1976 United States presidential election in Wisconsin

1976 United States presidential election in Wisconsin
Carter 40-50% 50-60% 60-70%	Ford 40-50% 50-60% 60-70%
President before election; Gerald Ford ; Republican	Elected President; Jimmy Carter ; Democratic

Last updated February 03, 2025

The 1976 United States presidential election in Wisconsin took place on November 2, 1976, as part of the 1976 United States presidential election. Jimmy Carter won the state of Wisconsin with 49.50 percent of the vote^[1] giving him 11 electoral votes.

In September, President Ford announced he would devote $20,000 to campaigning in Wisconsin. The state was one of ten he considered critical to defeating Carter, but Ford devoted less money to it than any of the others.^[2] During his campaign, Ford focused chiefly on the Catholic working-class electorate in South Milwaukee, whose hierarchy had been disappointed Carter was not committed – following Roe v. Wade – to a constitutional amendment banning abortion.^[3]

Carter himself responded by visiting white ethnic communities in the state during September.^[4] His campaign amongst the Polish-Americans and Greek-Americans in the southeast of the state was strongly aimed at Ford's policy towards the totalitarian regimes of Eastern Europe and their human rights violations.^[5]

In early October, polls showed Wisconsin as a tossup.^[6] Aided by a return of traditionally Democratic Catholic voters and a gain amongst nonpartisans, Carter established a lead in mid-October polls.^[7] The Georgia Governor would retain this lead to election day, and carry Wisconsin by 1.68 points. This result nonetheless made Wisconsin 0.43% more Republican than the nation at large. Wisconsin was the tipping-point state of the election.^{[ citation needed ]}

Ronald Reagan would flip Wisconsin back into the Republican column in 1980 and 1984, but Carter's victory was a sign of things to come for the state, as it would transition into a Democratic-leaning swing state in 1988, and would vote Republican only twice since then. This is the third most recent election in which Wisconsin voted for a different candidate than neighboring Iowa, a phenomenon that has only been repeated twice since, in 2004, and 2020.

Primaries

Democratic primaries

Despite the fact that at the time of this election Wisconsin had been dominated for a decade by very liberal Democrats like Senators Gaylord Nelson and William Proxmire, and had been the fifth-best state for George McGovern in his landslide 1972 presidential defeat, Georgia Governor Jimmy Carter won the state on a "nonideological" campaign in the April primaries,^[8] despite claiming that price floors for dairy farmers in the nation's leading dairy state would need to be lowered.^[9]

Jimmy Carter – 36.63%
Mo Udall – 35.62%
George Wallace – 12.49%
Scoop Jackson – 6.43%

Republican primaries

Gerald Ford won the GOP primary against the insurgent conservative challenge of Ronald Reagan, saying that his win was largely due to the endorsement of Henry Kissinger.^[10]

Gerald Ford (incumbent) – 55.23%
Ronald Reagan – 44.29%

Results

1976 United States presidential election in Wisconsin^[1]
Party		Candidate	Votes	Percentage	Electoral votes
	Democratic	Jimmy Carter	1,040,232	49.50%	11
	Republican	Gerald Ford (incumbent)	1,004,987	47.83%	0
	Independent	Eugene McCarthy	34,943	1.66%	0
	American	Lester Maddox	8,552	0.41%	0
	Independent	Frank Zeidler	4,298	0.20%	0
	Independent	Roger L. MacBride	3,814	0.18%	0
	Independent	Peter Camejo	1,691	0.08%	0
	Independent	Margaret Wright	943	0.04%	0
	Independent	Gus Hall	749	0.04%	0
	Independent	Lyndon H. LaRouche	738	0.04%	0
	Independent	Julius Levin	389	0.02%	0
Totals			2,101,336	100.0%	11

Results by county

County	Jimmy Carter Democratic		Gerald Ford Republican		Eugene McCarthy Independent		Lester Maddox American		Various candidates Other parties		Margin		Total votes cast^[11]
County	#	%	#	%	#	%	#	%	#	%	#	%	Total votes cast^[11]
Adams	3,089	55.28%	2,377	42.54%	77	1.38%	22	0.39%	23	0.41%	712	12.74%	5,588
Ashland	4,688	58.89%	3,045	38.25%	131	1.65%	43	0.54%	54	0.68%	1,643	20.64%	7,961
Barron	8,678	52.97%	7,393	45.13%	205	1.25%	62	0.38%	44	0.27%	1,285	7.84%	16,382
Bayfield	3,885	58.05%	2,624	39.21%	136	2.03%	18	0.27%	30	0.45%	1,261	18.84%	6,693
Brown	33,572	46.47%	36,571	50.62%	1,480	2.05%	344	0.48%	276	0.38%	-2,999	-4.15%	72,243
Buffalo	3,448	53.65%	2,844	44.25%	83	1.29%	33	0.51%	19	0.30%	604	9.40%	6,427
Burnett	3,720	57.74%	2,573	39.93%	89	1.38%	31	0.48%	30	0.47%	1,147	17.81%	6,443
Calumet	6,241	47.53%	6,589	50.18%	221	1.68%	42	0.32%	39	0.30%	-348	-2.65%	13,132
Chippewa	11,538	57.42%	8,137	40.50%	270	1.34%	93	0.46%	55	0.27%	3,401	16.92%	20,093
Clark	7,238	52.67%	6,095	44.35%	204	1.48%	172	1.25%	33	0.24%	1,143	8.32%	13,742
Columbia	9,457	47.52%	10,075	50.63%	235	1.18%	67	0.34%	66	0.33%	-618	-3.11%	19,900
Crawford	3,629	50.39%	3,393	47.11%	128	1.78%	32	0.44%	20	0.28%	236	3.28%	7,202
Dane	82,321	53.96%	63,466	41.60%	4,629	3.03%	369	0.24%	1,767	1.16%	18,855	12.36%	152,552
Dodge	13,643	43.12%	17,335	54.79%	464	1.47%	104	0.33%	95	0.30%	-3,692	-11.67%	31,641
Door	4,553	39.88%	6,557	57.43%	198	1.73%	46	0.40%	63	0.55%	-2,004	-17.55%	11,417
Douglas	13,478	64.32%	6,999	33.40%	326	1.56%	24	0.11%	129	0.62%	6,479	30.92%	20,956
Dunn	7,882	52.53%	6,751	44.99%	234	1.56%	95	0.63%	42	0.28%	1,131	7.54%	15,004
Eau Claire	18,263	51.66%	16,388	46.36%	491	1.39%	73	0.21%	138	0.39%	1,875	5.30%	35,353
Florence	965	50.23%	922	48.00%	28	1.46%	2	0.10%	4	0.21%	43	2.23%	1,921
Fond du Lac	16,571	41.59%	22,226	55.79%	676	1.70%	224	0.56%	144	0.36%	-5,655	-14.20%	39,841
Forest	2,574	60.72%	1,604	37.84%	43	1.01%	12	0.28%	6	0.14%	970	22.88%	4,239
Grant	9,639	43.41%	12,016	54.11%	416	1.87%	57	0.26%	79	0.36%	-2,377	-10.70%	22,207
Green	5,632	43.17%	7,085	54.31%	169	1.30%	112	0.86%	48	0.37%	-1,453	-11.14%	13,046
Green Lake	3,411	39.69%	5,020	58.41%	111	1.29%	33	0.38%	20	0.23%	-1,609	-18.72%	8,595
Iowa	4,252	49.00%	4,195	48.34%	139	1.60%	62	0.71%	30	0.35%	57	0.66%	8,678
Iron	2,399	63.13%	1,340	35.26%	43	1.13%	4	0.11%	14	0.37%	1,059	27.87%	3,800
Jackson	3,735	51.42%	3,406	46.89%	73	1.00%	22	0.30%	28	0.39%	329	4.53%	7,264
Jefferson	12,577	43.65%	15,528	53.89%	454	1.58%	131	0.45%	122	0.42%	-2,951	-10.24%	28,812
Juneau	4,512	49.71%	4,242	46.73%	96	1.06%	201	2.21%	26	0.29%	270	2.98%	9,077
Kenosha	27,585	53.82%	22,349	43.61%	832	1.62%	248	0.48%	236	0.46%	5,236	10.21%	51,250
Kewaunee	4,607	49.65%	4,447	47.93%	135	1.45%	64	0.69%	26	0.28%	160	1.72%	9,279
La Crosse	16,674	40.02%	24,188	58.06%	564	1.35%	101	0.24%	132	0.32%	-7,514	-18.04%	41,659
Lafayette	3,839	46.91%	4,131	50.48%	121	1.48%	62	0.76%	30	0.37%	-292	-3.57%	8,183
Langlade	4,134	46.29%	4,630	51.85%	122	1.37%	25	0.28%	19	0.21%	-496	-5.56%	8,930
Lincoln	5,800	49.48%	5,672	48.38%	176	1.50%	42	0.36%	33	0.28%	128	1.10%	11,723
Manitowoc	19,819	53.90%	16,039	43.62%	504	1.37%	293	0.80%	116	0.32%	3,780	10.28%	36,771
Marathon	24,934	51.94%	21,898	45.62%	811	1.69%	218	0.45%	140	0.29%	3,036	6.32%	48,001
Marinette	8,482	48.68%	8,591	49.30%	236	1.35%	70	0.40%	46	0.26%	-109	-0.62%	17,425
Marquette	2,516	48.30%	2,607	50.05%	50	0.96%	19	0.36%	17	0.33%	-91	-1.75%	5,209
Menominee	766	68.27%	324	28.88%	24	2.14%	1	0.09%	7	0.62%	442	39.39%	1,122
Milwaukee	249,739	54.75%	192,008	42.09%	7,508	1.65%	1,760	0.39%	5,145	1.13%	57,731	12.66%	456,160
Monroe	6,465	46.28%	7,242	51.85%	177	1.27%	38	0.27%	46	0.33%	-777	-5.57%	13,968
Oconto	6,541	50.21%	6,232	47.84%	140	1.07%	75	0.58%	39	0.30%	309	2.37%	13,027
Oneida	7,216	48.31%	7,347	49.19%	285	1.91%	40	0.27%	48	0.32%	-131	-0.88%	14,936
Outagamie	23,079	43.95%	28,363	54.02%	770	1.47%	155	0.30%	140	0.27%	-5,284	-10.07%	52,507
Ozaukee	11,271	35.36%	19,817	62.17%	488	1.53%	133	0.42%	168	0.53%	-8,546	-26.81%	31,877
Pepin	1,955	58.64%	1,312	39.35%	44	1.32%	19	0.57%	4	0.12%	643	19.29%	3,334
Pierce	8,039	57.16%	5,676	40.36%	267	1.90%	41	0.29%	41	0.29%	2,363	16.80%	14,064
Polk	8,485	56.85%	6,159	41.27%	222	1.49%	23	0.15%	35	0.23%	2,326	15.58%	14,924
Portage	15,912	60.65%	9,520	36.28%	607	2.31%	43	0.16%	155	0.59%	6,392	24.37%	26,237
Price	4,028	54.44%	3,204	43.30%	103	1.39%	20	0.27%	44	0.59%	824	11.14%	7,399
Racine	36,740	48.54%	37,088	49.00%	1,222	1.61%	328	0.43%	308	0.41%	-348	-0.46%	75,686
Richland	3,634	44.05%	4,466	54.14%	96	1.16%	32	0.39%	21	0.25%	-832	-10.09%	8,249
Rock	28,048	48.56%	28,325	49.04%	933	1.62%	246	0.43%	210	0.36%	-277	-0.48%	57,762
Rusk	4,050	58.21%	2,724	39.15%	110	1.58%	32	0.46%	41	0.59%	1,326	19.06%	6,957
Sauk	9,204	47.88%	9,577	49.82%	305	1.59%	92	0.48%	45	0.23%	-373	-1.94%	19,223
Sawyer	3,055	50.04%	2,720	44.55%	261	4.28%	18	0.29%	51	0.84%	335	5.49%	6,105
Shawano	6,751	43.63%	8,505	54.97%	91	0.59%	100	0.65%	25	0.16%	-1,754	-11.34%	15,472
Sheboygan	24,226	51.65%	22,332	47.62%	168	0.36%	110	0.23%	65	0.14%	1,894	4.03%	46,901
St. Croix	10,601	55.74%	7,685	40.41%	557	2.93%	37	0.19%	137	0.72%	2,916	15.33%	19,017
Taylor	4,101	51.90%	3,591	45.45%	136	1.72%	39	0.49%	34	0.43%	510	6.45%	7,901
Trempealeau	6,218	53.05%	5,341	45.56%	117	1.00%	25	0.21%	21	0.18%	877	7.49%	11,722
Vernon	5,534	46.54%	6,132	51.56%	156	1.31%	60	0.50%	10	0.08%	-598	-5.02%	11,892
Vilas	3,209	38.61%	4,929	59.30%	108	1.30%	36	0.43%	30	0.36%	-1,720	-20.69%	8,312
Walworth	12,418	39.67%	18,091	57.79%	540	1.72%	125	0.40%	133	0.42%	-5,673	-18.12%	31,307
Washburn	3,503	54.30%	2,787	43.20%	114	1.77%	28	0.43%	19	0.29%	716	11.10%	6,451
Washington	14,422	42.33%	18,798	55.17%	509	1.49%	168	0.49%	173	0.51%	-4,376	-12.84%	34,070
Waukesha	47,487	39.26%	70,418	58.22%	1,815	1.50%	528	0.44%	705	0.58%	-22,931	-18.96%	120,953
Waupaca	6,857	38.00%	10,849	60.13%	202	1.12%	68	0.38%	67	0.37%	-3,992	-22.13%	18,043
Waushara	3,485	43.04%	4,449	54.94%	96	1.19%	30	0.37%	38	0.47%	-964	-11.90%	8,098
Winnebago	24,485	42.16%	32,149	55.35%	954	1.64%	221	0.38%	273	0.47%	-7,664	-13.19%	58,082
Wood	14,728	47.58%	15,479	50.00%	438	1.41%	209	0.68%	103	0.33%	-751	-2.42%	30,957
Totals	1,040,232	49.50%	1,004,987	47.83%	34,943	1.66%	8,552	0.41%	12,622	0.60%	35,245	1.67%	2,101,336

Counties that flipped from Republican to Democratic

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References

1 2 "1976 Presidential General Election Results – Wisconsin". Dave Leip's U.S. Election Atlas.
↑ Naughton, James M. (September 23, 1976). "Ford to Aim at New York, Jersey And 8 Other Key Industrial States: Ford Will Aim His Election Effort at 10 Major States". p. 85.
↑ "Ford Banks on Catholic". The Irish Times . September 10, 1976. p. 6.
↑ Naughton, James M. (October 10, 1976). "Remark by Ford Is Aid to Carter At Rally in Ohio: Carter, in Midwest, reaps an Ethnic Gain". The New York Times. p. 1.
↑ "Carter hits Ford about East Europe". The Irish Times. October 12, 1976. p. 7.
↑ "Poll Shows Carter Is Ahead in States Needed for Victory: But His Lead for Electoral Votes Is Found Small and Slipping Close Election Foreseen Poll Shows Carter Ahead in States With Majority in Electoral College". ]The New York Times. October 3, 1976. p. 1.
↑ Apple, R.W. (October 15, 1976). "Carter, Focusing on Ford Record, Gains Among Independents in Poll". The New York Times. p. 1.
↑ Apple, R. W. (April 2, 1976). "Carter Gains Among Wisconsin Liberals and Unions". The New York Times . p. 9. ISSN 0362-4331 . Retrieved April 17, 2021.
↑ King, Seth S. (April 5, 1976). "Carter and Udall Vie in Wisconsin". The New York Times . p. 25. ISSN 0362-4331 . Retrieved April 17, 2021.
↑ Naughton, James N. (April 8, 1976). "Ford Sees Wisconsin Vote As Kissinger Endorsement". The New York Times . p. 32. ISSN 0362-4331 . Retrieved April 17, 2021.
↑ "WI US President Race, November 02, 1976". Our Campaigns.

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[Leip-1] 1 2 "1976 Presidential General Election Results – Wisconsin". Dave Leip's U.S. Election Atlas.

[2] Naughton, James M. (September 23, 1976). "Ford to Aim at New York, Jersey And 8 Other Key Industrial States: Ford Will Aim His Election Effort at 10 Major States". p. 85.

[3] "Ford Banks on Catholic". The Irish Times . September 10, 1976. p. 6.

[4] Naughton, James M. (October 10, 1976). "Remark by Ford Is Aid to Carter At Rally in Ohio: Carter, in Midwest, reaps an Ethnic Gain". The New York Times. p. 1.

[5] "Carter hits Ford about East Europe". The Irish Times. October 12, 1976. p. 7.

[6] "Poll Shows Carter Is Ahead in States Needed for Victory: But His Lead for Electoral Votes Is Found Small and Slipping Close Election Foreseen Poll Shows Carter Ahead in States With Majority in Electoral College". ]The New York Times. October 3, 1976. p. 1.

[7] Apple, R.W. (October 15, 1976). "Carter, Focusing on Ford Record, Gains Among Independents in Poll". The New York Times. p. 1.

[8] Apple, R. W. (April 2, 1976). "Carter Gains Among Wisconsin Liberals and Unions". The New York Times . p. 9. ISSN 0362-4331 . Retrieved April 17, 2021.

[9] King, Seth S. (April 5, 1976). "Carter and Udall Vie in Wisconsin". The New York Times . p. 25. ISSN 0362-4331 . Retrieved April 17, 2021.

[10] Naughton, James N. (April 8, 1976). "Ford Sees Wisconsin Vote As Kissinger Endorsement". The New York Times . p. 32. ISSN 0362-4331 . Retrieved April 17, 2021.

[Our-11] "WI US President Race, November 02, 1976". Our Campaigns.

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