Speck 's name was omitted in most party literature , which stressed the Eisenhower/Nixon ticket . Speck launched his campaign in Paragould but made only sporadic , unpublicized appearances . After Eisenhower defeated Taft at the 1952 Republican National Convention , Speck was quoted as having said that he would be the " real governor " if Eisenhower were elected because he could then as titular head of the Arkansas party made patronage recommendations . Such party stalwarts as chairman Osro Cobb and national committeeman Wallace Townsend criticized Speck for his comment , which reflected lingering Eisenhower-Taft divisions within the state party . An early Eisenhower supporter , Speck was nominated for governor at the state convention in Little Rock when a more prominent Republican declined to step forward . '' The Arkansas Gazette '' remarked that the " slam-bang presidential campaign in the state still failed to raise the gubernatorial contest from its usual lethargic tempo in Democratic Arkansas . " Two other Republicans ran with Speck , Lee Reynolds of Conway and George W. Johnson of Greenwood , who sought the positions of lieutenant governor and attorney general , respectively . Speck received 49,292 votes ( 12.6 percent ) , compared to Cherry 's 342,292 ( 87.4 percent ) . He ran nearly a thousand votes behind his 1950 showing against McMath
1952 Republican National Convention
1952 Republican National Convention
Jefferson W. Speck