1984 United States presidential election in Wisconsin

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1984 United States presidential election in Wisconsin
Flag of Wisconsin.svg
  1980 November 6, 1984 1988  
  Ronald Reagan 1985 presidential portrait (4x5 cropped).jpg Walter Mondale 1977 vice presidential portrait (cropped3).jpg
Nominee Ronald Reagan Walter Mondale
Party Republican Democratic
Home state California Minnesota
Running mate George H. W. Bush Geraldine Ferraro
Electoral vote110
Popular vote1,198,800995,847
Percentage54.19%45.02%

Wisconsin Presidential Election Results 1984.svg
County Results

President before election

Ronald Reagan
Republican

Elected President

Ronald Reagan
Republican

The 1984 United States presidential election in Wisconsin took place on November 6, 1984. All 50 states and the District of Columbia, were part of the 1984 United States presidential election. State voters chose 11 electors to the Electoral College, which selected the president and vice president of the United States. Wisconsin was won by incumbent United States President Ronald Reagan of California, who was running against former Vice President Walter Mondale of Minnesota. Reagan ran for a second time with incumbent Vice President and former C.I.A. Director George H. W. Bush of Texas, and Mondale ran with Representative Geraldine Ferraro of New York, the first major party female candidate for the vice presidency. This would be the last time Wisconsin would vote for a Republican in a presidential election until Donald Trump won the state in 2016, and the last time Wisconsin would vote for a Republican with a majority of the vote. [1]

Contents

Reagan carried a majority in most of Wisconsin's counties, whereas Mondale carried a majority in ten, mostly in the far northwest of the state, along the Lake Superior coast and across from Minnesota's Iron Range, along with Milwaukee County, Dane County, Kenosha County, and almost entirely Native American Menominee County. Two relatively geographically isolated rural counties--Pepin County in west-central Wisconsin and Portage County in central Wisconsin—rounded out the list; these were Mondale's two weakest wins. One county, Polk County in the northwest, gave neither nominee a majority, but gave Reagan a plurality.

Reagan posted strong wins along the whole of eastern Wisconsin, apart from Manitowoc, Sheboygan, and Racine Counties, and the two Mondale wins in Milwaukee and Kenosha. He posted a particularly strong win in suburban Waukesha County, which he won by over thirty points. In western Wisconsin, Reagan won most of the counties but his margins tended to be weaker. As of the 2024 presidential election , this is the last election in which Eau Claire County, La Crosse County, Rock County, and Iowa County voted for a Republican presidential candidate, as well as the last election in which a Republican candidate won more than 40% of the vote in either Dane County or Milwaukee County, both of which have voted Democratic in increasingly large margins since. Adams, Buffalo, Crawford, Dunn, Jackson, Trempealeau, and Vernon counties would not vote Republican again until 2016, and Pierce County until 2012. [1]

Reagan won the election in Wisconsin by a 9-point margin. While a sound victory, this made Wisconsin 9.1% more Democratic than the nation, signaling the consolidation of a new Democratic base in the Upper Midwest. [2] Before 1976, Wisconsin had tended to lean Republican in close elections, voting narrowly for Nixon in 1960 and 1968. In 1976, it narrowly, but surprisingly, [3] voted for Carter. Four years later, Wisconsin would become one of only ten states to back Michael Dukakis, the first time since 1848 it backed a losing Democrat, with it also being the first election since 1960 where it would back the overall losing candidate too.

Reagan was the last Republican candidate to win Wisconsin twice until Donald Trump did so in 2016 and 2024. He also remains the last Republican candidate to win the state in two consecutive elections. As of 2025, this is the last time a male Democrat nominee lost the state.

Results

1984 United States presidential election in Wisconsin
PartyCandidateVotesPercentageElectoral votes
Republican Ronald Reagan (incumbent)1,198,80054.19%11
Democratic Walter Mondale 995,84745.02%0
Libertarian David Bergland 4,8840.22%0
Constitution Bob Richards 3,8640.17%0
Independent Lyndon LaRouche 3,7910.17%0
Independent Sonia Johnson 1,4560.07%0
Independent Dennis L. Serrette 1,0070.05%0
Write-Ins7060.03%0
Independent Larry Holmes 6190.03%0
Independent Gus Hall 5970.03%0
Independent Melvin Mason 4450.02%0
Totals2,212,016100.0%11

By congressional district

Reagan won 6 of the 9 congressional districts.

DistrictReaganMondaleRepresentative
1st 55.46%44.54%% Les Aspin
2nd 49.14%50.86% Robert Kastenmeier
3rd 55.42%44.58% Steve Gunderson
4th 48.09%51.91% Jerry Kleczka
5th 39.51%60.49% Jim Moody
6th 62.42%37.58% Tom Petri
7th 52.56%47.44% Dave Obey
8th 63.46%36.54% Toby Roth
9th 65.27%34.73% Jim Sensenbrenner

Results by county

CountyRonald Reagan
Republican
Walter Mondale
Democratic
David Bergland
Libertarian
Bob Richards
Constitution
Lyndon LaRouche
Independent
Various candidates
Other parties
MarginTotal votes cast [4]
# %# %# %# %# %# %# %
Adams 3,64556.85%2,71542.34%60.09%110.17%290.45%60.09%93014.51%6,412
Ashland 3,51742.54%4,68056.60%250.30%130.16%110.13%220.27%-1,163-14.06%8,268
Barron 9,58753.94%8,06145.36%270.15%440.25%380.21%150.08%1,5268.58%17,772
Bayfield 3,47445.91%4,03453.31%140.19%130.17%220.29%100.13%-560-7.40%7,567
Brown 51,20262.44%30,21836.85%2120.26%1220.15%1320.16%1170.14%20,98425.59%82,003
Buffalo 3,32552.74%2,92146.34%130.21%170.27%160.25%120.19%4046.40%6,304
Burnett 3,52851.01%3,33148.16%180.26%160.23%130.19%100.14%1972.85%6,916
Calumet 8,97064.57%4,73634.09%150.11%830.60%530.38%350.25%4,23430.48%13,892
Chippewa 10,98651.45%10,20247.78%460.22%390.18%600.28%180.08%7843.67%21,351
Clark 8,09958.24%5,64740.61%300.22%360.26%780.56%160.12%2,45217.63%13,906
Columbia 11,66258.52%8,12540.77%340.17%520.26%400.20%140.07%3,53717.75%19,927
Crawford 4,41255.87%3,43643.51%200.25%40.05%200.25%50.06%97612.36%7,897
Dane 74,82343.84%94,65955.46%5370.31%1010.06%1450.08%4200.25%-19,836-11.62%170,685
Dodge 20,45864.41%11,05234.80%560.18%840.26%820.26%290.09%9,40629.61%31,761
Door 8,26467.35%3,91631.91%380.31%100.08%210.17%220.18%4,34835.44%12,271
Douglas 7,06632.92%14,29166.58%260.12%280.13%250.12%280.13%-7,225-33.66%21,464
Dunn 8,47351.80%7,71247.15%630.39%490.30%250.15%360.22%7614.65%16,358
Eau Claire 20,40151.09%19,34748.45%650.16%300.08%510.13%350.09%1,0542.64%39,929
Florence 1,22758.01%87041.13%20.09%40.19%80.38%40.19%35716.88%2,115
Fond du Lac 26,06964.61%13,98334.66%740.18%770.19%780.19%650.16%12,08629.95%40,346
Forest 2,29650.53%2,21448.72%90.20%60.13%160.35%30.07%821.81%4,544
Grant 13,43062.58%7,89236.78%410.19%270.13%470.22%230.11%5,53825.80%21,460
Green 7,82763.65%4,36735.52%280.23%270.22%340.28%130.11%3,46028.13%12,296
Green Lake 6,19871.11%2,44128.01%220.25%150.17%290.33%110.13%3,75743.10%8,716
Iowa 4,98356.01%3,84343.19%300.34%90.10%210.24%110.12%1,14012.82%8,897
Iron 1,66745.63%1,96753.85%70.19%50.14%40.11%30.08%-300-8.22%3,653
Jackson 4,38655.81%3,42743.61%70.09%130.17%170.22%90.11%95912.20%7,859
Jefferson 17,78061.77%10,78837.48%850.30%490.17%500.17%320.11%6,99224.29%28,784
Juneau 5,62963.62%3,15235.62%150.17%180.20%270.31%70.08%2,47728.00%8,848
Kenosha 26,11846.89%29,23352.49%1180.21%740.13%870.16%650.12%-3,115-5.60%55,695
Kewaunee 5,70561.94%3,44437.39%110.12%210.23%210.23%80.09%2,26124.55%9,210
La Crosse 25,72158.77%17,78740.64%1040.24%510.12%480.11%580.13%7,93418.13%43,769
Lafayette 4,58460.43%2,96139.03%150.20%60.08%140.18%60.08%1,62321.40%7,586
Langlade 5,83060.91%3,67538.39%260.27%160.17%170.18%80.08%2,15522.52%9,572
Lincoln 6,68255.08%5,35344.12%300.25%220.18%300.25%150.12%1,32910.96%12,132
Manitowoc 19,63952.54%17,25046.15%920.25%2210.59%1140.31%600.16%2,3896.39%37,376
Marathon 27,08055.64%20,12841.36%1150.24%740.15%1350.28%1,1382.34%6,95214.28%48,670
Marinette 11,44462.35%6,79837.04%320.17%290.16%270.15%230.13%4,64625.31%18,353
Marquette 3,40661.79%2,03236.87%160.29%390.71%150.27%40.07%1,37424.92%5,512
Menominee 39231.84%83267.59%00.00%00.00%60.49%10.08%-440-35.75%1,231
Milwaukee 196,29042.86%259,14456.58%8750.19%5900.13%4930.11%6250.14%-62,854-13.72%458,017
Monroe 8,22759.26%5,56740.10%230.17%170.12%360.26%140.10%2,66019.16%13,884
Oconto 8,71461.70%5,28937.45%250.18%410.29%330.23%220.16%3,42524.25%14,124
Oneida 9,78759.79%6,41739.20%570.35%440.27%500.31%140.09%3,37020.59%16,369
Outagamie 36,77364.54%19,79034.73%1080.19%1090.19%990.17%1000.18%16,98329.81%56,979
Ozaukee 23,89868.48%10,76530.85%800.23%800.23%490.14%240.07%13,13337.63%34,896
Pepin 1,55548.56%1,62950.87%80.25%30.09%40.12%30.09%-74-2.31%3,202
Pierce 7,61250.74%7,28948.58%170.11%240.16%330.22%280.19%3232.16%15,003
Polk 8,10649.82%8,03449.38%250.15%450.28%370.23%220.14%720.44%16,269
Portage 13,60548.28%14,39951.10%580.21%340.12%410.15%420.15%-794-2.82%28,179
Price 4,28954.62%3,47944.31%210.27%260.33%290.37%80.10%81010.31%7,852
Racine 42,09252.84%36,95546.39%2360.30%1800.23%1140.14%860.11%5,1376.45%79,663
Richland 4,85862.66%2,84436.68%230.30%40.05%110.14%130.17%2,01425.98%7,753
Rock 32,49154.76%26,43344.55%1500.25%780.13%960.16%860.14%6,05810.21%59,334
Rusk 4,06150.90%3,84348.16%180.23%240.30%240.30%90.11%2182.74%7,979
Sauk 11,06960.44%7,15839.09%290.16%170.09%250.14%150.08%3,91121.35%18,313
Sawyer 3,91356.14%2,98242.78%170.24%240.34%230.33%110.16%93113.36%6,970
Shawano 10,63565.55%5,46933.71%240.15%470.29%350.22%150.09%5,16631.84%16,225
Sheboygan 26,34555.05%21,11244.12%1120.23%1360.28%770.16%710.15%5,23310.93%47,853
St. Croix 11,36752.54%10,12746.81%420.19%260.12%490.23%240.11%1,2405.73%21,635
Taylor 4,91859.48%3,27139.56%150.18%150.18%370.45%130.16%1,64719.92%8,269
Trempealeau 6,00852.24%5,40747.02%220.19%250.22%280.24%100.09%6015.22%11,500
Vernon 6,46955.75%5,05143.53%260.22%120.10%330.28%120.10%1,41812.22%11,603
Vilas 5,96566.09%2,94032.57%130.14%170.19%200.22%710.79%3,02533.52%9,026
Walworth 20,59567.06%9,87732.16%830.27%540.18%570.19%440.14%10,71834.90%30,710
Washburn 3,84854.38%3,18845.05%100.14%130.18%120.17%50.07%6609.33%7,076
Washington 25,27965.54%12,96633.61%940.24%1120.29%840.22%380.10%12,31331.93%38,573
Waukesha 92,42665.71%47,31333.64%3270.23%2680.19%2020.14%1240.09%45,11332.07%140,660
Waupaca 13,09768.33%5,89530.76%310.16%730.38%480.25%230.12%7,20237.57%19,167
Waushara 5,76966.79%2,78232.21%240.28%250.29%300.35%70.08%2,98734.58%8,637
Winnebago 39,01462.74%22,79136.65%1020.16%1000.16%900.14%860.14%16,22326.09%62,183
Wood 20,52562.42%12,11836.85%650.20%460.14%860.26%420.13%8,40725.57%32,882
Totals1,198,80054.19%995,84745.02%4,8840.22%3,8640.17%3,7910.17%4,8300.22%202,9539.17%2,212,016

Counties that flipped from Democratic to Republican

See also

References

  1. 1 2 Sullivan, Robert David; ‘How the Red and Blue Map Evolved Over the Past Century’; America Magazine in The National Catholic Review; June 29, 2016
  2. "CQ Almanac Online Edition". library.cqpress.com. Retrieved December 31, 2020.
  3. "CQ Almanac Online Edition". library.cqpress.com. Retrieved December 31, 2020.
  4. "WI US President Race, November 06, 1984". Our Campaigns.