United States presidential elections in Oklahoma

Oklahoma is a state in the South Central region of the United States.[1] Since it first joined the United States in 1907,[2] Oklahoma has participated in 29 presidential elections. It was initially granted seven electoral votes,[3] gaining three following the 1910 census.[4] It was given an additional vote in the 1930 census[5] which it lost in the 1940 census.[5] It went down to eight votes in the 1950 census[6] before returning to its original seven following the 2000 census.[7]

Presidential elections in Oklahoma
Map of the United States with Oklahoma highlighted
Number of elections29
Voted Democratic10
Voted Republican19
Voted other0
Voted for winning candidate20
Voted for losing candidate9

In the 1960 election the state was won by Republican candidates Richard Nixon and Henry C. Lodge.[8] However, elector Henry D. Irwin decided to cast a faithless vote for Harry F. Byrd and Barry Goldwater. The state later passed a law that would invalidate any votes cast by and issue fines to faithless electors.[9]

Oklahoma initially went back and forth between voting Democrat and Republican, more recently it has been considered a safe red state. Republicans having won every single county since the 2004 presidential election.[10] The last time a Democrat won the state was during Lyndon B. Johnson's 1964 landslide victory.[11] The last time the state was considered a swing state was during the presidential campaigns of Jimmy Carter and Bill Clinton.[12]

Republicans have won the election without winning the state only twice, William H. Taft in 1908 and Calvin Coolidge in 1924. Democrats have won without the state eight times, the most recent example being Joe Biden in 2020.

Presidential elections

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Key for parties
  Democratic Party – (D)
  Libertarian Party – (LI)
  Prohibition Party – (PRO)
  Reform Party – (RE)
  Republican Party – (R)


Note –
A double dagger (‡) indicates the national winner.
Note – Percentages may not total 100.0%.

Election results
Year Winner Runner-up Other candidate[a] EV Ref.
Candidate Votes % Candidate Votes % Candidate Votes %
William Jennings Bryan (D) 122,363 47.99% William Taft (R) 110,474 43.3% Eugene Debs (S) 21,734 8.52% 7
Woodrow Wilson (D) 119,156 46.95% William Taft (R) 90,786 35.77% Eugene Debs (S) 41,674 16.42% 10
Woodrow Wilson (D) 148,113 50.65% Charles Evans Hughes (R) 97,233 33.25% Allan L. Benson (S) 45,190 15.45% 10
Warren G. Harding (R) 243,831 50.11% James M. Cox (D) 217,053 44.61% Eugene Debs (S) 25,726 5.3% 10
John W. Davis (D) 255,798 48.41% Calvin Coolidge (R) 226,242 42.82% Robert M. La Follette (PR) 46,375 8.78% 10
Herbert Hoover (R) 394,046 63.72% Al Smith (D) 219,174 35.44% Norman Thomas (S) 3,924 0.63% 10
Franklin D. Roosevelt (D) 516,468 73.30% Herbert Hoover (R) 188,165 26.70%
11
Franklin D. Roosevelt (D) 501,069 66.83% Alf Landon (R) 245,122 32.69% Norman Thomas (S) 2,221 0.30% 11
Franklin D. Roosevelt (D) 474,313 57.41% Wendell Willkie (R) 348,872 42.23% Roger Babson (PRO) 3,027 0.37% 10
Franklin D. Roosevelt (D) 401,549 55.57% Thomas E. Dewey (R) 319,424 55.57% Claude A. Watson (PRO) 1,663 0.23% 10
Harry S. Truman (D) 452,782 62.75% Thomas E. Dewey (R) 268,817 37.25%
10
Dwight D. Eisenhower (R) 518,045 54.59% Adlai Stevenson (D) 430,939 45.41%
8
Dwight D. Eisenhower (R) 473,769 55.13% Adlai Stevenson (D) 385,581 44.87%
8
Richard Nixon (R)[b] 533,039 59.02% John F. Kennedy (D) 370,111 40.98%
8
Lyndon B. Johnson (D) 519,834 55.75% Barry Goldwater (R) 412,665 44.25%
8
Richard Nixon (R) 449,697 46.66% Hubert Humphrey (D) 301,658 31.30% George Wallace (AI) 191,731 19.89% 8
Richard Nixon (R) 759,025 71.78% George McGovern (D) 247,147 23.37% John G. Schmitz (AI) 23,728 2.24% 8
Gerald Ford (R) 545,708 49.87% Jimmy Carter (D) 532,442 48.66% Eugene McCarthy (I) 14,101 1.29% 8
Ronald Reagan (R) 695,570 59.33% Jimmy Carter (D) 402,026 34.29% Ed Clark (LI) 13,828 1.18% 8
Ronald Reagan (R) 861,530 68.61% Walter Mondale (D) 385,080 30.67% David Bergland (LI) 9,066 0.72% 8
George H. W. Bush (R) 678,367 58.24% Michael Dukakis (D) 483,423 41.5% Ron Paul (LI) 2,985 0.26% 8
George H. W. Bush (R) 592,929 42.65% Bill Clinton (D) 473,066 34% Ross Perot (I) 353,741 23.01% 8
Bob Dole (R) 582,315 48.22% Bill Clinton (D) 488,105 40.42% Ross Perot (RE) 130,788 10.83% 8
George W. Bush (R) 744,337 60.31% Al Gore (D) 474,276 38.43% Pat Buchanan (RE) 9,014 0.73% 8
George W. Bush (R) 959,792 65.6% John Kerry (D) 503,966 34.43%
7
John McCain (R) 959,745 65.64% Barack Obama (D) 502,294 34.36%
7
Mitt Romney (R) 889,372 66.77% Barack Obama (D) 442,647 33.23%
7
Donald Trump (R) 949,136 65.3% Hillary Clinton (D) 420,375 28.93% Gary Johnson (LI) 83,481 5.75% 7
Donald Trump (R) 1,020,280 65.37% Joe Biden (D) 503,890 32.29% Jo Jorgensen (LI) 24,731 1.58% 7

See also

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Notes

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  1. ^ For purpose of this list, other candidates are defined as those who were in third place in Oklahoma. A third party did not qualify every single year.
  2. ^ A faithless elector voted for Harry F. Byrd for president and Barry Goldwater for vice president.[8]

References

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  1. ^ "Census Regions and Divisions of the United States" (PDF). United States Census Bureau. Retrieved October 3, 2024.
  2. ^ "Oklahoma Statehood, November 16, 1907". National Archives. August 15, 2016. Retrieved August 22, 2024.
  3. ^ a b Leip, David. "1908 Presidential General Election Results – Oklahoma". Dave Leip's Atlas of U.S. Presidential Elections. Retrieved August 21, 2024.
  4. ^ a b Leip, David. "1912 Presidential General Election Results – Oklahoma". Dave Leip's Atlas of U.S. Presidential Elections. Archived from the original on December 2, 2008. Retrieved August 23, 2024.
  5. ^ a b c Leip, David. "1932 Presidential General Election Results – Oklahoma". Dave Leip's Atlas of U.S. Presidential Elections. Retrieved August 23, 2024.
  6. ^ a b Leip, David. "1948 Presidential General Election Results – Oklahoma". Dave Leip's Atlas of U.S. Presidential Elections. Archived from the original on February 24, 2024. Retrieved August 22, 2024.
  7. ^ "Distribution of Electoral Votes". Maryland.gov. Archived from the original on September 22, 2021. Retrieved August 21, 2024.
  8. ^ a b Agrawal, Nina (December 8, 2016). "All the times in U.S. history that members of the electoral college voted their own way". Los Angeles Times. Archived from the original on May 24, 2024. Retrieved August 22, 2024.
  9. ^ Averill, Dave (June 7, 1992). "Tale of Oklahoma's Bolting Presidential Elector". Tulsa World. Archived from the original on August 22, 2024. Retrieved August 21, 2024.
  10. ^ "Oklahoma 2020 election results". CNN. November 24, 2020. Archived from the original on August 21, 2024. Retrieved August 23, 2024.
  11. ^ Levy, Micheal (August 9, 2024). "United States presidential election of 1964". Encyclopædia Britannica Online. Archived from the original on August 5, 2024. Retrieved August 23, 2024.
  12. ^ "Who will win Oklahoma?". The Hill. October 2, 2024. Retrieved 2024-10-03.
  13. ^ Leip, David. "1916 Presidential General Election Results – Oklahoma". Dave Leip's Atlas of U.S. Presidential Elections. Archived from the original on December 3, 2008. Retrieved August 23, 2024.
  14. ^ Leip, David. "1920 Presidential General Election Results – Oklahoma". Dave Leip's Atlas of U.S. Presidential Elections. Archived from the original on December 2, 2008. Retrieved August 23, 2024.
  15. ^ Leip, David. "1924 Presidential General Election Results – Oklahoma". Dave Leip's Atlas of U.S. Presidential Elections. Retrieved August 23, 2024.
  16. ^ Leip, David. "1928 Presidential General Election Results – Oklahoma". Dave Leip's Atlas of U.S. Presidential Elections. Archived from the original on September 25, 2023. Retrieved August 23, 2024.
  17. ^ Leip, David. "1936 Presidential General Election Results – Oklahoma". Dave Leip's Atlas of U.S. Presidential Elections. Retrieved August 23, 2024.
  18. ^ Leip, David. "1940 Presidential General Election Results – Oklahoma". Dave Leip's Atlas of U.S. Presidential Elections. Archived from the original on May 6, 2019. Retrieved August 22, 2024.
  19. ^ Leip, David. "1944 Presidential General Election Results – Oklahoma". Dave Leip's Atlas of U.S. Presidential Elections. Archived from the original on February 27, 2024. Retrieved August 22, 2024.
  20. ^ "General Election Presidential Electors" (PDF). Oklahoma.gov. November 4, 1952. Archived (PDF) from the original on August 23, 2024. Retrieved August 22, 2024.
  21. ^ Leip, David. "1956 Presidential General Election Results – Oklahoma". Dave Leip's Atlas of U.S. Presidential Elections. Archived from the original on October 13, 2023. Retrieved August 22, 2024.
  22. ^ Leip, David. "1960 Presidential General Election Results – Oklahoma". Dave Leip's Atlas of U.S. Presidential Elections. Retrieved August 22, 2024.
  23. ^ Leip, David. "1964 Presidential General Election Results – Oklahoma". Dave Leip's Atlas of U.S. Presidential Elections. Archived from the original on April 16, 2024. Retrieved August 21, 2024.
  24. ^ "Elections of 1968 General Election" (PDF). Oklahoma.gov. November 5, 1968. Archived (PDF) from the original on January 11, 2023. Retrieved August 21, 2024.
  25. ^ "Elections of 1972 General Election Presidential Electors" (PDF). Oklahoma.gov. November 7, 1972. Archived (PDF) from the original on January 11, 2023. Retrieved August 21, 2024.
  26. ^ "Elections of 1976 General Election" (PDF). Oklahoma.gov. November 2, 1976. Archived (PDF) from the original on March 31, 2023. Retrieved August 20, 2024.
  27. ^ "General Election Presidential Electors" (PDF). Oklahoma.gov. November 4, 1980. Archived (PDF) from the original on June 15, 2024. Retrieved August 20, 2024.
  28. ^ "General Election Presidential Electors" (PDF). Oklahoma.gov. November 6, 1984. Archived (PDF) from the original on August 23, 2024. Retrieved August 20, 2024.
  29. ^ "Elections of 1988 General Election" (PDF). Oklahoma.gov. November 8, 1988. Archived (PDF) from the original on January 11, 2023. Retrieved August 20, 2024.
  30. ^ "Elections of 1992 General Elections" (PDF). Oklahoma.gov. Archived (PDF) from the original on May 15, 2023. Retrieved August 20, 2024.
  31. ^ "President and Vice President of the United States General Election" (PDF). Oklahoma.gov. November 5, 1996. Archived (PDF) from the original on June 13, 2024. Retrieved August 20, 2024.
  32. ^ "President and Vice President of the United States General Election — November 7, 2000" (PDF). Oklahoma.gov. November 7, 2000. Archived (PDF) from the original on September 7, 2023. Retrieved August 20, 2024.
  33. ^ "2004 Presidential General Election Results" (PDF). Federal Election Commission. May 2005. Archived (PDF) from the original on September 2, 2021. Retrieved August 18, 2024.
  34. ^ "Election Results 2008". New York Times. December 9, 2008. Archived from the original on August 23, 2024. Retrieved August 18, 2024.
  35. ^ "Oklahoma Election 2012: Live Results". Wall Street Journal. Archived from the original on August 18, 2024. Retrieved August 17, 2024.
  36. ^ "Oklahoma Election 2016: Live Results". Wall Street Journal. Archived from the original on August 26, 2024. Retrieved August 17, 2024.
  37. ^ "Oklahoma State Elections Board". Ok Elections. Archived from the original on August 23, 2024. Retrieved August 17, 2024.