1968 United States presidential election in Maine

The 1968 United States presidential election in Maine took place on November 5, 1968, as part of the 1968 United States presidential election, which was held throughout all fifty states and D.C. Voters chose four representatives, or electors to the Electoral College, who voted for president and vice president.

Main article: 1968 United States presidential election

1968 United States presidential election in Maine

November 5, 1968

Nominee Hubert Humphrey Richard Nixon Party Democratic Republican Home state Minnesota New York[lower-alpha 1] Running mate Edmund Muskie Spiro Agnew Electoral vote 4 0 Popular vote 217,312 169,254 Percentage 55.30% 43.07%

County Results Humphrey   50-60%   70-80% Nixon   50-60%   60-70%

President before election Lyndon Johnson Democratic Elected President Richard Nixon Republican

Maine was won by incumbent Vice President Hubert Humphrey by twelve percentage points over Republican challenger and former Vice President Richard M. Nixon. Humphrey received 55.30% of the vote in Maine, which equated to 217,312 total votes to Nixon's 43.07% and 169,254 total votes. Despite Nixon squeaking by Humphrey nationwide, the Vice President's decisive victory in Maine made the state about thirteen percentage points more Democratic than the nation as a whole in 1968. Humphrey's win was almost certainly due to the popularity[1] and consequent "favorite son" status in Maine of his running mate Edmund Muskie.[2]

Alabama Governor George Wallace received 6,370 votes on the American Independent ticket with 1.62% of the vote. Despite his significant impact on the election as a whole, Wallace did not have a serious impact in Maine. Indeed, upstate Aroostook County was Wallace's weakest in the nation outside of the District of Columbia where he was not on the ballot.[3]

1968 would prove to be the last time that a Democratic presidential nominee would carry the state of Maine until Bill Clinton in 1992, and the last time that a Democrat would win an absolute majority of the popular vote in the state until Clinton also did so in 1996. The state swung heavily towards Richard Nixon in 1972, awarding him over 61 percent of the vote, which no presidential candidate of either party has surpassed since.

This is the last election as of 2020 where Maine has not voted for the same candidate as fellow New England state Vermont, and one of only two such cases since 1856. Piscataquis County would never vote Democratic again until 1996, whilst Franklin, Oxford, Penobscot, Sagadahoc and Washington Counties would not vote Democratic again until 1992, and populous Cumberland County not until 1980.[4]

Results

1968 United States presidential election in Maine[5]
Party		Candidate	Votes	Percentage	Electoral votes
	Democratic	Hubert Humphrey	217,312	55.30%	4
	Republican	Richard Nixon	169,254	43.07%	0
	American Independent	George Wallace	6,370	1.62%	0
Totals			392,936	100.00%	4

Results by county

County	Hubert Horatio Humphrey Democratic		Richard Milhous Nixon Republican		George Corley Wallace American Independent		Total votes cast
	#	%	#	%	#	%
Androscoggin	26,820	71.04%	10,390	27.52%	542	1.44%	37,752
Aroostook	15,044	51.46%	13,919	47.61%	273	0.93%	29,236
Cumberland	44,697	57.27%	32,275	41.35%	1,076	1.38%	78,048
Franklin	4,307	50.10%	4,127	48.01%	162	1.88%	8,596
Hancock	4,979	35.10%	8,929	62.95%	277	1.95%	14,185
Kennebec	21,752	56.81%	16,009	41.81%	531	1.39%	38,292
Knox	5,119	42.95%	6,585	55.25%	214	1.80%	11,918
Lincoln	3,380	36.50%	5,659	61.11%	222	2.40%	9,261
Oxford	10,870	56.39%	8,030	41.66%	375	1.95%	19,275
Penobscot	24,327	54.06%	20,011	44.47%	661	1.47%	44,999
Piscataquis	3,561	51.47%	3,199	46.24%	158	2.28%	6,918
Sagadahoc	5,553	56.16%	4,126	41.73%	209	2.11%	9,888
Somerset	8,312	54.13%	6,720	43.76%	324	2.11%	15,356
Waldo	3,525	41.08%	4,821	56.19%	234	2.73%	8,580
Washington	6,249	52.16%	5,523	46.10%	208	1.74%	11,980
York	28,817	59.23%	18,931	38.91%	904	1.86%	48,652
Totals	217,312	55.30%	169,254	43.07%	6,370	1.62%	392,936

See also

• United States presidential elections in Maine

References

1. Nelson, Michael; Resilient America: Electing Nixon in 1968, Channeling Dissent, and Dividing Government (American Presidential Elections), pp. 174, 179 ISBN 0700619631
2. Menendez, Albert J.; The Geography of Presidential Elections in the United States, 1868-2004, p. 94 ISBN 0786422173
3. "1968 Presidential General Election Results - Maine". Uselectionatlas.org. Retrieved 14 October 2017.
4. Menendez; The Geography of Presidential Elections in the United States, p. 220
5. "1968 Presidential General Election Results - Maine". Dave Leip's U.S. Election Atlas. Retrieved 2008-08-25.

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.