Main article: 1988 United States presidential election
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 County Results
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The 1988 United States presidential election in Montana took place on November 8, 1988, and was part of the 1988 United States presidential election. Voters chose four representatives, or electors to the Electoral College, who voted for president and vice president. This was the last election until 2024 when Montana had four electoral votes: the continuing depopulation of the Great Plains would cause the state to revert to an at-large congressional district for 1992. Montana regained a second congressional district, and therefore a fourth electoral vote, in 2022.
Montana voted for the Republican nominee, Vice President George H. W. Bush, over the Democratic nominee, Massachusetts governor Michael Dukakis.
Bush won by a margin of 5.87%, much lower than usual in this typically solid Republican state, largely due to the persistent drought and Farm crisis on the Great Plains, a result making Montana 1.93% more Democratic than the national average. Since 1916 this is the solitary election when Blaine County, the most consistent bellwether county in the nation, has supported a losing presidential candidate; Bush is thus the only Republican to win the White House without carrying this county. It is also the last time Montana has voted more Democratic than the nation at-large and one of only two since 1956 (along with 1972), and the last occasion northwestern Lincoln County has supported a Democratic Presidential nominee. Thus, Iowa (with four counties), Texas (with three), and Montana (with one) are the only states containing counties that Dukakis (as of 2024) was the last Democrat to carry.
Bush became the first-ever Republican to win the White House without carrying Rosebud County, as well as the first to do so without carrying Lewis and Clark County since William Howard Taft in 1908, and the first to do so without carrying Missoula County since Calvin Coolidge in 1924. This is the last time that Montana has voted more Democratic than Maine.
Results
| 1988 United States presidential election in Montana | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Party | Candidate | Votes | Percentage | Electoral votes | |
| Republican | George H. W. Bush | 190,412 | 52.07% | 4 | |
| Democratic | Michael Dukakis | 168,936 | 46.20% | 0 | |
| Libertarian | Ron Paul | 5,047 | 1.38% | 0 | |
| New Alliance | Lenora Fulani | 1,279 | 0.35% | 0 | |
| Totals | 365,674 | 100.00% | 4 | ||
Results by county
| County | George H.W. Bush Republican |
Michael Dukakis Democratic |
Various candidates Other parties |
Margin | Total votes cast | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| # | % | # | % | # | % | # | % | ||
| Beaverhead | 2,668 | 66.73% | 1,274 | 31.87% | 56 | 1.40% | 1,394 | 34.86% | 3,998 |
| Big Horn | 1,711 | 42.95% | 2,233 | 56.05% | 40 | 1.00% | -522 | -13.10% | 3,984 |
| Blaine | 1,402 | 48.15% | 1,460 | 50.14% | 50 | 1.72% | -58 | -1.99% | 2,912 |
| Broadwater | 1,054 | 62.63% | 592 | 35.18% | 37 | 2.20% | 462 | 27.45% | 1,683 |
| Carbon | 2,360 | 52.80% | 2,039 | 45.62% | 71 | 1.59% | 321 | 7.18% | 4,470 |
| Carter | 686 | 72.82% | 242 | 25.69% | 14 | 1.49% | 444 | 47.13% | 942 |
| Cascade | 15,946 | 49.64% | 15,718 | 48.93% | 460 | 1.43% | 228 | 0.71% | 32,124 |
| Chouteau | 1,980 | 61.51% | 1,166 | 36.22% | 73 | 2.27% | 814 | 25.29% | 3,219 |
| Custer | 3,007 | 55.05% | 2,343 | 42.90% | 112 | 2.05% | 664 | 12.15% | 5,462 |
| Daniels | 802 | 57.49% | 571 | 40.93% | 22 | 1.58% | 231 | 16.56% | 1,395 |
| Dawson | 2,658 | 54.40% | 2,120 | 43.39% | 108 | 2.21% | 538 | 11.01% | 4,886 |
| Deer Lodge | 1,168 | 26.51% | 3,185 | 72.29% | 53 | 1.20% | -2,017 | -45.78% | 4,406 |
| Fallon | 1,002 | 61.25% | 612 | 37.41% | 22 | 1.34% | 390 | 23.84% | 1,636 |
| Fergus | 3,948 | 64.55% | 2,052 | 33.55% | 116 | 1.90% | 1,896 | 31.00% | 6,116 |
| Flathead | 14,461 | 57.33% | 10,202 | 40.44% | 562 | 2.23% | 4,259 | 16.89% | 25,225 |
| Gallatin | 13,214 | 56.94% | 9,527 | 41.06% | 464 | 2.00% | 3,687 | 15.88% | 23,205 |
| Garfield | 631 | 74.15% | 196 | 23.03% | 24 | 2.82% | 435 | 51.12% | 851 |
| Glacier | 1,728 | 43.16% | 2,151 | 53.72% | 125 | 3.12% | -423 | -10.56% | 4,004 |
| Golden Valley | 335 | 61.69% | 203 | 37.38% | 5 | 0.92% | 132 | 24.31% | 543 |
| Granite | 789 | 59.50% | 511 | 38.54% | 26 | 1.96% | 278 | 20.96% | 1,326 |
| Hill | 3,467 | 44.50% | 4,219 | 54.15% | 105 | 1.35% | -752 | -9.65% | 7,791 |
| Jefferson | 2,007 | 52.31% | 1,746 | 45.50% | 84 | 2.19% | 261 | 6.81% | 3,837 |
| Judith Basin | 902 | 59.50% | 590 | 38.92% | 24 | 1.58% | 312 | 20.58% | 1,516 |
| Lake | 4,883 | 53.37% | 4,109 | 44.91% | 158 | 1.73% | 774 | 8.46% | 9,150 |
| Lewis and Clark | 10,946 | 46.91% | 11,932 | 51.14% | 456 | 1.95% | -986 | -4.23% | 23,334 |
| Liberty | 771 | 63.82% | 418 | 34.60% | 19 | 1.57% | 353 | 29.22% | 1,208 |
| Lincoln | 3,500 | 47.98% | 3,601 | 49.37% | 193 | 2.65% | -101 | -1.39% | 7,294 |
| McCone | 814 | 58.18% | 567 | 40.53% | 18 | 1.29% | 247 | 17.65% | 1,399 |
| Madison | 2,045 | 68.62% | 878 | 29.46% | 57 | 1.91% | 1,167 | 39.16% | 2,980 |
| Meagher | 656 | 65.01% | 337 | 33.40% | 16 | 1.59% | 319 | 31.61% | 1,009 |
| Mineral | 616 | 43.14% | 789 | 55.25% | 23 | 1.61% | -173 | -12.11% | 1,428 |
| Missoula | 15,965 | 44.76% | 19,178 | 53.77% | 526 | 1.47% | -3,213 | -9.01% | 35,669 |
| Musselshell | 1,280 | 58.08% | 898 | 40.74% | 26 | 1.18% | 382 | 17.34% | 2,204 |
| Park | 3,823 | 59.13% | 2,526 | 39.07% | 116 | 1.79% | 1,297 | 20.06% | 6,465 |
| Petroleum | 204 | 67.55% | 91 | 30.13% | 7 | 2.32% | 113 | 37.42% | 302 |
| Phillips | 1,462 | 60.26% | 905 | 37.30% | 59 | 2.43% | 557 | 22.96% | 2,426 |
| Pondera | 1,795 | 57.64% | 1,245 | 39.98% | 74 | 2.38% | 550 | 17.66% | 3,114 |
| Powder River | 815 | 66.15% | 395 | 32.06% | 22 | 1.79% | 420 | 34.09% | 1,232 |
| Powell | 1,574 | 56.31% | 1,174 | 42.00% | 47 | 1.68% | 400 | 14.31% | 2,795 |
| Prairie | 541 | 60.11% | 343 | 38.11% | 16 | 1.78% | 198 | 22.00% | 900 |
| Ravalli | 7,418 | 59.39% | 4,763 | 38.13% | 309 | 2.47% | 2,655 | 21.26% | 12,490 |
| Richland | 2,628 | 57.81% | 1,824 | 40.12% | 94 | 2.07% | 804 | 17.69% | 4,546 |
| Roosevelt | 1,957 | 47.52% | 2,083 | 50.58% | 78 | 1.89% | -126 | -3.06% | 4,118 |
| Rosebud | 1,822 | 48.05% | 1,869 | 49.29% | 101 | 2.66% | -47 | -1.24% | 3,792 |
| Sanders | 2,152 | 51.24% | 1,959 | 46.64% | 89 | 2.12% | 193 | 4.60% | 4,200 |
| Sheridan | 1,381 | 49.98% | 1,354 | 49.00% | 28 | 1.01% | 27 | 0.98% | 2,763 |
| Silver Bow | 5,043 | 30.22% | 11,422 | 68.45% | 222 | 1.33% | -6,379 | -38.23% | 16,687 |
| Stillwater | 1,920 | 56.82% | 1,407 | 41.64% | 52 | 1.54% | 513 | 15.18% | 3,379 |
| Sweet Grass | 1,242 | 71.67% | 462 | 26.66% | 29 | 1.67% | 780 | 45.01% | 1,733 |
| Teton | 1,876 | 57.83% | 1,303 | 40.17% | 65 | 2.00% | 573 | 17.66% | 3,244 |
| Toole | 1,505 | 57.14% | 1,070 | 40.62% | 59 | 2.24% | 435 | 16.52% | 2,634 |
| Treasure | 291 | 54.29% | 231 | 43.10% | 14 | 2.61% | 60 | 11.19% | 536 |
| Valley | 2,467 | 52.42% | 2,163 | 45.96% | 76 | 1.61% | 304 | 6.46% | 4,706 |
| Wheatland | 667 | 59.03% | 443 | 39.20% | 20 | 1.77% | 224 | 19.83% | 1,130 |
| Wibaux | 358 | 56.92% | 258 | 41.02% | 13 | 2.07% | 100 | 15.90% | 629 |
| Yellowstone | 28,069 | 55.42% | 21,987 | 43.41% | 591 | 1.17% | 6,082 | 12.01% | 50,647 |
| Totals | 190,412 | 52.07% | 168,936 | 46.20% | 6,326 | 1.73% | 21,476 | 5.87% | 365,674 |
Counties that flipped from Republican to Democratic
See also
References
- "The Political Graveyard: Blaine County, Mont". politicalgraveyard.com. Retrieved November 26, 2024.
- "Montana Voting Results and Participants". CountingTheVotes.com. Retrieved November 26, 2024.
- Sullivan, Robert David; ‘How the Red and Blue Map Evolved Over the Past Century’; America Magazine in The National Catholic Review; June 29, 2016
- "1988 Presidential General Election Results – Montana". Dave Leip’s U.S. Election Atlas. Retrieved March 17, 2018.
| State and district results of the 1988 U.S. presidential election | ||
|---|---|---|
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