1968 United States presidential election in Mississippi

The 1968 United States presidential election in Mississippi was held on November 5, 1968. Mississippi voters chose 7 electors, or representatives to the Electoral College, who voted for President and Vice-President.

Main article: 1968 United States presidential election
1968 United States presidential election in Mississippi
November 5, 1968
 
Nominee George Wallace Hubert Humphrey Richard Nixon
Party Independent Democratic Republican
Home state Alabama Minnesota New York[lower-alpha 1]
Running mate Curtis LeMay Edmund Muskie Spiro Agnew
Electoral vote 7 0 0
Popular vote 415,349 150,644 88,516
Percentage 63.46% 23.02% 13.52%
County results
President before election

Lyndon B. Johnson
Democratic

 Elected President

Richard Nixon
Republican

Elections in Mississippi

Background

During the 1960s, the Civil Rights Movement dictated Mississippi's politics, with effectively the entire white population vehemently opposed to federal policies of racial desegregation and black voting rights.[1][2] In 1960, the state had been narrowly captured by a slate of unpledged Democratic electors[lower-alpha 2] but in 1964 universal white opposition to the Civil Rights Act and "War on Poverty" and zero or negligible black voter registration[lower-alpha 3] meant that white Mississippians – apart from a small number in the northeastern red clay hills who feared loss of public works[3] – turned almost unanimously to Republican Barry Goldwater. Goldwater's support for "constitutional government and local self-rule"[4] meant that the absence from the ballot of "states' rights" parties was unimportant. The Arizona Senator was one of only six Republicans to vote against the Civil Rights Act,[5] and Goldwater's staunchly conservative policies caused the small Mississippi electorate to almost unanimously support him over the "big government" Johnson.

Following the Voting Rights Act, Federal examiners registered Mississippi blacks as voters in large numbers: African-American registration rose from under seven percent to over fifty-nine percent between mid-1965 and 1968.[6] Extreme anger ensued among white Mississippians, because black voting in significant numbers would threaten the entire social fabric of the Black Belt[7] and was even feared by the few upcountry whites who had stayed loyal to Johnson as potentially causing social breakdown.[8] The anger of Mississippi's whites was seen in the 1967 Democratic gubernatorial primary when both Black Belt whites and their traditional foes in the upcountry supported conservative John Bell Williams against William Winter whom it was believed was favoured by the newly registered blacks[9] – although it remained political suicide to openly court black support.[9]

In addition, the Twenty-Fourth Amendment and resultant abolition of Mississippi's rigorous poll tax requirements for voting had allowed large increases in white, as well as black, voter registration,[10] with some of these drives done by white supremacist groups like the Ku Klux Klan. Consequently, when segregationist Alabama Governor George Wallace announced in early 1968 that he would mount a third-party candidacy for the Presidency, he had a powerful base in his native Deep South. Meanwhile, the Republican Party in the 1966 mid-term elections had of necessity moved away from the strident conservatism of Goldwater – who had been replaced as Republican National Congress Chairman by Ray Bliss.[11]

Given Wallace's firmly established reputation as a segregationist, it was inevitable that he would be endorsed by Mississippi's established Democratic Party leadership, and this happened in September.[12] William Winter, the losing candidate for Governor the previous year, did support Democratic nominee and sitting Vice-President Hubert Humphrey, but knew that it would be too risky to actively campaign for him.[13]

Vote

By August, there was virtual unanimity that Wallace would carry Mississippi by a large margin,[14] as apart from a small number of wealthy urban communities, he had captured a virtual monopoly of the state's white electorate, including the small minority who had backed Johnson. Wallace was the only candidate to do any campaigning:[12] Nixon did not campaign in the state at all, and won more than twenty percent of the vote in just four of the state's 82 counties.[15] This was the second presidential election which Richard Nixon came in third place in Mississippi. Humphrey improved upon the support gained by Johnson, but this was entirely due to the huge increases in black voter registration – exit polls suggest the national Democratic nominee received less than 5 percent of the white vote. In fact, so marked was the reversal of voting patterns from the previous five presidential elections that Humphrey did worst in the counties where Johnson, John F. Kennedy, Adlai Stevenson and Harry S. Truman had run best.[16]

With 63.46% of the popular vote, Mississippi would prove to be Wallace's second strongest state in the 1968 election after neighboring Alabama.[17]

As of the 2016 presidential election, this is the last election in which the following counties did not vote for the Republican presidential candidate: Forrest, Lowndes, Lamar, Lauderdale, Lincoln, Newton, Rankin, Scott, Simpson, Harrison, Jackson, Choctaw, Jones, and Smith.[18]

Results
1968 United States presidential election in Mississippi[15]
Party Candidate Votes Percentage Electoral votes
Independent George C. Wallace 415,349 63.46% 7
National Democratic Hubert Humphrey 150,644 23.02% 0
Republican Richard Nixon 88,516 13.52% 0
Totals 654,509 100.00% 7
Voter turnout (Voting age/Registered voters) 53%/84%

Results by county
County Hubert Horatio Humphrey
Democratic		 Richard Milhous Nixon
Republican		 George Corley Wallace
Independent		 Margin[lower-alpha 4] Total votes cast
# % # % # % # %
Adams 5,214 38.62% 1,475 10.93% 6,812 50.46% -1,598 -11.84% 13,501
Alcorn 1,122 12.21% 1,760 19.16% 6,304 68.63% -4,544[lower-alpha 5] -49.47% 9,186
Amite 1,533 29.87% 393 7.66% 3,206 62.47% -1,673 -32.60% 5,132
Attala 1,588 22.81% 599 8.60% 4,776 68.59% -3,188 -45.78% 6,963
Benton 850 31.89% 185 6.94% 1,630 61.16% -780 -29.27% 2,665
Bolivar 4,696 40.82% 1,790 15.56% 5,018 43.62% -322 -2.80% 11,504
Calhoun 276 5.02% 394 7.17% 4,823 87.80% -4,429[lower-alpha 5] -80.63% 5,493
Carroll 925 28.96% 138 4.32% 2,131 66.72% -1,206 -37.76% 3,194
Chickasaw 720 13.95% 381 7.38% 4,062 78.68% -3,342 -64.73% 5,163
Choctaw 417 13.15% 211 6.65% 2,543 80.20% -2,126 -67.05% 3,171
Claiborne 2,129 60.79% 230 6.57% 1,143 32.64% 986 28.16% 3,502
Clarke 878 16.29% 298 5.53% 4,214 78.18% -3,336 -61.89% 5,390
Clay 1,510 27.41% 494 8.97% 3,505 63.62% -1,995 -36.21% 5,509
Coahoma 5,352 49.11% 1,875 17.20% 3,671 33.69% 1,681 15.42% 10,898
Copiah 2,724 32.51% 704 8.40% 4,951 59.09% -2,227 -26.58% 8,379
Covington 691 14.38% 445 9.26% 3,668 76.35% -2,977 -61.97% 4,804
DeSoto 1,898 22.77% 1,092 13.10% 5,346 64.13% -3,448 -41.36% 8,336
Forrest 2,957 18.22% 3,294 20.30% 9,975 61.48% -6,681[lower-alpha 5] -41.17% 16,226
Franklin 782 22.72% 231 6.71% 2,429 70.57% -1,647 -47.85% 3,442
George 214 4.89% 171 3.91% 3,992 91.20% -3,778 -86.31% 4,377
Greene 449 13.50% 132 3.97% 2,744 82.53% -2,295 -69.02% 3,325
Grenada 2,050 28.86% 718 10.11% 4,335 61.03% -2,285 -32.17% 7,103
Hancock 904 14.96% 1,065 17.63% 4,072 67.41% -3,007[lower-alpha 5] -49.78% 6,041
Harrison 4,549 15.55% 6,542 22.37% 18,157 62.08% -11,615[lower-alpha 5] -39.71% 29,248
Hinds 14,880 24.50% 13,488 22.21% 32,366 53.29% -17,486 -28.79% 60,734
Holmes 3,881 52.38% 520 7.02% 3,008 40.60% 873 11.78% 7,409
Humphreys 1,219 33.60% 258 7.11% 2,151 59.29% -932 -25.69% 3,628
Issaquena 527 47.69% 44 3.98% 534 48.33% -7 -0.63% 1,105
Itawamba 417 6.74% 569 9.19% 5,204 84.07% -4,635[lower-alpha 5] -74.88% 6,190
Jackson 2,236 10.94% 2,942 14.39% 15,261 74.67% -12,319[lower-alpha 5] -60.27% 20,439
Jasper 987 22.13% 373 8.36% 3,100 69.51% -2,113 -47.38% 4,460
Jefferson 2,121 62.75% 147 4.35% 1,112 32.90% 1,009 29.85% 3,380
Jefferson Davis 1,465 33.48% 297 6.79% 2,614 59.73% -1,149 -26.26% 4,376
Jones 2,476 13.76% 3,242 18.02% 12,276 68.22% -9,034[lower-alpha 5] -50.21% 17,994
Kemper 655 19.54% 167 4.98% 2,530 75.48% -1,875 -55.94% 3,352
Lafayette 1,578 25.69% 1,235 20.11% 3,329 54.20% -1,751 -28.51% 6,142
Lamar 351 6.60% 546 10.27% 4,422 83.14% -3,876[lower-alpha 5] -72.87% 5,319
Lauderdale 3,195 15.69% 2,328 11.43% 14,842 72.88% -11,647 -57.19% 20,365
Lawrence 740 19.00% 329 8.45% 2,825 72.55% -2,085 -53.54% 3,894
Leake 1,295 20.50% 453 7.17% 4,568 72.32% -3,273 -51.82% 6,316
Lee 1,912 13.99% 2,522 18.45% 9,232 67.55% -6,710[lower-alpha 5] -49.10% 13,666
Leflore 4,386 37.71% 1,514 13.02% 5,732 49.28% -1,346 -11.57% 11,632
Lincoln 1,585 15.98% 1,057 10.66% 7,276 73.36% -5,691 -57.38% 9,918
Lowndes 2,229 20.22% 1,968 17.85% 6,829 61.94% -4,600 -41.72% 11,026
Madison 4,515 47.72% 876 9.26% 4,071 43.02% 444 4.69% 9,462
Marion 1,722 20.66% 763 9.16% 5,848 70.18% -4,126 -49.51% 8,333
Marshall 2,907 46.30% 577 9.19% 2,794 44.50% 113 1.80% 6,278
Monroe 1,506 14.30% 1,167 11.08% 7,856 74.61% -6,350 -60.31% 10,529
Montgomery 896 20.56% 475 10.90% 2,988 68.55% -2,092 -47.99% 4,359
Neshoba 867 11.09% 531 6.79% 6,417 82.11% -5,550 -71.02% 7,815
Newton 799 11.58% 542 7.85% 5,561 80.57% -4,762 -68.99% 6,902
Noxubee 1,387 37.91% 232 6.34% 2,040 55.75% -653 -17.85% 3,659
Oktibbeha 1,826 25.26% 1,276 17.65% 4,127 57.09% -2,301 -31.83% 7,229
Panola 2,743 34.40% 1,098 13.77% 4,133 51.83% -1,390 -17.43% 7,974
Pearl River 926 11.19% 1,298 15.69% 6,050 73.12% -4,752[lower-alpha 5] -57.43% 8,274
Perry 439 13.69% 227 7.08% 2,541 79.23% -2,102 -65.54% 3,207
Pike 2,848 28.05% 1,460 14.38% 5,846 57.57% -2,998 -29.53% 10,154
Pontotoc 599 9.77% 733 11.96% 4,798 78.27% -4,065[lower-alpha 5] -66.31% 6,130
Prentiss 440 7.08% 723 11.63% 5,055 81.30% -4,332[lower-alpha 5] -69.67% 6,218
Quitman 1,502 34.30% 434 9.91% 2,443 55.79% -941 -21.49% 4,379
Rankin 1,975 16.03% 1,124 9.12% 9,224 74.85% -7,249 -58.82% 12,323
Scott 1,067 15.77% 604 8.93% 5,093 75.30% -4,026 -59.52% 6,764
Sharkey 972 40.35% 249 10.34% 1,188 49.32% -216 -8.97% 2,409
Simpson 1,079 15.37% 875 12.47% 5,064 72.16% -3,985 -56.78% 7,018
Smith 352 6.83% 437 8.48% 4,367 84.70% -3,930[lower-alpha 5] -76.22% 5,156
Stone 314 11.58% 258 9.51% 2,140 78.91% -1,826 -67.33% 2,712
Sunflower 2,602 34.37% 1,036 13.69% 3,932 51.94% -1,330 -17.57% 7,570
Tallahatchie 1,477 28.79% 577 11.25% 3,076 59.96% -1,599 -31.17% 5,130
Tate 1,162 25.39% 605 13.22% 2,810 61.39% -1,648 -36.01% 4,577
Tippah 663 11.28% 589 10.02% 4,627 78.70% -3,964 -67.43% 5,879
Tishomingo 358 6.46% 617 11.13% 4,569 82.41% -3,952[lower-alpha 5] -71.28% 5,544
Tunica 1,133 48.65% 413 17.73% 783 33.62% 350 15.03% 2,329
Union 624 9.22% 948 14.00% 5,198 76.78% -4,250[lower-alpha 5] -62.78% 6,770
Walthall 1,233 25.66% 387 8.05% 3,186 66.29% -1,953 -40.64% 4,806
Warren 4,503 31.91% 2,392 16.95% 7,217 51.14% -2,714 -19.23% 14,112
Washington 5,520 36.03% 3,500 22.85% 6,300 41.12% -780 -5.09% 15,320
Wayne 739 14.56% 247 4.87% 4,089 80.57% -3,350 -66.01% 5,075
Webster 295 7.33% 330 8.20% 3,398 84.46% -3,068[lower-alpha 5] -76.26% 4,023
Wilkinson 2,144 54.71% 272 6.94% 1,503 38.35% 641 16.36% 3,919
Winston 911 15.05% 508 8.39% 4,635 76.56% -3,724 -61.51% 6,054
Yalobusha 873 20.99% 562 13.51% 2,725 65.50% -1,852 -44.52% 4,160
Yazoo 2,163 26.84% 958 11.89% 4,939 61.28% -2,776 -34.44% 8,060
Totals150,64423.02%88,51613.52%415,34963.46%-264,705-40.44%654,509

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. These unpledged electors supported Virginia Senator Harry F. Byrd for President and South Carolina Senator Strom Thurmond for Vice-President.
  3. Over the whole of Mississippi it is estimated that at the time of the 1964 presidential election between six and seven percent of the black population was registered to vote, and that about three-quarters of these – totalling twenty-one thousand blacks – actually voted in the 1964 presidential election, giving Lyndon Johnson about 40 percent of his fifty-two thousand statewide votes. However, in most rural counties, black registration was zero before the Voting Rights Act and had been since the Constitution of 1890.
  4. Because Wallace finished first in Mississippi as a whole and Humphrey was the highest-polling statewide major party nominee in the state as a whole, all margins and percentage margins shown are Humphrey minus Wallace unless otherwise stated.
  5. In this county where Nixon ran second ahead of Humphrey, margin given is Nixon vote minus Wallace vote and percentage margin is Nixon percentage minus Wallace percentage.
gollark: Or at least... more consistent, which is kind of similar.
gollark: Perhaps it could be argued that generics are the natural state of things somehow, and simpler than no generics.
gollark: Oh, wait, this is easy. Anarchoprimitivism is derived from anarchism, i.e. the particularly "bee hierarchies" bit of leftism. I can reuse left-justification.
gollark: I'll think about this.
gollark: I explained this. Centre-justification trivially follows from the fact that the left and right must obviously now both agree on generic good.

References
  1. Crespino, Joseph; In Search of Another Country: Mississippi and the Conservative Counterrevolution, p. 206 ISBN 0691122091
  2. Mitchell, Dennis J.; A New History of Mississippi; p. 453 ISBN 1617039764
  3. Phillips, Kevin P.; The Emerging Republican Majority, pp. 208, 210 ISBN 9780691163246
  4. Katagiri, Yasuhiro; The Mississippi State Sovereignty Commission: Civil Rights and States' Rights, p. 203 ISBN 1604730080
  5. Thernstrom, Stephan and Thernstrom, Abigail; America in Black and White: One Nation, Indivisible, p. 151 ISBN 1439129096
  6. Mickey, Robert; Paths Out of Dixie: The Democratization of Authoritarian Enclaves in America's Deep South, 1944-1972, pp. 289-290 ISBN 1400838789
  7. Phillips; The Emerging Republican Majority, p. 253
  8. Phillips; The Emerging Republican Majority, p. 264
  9. Dittmer, John; Local People: The Struggle for Civil Rights in Mississippi, p. 417 ISBN 0252065077
  10. Mickey, Paths out of Dixie, p. 290
  11. Polsky, Andrew J.; The Eisenhower Presidency: Lessons for the Twenty-First Century, p. 34 ISBN 1498522211
  12. Nash, Jere and Taggart, Andy; Mississippi Politics: The Struggle for Power, 1976-2008, p. 29 ISBN 1604733578
  13. Bolton, Charles C.; William F. Winter and the New Mississippi: A Biography, p. 150 ISBN 1617037877
  14. Crespino, In Search of Another Country, p. 221
  15. 1968 Presidential General Election Results – Mississippi US Election Atlas
  16. Phillips; The Emerging Republican Majority, pp. 245, 266
  17. "1968 Presidential Election Statistics". Dave Leip's Atlas of U.S. Presidential Elections. Retrieved 2018-03-05.
  18. Sullivan, Robert David; ‘How the Red and Blue Map Evolved Over the Past Century’; America Magazine in The National Catholic Review; June 29, 2016
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