1908 United States presidential election in Louisiana

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1908 United States presidential election in Louisiana
Louisiana Pelican Flag 1861.svg
  1904 November 3, 1908 1912  
  Unsuccessful 1908.jpg William Howard Taft, Bain bw photo portrait, 1908.jpg
Nominee William Jennings Bryan William Howard Taft
Party Democratic Republican
Home state Nebraska Ohio
Running mate John W. Kern James S. Sherman
Electoral vote90
Popular vote63,5688,958
Percentage84.63%11.93%

Louisiana Presidential Election Results 1908.svg
Parish Results
Bryan
  50-60%
  60-70%
  70-80%
  80-90%
  90-100%

The 1908 United States presidential election in Louisiana took place on November 3, 1908. All contemporary 46 states were part of the 1908 United States presidential election. State voters chose nine electors to the Electoral College, which selected the president and vice president.

Contents

Following the passage of a new constitution in 1898, Louisiana became a one-party state dominated by the Democratic Party. The Republican Party became moribund due to the disenfranchisement of blacks and the complete absence of other support bases as the Pelican State completely lacked upland or German refugee whites opposed to secession. [1] Despite this absolute single-party dominance, non-partisan tendencies remained strong among wealthy sugar planters in Acadiana, within the business elite of New Orleans, [2] and even amongst the “lily-white” faction of the moribund state GOP that supported black disenfranchisement in the effort to become respectable amongst the white elite. [3]

Following disfranchisement, the state’s politics became dominated by the Choctaw Club of Louisiana, generally called the “Old Regulars”. This political machine was based in New Orleans and united with Black Belt cotton planters. [4] Although white Republicans continued to work towards taking over Federal patronage from the “black and tans”, throughout most of the 1900s Louisiana politics was under firm Choctaw control as the Populist movement weakened with the disenfranchisement of many poor whites via the poll tax. [3]

Louisiana was won by the Democratic nominees, former Representative William Jennings Bryan of Nebraska and his running mate John W. Kern of Indiana. They defeated the Republican candidates, United States Secretary of War William Howard Taft of Ohio and his running mate James S. Sherman of New York. Bryan won the state by a landslide margin of 72.7%.

With 84.63 percent of the popular vote, Louisiana would also prove to be Bryan's third strongest victory in terms of percentage in the popular vote only after South Carolina and Mississippi. [5]

Bryan had previously defeated William McKinley in Louisiana in both 1896 and 1900.

Results

1908 United States presidential election in Louisiana [6]
PartyCandidateVotesPercentageElectoral votes
Democratic William Jennings Bryan 63,56884.63%9
Republican William Howard Taft 8,95811.93%0
Socialist Eugene V. Debs 2,5143.35%0
Independent Thomas L. Hisgen 770.10%0
Totals75,117100.00%9
Voter turnout

Results by parish

1908 United States presidential election in Louisiana by parish [7]
ParishWilliam Jennings Bryan
Democratic
William Howard Taft
Republican
Eugene Victor Debs
Socialist
Thomas Louis Hisgen
Independent
MarginTotal votes cast
# %# %# %# %# %
Acadia 1,01774.07%21415.59%14110.27%10.07%80358.49%1,373
Ascension 55182.61%10716.04%91.35%00.00%44466.57%667
Assumption 51171.97%19827.89%10.14%00.00%31344.08%710
Avoyelles 1,24094.87%503.83%161.22%10.08%1,19091.05%1,307
Bienville 92682.38%655.78%13111.65%20.18%795 [lower-alpha 1] 70.73%1,124
Bossier 47096.51%81.64%91.85%00.00%461 [lower-alpha 1] 94.66%487
Caddo 1,73391.26%1256.58%402.11%10.05%1,60884.68%1,899
Calcasieu 1,97569.35%68323.98%1856.50%50.18%1,29245.37%2,848
Caldwell 31479.70%215.33%5814.72%10.25%256 [lower-alpha 1] 64.98%394
Cameron 28094.28%155.05%20.67%00.00%26589.23%297
Catahoula 66076.48%8810.20%11413.21%10.12%546 [lower-alpha 1] 63.27%863
Claiborne 87493.28%384.06%242.56%10.11%83689.22%937
Concordia 28895.05%41.32%113.63%00.00%277 [lower-alpha 1] 91.42%303
De Soto 88193.72%171.81%414.36%10.11%840 [lower-alpha 1] 89.36%940
East Baton Rouge 1,09091.29%836.95%201.68%10.08%1,00784.34%1,194
East Carroll 19496.52%62.99%10.50%00.00%18893.53%201
East Feliciana 58997.68%121.99%20.33%00.00%57795.69%603
Franklin 45694.41%153.11%122.48%00.00%44191.30%483
Grant 38873.90%8315.81%529.90%20.38%30558.10%525
Iberia 82068.33%32827.33%524.33%00.00%49241.00%1,200
Iberville 50091.91%448.09%00.00%00.00%45683.82%544
Jackson 49378.88%7712.32%518.16%40.64%41666.56%625
Jefferson 1,12297.40%302.60%00.00%00.00%1,09294.79%1,152
Lafayette 72574.28%12813.11%12112.40%20.20%59761.17%976
Lafourche 1,07278.08%29621.56%50.36%00.00%77656.52%1,373
Lincoln 63489.04%527.30%263.65%00.00%58281.74%712
Livingston 44890.14%193.82%306.04%00.00%418 [lower-alpha 1] 84.10%497
Madison 15696.30%63.70%00.00%00.00%15092.59%162
Morehouse 45892.15%204.02%193.82%00.00%43888.13%497
Natchitoches 79281.06%14314.64%424.30%00.00%64966.43%977
Orleans 25,67887.77%3,28811.24%2530.86%360.12%22,39076.53%29,255
Ouachita 85190.53%606.38%272.87%20.21%79184.15%940
Plaquemines 41674.55%12722.76%152.69%00.00%28951.79%558
Pointe Coupee 65396.60%233.40%00.00%00.00%63093.20%676
Rapides 1,30286.68%15910.59%402.66%10.07%1,14376.10%1,502
Red River 38683.19%61.29%7215.52%00.00%314 [lower-alpha 1] 67.67%464
Richland 44598.02%91.98%00.00%00.00%43696.04%454
Sabine 59387.46%476.93%385.60%00.00%54680.53%678
Saint Bernard 35695.19%184.81%00.00%00.00%33890.37%374
Saint Charles 21590.72%229.28%00.00%00.00%19381.43%237
Saint Helena 28188.92%3410.76%10.32%00.00%24778.16%316
Saint James 36473.24%12324.75%81.61%20.40%24148.49%497
Saint John the Baptist 28789.13%3310.25%20.62%00.00%25478.88%322
Saint Landry 1,39584.60%23814.43%140.85%20.12%1,15770.16%1,649
Saint Martin 65191.95%395.51%182.54%00.00%61286.44%708
Saint Mary 76771.68%27325.51%272.52%30.28%49446.17%1,070
Saint Tammany 75580.58%10711.42%737.79%20.21%64869.16%937
Tangipahoa 1,11680.64%24017.34%271.95%10.07%87663.29%1,384
Tensas 30097.72%72.28%00.00%00.00%29395.44%307
Terrebonne 63462.59%37236.72%70.69%00.00%26225.86%1,013
Union 63489.17%537.45%243.38%00.00%58181.72%711
Vermilion 54772.64%15620.72%506.64%00.00%39151.93%753
Vernon 61854.21%27323.95%24121.14%80.70%34530.26%1,140
Washington 55091.51%498.15%10.17%10.17%50183.36%601
Webster 85385.73%323.22%10910.95%10.10%744 [lower-alpha 1] 74.78%995
West Baton Rouge 19895.65%94.35%00.00%00.00%18991.30%207
West Carroll 18976.83%114.47%4618.70%00.00%143 [lower-alpha 1] 58.13%246
West Feliciana 35094.09%225.91%00.00%00.00%32888.17%372
Winn 52759.48%15317.27%20623.25%00.00%321 [lower-alpha 1] 36.23%886
Totals63,56884.62%8,95811.92%2,5143.35%820.11%54,61072.70%75,122

See also

Notes

  1. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 In this parish where Debs ran second ahead of Taft, margin given is Bryan vote minus Debs vote and percentage margin Bryan percentage minus Debs percentage

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References

  1. Phillips, Kevin P. The Emerging Republican Majority. pp. 208, 210. ISBN   9780691163246.
  2. Schott, Matthew J. (Summer 1979). "Progressives against Democracy: Electoral Reform in Louisiana, 1894-1921". Louisiana History: The Journal of the Louisiana Historical Association. 20 (3): 247–260.
  3. 1 2 Heersink, Boris; Jenkins, Jeffrey A. Republican Party Politics and the American South, 1865-1968. pp. 265–266. ISBN   1107158435.
  4. Wall, Bennett H.; Rodriguez, John C. Louisiana: A History. pp. 274–275. ISBN   1118619293.
  5. "1908 Presidential Election Statistics". Dave Leip's Atlas of U.S. Presidential Elections. Retrieved October 27, 2020.
  6. Dave Leip's U.S. Election Atlas; Presidential General Election Results – Louisiana
  7. "Popular Vote at the Presidential Election for 1908". Géoelections. (.xlsx file for €30 including full minor party figures)