1916 United States presidential election in Massachusetts

1916 United States presidential election in Massachusetts
Turnout	62.8% 0.6 pp
President before election; Woodrow Wilson ; Democratic	Elected President; Woodrow Wilson ; Democratic

Last updated December 10, 2024

The 1916 United States presidential election in Massachusetts took place on November 7, 1916, as part of the 1916 United States presidential election, which was held throughout all contemporary 48 states. Voters chose 18 representatives, or electors to the Electoral College, who voted for president and vice president.

Massachusetts was won by the Republican nominee, U.S. Supreme Court Justice Charles Evans Hughes of New York, and his running mate Senator Charles W. Fairbanks of Indiana. Hughes and Fairbanks defeated the Democratic nominees, incumbent Democratic President Woodrow Wilson and Vice President Thomas R. Marshall.

Hughes carried the state with 50.54%, to Wilson's 46.61%, a Republican victory margin of 3.93%. Coming in a distant third was Socialist candidate Allan L. Benson, who took 2.08%.

Massachusetts had long been a typical Yankee Republican bastion in the wake of the Civil War, having voted Republican in every election from 1856 through 1908.^[2] However, in 1912, former Republican President Theodore Roosevelt had run as a Progressive candidate against incumbent Republican President William Howard Taft, splitting the Republican vote and allowing Woodrow Wilson to win Massachusetts, becoming the first Democratic presidential candidate to do so, though with a plurality of only 35.53% of the vote. With the Republican base re-united behind Hughes in 1916, Massachusetts was returned to the Republican column.

Hughes won 12 out of 14 counties in the State of Massachusetts, while Wilson won only 2. The race was kept close statewide by the fact that Wilson carried Suffolk County, home to the state's capital and largest city, Boston. Wilson's only other county victory was the small island of Nantucket. However, both candidates had fair levels of support across the state, as neither got more than 60% of the vote in any county. As Wilson narrowly won re-election nationwide, Massachusetts ended up weighing in as about 7% more Republican than the national average. To date, this is the last time that the town of Granville voted Democratic.

Wilson is the last Democrat to win a presidential election while losing Massachusetts.

Results

1916 United States presidential election in Massachusetts^[3]
Party		Candidate	Votes	Percentage	Electoral votes
	Republican	Charles Evans Hughes	268,784	50.54%	18
	Democratic	Woodrow Wilson (incumbent)	247,885	46.61%	0
	Socialist	Allan L. Benson	11,058	2.08%	0
	Prohibition	Frank Hanly	2,993	0.56%	0
	Socialist Labor	Arthur E. Reimer	1,097	0.21%	0
	Write-ins	Write-ins	6	0.00%	0
Totals			531,823	100.00%	18

Results by county

County	Charles Evans Hughes Republican		Thomas Woodrow Wilson Democratic		Allan Louis Benson^[4] Socialist		James Franklin Hanly^[4] Prohibition		Arthur Elmer Reimer^[4] Socialist Labor		Total votes cast^[5]
County	#	%	#	%	#	%	#	%	#	%	Total votes cast^[5]
Barnstable	2,836	58.68%	1,892	39.15%	39	0.81%	55	1.14%	11	0.23%	4,833
Berkshire	9,787	52.09%	8,357	44.48%	484	2.58%	103	0.55%	58	0.31%	18,789
Bristol	22,578	53.69%	18,065	42.96%	932	2.22%	332	0.79%	143	0.34%	42,050
Dukes	464	58.96%	309	39.26%	9	1.14%	5	0.64%	0	0.00%	787
Essex	35,909	50.51%	32,498	45.71%	2,093	2.94%	426	0.60%	169	0.24%	71,095
Franklin	4,353	56.93%	3,054	39.94%	166	2.17%	60	0.78%	13	0.17%	7,646
Hampden	18,207	50.19%	17,028	46.94%	761	2.10%	204	0.56%	77	0.21%	36,277
Hampshire	5,748	56.15%	4,202	41.05%	190	1.86%	83	0.81%	13	0.13%	10,236
Middlesex	60,802	53.77%	49,844	44.08%	1,660	1.47%	609	0.54%	151	0.13%	113,072
Nantucket	249	44.15%	307	54.43%	6	1.06%	1	0.18%	1	0.18%	564
Norfolk	19,284	58.71%	12,702	38.67%	615	1.87%	188	0.57%	55	0.17%	32,844
Plymouth	13,515	52.48%	11,009	42.75%	1,041	4.04%	142	0.55%	45	0.17%	25,752
Suffolk	42,492	40.03%	61,047	57.51%	1,998	1.88%	353	0.33%	258	0.24%	106,148
Worcester	32,541	52.76%	27,540	44.65%	1,064	1.73%	432	0.70%	103	0.17%	61,680
Absentee ^[6]	19	32.20%	40	67.80%	0	0.00%	0	0.00%	0	0.00%	59
Totals	268,784	50.54%	247,894	46.61%	11,058	2.08%	2,993	0.56%	1,097	0.21%	531,832

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References

↑ Bicentennial Edition: Historical Statistics of the United States, Colonial Times to 1970, part 2, p. 1072.
↑ Dave Leip’s U.S. Election Atlas; Presidential General Election Results Comparison – Massachusetts
↑ "1916 Presidential General Election Results - Massachusetts". Dave Leip's Atlas of U.S. Presidential Elections. Retrieved February 7, 2013.
1 2 3 Massachusetts Secretary of the Commonwealth; Public Document No. 43: Assessed Polls, Etc. 1916 p. 374
↑ Robinson, Edgar Eugene; The Presidential Vote; 1896-1932 (second edition); pp. 226-227 Published 1947 by Stanford University Press
↑ Massachusetts Secretary of State, ‘Presidential Electors at Large,’ Public Document #43 (1916)

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[1] Bicentennial Edition: Historical Statistics of the United States, Colonial Times to 1970, part 2, p. 1072.

[2] Dave Leip’s U.S. Election Atlas; Presidential General Election Results Comparison – Massachusetts

[3] "1916 Presidential General Election Results - Massachusetts". Dave Leip's Atlas of U.S. Presidential Elections. Retrieved February 7, 2013.

[Public-4] 1 2 3 Massachusetts Secretary of the Commonwealth; Public Document No. 43: Assessed Polls, Etc. 1916 p. 374

[5] Robinson, Edgar Eugene; The Presidential Vote; 1896-1932 (second edition); pp. 226-227 Published 1947 by Stanford University Press

[6] Massachusetts Secretary of State, ‘Presidential Electors at Large,’ Public Document #43 (1916)

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1916 United States presidential election in Massachusetts

Contents

Results

Results by county

See also

Related Research Articles

References