1896 United States presidential election in West Virginia

1896 United States presidential election in West Virginia

← 1892 November 3, 1896 1900 →
 
Nominee William McKinley William Jennings Bryan
Party Republican Democratic
Home state Ohio Nebraska
Running mate Garret Hobart Arthur Sewall
Electoral vote 6 0
Popular vote 105,379 94,480
Percentage 52.23% 46.83%

County Results

President before election

Grover Cleveland
Democratic

Elected President

William McKinley
Republican

The 1896 United States presidential election in West Virginia took place on November 3, 1896. All contemporary 45 states were part of the 1896 United States presidential election. Voters chose six electors to the Electoral College, which selected the president and vice president.

West Virginia was won by the Republican nominees, former Ohio Governor William McKinley and his running mate Garret Hobart of New Jersey. They defeated the Democratic nominee, former U.S. Representative from Nebraska William Jennings Bryan and his running mate Arthur Sewall. McKinley won the state by a margin of 5.4%,

This was the first time the Republicans had carried West Virginia since Ulysses S. Grant in 1872. McKinley’s win resulted substantially from the fact that workers in West Virginia’s growing coal industry opposed Bryan’s free silver policy [1] because it would cause inflation.[2]

Bryan would lose West Virginia to McKinley again four years later and would later lose the state again in 1908 to William Howard Taft.

Results

[edit]
1896 United States presidential election in West Virginia[3]
Party Candidate Votes Percentage Electoral votes
Republican William McKinley 105,379 52.23% 6
Democratic William Jennings Bryan 94,480 46.83% 0
Prohibition Joshua Levering 1,220 0.60% 0
National Democratic John M. Palmer 678 0.34% 0
Totals 201,757 100.00% 6
Voter turnout

Results by county

[edit]
1896 United States presidential election in West Virginia by county[4]
County William McKinley
Republican
William Jennings Bryan
Democratic
Joshua Levering
Prohibition
John McAuley Palmer
National Democratic
Margin Total votes cast
# % # % # % # % # %
Barbour 1,573 48.90% 1,643 51.07% 0 0.00% 1 0.03% -70 -2.18% 3,217
Berkeley 2,497 53.64% 2,084 44.77% 20 0.43% 54 1.16% 413 8.87% 4,655
Boone 678 45.32% 813 54.34% 3 0.20% 2 0.13% -135 -9.02% 1,496
Braxton 1,453 39.52% 2,188 59.51% 28 0.76% 8 0.22% -735 -19.99% 3,677
Brooke 935 54.74% 748 43.79% 20 1.17% 5 0.29% 187 10.95% 1,708
Cabell 3,127 49.98% 3,076 49.16% 32 0.51% 22 0.35% 51 0.82% 6,257
Calhoun 804 40.40% 1,186 59.60% 0 0.00% 0 0.00% -382 -19.20% 1,990
Clay 661 52.05% 606 47.72% 2 0.16% 1 0.08% 55 4.33% 1,270
Doddridge 1,747 58.25% 1,231 41.05% 17 0.57% 4 0.13% 516 17.21% 2,999
Fayette 4,543 61.47% 2,783 37.66% 53 0.72% 11 0.15% 1,760 23.82% 7,390
Gilmer 1,000 42.25% 1,356 57.29% 8 0.34% 3 0.13% -356 -15.04% 2,367
Grant 1,306 77.32% 372 22.02% 8 0.47% 3 0.18% 934 55.30% 1,689
Greenbrier 1,661 40.37% 2,414 58.68% 18 0.44% 21 0.51% -753 -18.30% 4,114
Hampshire 676 25.98% 1,909 73.37% 2 0.08% 15 0.58% -1,233 -47.39% 2,602
Hancock 843 57.54% 584 39.86% 34 2.32% 4 0.27% 259 17.68% 1,465
Hardy 547 31.47% 1,146 65.94% 0 0.00% 45 2.59% -599 -34.46% 1,738
Harrison 3,027 54.53% 2,485 44.77% 26 0.47% 13 0.23% 542 9.76% 5,551
Jackson 2,527 52.16% 2,286 47.18% 26 0.54% 6 0.12% 241 4.97% 4,845
Jefferson 1,283 33.54% 2,453 64.13% 27 0.71% 62 1.62% -1,170 -30.59% 3,825
Kanawha 6,948 58.65% 4,824 40.72% 47 0.40% 28 0.24% 2,124 17.93% 11,847
Lewis 1,813 50.32% 1,718 47.68% 68 1.89% 4 0.11% 95 2.64% 3,603
Lincoln 1,334 49.30% 1,364 50.41% 2 0.07% 6 0.22% -30 -1.11% 2,706
Logan 382 27.36% 992 71.06% 1 0.07% 21 1.50% -610 -43.70% 1,396
Marion 3,420 49.89% 3,304 48.20% 105 1.53% 26 0.38% 116 1.69% 6,855
Marshall 3,561 61.42% 2,108 36.36% 112 1.93% 17 0.29% 1,453 25.06% 5,798
Mason 3,066 54.96% 2,492 44.67% 10 0.18% 11 0.20% 574 10.29% 5,579
McDowell 2,635 72.65% 986 27.19% 2 0.06% 4 0.11% 1,649 45.46% 3,627
Mercer 2,388 52.74% 2,123 46.89% 12 0.27% 5 0.11% 265 5.85% 4,528
Mineral 1,547 53.27% 1,307 45.01% 40 1.38% 10 0.34% 240 8.26% 2,904
Mingo 632 34.33% 1,204 65.40% 2 0.11% 3 0.16% -572 -31.07% 1,841
Monongalia 2,684 63.66% 1,482 35.15% 32 0.76% 18 0.43% 1,202 28.51% 4,216
Monroe 1,323 45.40% 1,579 54.19% 9 0.31% 3 0.10% -256 -8.79% 2,914
Morgan 1,107 69.40% 433 27.15% 31 1.94% 24 1.50% 674 42.26% 1,595
Nicholas 908 41.25% 1,226 55.70% 62 2.82% 5 0.23% -318 -14.45% 2,201
Ohio 6,721 56.56% 5,016 42.22% 68 0.57% 77 0.65% 1,705 14.35% 11,882
Pendleton 784 40.73% 1,117 58.03% 18 0.94% 6 0.31% -333 -17.30% 1,925
Pleasants 887 48.87% 921 50.74% 3 0.17% 4 0.22% -34 -1.87% 1,815
Pocahontas 632 38.89% 983 60.49% 3 0.18% 7 0.43% -351 -21.60% 1,625
Preston 3,528 72.04% 1,331 27.18% 31 0.63% 7 0.14% 2,197 44.86% 4,897
Putnam 1,876 52.33% 1,702 47.48% 3 0.08% 4 0.11% 174 4.85% 3,585
Raleigh 1,150 50.91% 1,103 48.83% 2 0.09% 4 0.18% 47 2.08% 2,259
Randolph 1,427 41.73% 1,969 57.57% 14 0.41% 10 0.29% -542 -15.85% 3,420
Ritchie 2,211 57.13% 1,601 41.37% 56 1.45% 2 0.05% 610 15.76% 3,870
Roane 1,849 46.34% 2,125 53.26% 11 0.28% 5 0.13% -276 -6.92% 3,990
Summers 1,599 47.52% 1,746 51.89% 17 0.51% 3 0.09% -147 -4.37% 3,365
Taylor 1,838 57.93% 1,307 41.19% 21 0.66% 7 0.22% 531 16.73% 3,173
Tucker 1,259 53.12% 1,111 46.88% 0 0.00% 0 0.00% 148 6.24% 2,370
Tyler 2,430 57.07% 1,799 42.25% 22 0.52% 7 0.16% 631 14.82% 4,258
Upshur 2,281 69.46% 949 28.90% 36 1.10% 18 0.55% 1,332 40.56% 3,284
Wayne 2,031 45.25% 2,443 54.43% 3 0.07% 11 0.25% -412 -9.18% 4,488
Webster 709 42.18% 972 57.82% 0 0.00% 0 0.00% -263 -15.65% 1,681
Wetzel 1,685 39.83% 2,524 59.65% 13 0.31% 9 0.21% -839 -19.83% 4,231
Wirt 1,068 47.66% 1,159 51.72% 9 0.40% 5 0.22% -91 -4.06% 2,241
Wood 4,043 53.30% 3,484 45.93% 31 0.41% 27 0.36% 559 7.37% 7,585
Wyoming 735 54.53% 613 45.47% 0 0.00% 0 0.00% 122 9.05% 1,348
Totals 105,379 52.23% 94,480 46.83% 1,220 0.60% 678 0.34% 10,899 5.40% 201,757

See also

[edit]

Notes

[edit]

References

[edit]
  1. ^ Shannon, Jasper Berry and McQuown, Ruth; Presidential Politics in Kentucky, 1824-1948: A Compilation of Election Statistics and an Analysis of Political Behavior (1950), p. 96
  2. ^ Weir, Robert E.; Workers in America: A Historical Encyclopedia, p. 320 ISBN 1598847198
  3. ^ Dave Leip’s U.S. Election Atlas; Presidential General Election Results — West Virginia
  4. ^ "Popular Vote at the Presidential Election for 1896". Géoelections. (.xlsx file for €30 including full minor party figures)