The 1944 Tennessee gubernatorial election was held on November 7, 1944. Democratic U.S. Representative Jim Nance McCord defeated Republican Greeneville attorney John Wesley Kilgo with 62.5% of the vote.
In the primary election, McCord sought his party's nomination for governor in the race to succeed the incumbent, Prentice Cooper, who was term-limited. With the support of powerful Memphis political boss, E. H. Crump, McCord won the primary by a lopsided margin over Knoxville law professor John R. Neal and Nashville attorney Rex Manning.
After losing the Democratic primary, Neal ran in the general election as an independent.
Primary elections were held on August 3, 1944.
Major party candidates
Other candidates