1988 Alabama Democratic presidential primary

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1988 Alabama Democratic presidential primary
Flag of Alabama.svg
  1984 March 8, 1988 1992  

65 Democratic National Convention delegates
(56 pledged, 9 unpledged)
  Jesse Jackson For President Crop.jpg Al Gore Senate portrait (cropped).jpg
Candidate Jesse Jackson Al Gore
Home state South Carolina Tennessee
Delegate count2828
Popular vote176,764151,739
Percentage43.56%37.39%

  Michael Dukakis 1988 DNC (2).jpg Dick Gephardt portrait (tighter crop).jpg
Candidate Michael Dukakis Dick Gephardt
Home state Massachusetts Missouri
Delegate count00
Popular vote31,20630,214
Percentage7.69%7.44%

1988 Alabama Democratic delegate allocation.svg
1988 Alabama Democratic presidential primary by county.svg

A presidential primary was held in the U.S. state of Alabama on March 8, 1988, to elect delegates representing Alabama to the 1988 Democratic National Convention. Alabama was allocated sixty-five delegates, fifty-six of which were pledged. Thirty-seven delegates were elected from the seven congressional districts and the remaining nineteen were chosen by the State Democratic Executive Committee to reflect candidates' statewide vote totals. Nine delegates were unpledged delegates, or "superdelegates," made up of five party officers and four congressmen. [1]

Contents

Jesse Jackson of South Carolina won more statewide votes than Al Gore of Tennessee, but both took the same number of delegates, twenty-eight, to the Convention, due to Gore's strength in the state's congressional districts. [2] Later in the campaign, Gore withdrew his bid for the nomination and released his delegates while urging them to support Massachusetts governor Michael Dukakis. Dukakis won the support of every superdelegate and Gore delegate, and at the Convention, Alabama cast thirty-seven votes for Dukakis to Jackson's twenty-eight. [3]

Results

Alabama Democratic presidential primary, 1988
CandidatePopular vote [4] Delegates
#%PledgedUnpledgedTotal
Jesse Jackson 176,76443.56%280
Al Gore 151,73937.39%280
Michael Dukakis 31,2067.69%00
Dick Gephardt 30,2147.44%00
Gary Hart 7,5181.85%00
Paul Simon 3,0630.75%00
Bruce Babbitt 2,4100.59%00
Lyndon LaRouche 8450.21%00
Uncommitted 2,0720.51%00
Total405,831100.00%56965

Delegate allocation

District Al
Gore
Jesse
Jackson
Total
1st 235
2nd 235
3rd 235
4th 606
5th 415
6th 145
7th 246
CD total191837
At-large91019
Total282856
Source: Associated Press [5]

See also

References

  1. "State Democrats are ready to finish picking delegates". The Mobile Register . Associated Press. 28 May 1988. Retrieved 18 September 2025.
  2. Herring, Amy (16 March 1988). "Jackson, Gore Get 28 Democratic Delegates Each From Alabama". The Montgomery Advertiser . Retrieved 18 September 2025.
  3. Herring, Amy; Boliek, Brooks (21 July 1988). "Alabama Starts Dukakis' Nomination Off On A Roll". The Montgomery Advertiser . Retrieved 18 September 2025.
  4. "Elections Data Downloads". Secretary of State of Alabama . Retrieved 17 September 2025.
  5. Harwell, Hoyt (16 March 1988). "Jackson, Gore to split state Democratic delegates". The Huntsville Times . Associated Press . Retrieved 18 September 2025.