Colonel William A. Phillips

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The 1968 United States presidential election in Texas was held on November 5, 1968. All 50 states and the District of Columbia, were part of the 1968 United States presidential election. The state chose 25 electors to represent them in the Electoral College, who voted for president and vice president.

The Democratic Party candidate, incumbent Vice President Hubert Humphrey, very narrowly carried Texas with 41.14% of the vote, giving him the state's 25 electoral votes.[2] However, he narrowly lost the general election to Republican candidate, former Vice President Richard Nixon. This was the first occasion when Texas had not backed the winning presidential candidate since voting for John W. Davis in 1924, and the last such occasion until 1992. This is also the most recent presidential election in which Texas would back a losing Democratic candidate, and the penultimate time it voted Democratic.

When Texas "favorite son" Lyndon B. Johnson withdrew from the 1968 election in March, it was generally thought that the Republican Party would have a good chance of winning Texas despite losing by 27 points in 1964 and the presence of former Alabama Governor George Wallace running as a candidate for the American Independent Party, a far-right political party. Wallace was known for his pro-segregationist politics, which would win him five southern states in the general election.[3] However, in Humphrey's favor was the abolition of the poll tax via the Twenty-Fourth Amendment that permitted previously disfranchised Mexican-Americans[3] to register and vote for the first time. The Mexican-American South Texas counties of Duval, Webb and Jim Hogg had been among the four most Democratic in the nation in 1964,[4] and despite polling fewer than eighteen thousand out of a state total exceeding three million votes, those three counties would provide over thirty percent of Humphrey's margin and Duval was again the most Democratic county in the nation.

On September 21, a poll by Joe Belden gave Nixon and Humphrey each thirty percent of the vote and Wallace twenty-five percent.[5] In the period between Belden's poll and the election, Wallace lost considerable support largely to Humphrey, owing chiefly to Democrat Preston Smith's "resolutely law-and-order" campaign for the governorship.[6] This, along with strong loyalty of Texas Democrats much more conservative than the liberal Humphrey,[7] was sufficient to allow the Democrats to carry the state. Exit polls suggest Humphrey gained a third of the non-Hispanic white vote in Texas,[7] vis-à-vis around 25 percent in Virginia and less than 20% in all other southern states.[8]

Wallace, who had been rivaling the two major party nominees in early polls, came in a distant third, with 18.97 percent of the vote, his lowest in any former Confederate state. Wallace did win 21 of Texas' 254 counties, which was enough for him to also carry one congressional district. Wallace's base of support was primarily in rural East Texas, which is more culturally tied to the Deep South than the rest of the state, although he did carry four counties in the West Texas region, with Loving County being the westernmost county in the country to vote for Wallace.

45% of white voters supported Nixon, 34% supported Humphrey, and 22% supported Wallace.[9][10][11]

Results

1968 United States presidential election in Texas[2]
Party Candidate Votes Percentage Electoral votes
Democrat Hubert Humphrey 1,266,804 41.14% 25
Republican Richard Nixon 1,227,844 39.87% 0
American Independent George Wallace 584,269 18.97% 0
Write-ins 489 0.02% 0
Totals 3,079,406 100.00% 25
Voter turnout (voting age/registered voters) 48.7%/75.6%

Results by county

County Hubert Humphrey
Democratic
Richard Nixon
Republican
George Wallace
American Independent
Various candidates
Write-ins[b]
Margin Total votes cast
# % # % # % # % # %
Anderson 3,447 36.40% 2,828 29.86% 3,196 33.75% 251[c] 2.65% 9,471
Andrews 922 25.37% 1,400 38.53% 1,312 36.10% 88[d] 2.43% 3,634
Angelina 5,174 32.48% 4,645 29.16% 6,111 38.36% −937[c] −5.88% 15,930
Aransas 1,222 45.01% 1,076 39.63% 417 15.36% 146 5.38% 2,715
Archer 1,308 55.49% 636 26.98% 413 17.52% 672 28.51% 2,357
Armstrong 301 31.99% 434 46.12% 206 21.89% −133 −14.13% 941
Atascosa 2,522 49.47% 1,805 35.41% 771 15.12% 717 14.06% 5,098
Austin 1,299 29.83% 1,971 45.27% 1,084 24.90% −672 −15.44% 4,354
Bailey 820 32.06% 1,174 45.90% 563 22.01% 1 0.04% −354 −13.84% 2,558
Bandera 535 29.72% 842 46.78% 423 23.50% −307 −17.06% 1,800
Bastrop 2,687 52.51% 1,455 28.43% 975 19.05% 1,232 24.08% 5,117
Baylor 1,064 49.17% 657 30.36% 443 20.47% 407 18.81% 2,164
Bee 2,957 53.34% 1,995 35.98% 589 10.62% 3 0.05% 962 17.36% 5,544
Bell 11,893 56.24% 5,705 26.98% 3,547 16.77% 6,188 29.26% 21,145
Bexar 95,325 51.56% 72,951 39.46% 16,598 8.98% 22,374 12.10% 184,874
Blanco 620 42.55% 614 42.14% 223 15.31% 6 0.41% 1,457
Borden 157 40.67% 117 30.31% 112 29.02% 40 10.36% 386
Bosque 1,817 46.34% 1,377 35.12% 727 18.54% 440 11.22% 3,921
Bowie 6,468 33.00% 5,966 30.44% 7,165 36.56% −697[c] −3.56% 19,599
Brazoria 11,439 38.00% 10,631 35.32% 8,026 26.66% 7 0.02% 808 2.68% 30,103
Brazos 6,299 40.43% 6,839 43.90% 2,437 15.64% 4 0.03% −540 −3.47% 15,579
Brewster 958 45.82% 790 37.78% 342 16.36% 1 0.05% 168 8.04% 2,091
Briscoe 528 45.60% 411 35.49% 219 18.91% 117 10.11% 1,158
Brooks 1,904 73.12% 534 20.51% 166 6.37% 1,370 52.61% 2,604
Brown 3,999 46.49% 2,997 34.84% 1,606 18.67% 1,002 11.65% 8,602
Burleson 1,678 51.43% 891 27.31% 694 21.27% 787 24.12% 3,263
Burnet 1,876 47.16% 1,459 36.68% 643 16.16% 417 10.48% 3,978
Caldwell 2,889 56.32% 1,402 27.33% 837 16.32% 2 0.04% 1,487 28.99% 5,130
Calhoun 2,612 48.82% 1,672 31.25% 1,065 19.91% 1 0.02% 940 17.57% 5,350
Callahan 1,437 46.41% 921 29.75% 737 23.80% 1 0.03% 516 16.66% 3,096
Cameron 15,726 53.26% 11,759 39.82% 2,042 6.92% 3,967 13.44% 29,527
Camp 1,272 43.85% 555 19.13% 1,074 37.02% 198[c] 6.83% 2,901
Carson 904 33.67% 1,211 45.10% 570 21.23% −307 −11.43% 2,685
Cass 2,536 34.50% 1,930 26.26% 2,883 39.22% 1 0.01% −347[c] −4.72% 7,350
Castro 1,181 41.61% 1,033 36.40% 623 21.95% 1 0.04% 148 5.21% 2,838
Chambers 1,217 33.74% 1,061 29.42% 1,329 36.85% −112[c] −3.11% 3,607
Cherokee 3,242 33.74% 2,575 26.80% 3,791 39.46% −549[c] −5.72% 9,608
Childress 1,093 39.62% 1,045 37.88% 621 22.51% 48 1.74% 2,759
Clay 1,573 49.56% 936 29.49% 665 20.95% 637 20.07% 3,174
Cochran 633 38.83% 548 33.62% 449 27.55% 85 5.21% 1,630
Coke 563 48.58% 387 33.39% 208 17.95% 1 0.09% 176 15.19% 1,159
Coleman 1,449 35.26% 1,507 36.68% 1,153 28.06% −58 −1.42% 4,109
Collin 5,918 36.39% 6,494 39.93% 3,850 23.67% −576 −3.54% 16,262
Collingsworth 746 38.59% 712 36.83% 475 24.57% 34 1.76% 1,933
Colorado 1,976 36.34% 2,296 42.22% 1,163 21.39% 3 0.06% −320 −5.88% 5,438
Comal 2,338 34.84% 3,646 54.34% 724 10.79% 2 0.03% −1,308 −19.50% 6,710
Comanche 1,980 48.00% 1,436 34.81% 708 17.16% 1 0.02% 544 13.19% 4,125
Concho 502 45.23% 411 37.03% 197 17.75% 91 8.20% 1,110
Cooke 2,711 34.22% 3,799 47.96% 1,412 17.82% −1,088 −13.74% 7,922
Coryell 2,987 51.00% 1,698 28.99% 1,172 20.01% 1,289 22.01% 5,857
Cottle 742 58.15% 268 21.00% 266 20.85% 474 37.15% 1,276
Crane 498 29.24% 493 28.95% 712 41.81% −214[c] −12.57% 1,703
Crockett 571 42.02% 509 37.45% 279 20.53% 62 4.57% 1,359
Crosby 1,574 55.42% 865 30.46% 401 14.12% 709 24.96% 2,840
Culberson 330 42.69% 298 38.55% 145 18.76% 32 4.14% 773
Dallam 588 29.28% 990 49.30% 430 21.41% −402 −20.02% 2,008
Dallas 123,809 34.06% 184,193 50.66% 55,552 15.28% −60,384 −16.60% 363,554
Dawson 1,522 33.72% 2,091 46.33% 900 19.94% −569 −12.61% 4,513
Deaf Smith 1,545 32.78% 2,474 52.49% 691 14.66% 3 0.06% −929 −19.71% 4,713
Delta 1,037 55.10% 370 19.66% 475 25.24% 562[c] 29.86% 1,882
Denton 7,463 39.56% 8,222 43.59% 3,178 16.85% −759 −4.03% 18,863
Dewitt 1,871 35.68% 2,589 49.37% 784 14.95% −718 −13.69% 5,244
Dickens 811 52.87% 428 27.90% 295 19.23% 383 24.97% 1,534
Dimmit 896 53.98% 584 35.18% 177 10.66% 3 0.18% 312 18.80% 1,660
Donley 543 33.37% 816 50.15% 268 16.47% −273 −16.78% 1,627
Duval 3,978 88.74% 384 8.57% 121 2.70% 3,594 80.17% 4,483
Eastland 2,884 45.42% 2,453 38.63% 1,013 15.95% 431 6.79% 6,350
Ector 5,312 21.65% 10,557 43.02% 8,671 35.33% 1,886[d] 7.69% 24,540
Edwards 148 23.16% 409 64.01% 82 12.83% −261 −40.85% 639
Ellis 5,431 45.01% 3,794 31.44% 2,838 23.52% 4 0.03% 1,637 13.57% 12,067
El Paso 32,658 47.94% 30,347 44.55% 5,111 7.50% 2,311 3.39% 68,116
Erath 2,915 48.11% 2,209 36.46% 935 15.43% 706 11.65% 6,059
Falls 2,990 52.47% 1,345 23.60% 1,364 23.93% 1,626[c] 28.54% 5,699
Fannin 3,931 54.77% 1,585 22.08% 1,661 23.14% 2,270[c] 31.63% 7,177
Fayette 1,833 31.74% 2,380 41.21% 1,562 27.05% −547 −9.47% 5,775
Fisher 1,560 65.41% 555 23.27% 268 11.24% 2 0.08% 1,005 42.14% 2,385
Floyd 1,305 36.08% 1,465 40.50% 847 23.42% −160 −4.42% 3,617
Foard 594 60.74% 216 22.09% 168 17.18% 378 38.65% 978
Fort Bend 4,493 39.02% 4,573 39.72% 2,447 21.25% 1 0.01% −80 −0.70% 11,514
Franklin 1,001 50.33% 481 24.18% 507 25.49% 494[c] 24.84% 1,989
Freestone 2,066 50.48% 958 23.41% 1,069 26.12% 997[c] 24.36% 4,093
Frio 1,330 54.69% 795 32.69% 307 12.62% 535 22.00% 2,432
Gaines 1,087 30.78% 1,401 39.68% 1,037 29.37% 6 0.17% −314 −8.90% 3,531
Galveston 26,041 49.52% 16,229 30.86% 10,322 19.63% 9,812 18.66% 52,592
Garza 662 39.88% 615 37.05% 383 23.07% 47 2.83% 1,660
Gillespie 725 17.66% 2,945 71.74% 432 10.52% 3 0.07% −2,220 −54.08% 4,105
Glasscock 106 23.71% 169 37.81% 172 38.48% −3[d] −0.67% 447
Goliad 690 44.43% 707 45.52% 156 10.05% −17 −1.09% 1,553
Gonzales 1,930 43.97% 1,476 33.63% 983 22.40% 454 10.34% 4,389
Gray 2,374 21.99% 5,994 55.53% 2,427 22.48% 3,567[d] 33.05% 10,795
Grayson 10,379 45.12% 8,007 34.81% 4,615 20.06% 2,372 10.31% 23,001
Gregg 5,733 24.80% 9,278 40.13% 8,109 35.07% 1,169[d] 5.06% 23,120
Grimes 1,473 41.79% 1,076 30.52% 976 27.69% 397 11.27% 3,525
Guadalupe 3,529 38.77% 4,332 47.59% 1,241 13.63% −803 −8.82% 9,102
Hale 3,293 31.98% 4,696 45.60% 2,309 22.42% −1,403 −13.62% 10,298
Hall 1,038 46.65% 753 33.84% 434 19.51% 285 12.81% 2,225
Hamilton 1,116 39.38% 1,266 44.67% 452 15.95% −150 −5.29% 2,834
Hansford 392 17.92% 1,359 62.11% 437 19.97% 922[d] 42.14% 2,188
Hardeman 1,145 44.92% 873 34.25% 531 20.83% 272 10.67% 2,549
Hardin 2,894 32.66% 1,986 22.41% 3,979 44.90% 3 0.03% −1,085[c] −12.24% 8,862
Harris 182,546 38.75% 202,079 42.90% 86,412 18.35% −19,533 −4.15% 471,037
Harrison 4,959 35.55% 3,668 26.29% 5,324 38.16% −365[c] −2.61% 13,951
Hartley 299 25.78% 597 51.47% 264 22.76% −298 −25.69% 1,160
Haskell 1,888 58.80% 713 22.20% 610 19.00% 1,175 36.60% 3,211
Hays 3,546 57.35% 1,993 32.23% 643 10.40% 1 0.02% 1,553 25.12% 6,183
Hemphill 400 30.77% 699 53.77% 201 15.46% −299 −23.00% 1,300
Henderson 3,119 39.32% 2,315 29.19% 2,497 31.48% 1 0.01% 622[c] 7.84% 7,932
Hidalgo 20,087 54.13% 14,455 38.95% 2,569 6.92% 5,632 15.18% 37,111
Hill 3,415 48.95% 1,809 25.93% 1,751 25.10% 2 0.03% 1,606 23.02% 6,977
Hockley 2,426 39.47% 2,265 36.85% 1,456 23.69% 161 2.62% 6,147
Hood 1,155 53.45% 593 27.44% 411 19.02% 2 0.09% 562 26.01% 2,161
Hopkins 2,700 41.59% 1,860 28.65% 1,932 29.76% 768[c] 11.83% 6,492
Houston 2,782 44.60% 1,391 22.30% 2,062 33.06% 2 0.03% 720[c] 11.54% 6,237
Howard 3,897 37.11% 3,812 36.30% 2,789 26.56% 3 0.03% 85 0.81% 10,501
Hudspeth 289 40.88% 285 40.31% 132 18.67% 1 0.14% 4 0.57% 707
Hunt 4,785 37.08% 4,651 36.04% 3,469 26.88% 134 1.04% 12,905
Hutchinson 2,416 23.81% 4,813 47.43% 2,919 28.76% 1,894[d] 18.67% 10,148
Irion 187 38.16% 211 43.06% 92 18.78% −24 −4.90% 490
Jack 1,133 43.39% 966 37.00% 512 19.61% 167 6.39% 2,611
Jackson 1,698 39.62% 1,438 33.55% 1,145 26.71% 5 0.12% 260 6.07% 4,286
Jasper 2,438 33.94% 1,839 25.60% 2,906 40.46% −468[c] −6.52% 7,183
Jeff Davis 239 48.19% 191 38.51% 66 13.31% 48 9.68% 496
Jefferson 30,032 38.57% 26,007 33.40% 21,824 28.03% 5 0.01% 4,025 5.17% 77,868
Jim Hogg 1,276 82.06% 223 14.34% 53 3.41% 3 0.19% 1,053 67.72% 1,555
Jim Wells 6,304 62.73% 2,827 28.13% 913 9.08% 6 0.06% 3,477 34.60% 10,050
Johnson 5,330 42.95% 4,372 35.23% 2,709 21.83% 958 7.72% 12,411
Jones 2,372 47.64% 1,676 33.66% 931 18.70% 696 13.98% 4,979
Karnes 2,271 52.83% 1,342 31.22% 686 15.96% 929 21.61% 4,299
Kaufman 3,311 40.92% 2,431 30.04% 2,350 29.04% 880 10.88% 8,092
Kendall 538 21.77% 1,569 63.50% 364 14.73% −1,031 −41.73% 2,471
Kenedy 100 54.64% 76 41.53% 7 3.83% 24 13.11% 183
Kent 303 47.79% 143 22.56% 188 29.65% 115[c] 18.14% 634
Kerr 1,878 28.27% 3,692 55.58% 1,073 16.15% −1,814 −27.31% 6,643
Kimble 463 33.85% 640 46.78% 264 19.30% 1 0.07% −177 −12.93% 1,368
King 109 48.66% 44 19.64% 71 31.70% 38[c] 16.96% 224
Kinney 333 55.59% 198 33.06% 68 11.35% 135 22.53% 599
Kleberg 4,633 57.80% 2,713 33.84% 670 8.36% 1,920 23.96% 8,016
Knox 1,222 57.45% 580 27.27% 325 15.28% 642 30.18% 2,127
Lamar 4,635 42.39% 3,395 31.05% 2,903 26.55% 1,240 11.34% 10,933
Lamb 2,267 35.86% 2,595 41.05% 1,460 23.09% −328 −5.19% 6,322
Lampasas 1,423 50.50% 935 33.18% 460 16.32% 488 17.32% 2,818
La Salle 645 59.67% 324 29.97% 112 10.36% 321 29.70% 1,081
Lavaca 2,165 40.74% 1,698 31.95% 1,451 27.31% 467 8.79% 5,314
Lee 1,283 42.92% 1,075 35.97% 631 21.11% 208 6.95% 2,989
Leon 1,536 49.95% 659 21.43% 880 28.62% 656[c] 21.33% 3,075
Liberty 3,469 36.11% 2,746 28.58% 3,393 35.31% 76[c] 0.80% 9,608
Limestone 2,796 49.20% 1,485 26.13% 1,402 24.67% 1,311 23.07% 5,683
Lipscomb 279 18.06% 1,079 69.84% 187 12.10% −800 −51.78% 1,545
Live Oak 922 39.33% 938 40.02% 484 20.65% −16 −0.69% 2,344
Llano 1,282 45.38% 1,079 38.19% 464 16.42% 203 7.19% 2,825
Loving 18 22.22% 23 28.40% 40 49.38% −17[d] −20.98% 81
Lubbock 15,430 30.77% 25,646 51.13% 9,078 18.10% −10,216 −20.36% 50,154
Lynn 1,333 46.25% 1,005 34.87% 544 18.88% 328 11.38% 2,882
Madison 994 41.99% 608 25.69% 765 32.32% 229[c] 9.67% 2,367
Marion 1,260 44.15% 637 22.32% 957 33.53% 303[c] 10.62% 2,854
Martin 373 29.72% 343 27.33% 539 42.95% −166[c] −13.23% 1,255
Mason 560 36.89% 789 51.98% 169 11.13% -229 -15.09% 1,518
Matagorda 3,595 42.46% 3,094 36.55% 1,777 20.99% 501 5.91% 8,466
Maverick 1,570 62.65% 771 30.77% 165 6.58% 799 31.88% 2,506
McCulloch 1,353 50.88% 947 35.61% 359 13.50% 406 15.27% 2,659
McLennan 22,388 48.00% 15,958 34.22% 8,268 17.73% 25 0.05% 6,430 13.78% 46,639
McMullen 160 37.38% 169 39.49% 99 23.13% −9 −2.11% 428
Medina 2,471 47.06% 2,058 39.19% 722 13.75% 413 7.87% 5,251
Menard 362 37.28% 491 50.57% 118 12.15% −129 −13.29% 971
Midland 4,756 20.48% 12,789 55.07% 5,675 24.44% 2 0.01% 7,114[d] 30.63% 23,222
Milam 3,269 51.01% 1,614 25.18% 1,525 23.79% 1 0.02% 1,655 25.83% 6,409
Mills 722 43.42% 645 38.79% 296 17.80% 77 4.63% 1,663
Mitchell 1,589 53.30% 893 29.96% 499 16.74% 696 23.34% 2,981
Montague 2,555 49.09% 1,736 33.35% 914 17.56% 819 15.74% 5,205
Montgomery 4,021 30.34% 4,353 32.84% 4,879 36.81% 2 0.02% −526[d] −3.97% 13,255
Moore 1,359 27.20% 2,378 47.60% 1,258 25.18% 1 0.02% −1,019 −20.40% 4,996
Morris 1,701 41.61% 1,064 26.03% 1,323 32.36% 378[c] 9.25% 4,088
Motley 397 35.86% 415 37.49% 295 26.65% −18 −1.63% 1,107
Nacogdoches 3,449 34.91% 3,235 32.74% 3,196 32.35% 214 2.17% 9,880
Navarro 5,296 50.98% 2,845 27.39% 2,245 21.61% 2 0.02% 2,451 23.59% 10,388
Newton 1,476 41.68% 555 15.67% 1,509 42.62% 1 0.03% −33[c] −0.94% 3,541
Nolan 2,784 46.88% 1,969 33.16% 1,185 19.96% 815 13.72% 5,938
Nueces 39,025 57.82% 21,307 31.57% 7,159 10.61% 17,718 26.25% 67,491
Ochiltree 432 13.79% 2,208 70.50% 492 15.71% 1,716[d] 54.79% 3,132
Oldham 237 30.08% 320 40.61% 230 29.19% 1 0.13% −83 −10.53% 788
Orange 6,485 30.57% 5,886 27.74% 8,845 41.69% −2,360[c] −11.12% 21,216
Palo Pinto 3,552 47.77% 2,627 35.33% 1,257 16.90% 925 12.44% 7,436
Panola 1,711 28.77% 1,586 26.67% 2,650 44.56% −939[c] −15.79% 5,947
Parker 4,301 46.23% 3,068 32.98% 1,934 20.79% 1,233 13.25% 9,303
Parmer 833 26.85% 1,539 49.61% 730 23.53% −706 −22.76% 3,102
Pecos 1,592 39.61% 1,524 37.92% 900 22.39% 3 0.07% 68 1.69% 4,019
Polk 1,841 40.31% 1,013 22.18% 1,712 37.49% 1 0.02% 129[c] 2.82% 4,567
Potter 8,238 30.43% 13,338 49.27% 5,486 20.26% 10 0.04% −5,100 −18.84% 27,072
Presidio 969 61.25% 481 30.40% 132 8.34% 488 30.85% 1,582
Rains 558 46.35% 340 28.24% 306 25.42% 218 18.11% 1,204
Randall 4,060 21.84% 11,400 61.32% 3,128 16.82% 4 0.02% −7,340 −39.48% 18,592
Reagan 370 33.27% 454 40.83% 288 25.90% −84 −7.56% 1,112
Real 277 39.40% 290 41.25% 136 19.35% −13 −1.85% 703
Red River 2,245 43.99% 1,305 25.57% 1,554 30.45% 691[c] 13.54% 5,104
Reeves 1,456 41.49% 1,310 37.33% 743 21.17% 146 4.16% 3,509
Refugio 1,699 51.50% 1,114 33.77% 486 14.73% 585 17.73% 3,299
Roberts 90 17.51% 311 60.51% 113 21.98% 198[d] 38.53% 514
Robertson 2,833 59.74% 965 20.35% 944 19.91% 1,868 39.39% 4,742
Rockwall 778 39.39% 614 31.09% 582 29.47% 1 0.05% 164 8.30% 1,975
Runnels 1,448 37.88% 1,707 44.65% 668 17.47% −259 −6.77% 3,823
Rusk 4,078 32.50% 3,739 29.80% 4,729 37.69% −651[c] −5.19% 12,546
Sabine 1,078 43.68% 455 18.44% 935 37.88% 143[c] 5.80% 2,468
San Augustine 817 33.21% 506 20.57% 1,137 46.22% −320[c] −13.01% 2,460
San Jacinto 1,235 53.49% 381 16.50% 693 30.01% 542[c] 23.48% 2,309
San Patricio 6,818 54.94% 3,717 29.95% 1,876 15.12% 3,101 24.99% 12,411
San Saba 1,140 53.27% 535 25.00% 465 21.73% 605 28.27% 2,140
Schleicher 378 39.71% 396 41.60% 178 18.70% −18 −1.89% 952
Scurry 2,031 41.78% 1,745 35.90% 1,084 22.30% 1 0.02% 286 5.88% 4,861
Shackelford 673 44.66% 557 36.96% 277 18.38% 116 7.70% 1,507
Shelby 2,511 36.27% 1,127 16.28% 3,285 47.45% −774[c] −11.18% 6,923
Sherman 297 21.28% 723 51.79% 376 26.93% 347[d] 24.86% 1,396
Smith 8,897 29.10% 12,079 39.51% 9,595 31.39% 2,484[d] 8.12% 30,571
Somervell 384 42.62% 313 34.74% 204 22.64% 71 7.88% 901
Starr 3,922 73.08% 1,374 25.60% 71 1.32% 2,548 47.48% 5,367
Stephens 1,239 40.61% 1,287 42.18% 525 17.21% −48 −1.57% 3,051
Sterling 151 40.27% 170 45.33% 54 14.40% −19 −5.06% 375
Stonewall 635 57.21% 213 19.19% 262 23.60% 373[c] 33.61% 1,110
Sutton 351 38.57% 412 45.27% 147 16.15% −61 −6.70% 910
Swisher 1,760 49.44% 1,177 33.06% 623 17.50% 583 16.38% 3,560
Tarrant 79,705 41.79% 81,786 42.88% 29,256 15.34% −2,081 −1.09% 190,747
Taylor 9,107 35.54% 12,218 47.68% 4,289 16.74% 12 0.05% −3,111 −12.14% 25,626
Terrell 201 33.44% 250 41.60% 149 24.79% 1 0.17% −49 −8.16% 601
Terry 1,625 36.71% 1,948 44.00% 854 19.29% −323 −7.29% 4,427
Throckmorton 618 58.25% 317 29.88% 126 11.88% 301 28.37% 1,061
Titus 2,317 40.12% 1,572 27.22% 1,886 32.66% 431[c] 7.46% 5,775
Tom Green 6,774 34.67% 9,682 49.56% 3,074 15.74% 6 0.03% −2,908 −14.89% 19,536
Travis 39,667 48.07% 34,309 41.58% 8,424 10.21% 120 0.15% 5,358 6.49% 82,520
Trinity 1,146 41.24% 636 22.89% 997 35.88% 149[c] 5.36% 2,779
Tyler 1,204 31.80% 1,120 29.58% 1,462 38.62% −258[c] −6.82% 3,786
Upshur 2,480 36.02% 1,519 22.06% 2,886 41.92% −406[c] −5.90% 6,885
Upton 463 29.19% 664 41.87% 459 28.94% −201 −12.68% 1,586
Uvalde 1,736 36.48% 2,252 47.32% 768 16.14% 3 0.06% −516 −10.84% 4,759
Val Verde 3,205 56.25% 1,914 33.59% 573 10.06% 6 0.11% 1,291 22.66% 5,698
Van Zandt 2,706 40.08% 1,954 28.94% 2,091 30.97% 615[c] 9.11% 6,751
Victoria 6,042 41.02% 6,352 43.12% 2,336 15.86% −310 −2.10% 14,730
Walker 2,391 41.30% 1,946 33.62% 1,452 25.08% 445 7.68% 5,789
Waller 1,684 48.97% 958 27.86% 797 23.18% 726 21.11% 3,439
Ward 1,331 31.21% 1,552 36.39% 1,382 32.40% 170[d] 3.99% 4,265
Washington 1,686 30.07% 3,244 57.86% 677 12.07% −1,558 −27.79% 5,607
Webb 9,419 79.65% 2,103 17.78% 304 2.57% 7,316 61.87% 11,826
Wharton 4,304 43.22% 3,773 37.89% 1,882 18.90% 531 5.33% 9,959
Wheeler 812 31.74% 1,176 45.97% 570 22.28% −364 −14.23% 2,558
Wichita 15,387 46.05% 11,937 35.72% 6,087 18.22% 3 0.01% 3,450 10.33% 33,414
Wilbarger 1,996 38.40% 1,909 36.73% 1,292 24.86% 1 0.02% 87 1.67% 5,198
Willacy 1,930 53.05% 1,243 34.17% 465 12.78% 687 18.88% 3,638
Williamson 5,528 54.61% 2,923 28.87% 1,669 16.49% 3 0.03% 2,605 25.74% 10,123
Wilson 2,336 55.63% 1,321 31.46% 542 12.91% 1,015 24.17% 4,199
Winkler 938 26.21% 1,391 38.87% 1,249 34.90% 1 0.03% 142[d] 3.97% 3,579
Wise 2,774 47.31% 1,983 33.82% 1,107 18.88% 791 13.49% 5,864
Wood 2,192 35.02% 2,046 32.69% 2,020 32.27% 1 0.02% 146 2.33% 6,259
Yoakum 615 24.98% 1,123 45.61% 724 29.41% 399[d] 16.20% 2,462
Young 2,482 46.43% 1,860 34.79% 1,004 18.78% 622 11.64% 5,346
Zapata 909 75.00% 251 20.71% 52 4.29% 658 54.29% 1,212
Zavala 1,307 59.01% 693 31.29% 214 9.66% 1 0.05% 614 27.72% 2,215
Totals 1,266,804 41.14% 1,227,844 39.88% 584,269 18.97% 299 0.01% 38,960 1.26% 3,079,216

Results by congressional district

Humphrey won 13 out of the 23 congressional districts in Texas, Nixon won 9, including six held by Democrats, and Wallace won 1, which was held by a Democrat.[12]

District Humphrey Nixon Wallace Representative
1st 36.9% 27.0% 36.1% Wright Patman
2nd 35.3% 27.6% 37.1% John Dowdy
3rd 33.3% 51.2% 15.5% James M. Collins
4th 35.6% 36.4% 28.0% Ray Roberts
5th 35.6% 46.0% 15.0% Earle Cabell
6th 38.8% 38.7% 22.5% Olin E. Teague
7th 29.8% 52.7% 17.5% George H. W. Bush
8th 54.2% 21.4% 24.4% Robert C. Eckhardt
9th 42.7% 32.3% 25.0% Jack Brooks
10th 47.6% 38.4% 14.0% J. J. Pickle
11th 50.5% 30.3% 19.1% William R. Poage
12th 46.7% 40.4% 12.8% Jim Wright
13th 37.9% 46.3% 15.9% Graham B. Purcell Jr.
14th 50.1% 33.9% 16.0% John Andrew Young
15th 56.6% 36.6% 6.8% Kika de la Garza
16th 45.6% 42.8% 11.6% Richard Crawford White
17th 43.7% 38.0% 18.3% Omar Burleson
18th 28.8% 50.3% 21.0% Robert Price
19th 31.1% 47.1% 27.1% George H. Mahon
20th 70.7% 23.3% 6.0% Henry B. González
21st 32.6% 51.2% 16.2% O. C. Fisher
22nd 40.4% 43.7% 15.9% Robert R. Casey
23rd 54.4% 32.9% 12.6% Abraham Kazen

Analysis

Humphrey performed best in the state's cities and rural areas, whereas Nixon performed best in the state's suburban areas. In cities, Humphrey won 43.5% of the vote to Nixon's 42.3% and Wallace's 14.2%. In the suburbs, Nixon won 41.9% of the vote to Humphrey's 35.3% and Wallace's 22.8%. In rural areas, Humphrey won 41.4% of the vote to Nixon's 34.5% and Wallace's 23.6%.[13]

With his win in Texas, the state was the only former Confederate State in 1968 to vote Democratic. As of the 2020 presidential election, this is the last occasion the following counties have supported the Democratic candidate: Blanco, Nacogdoches, Rockwall and Scurry.[14] The 1968 election is also the last when the following Wallace counties have not voted Republican: Crane, Glasscock, Montgomery and Rusk.[14] It was the only election between 1924 and 2012 when Val Verde County backed a losing presidential candidate.[15]

This was the last time a Republican won the presidency while losing Texas. This was also the last time until 2008 that a Northern Democrat won any state in the former Confederacy.

This is also the most recent election in which a former Confederate State voted for a losing Democratic ticket that had no relations to the state. Georgia and Virginia supported a losing Democrat in 1980 and 2016, respectively, but 1980 Democratic presidential nominee Jimmy Carter was from Georgia, while 2016 Democratic vice presidential nominee Tim Kaine was from Virginia. Nixon had previously narrowly lost Texas to John F. Kennedy in 1960. In 1972, he sought re-election and won Texas with an overwhelming sixty-six percent of the popular vote.

See also

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. ^ An additional 190 write-in votes were not tabulated by county
  3. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q r s t u v w x y z aa ab ac ad ae af ag ah ai aj ak al am an ao ap aq In this county where Nixon ran third behind both Humphrey and Wallace, margin given is Humphrey vote minus Wallace vote and percentage margin Humphrey percentage minus Wallace percentage.
  4. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q In this county where Humphrey ran third behind both Nixon and Wallace, margin given is Nixon vote minus Wallace vote and percentage margin Nixon percentage minus Wallace percentage.

References

  1. ^ Tarrance Jr. 1970, p. 8.
  2. ^ a b "1968 Presidential General Election Results – Texas". Retrieved April 24, 2016.
  3. ^ a b Wainstock, Dennis D.; Election Year 1968: The Turning Point p. 61 ISBN 1936274426
  4. ^ Dave Leip's U.S. Election Atlas; 1964 Presidential Election Statistics
  5. ^ ABC News Political Unit; Election Night Fact Book, 1968, p. 149
  6. ^ Cunningham, Sean P.; American Politics in the Postwar Sunbelt: Conservative Growth in a Battleground Region (Cambridge Essential Histories), p. 140 ISBN 1107024528
  7. ^ a b Phillips, Kevin P.; The Emerging Republican Majority, p. 281 ISBN 9780691163246
  8. ^ Phillips; The Emerging Republican Majority, p. 228
  9. ^ Black & Black 1992, p. 147.
  10. ^ Black & Black 1992, p. 295.
  11. ^ Black & Black 1992, p. 335.
  12. ^ Tarrance Jr. 1970, p. 22.
  13. ^ Tarrance Jr. 1970, p. 190.
  14. ^ a b Menendez, Albert J.; The Geography of Presidential Elections in the United States, 1868-2004, p. 318 ISBN 0786422173
  15. ^ The Political Graveyard; Val Verde County, Texas

Works cited