In 1954 Faubus sensed that one-term governor Francis Cherry was vulnerable. In just two short years the aristocratic ex-judge had managed to alienate almost every good ol' boy and political wheeler-dealer in the state. Because Witt Stephens, an Arkansas finacier and Cherry supporter, had threatened to run candidates against all of Faubus's friends should he enter the governor's race, Faubus delayed entering the race until literally the last possible moment, officially filing less than 15 minutes before the time to do so expired.
At first Faubus attempted to inject race into the campaign, advocating a moderate strategy to delay school integration under the U.S. Supreme Court's recent decision in Brown vs. the Topeka Board of Education. Faubus, however, did not press the issue after being criticized by the Gazette.
More telling was Cherry's support for a 100% evaluation of property, which Faubus managed to characterize as if it were the most massive tax increase in Arkansas history. Faubus also attacked Cherry for decreasing the welfare rolls. In this he was able to make use of a remark by Cherry characterizing those cut from the rolls as "old dead heads." Faubus made a point of learning the stories of some of those whose assistance had been cut. These he recounted with great effect. In one instance a woman had been cut for attempting to hold back a couple of hundred of dollars in savings to assure herself a decent burial. In another case the aid to an elderly couple was terminated because their farm was deemed too valuable, though they were too old to work it. As a result of losing their assistance, they had been forced to give up their home and go to live with their daughter. Faubus said that as the couple was driven away, their weeping could be heard from a distance of a quarter of a mile.
Sensing that he was in trouble, Cherry sought to raise the issue of Faubus's attendance at Commonwealth College. As in most political matters, Cherry's sense of timing could not have been worse. Attempts to investigate the Army had recently backfired on Senator Joseph McCarthy, sending the Wisconsin red-baiter into full retreat with J. William Fulbright, Arkansas's junior senator, leading a movement for censure. When Faubus charged Cherry with McCarthyism the accusation resonated with voters.
Next: "…out from the green valley of my youth…"
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