1968 United States presidential election in Texas

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1968 United States presidential election in Texas
Flag of Texas.svg
  1964 November 5, 1968 1972  
TurnoutIncrease2.svg 75.62% (of registered voters)
48.70% (of voting age population) [1]
  Hubert Humphrey in New York, 1968 (3x4 crop1).jpg Nixon 30-0316a (cropped).jpg George Wallace (D-AL) (3x4).jpg
Nominee Hubert Humphrey Richard Nixon George Wallace
Party Democratic Republican American Independent
Home state Minnesota New York [a] Alabama
Running mate Edmund Muskie Spiro Agnew Curtis LeMay
Electoral vote2500
Popular vote1,266,8041,227,844584,269
Percentage41.14%39.87%18.97%

Texas Presidential Election Results 1968.svg
1968 Texas presidental election by Congressional District.svg
1968 Election in Texas by Precinct.svg

President before election

Lyndon B. Johnson
Democratic

Elected President

Richard Nixon
Republican

The 1968 United States presidential election in Texas was held on November 5, 1968. All 50 states and the District of Columbia, were part of the 1968 United States presidential election. The state chose 25 electors to represent them in the Electoral College, who voted for president and vice president.

Contents

The Democratic Party candidate, incumbent Vice President Hubert Humphrey, very narrowly carried Texas with 41.14% of the vote, giving him the state's 25 electoral votes. [2] However, he narrowly lost the general election to Republican candidate, former Vice President Richard Nixon. This was the first occasion when Texas had not backed the winning presidential candidate since voting for John W. Davis in 1924, and the last such occasion until 1992. This is also the most recent presidential election in which Texas would back a losing Democratic candidate, and the penultimate time it voted Democratic.

When Texas "favorite son" Lyndon B. Johnson withdrew from the 1968 election in March, it was generally thought that the Republican Party would have a good chance of winning Texas despite losing by 27 points in 1964 and the presence of former Alabama Governor George Wallace running as a candidate for the American Independent Party, a far-right political party. Wallace was known for his pro-segregationist politics, which would win him five southern states in the general election. [3] However, in Humphrey's favor was the abolition of the poll tax via the Twenty-Fourth Amendment that permitted previously disfranchised Mexican-Americans [3] to register and vote for the first time. The Mexican-American South Texas counties of Duval, Webb and Jim Hogg had been among the four most Democratic in the nation in 1964, [4] and despite polling fewer than eighteen thousand out of a state total exceeding three million votes, those three counties would provide over thirty percent of Humphrey's margin and Duval was again the most Democratic county in the nation.

On September 21, a poll by Joe Belden gave Nixon and Humphrey each thirty percent of the vote and Wallace twenty-five percent. [5] In the period between Belden's poll and the election, Wallace lost considerable support largely to Humphrey, owing chiefly to Democrat Preston Smith's "resolutely law-and-order" campaign for the governorship. [6] This, along with strong loyalty of Texas Democrats much more conservative than the liberal Humphrey, [7] was sufficient to allow the Democrats to carry the state. Exit polls suggest Humphrey gained a third of the non-Hispanic white vote in Texas, [7] vis-à-vis around 25 percent in Virginia and less than 20% in all other southern states. [8]

Wallace, who had been rivaling the two major party nominees in early polls, came in a distant third, with 18.97 percent of the vote, his lowest in any former Confederate state. Wallace did win 21 of Texas' 254 counties, which was enough for him to also carry one congressional district. Wallace's base of support was primarily in rural East Texas, which is more culturally tied to the Deep South than the rest of the state, although he did carry four counties in the West Texas region, with sparsely populated Loving County being the westernmost county in the country to vote for Wallace.

45% of white voters supported Nixon, 34% supported Humphrey, and 22% supported Wallace. [9] [10] [11]

Results

1968 United States presidential election in Texas [2]
PartyCandidateVotesPercentageElectoral votes
Democrat Hubert Humphrey 1,266,80441.14%25
Republican Richard Nixon 1,227,84439.87%0
American Independent George Wallace 584,26918.97%0
Write-ins 4890.02%0
Totals3,079,406100.00%25
Voter turnout (voting age/registered voters)48.7%/75.6%

Results by county

CountyHubert Humphrey
Democratic
Richard Nixon
Republican
George Wallace
American Independent
Various candidates
Write-ins [b]
MarginTotal votes cast
# %# %# %# %# %
Anderson 3,44736.40%2,82829.86%3,19633.75%251 [c] 2.65%9,471
Andrews 92225.37%1,40038.53%1,31236.10%88 [d] 2.43%3,634
Angelina 5,17432.48%4,64529.16%6,11138.36%−937 [c] −5.88%15,930
Aransas 1,22245.01%1,07639.63%41715.36%1465.38%2,715
Archer 1,30855.49%63626.98%41317.52%67228.51%2,357
Armstrong 30131.99%43446.12%20621.89%−133−14.13%941
Atascosa 2,52249.47%1,80535.41%77115.12%71714.06%5,098
Austin 1,29929.83%1,97145.27%1,08424.90%−672−15.44%4,354
Bailey 82032.06%1,17445.90%56322.01%10.04%−354−13.84%2,558
Bandera 53529.72%84246.78%42323.50%−307−17.06%1,800
Bastrop 2,68752.51%1,45528.43%97519.05%1,23224.08%5,117
Baylor 1,06449.17%65730.36%44320.47%40718.81%2,164
Bee 2,95753.34%1,99535.98%58910.62%30.05%96217.36%5,544
Bell 11,89356.24%5,70526.98%3,54716.77%6,18829.26%21,145
Bexar 95,32551.56%72,95139.46%16,5988.98%22,37412.10%184,874
Blanco 62042.55%61442.14%22315.31%60.41%1,457
Borden 15740.67%11730.31%11229.02%4010.36%386
Bosque 1,81746.34%1,37735.12%72718.54%44011.22%3,921
Bowie 6,46833.00%5,96630.44%7,16536.56%−697 [c] −3.56%19,599
Brazoria 11,43938.00%10,63135.32%8,02626.66%70.02%8082.68%30,103
Brazos 6,29940.43%6,83943.90%2,43715.64%40.03%−540−3.47%15,579
Brewster 95845.82%79037.78%34216.36%10.05%1688.04%2,091
Briscoe 52845.60%41135.49%21918.91%11710.11%1,158
Brooks 1,90473.12%53420.51%1666.37%1,37052.61%2,604
Brown 3,99946.49%2,99734.84%1,60618.67%1,00211.65%8,602
Burleson 1,67851.43%89127.31%69421.27%78724.12%3,263
Burnet 1,87647.16%1,45936.68%64316.16%41710.48%3,978
Caldwell 2,88956.32%1,40227.33%83716.32%20.04%1,48728.99%5,130
Calhoun 2,61248.82%1,67231.25%1,06519.91%10.02%94017.57%5,350
Callahan 1,43746.41%92129.75%73723.80%10.03%51616.66%3,096
Cameron 15,72653.26%11,75939.82%2,0426.92%3,96713.44%29,527
Camp 1,27243.85%55519.13%1,07437.02%198 [c] 6.83%2,901
Carson 90433.67%1,21145.10%57021.23%−307−11.43%2,685
Cass 2,53634.50%1,93026.26%2,88339.22%10.01%−347 [c] −4.72%7,350
Castro 1,18141.61%1,03336.40%62321.95%10.04%1485.21%2,838
Chambers 1,21733.74%1,06129.42%1,32936.85%−112 [c] −3.11%3,607
Cherokee 3,24233.74%2,57526.80%3,79139.46%−549 [c] −5.72%9,608
Childress 1,09339.62%1,04537.88%62122.51%481.74%2,759
Clay 1,57349.56%93629.49%66520.95%63720.07%3,174
Cochran 63338.83%54833.62%44927.55%855.21%1,630
Coke 56348.58%38733.39%20817.95%10.09%17615.19%1,159
Coleman 1,44935.26%1,50736.68%1,15328.06%−58−1.42%4,109
Collin 5,91836.39%6,49439.93%3,85023.67%−576−3.54%16,262
Collingsworth 74638.59%71236.83%47524.57%341.76%1,933
Colorado 1,97636.34%2,29642.22%1,16321.39%30.06%−320−5.88%5,438
Comal 2,33834.84%3,64654.34%72410.79%20.03%−1,308−19.50%6,710
Comanche 1,98048.00%1,43634.81%70817.16%10.02%54413.19%4,125
Concho 50245.23%41137.03%19717.75%918.20%1,110
Cooke 2,71134.22%3,79947.96%1,41217.82%−1,088−13.74%7,922
Coryell 2,98751.00%1,69828.99%1,17220.01%1,28922.01%5,857
Cottle 74258.15%26821.00%26620.85%47437.15%1,276
Crane 49829.24%49328.95%71241.81%−214 [c] −12.57%1,703
Crockett 57142.02%50937.45%27920.53%624.57%1,359
Crosby 1,57455.42%86530.46%40114.12%70924.96%2,840
Culberson 33042.69%29838.55%14518.76%324.14%773
Dallam 58829.28%99049.30%43021.41%−402−20.02%2,008
Dallas 123,80934.06%184,19350.66%55,55215.28%−60,384−16.60%363,554
Dawson 1,52233.72%2,09146.33%90019.94%−569−12.61%4,513
Deaf Smith 1,54532.78%2,47452.49%69114.66%30.06%−929−19.71%4,713
Delta 1,03755.10%37019.66%47525.24%562 [c] 29.86%1,882
Denton 7,46339.56%8,22243.59%3,17816.85%−759−4.03%18,863
DeWitt 1,87135.68%2,58949.37%78414.95%−718−13.69%5,244
Dickens 81152.87%42827.90%29519.23%38324.97%1,534
Dimmit 89653.98%58435.18%17710.66%30.18%31218.80%1,660
Donley 54333.37%81650.15%26816.47%−273−16.78%1,627
Duval 3,97888.74%3848.57%1212.70%3,59480.17%4,483
Eastland 2,88445.42%2,45338.63%1,01315.95%4316.79%6,350
Ector 5,31221.65%10,55743.02%8,67135.33%1,886 [d] 7.69%24,540
Edwards 14823.16%40964.01%8212.83%−261−40.85%639
Ellis 5,43145.01%3,79431.44%2,83823.52%40.03%1,63713.57%12,067
El Paso 32,65847.94%30,34744.55%5,1117.50%2,3113.39%68,116
Erath 2,91548.11%2,20936.46%93515.43%70611.65%6,059
Falls 2,99052.47%1,34523.60%1,36423.93%1,626 [c] 28.54%5,699
Fannin 3,93154.77%1,58522.08%1,66123.14%2,270 [c] 31.63%7,177
Fayette 1,83331.74%2,38041.21%1,56227.05%−547−9.47%5,775
Fisher 1,56065.41%55523.27%26811.24%20.08%1,00542.14%2,385
Floyd 1,30536.08%1,46540.50%84723.42%−160−4.42%3,617
Foard 59460.74%21622.09%16817.18%37838.65%978
Fort Bend 4,49339.02%4,57339.72%2,44721.25%10.01%−80−0.70%11,514
Franklin 1,00150.33%48124.18%50725.49%494 [c] 24.84%1,989
Freestone 2,06650.48%95823.41%1,06926.12%997 [c] 24.36%4,093
Frio 1,33054.69%79532.69%30712.62%53522.00%2,432
Gaines 1,08730.78%1,40139.68%1,03729.37%60.17%−314−8.90%3,531
Galveston 26,04149.52%16,22930.86%10,32219.63%9,81218.66%52,592
Garza 66239.88%61537.05%38323.07%472.83%1,660
Gillespie 72517.66%2,94571.74%43210.52%30.07%−2,220−54.08%4,105
Glasscock 10623.71%16937.81%17238.48%−3 [d] −0.67%447
Goliad 69044.43%70745.52%15610.05%−17−1.09%1,553
Gonzales 1,93043.97%1,47633.63%98322.40%45410.34%4,389
Gray 2,37421.99%5,99455.53%2,42722.48%3,567 [d] 33.05%10,795
Grayson 10,37945.12%8,00734.81%4,61520.06%2,37210.31%23,001
Gregg 5,73324.80%9,27840.13%8,10935.07%1,169 [d] 5.06%23,120
Grimes 1,47341.79%1,07630.52%97627.69%39711.27%3,525
Guadalupe 3,52938.77%4,33247.59%1,24113.63%−803−8.82%9,102
Hale 3,29331.98%4,69645.60%2,30922.42%−1,403−13.62%10,298
Hall 1,03846.65%75333.84%43419.51%28512.81%2,225
Hamilton 1,11639.38%1,26644.67%45215.95%−150−5.29%2,834
Hansford 39217.92%1,35962.11%43719.97%922 [d] 42.14%2,188
Hardeman 1,14544.92%87334.25%53120.83%27210.67%2,549
Hardin 2,89432.66%1,98622.41%3,97944.90%30.03%−1,085 [c] −12.24%8,862
Harris 182,54638.75%202,07942.90%86,41218.35%−19,533−4.15%471,037
Harrison 4,95935.55%3,66826.29%5,32438.16%−365 [c] −2.61%13,951
Hartley 29925.78%59751.47%26422.76%−298−25.69%1,160
Haskell 1,88858.80%71322.20%61019.00%1,17536.60%3,211
Hays 3,54657.35%1,99332.23%64310.40%10.02%1,55325.12%6,183
Hemphill 40030.77%69953.77%20115.46%−299−23.00%1,300
Henderson 3,11939.32%2,31529.19%2,49731.48%10.01%622 [c] 7.84%7,932
Hidalgo 20,08754.13%14,45538.95%2,5696.92%5,63215.18%37,111
Hill 3,41548.95%1,80925.93%1,75125.10%20.03%1,60623.02%6,977
Hockley 2,42639.47%2,26536.85%1,45623.69%1612.62%6,147
Hood 1,15553.45%59327.44%41119.02%20.09%56226.01%2,161
Hopkins 2,70041.59%1,86028.65%1,93229.76%768 [c] 11.83%6,492
Houston 2,78244.60%1,39122.30%2,06233.06%20.03%720 [c] 11.54%6,237
Howard 3,89737.11%3,81236.30%2,78926.56%30.03%850.81%10,501
Hudspeth 28940.88%28540.31%13218.67%10.14%40.57%707
Hunt 4,78537.08%4,65136.04%3,46926.88%1341.04%12,905
Hutchinson 2,41623.81%4,81347.43%2,91928.76%1,894 [d] 18.67%10,148
Irion 18738.16%21143.06%9218.78%−24−4.90%490
Jack 1,13343.39%96637.00%51219.61%1676.39%2,611
Jackson 1,69839.62%1,43833.55%1,14526.71%50.12%2606.07%4,286
Jasper 2,43833.94%1,83925.60%2,90640.46%−468 [c] −6.52%7,183
Jeff Davis 23948.19%19138.51%6613.31%489.68%496
Jefferson 30,03238.57%26,00733.40%21,82428.03%50.01%4,0255.17%77,868
Jim Hogg 1,27682.06%22314.34%533.41%30.19%1,05367.72%1,555
Jim Wells 6,30462.73%2,82728.13%9139.08%60.06%3,47734.60%10,050
Johnson 5,33042.95%4,37235.23%2,70921.83%9587.72%12,411
Jones 2,37247.64%1,67633.66%93118.70%69613.98%4,979
Karnes 2,27152.83%1,34231.22%68615.96%92921.61%4,299
Kaufman 3,31140.92%2,43130.04%2,35029.04%88010.88%8,092
Kendall 53821.77%1,56963.50%36414.73%−1,031−41.73%2,471
Kenedy 10054.64%7641.53%73.83%2413.11%183
Kent 30347.79%14322.56%18829.65%115 [c] 18.14%634
Kerr 1,87828.27%3,69255.58%1,07316.15%−1,814−27.31%6,643
Kimble 46333.85%64046.78%26419.30%10.07%−177−12.93%1,368
King 10948.66%4419.64%7131.70%38 [c] 16.96%224
Kinney 33355.59%19833.06%6811.35%13522.53%599
Kleberg 4,63357.80%2,71333.84%6708.36%1,92023.96%8,016
Knox 1,22257.45%58027.27%32515.28%64230.18%2,127
Lamar 4,63542.39%3,39531.05%2,90326.55%1,24011.34%10,933
Lamb 2,26735.86%2,59541.05%1,46023.09%−328−5.19%6,322
Lampasas 1,42350.50%93533.18%46016.32%48817.32%2,818
La Salle 64559.67%32429.97%11210.36%32129.70%1,081
Lavaca 2,16540.74%1,69831.95%1,45127.31%4678.79%5,314
Lee 1,28342.92%1,07535.97%63121.11%2086.95%2,989
Leon 1,53649.95%65921.43%88028.62%656 [c] 21.33%3,075
Liberty 3,46936.11%2,74628.58%3,39335.31%76 [c] 0.80%9,608
Limestone 2,79649.20%1,48526.13%1,40224.67%1,31123.07%5,683
Lipscomb 27918.06%1,07969.84%18712.10%−800−51.78%1,545
Live Oak 92239.33%93840.02%48420.65%−16−0.69%2,344
Llano 1,28245.38%1,07938.19%46416.42%2037.19%2,825
Loving 1822.22%2328.40%4049.38%−17 [d] −20.98%81
Lubbock 15,43030.77%25,64651.13%9,07818.10%−10,216−20.36%50,154
Lynn 1,33346.25%1,00534.87%54418.88%32811.38%2,882
Madison 99441.99%60825.69%76532.32%229 [c] 9.67%2,367
Marion 1,26044.15%63722.32%95733.53%303 [c] 10.62%2,854
Martin 37329.72%34327.33%53942.95%−166 [c] −13.23%1,255
Mason 56036.89%78951.98%16911.13%-229-15.09%1,518
Matagorda 3,59542.46%3,09436.55%1,77720.99%5015.91%8,466
Maverick 1,57062.65%77130.77%1656.58%79931.88%2,506
McCulloch 1,35350.88%94735.61%35913.50%40615.27%2,659
McLennan 22,38848.00%15,95834.22%8,26817.73%250.05%6,43013.78%46,639
McMullen 16037.38%16939.49%9923.13%−9−2.11%428
Medina 2,47147.06%2,05839.19%72213.75%4137.87%5,251
Menard 36237.28%49150.57%11812.15%−129−13.29%971
Midland 4,75620.48%12,78955.07%5,67524.44%20.01%7,114 [d] 30.63%23,222
Milam 3,26951.01%1,61425.18%1,52523.79%10.02%1,65525.83%6,409
Mills 72243.42%64538.79%29617.80%774.63%1,663
Mitchell 1,58953.30%89329.96%49916.74%69623.34%2,981
Montague 2,55549.09%1,73633.35%91417.56%81915.74%5,205
Montgomery 4,02130.34%4,35332.84%4,87936.81%20.02%−526 [d] −3.97%13,255
Moore 1,35927.20%2,37847.60%1,25825.18%10.02%−1,019−20.40%4,996
Morris 1,70141.61%1,06426.03%1,32332.36%378 [c] 9.25%4,088
Motley 39735.86%41537.49%29526.65%−18−1.63%1,107
Nacogdoches 3,44934.91%3,23532.74%3,19632.35%2142.17%9,880
Navarro 5,29650.98%2,84527.39%2,24521.61%20.02%2,45123.59%10,388
Newton 1,47641.68%55515.67%1,50942.62%10.03%−33 [c] −0.94%3,541
Nolan 2,78446.88%1,96933.16%1,18519.96%81513.72%5,938
Nueces 39,02557.82%21,30731.57%7,15910.61%17,71826.25%67,491
Ochiltree 43213.79%2,20870.50%49215.71%1,716 [d] 54.79%3,132
Oldham 23730.08%32040.61%23029.19%10.13%−83−10.53%788
Orange 6,48530.57%5,88627.74%8,84541.69%−2,360 [c] −11.12%21,216
Palo Pinto 3,55247.77%2,62735.33%1,25716.90%92512.44%7,436
Panola 1,71128.77%1,58626.67%2,65044.56%−939 [c] −15.79%5,947
Parker 4,30146.23%3,06832.98%1,93420.79%1,23313.25%9,303
Parmer 83326.85%1,53949.61%73023.53%−706−22.76%3,102
Pecos 1,59239.61%1,52437.92%90022.39%30.07%681.69%4,019
Polk 1,84140.31%1,01322.18%1,71237.49%10.02%129 [c] 2.82%4,567
Potter 8,23830.43%13,33849.27%5,48620.26%100.04%−5,100−18.84%27,072
Presidio 96961.25%48130.40%1328.34%48830.85%1,582
Rains 55846.35%34028.24%30625.42%21818.11%1,204
Randall 4,06021.84%11,40061.32%3,12816.82%40.02%−7,340−39.48%18,592
Reagan 37033.27%45440.83%28825.90%−84−7.56%1,112
Real 27739.40%29041.25%13619.35%−13−1.85%703
Red River 2,24543.99%1,30525.57%1,55430.45%691 [c] 13.54%5,104
Reeves 1,45641.49%1,31037.33%74321.17%1464.16%3,509
Refugio 1,69951.50%1,11433.77%48614.73%58517.73%3,299
Roberts 9017.51%31160.51%11321.98%198 [d] 38.53%514
Robertson 2,83359.74%96520.35%94419.91%1,86839.39%4,742
Rockwall 77839.39%61431.09%58229.47%10.05%1648.30%1,975
Runnels 1,44837.88%1,70744.65%66817.47%−259−6.77%3,823
Rusk 4,07832.50%3,73929.80%4,72937.69%−651 [c] −5.19%12,546
Sabine 1,07843.68%45518.44%93537.88%143 [c] 5.80%2,468
San Augustine 81733.21%50620.57%1,13746.22%−320 [c] −13.01%2,460
San Jacinto 1,23553.49%38116.50%69330.01%542 [c] 23.48%2,309
San Patricio 6,81854.94%3,71729.95%1,87615.12%3,10124.99%12,411
San Saba 1,14053.27%53525.00%46521.73%60528.27%2,140
Schleicher 37839.71%39641.60%17818.70%−18−1.89%952
Scurry 2,03141.78%1,74535.90%1,08422.30%10.02%2865.88%4,861
Shackelford 67344.66%55736.96%27718.38%1167.70%1,507
Shelby 2,51136.27%1,12716.28%3,28547.45%−774 [c] −11.18%6,923
Sherman 29721.28%72351.79%37626.93%347 [d] 24.86%1,396
Smith 8,89729.10%12,07939.51%9,59531.39%2,484 [d] 8.12%30,571
Somervell 38442.62%31334.74%20422.64%717.88%901
Starr 3,92273.08%1,37425.60%711.32%2,54847.48%5,367
Stephens 1,23940.61%1,28742.18%52517.21%−48−1.57%3,051
Sterling 15140.27%17045.33%5414.40%−19−5.06%375
Stonewall 63557.21%21319.19%26223.60%373 [c] 33.61%1,110
Sutton 35138.57%41245.27%14716.15%−61−6.70%910
Swisher 1,76049.44%1,17733.06%62317.50%58316.38%3,560
Tarrant 79,70541.79%81,78642.88%29,25615.34%−2,081−1.09%190,747
Taylor 9,10735.54%12,21847.68%4,28916.74%120.05%−3,111−12.14%25,626
Terrell 20133.44%25041.60%14924.79%10.17%−49−8.16%601
Terry 1,62536.71%1,94844.00%85419.29%−323−7.29%4,427
Throckmorton 61858.25%31729.88%12611.88%30128.37%1,061
Titus 2,31740.12%1,57227.22%1,88632.66%431 [c] 7.46%5,775
Tom Green 6,77434.67%9,68249.56%3,07415.74%60.03%−2,908−14.89%19,536
Travis 39,66748.07%34,30941.58%8,42410.21%1200.15%5,3586.49%82,520
Trinity 1,14641.24%63622.89%99735.88%149 [c] 5.36%2,779
Tyler 1,20431.80%1,12029.58%1,46238.62%−258 [c] −6.82%3,786
Upshur 2,48036.02%1,51922.06%2,88641.92%−406 [c] −5.90%6,885
Upton 46329.19%66441.87%45928.94%−201−12.68%1,586
Uvalde 1,73636.48%2,25247.32%76816.14%30.06%−516−10.84%4,759
Val Verde 3,20556.25%1,91433.59%57310.06%60.11%1,29122.66%5,698
Van Zandt 2,70640.08%1,95428.94%2,09130.97%615 [c] 9.11%6,751
Victoria 6,04241.02%6,35243.12%2,33615.86%−310−2.10%14,730
Walker 2,39141.30%1,94633.62%1,45225.08%4457.68%5,789
Waller 1,68448.97%95827.86%79723.18%72621.11%3,439
Ward 1,33131.21%1,55236.39%1,38232.40%170 [d] 3.99%4,265
Washington 1,68630.07%3,24457.86%67712.07%−1,558−27.79%5,607
Webb 9,41979.65%2,10317.78%3042.57%7,31661.87%11,826
Wharton 4,30443.22%3,77337.89%1,88218.90%5315.33%9,959
Wheeler 81231.74%1,17645.97%57022.28%−364−14.23%2,558
Wichita 15,38746.05%11,93735.72%6,08718.22%30.01%3,45010.33%33,414
Wilbarger 1,99638.40%1,90936.73%1,29224.86%10.02%871.67%5,198
Willacy 1,93053.05%1,24334.17%46512.78%68718.88%3,638
Williamson 5,52854.61%2,92328.87%1,66916.49%30.03%2,60525.74%10,123
Wilson 2,33655.63%1,32131.46%54212.91%1,01524.17%4,199
Winkler 93826.21%1,39138.87%1,24934.90%10.03%142 [d] 3.97%3,579
Wise 2,77447.31%1,98333.82%1,10718.88%79113.49%5,864
Wood 2,19235.02%2,04632.69%2,02032.27%10.02%1462.33%6,259
Yoakum 61524.98%1,12345.61%72429.41%399 [d] 16.20%2,462
Young 2,48246.43%1,86034.79%1,00418.78%62211.64%5,346
Zapata 90975.00%25120.71%524.29%65854.29%1,212
Zavala 1,30759.01%69331.29%2149.66%10.05%61427.72%2,215
Totals1,266,80441.14%1,227,84439.87%584,26918.97%4890.02%38,9601.27%3,079,406

Counties that flipped from Democratic to American Independent

Counties that flipped from Republican to American Independent

Counties that flipped from Democratic to Republican

Results by congressional district

Humphrey won 13 out of the 23 congressional districts in Texas, Nixon won 9, including six held by Democrats, and Wallace won 1, which was held by a Democrat. [12]

DistrictHumphreyNixonWallaceRepresentative
1st 36.9%27.0%36.1% Wright Patman
2nd 35.3%27.6%37.1% John Dowdy
3rd 33.3%51.2%15.5% James M. Collins
4th 35.6%36.4%28.0% Ray Roberts
5th 35.6%46.0%15.0% Earle Cabell
6th 38.8%38.7%22.5% Olin E. Teague
7th 29.8%52.7%17.5% George H. W. Bush
8th 54.2%21.4%24.4% Robert C. Eckhardt
9th 42.7%32.3%25.0% Jack Brooks
10th 47.6%38.4%14.0% J. J. Pickle
11th 50.5%30.3%19.1% William R. Poage
12th 46.7%40.4%12.8% Jim Wright
13th 37.9%46.3%15.9% Graham B. Purcell Jr.
14th 50.1%33.9%16.0% John Andrew Young
15th 56.6%36.6%6.8% Kika de la Garza
16th 45.6%42.8%11.6% Richard Crawford White
17th 43.7%38.0%18.3% Omar Burleson
18th 28.8%50.3%21.0% Robert Price
19th 31.1%47.1%27.1% George H. Mahon
20th 70.7%23.3%6.0% Henry B. González
21st 32.6%51.2%16.2% O. C. Fisher
22nd 40.4%43.7%15.9% Robert R. Casey
23rd 54.4%32.9%12.6% Abraham Kazen

Analysis

Humphrey performed best in the state's cities and rural areas, whereas Nixon performed best in the state's suburban areas. In cities, Humphrey won 43.5% of the vote to Nixon's 42.3% and Wallace's 14.2%. In the suburbs, Nixon won 41.9% of the vote to Humphrey's 35.3% and Wallace's 22.8%. In rural areas, Humphrey won 41.4% of the vote to Nixon's 34.5% and Wallace's 23.6%. [13] In the state's metropolitan areas, Humphrey overwhelmingly won the African American vote in inner urban precincts, while Nixon won the inner suburbs by wide margins. [14]

With his win in Texas, the state was the only former Confederate State in 1968 to vote Democratic. As of the 2024 presidential election , this is the last occasion the following counties have supported the Democratic candidate: Blanco, Nacogdoches, Rockwall and Scurry. [15] The 1968 election is also the last when the following Wallace counties have not voted Republican: Crane, Glasscock, Montgomery and Rusk. [15] It was the only election between 1924 and 2012 when Val Verde County backed a losing presidential candidate. [16]

This was the last time a Republican won the presidency while losing Texas. This was also the last time until 2008 that a Northern Democrat won any state in the former Confederacy.

See also

Notes

  1. Although he was born in California and he served as a U.S. Senator from California, in 1968 Richard Nixon's official state of residence was New York, because he moved there to practice law after his defeat in the 1962 California gubernatorial election. During his first term as president, Nixon re-established his residency in California. Consequently, most reliable reference books list Nixon's home state as New York in the 1968 election and his home state as California in the 1972 (and 1960) election.
  2. An additional 190 write-in votes were not tabulated by county
  3. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 31 32 33 34 35 36 37 38 39 40 41 42 43 In this county where Nixon ran third behind both Humphrey and Wallace, margin given is Humphrey vote minus Wallace vote and percentage margin Humphrey percentage minus Wallace percentage.
  4. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 In this county where Humphrey ran third behind both Nixon and Wallace, margin given is Nixon vote minus Wallace vote and percentage margin Nixon percentage minus Wallace percentage.

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References

  1. Tarrance Jr. 1970, p. 8.
  2. 1 2 "1968 Presidential General Election Results – Texas" . Retrieved April 24, 2016.
  3. 1 2 Wainstock, Dennis D.; Election Year 1968: The Turning Point p. 61 ISBN   1936274426
  4. Dave Leip's U.S. Election Atlas; 1964 Presidential Election Statistics
  5. ABC News Political Unit; Election Night Fact Book, 1968, p. 149
  6. Cunningham, Sean P.; American Politics in the Postwar Sunbelt: Conservative Growth in a Battleground Region (Cambridge Essential Histories), p. 140 ISBN   1107024528
  7. 1 2 Phillips, Kevin P.; The Emerging Republican Majority, p. 281 ISBN   9780691163246
  8. Phillips; The Emerging Republican Majority, p. 228
  9. Black & Black 1992, p. 147.
  10. Black & Black 1992, p. 295.
  11. Black & Black 1992, p. 335.
  12. Tarrance Jr. 1970, p. 22.
  13. Tarrance Jr. 1970, p. 190.
  14. Urech, James (Spring 2024). "How maps reveal hidden history" (PDF). SMU Libraries Newsletter. p. 10. Retrieved June 11, 2024.
  15. 1 2 Menendez, Albert J.; The Geography of Presidential Elections in the United States, 1868-2004, p. 318 ISBN   0786422173
  16. The Political Graveyard; Val Verde County, Texas

Works cited