The 1908 United States presidential election in Nevada was held on November 3, 1908, as part of the 1908 United States presidential election. Voters chose three representatives, or electors to the Electoral College, who voted for president and vice president.
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 County Results
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Nevada was won by Democratic nominee William Jennings Bryan and his running mate John W. Kern. They defeated the Republican Party nominee William Howard Taft and his running mate James S. Sherman. Bryan won the state by a narrow margin of 1.78%.[1]
Socialist candidate Eugene V. Debs received his highest percentage nationally in Nevada with 8.57% of the vote. Bryan, who had also carried the state against William McKinley in both 1896 and 1900 saw a loss of 35.50% from his 1896 vote and of 16.54% from his 1900 vote.
The six Democratic Nevada delegates were selected at the state convention held in Carson City and consisted of Senator Francis G. Newlands, Governor Denver S. Dickerson, Winfield Scott Elliott, Ed W. Clark, John Sunderland, and Charles R. Evans with A. W. Dawley, Charles Green, Thomas Dunn, journalist A. P. Bettersworth, Fred L. White, and Captain G. W. Thatcher serving as alternative delegates with instruction to vote for Bryan. Recently elected Governor Dickerson lead the Nevada delegation at the Democratic national convention.[2][3]
The five Republican Nevada delegates were selected at the state convention held in Winnemucca and consisted of J. F. Douglas, P. L. Flanigan, Wm. Easton, Hugh Brown, and Geo Russell and were to be accompanied by Senator George S. Nixon and were left uninstructed as to whom to vote for, but stated that they favored Taft. M. D. Staunton, John G. Thompson, O. R. Morgan, O. J. Smith, and R. W. Parry were selected as alternative delegates.[4][5]
In September Eugene V. Debs made a short stop in Caliente and addressed a crowd during a train stop.[6] On October 31 a political rally in favor of Taft was held in Reno where Senatorial candidate P. L. Flanigan, former Nevada Supreme Court Justice William A. Massey, and others spoke in favor of Taft, their candidacies, and of the Republican platform.[7]
This was the last presidential election where a Democrat carried Nevada without winning the presidency until 2016, and remains the last time that the state has supported a Democrat who lost the popular vote.
Results
edit| Party | Pledged to | Elector | Votes | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Democratic Party | William Jennings Bryan | Charles S. Sprague | 11,212 | |
| Democratic Party | William Jennings Bryan | L. L. Hudson | 11,192 | |
| Democratic Party | William Jennings Bryan | J. A. Miller Sr. | 11,164 | |
| Republican Party | William Howard Taft | J. G. Thompson | 10,775 | |
| Republican Party | William Howard Taft | H. A. Comins | 10,726 | |
| Republican Party | William Howard Taft | W. R. Thomas | 10,703 | |
| Socialist Party | Eugene V. Debs | J. B. Gibson | 2,103 | |
| Socialist Party | Eugene V. Debs | Charles T. Williams | 2,078 | |
| Socialist Party | Eugene V. Debs | E. A. Anderson | 2,076 | |
| Independence Party | Thomas L. Hisgen | H. W. Miles | 436 | |
| Independence Party | Thomas L. Hisgen | Martin Dean | 436 | |
| Independence Party | Thomas L. Hisgen | J. G. Hagerman | 425 | |
| Votes cast[a] | 24,526 | |||
Results by county
edit| County | William Jennings Bryan Democratic |
William Howard Taft Republican |
Eugene V. Debs Socialist |
Thomas L. Hisgen Independence League |
Margin | Total votes cast[b] | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| # | % | # | % | # | % | # | % | # | % | ||
| Churchill | 382 | 45.53% | 389 | 46.36% | 56 | 6.67% | 12 | 1.43% | -7 | -0.83% | 839 |
| Douglas | 173 | 41.29% | 229 | 54.65% | 17 | 4.06% | 0 | 0.00% | -56 | -13.37% | 419 |
| Elko | 804 | 48.49% | 737 | 44.45% | 89 | 5.37% | 28 | 1.69% | 67 | 4.04% | 1,658 |
| Esmeralda | 2,787 | 48.18% | 2,208 | 38.17% | 632 | 10.93% | 157 | 2.71% | 579 | 10.01% | 5,784 |
| Eureka | 218 | 45.32% | 224 | 46.57% | 26 | 5.41% | 13 | 2.70% | -6 | -1.25% | 481 |
| Humboldt | 1,009 | 49.12% | 823 | 40.07% | 194 | 9.44% | 28 | 1.36% | 186 | 9.06% | 2,054 |
| Lander | 276 | 48.08% | 257 | 44.77% | 34 | 5.92% | 7 | 1.22% | 19 | 3.31% | 574 |
| Lincoln | 768 | 47.55% | 690 | 42.72% | 139 | 8.61% | 18 | 1.11% | 78 | 4.83% | 1,615 |
| Lyon | 364 | 39.78% | 458 | 50.05% | 74 | 8.09% | 19 | 2.08% | -94 | -10.27% | 915 |
| Nye | 1,219 | 43.96% | 1,124 | 40.53% | 333 | 12.01% | 97 | 3.50% | 95 | 3.43% | 2,773 |
| Ormsby | 343 | 45.67% | 350 | 46.60% | 52 | 6.92% | 6 | 0.80% | -7 | -0.93% | 751 |
| Storey | 402 | 43.93% | 447 | 48.85% | 54 | 5.90% | 12 | 1.31% | -45 | -4.92% | 915 |
| Washoe | 1,745 | 42.51% | 2,053 | 50.01% | 281 | 6.85% | 26 | 0.63% | -308 | -7.50% | 4,105 |
| White Pine | 722 | 43.94% | 786 | 47.84% | 122 | 7.43% | 13 | 0.79% | -64 | -3.90% | 1,643 |
| Totals | 11,212 | 45.71% | 10,775 | 43.93% | 2,103 | 8.57% | 436 | 1.78% | 437 | 1.78% | 24,526 |
Counties that flipped from Republican to Democratic
editSee also
editNotes
editReferences
edit- ^ "1908 Presidential General Election Results – Nevada". Retrieved April 20, 2017.
- ^ "Democrats Elect Their Delegates". The Pioche Record. June 6, 1908. p. 4. Archived from the original on November 6, 2019 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ "Dickerson In The Forefront". Nevada State Journal. July 10, 1908. p. 1. Archived from the original on November 6, 2019 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ "Nevada Republicans Complete Their Labors After Enthusiastic And Harmonious Convention". Reno Gazette-Journal. August 21, 1908. p. 1. Archived from the original on November 6, 2019 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ "Nevada Republicans Complete Their Labors". Reno Gazette-Journal. August 21, 1908. p. 2. Archived from the original on November 6, 2019 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ "Debs Train Stop". The Pioche Record. September 12, 1908. p. 4. Archived from the original on November 7, 2019 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ "Flanigan and Brown Win Approval of Voters At Closing Rally of Campaign Held in Reno Saturday Night". Reno Gazette-Journal. November 2, 1908. p. 2. Archived from the original on November 6, 2019 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ Biennial Report of the Secretary of State 1907-1908. Carson City, Nevada: State Printing Office. p. 192. Retrieved July 9, 2024.