support him. Taylor won by a vote of 193,714 to 191,331. The vote was challenged on grounds of voter fraud, but the Board of Elections, though stocked with pro-Goebel members, certified the result. Democratic legislators began investigations, but before their committee could report, Goebel was shot by an unknown assassin on January 30, 1900. Democrats voided enough votes to swing the election to Goebel, Taylor was deposed, and Goebel was sworn into office on January 31. He died on February 2. Lieutenant Governor J. C. W. Beckham became governor, and he and Taylor battled in court. Beckham won on appeal, and Taylor fled to Indiana, fearing arrest as an accomplice. The only persons charged in the killing were later pardoned; the assassin's identity remains a mystery. (Full article...)