The Louisiana gubernatorial election of 1940 was held in two rounds on January 16 and February 20, 1940. Like most Southern states between Reconstruction and the civil rights era, Louisiana's Republican Party was virtually nonexistent in terms of electoral support. This meant that the two Democratic Party primaries held on these dates were the real contest over who would be governor. The election resulted in the defeat of Earl K. Long and the election of Sam H. Jones as governor of Louisiana on a reform platform.