| Election Name: | 1956 North Carolina gubernatorial election |
| Country: | North Carolina |
| Type: | Presidential |
| Flag Year: | 1885 |
| Previous Election: | 1952 North Carolina gubernatorial election |
| Previous Year: | 1952 |
| Next Election: | 1960 North Carolina gubernatorial election |
| Next Year: | 1960 |
| Election Date: | November 6, 1956 |
| Image1: | File:N 85 29 L Hodges-Bill Friday-Bob House 56 (8080601640) (cropped).jpg |
| Nominee1: | Luther H. Hodges |
| Party1: | Democratic Party (United States) |
| Popular Vote1: | 760,480 |
| Percentage1: | 66.95% |
| Nominee2: | Kyle Hayes |
| Party2: | Republican Party (United States) |
| Popular Vote2: | 375,379 |
| Percentage2: | 33.05% |
| Map Size: | 325px |
| Governor | |
| Before Election: | Luther H. Hodges |
| Before Party: | Democratic Party (United States) |
| After Election: | Luther H. Hodges |
| After Party: | Democratic Party (United States) |
The 1956 North Carolina gubernatorial election was held on November 6, 1956. Incumbent Democrat Luther H. Hodges defeated Republican nominee Kyle Hayes with 66.95% of the vote.
This election was unusual for North Carolina at the time, in that a sitting Governor ran for another term. The Constitution of North Carolina at the time had a one-term limit for governors, but Hodges, as lieutenant governor, had succeeded William B. Umstead after the latter died in office, and was running for a full four-year term on his own. In 1977, the state's voters approved an amendment to the state constitution permitting the governor to serve two consecutive four-year terms.
Primary elections were held on May 26, 1956.[1]
19.2% of the voting age population participated in the Democratic primary.