1956 United States presidential election in Wisconsin

The 1956 United States presidential election in Wisconsin was held on November 6, 1956 as part of the 1956 United States presidential election. State voters chose twelve electors to the Electoral College, who voted for president and vice president.

1956 United States presidential election in Wisconsin

November 6, 1956
 
Nominee Dwight D. Eisenhower Adlai Stevenson
Party Republican Democratic
Home state Pennsylvania[lower-alpha 1] Illinois
Running mate Richard Nixon Estes Kefauver
Electoral vote 12 0
Popular vote 954,844 586,768
Percentage 61.58% 37.84%

County Results

President before election

Dwight D. Eisenhower
Republican

Elected President

Dwight D. Eisenhower
Republican

Background

Politics in Wisconsin since the Populist movement had been dominated by the Republican Party.[2] The Democratic Party became uncompetitive away from the Laue Michigan coast as the upper classes, along with the majority of workers who followed them, fled from William Jennings Bryan's agrarian and free silver sympathies.[3] Although the state did develop a strong Socialist Party to provide opposition to the GOP, Wisconsin developed the direct Republican primary in 1903 and this ultimately created competition between the "League" under Robert M. La Follette, and the conservative "Regular" faction.[4] This ultimately would develop into the Wisconsin Progressive Party in the late 1930s, which was opposed to the conservative German Democrats and to the national Republican Party, and allied with Franklin D. Roosevelt at the federal level.

During the two wartime elections, the formerly Democratic German counties in the east of the state – which had been powerfully opposed to the Civil War because they saw it as a "Yankee" war and opposed the military draft instituted during it[5] – viewed Communism as a much greater threat to America than Nazism and consequently opposed President Roosevelt's war effort.[6] Consequently, these historically Democratic counties became virtually the most Republican in the entire state, and became a major support base for populist conservative Senator Joe McCarthy, who became notorious for his investigations into Communists inside the American government. The state's populace's opposition to Communism and the Korean War turned Wisconsin strongly to Republican nominee Dwight D. Eisenhower in the 1952 presidential election.

For the 1956 rematch, Democratic nominee Adlai Stevenson II began by campaigning against Eisenhower's handling of farm problems, at a time when most of the interior United States was suffering from a severe drought.[7] The Democrat would then attack Eisenhower as a "weak" President when the two were touring the Midwest during September.[8]

Vote

Early polls showed Eisenhower leading the state despite farm unrest, owing to the unpopularity of Stevenson.[9] No later poll was taken, but evidence was that state's farmers were not trending to Stevenson at all, and that the Suez Crisis would hurt rather than help Stevenson.[10]

As it turned out, Eisenhower slightly improved upon his 1952 margin in Wisconsin: although he did lose some support in the farming areas, he gained upon his 1952 vote in Wisconsin's cities due to increased Catholic support, and carried all but two northern counties. As of the 2020 presidential election, this remains the last time a Republican has carried Wisconsin by double digits, as the state would trend Democratic beginning with the 1958 midterm elections, although Democrats have subsequently won Wisconsin by double digits just three times – Lyndon B. Johnson in 1964, Bill Clinton in 1996 and Barack Obama in 2008.[11] This is also the last election as of 2020 in which Portage County, Ashland County, Milwaukee County, and Dane County voted for a Republican presidential candidate.[12]

Results

1956 United States presidential election in Wisconsin[13]
Party Candidate Votes Percentage Electoral votes
Republican Dwight D. Eisenhower 954,844 61.58% 12
Democratic Adlai Stevenson 586,768 37.84% 0
Independent T. Coleman Andrews 6,918 0.45% 0
Independent Darlington Hoopes 754 0.05% 0
Independent Eric Hass 710 0.05% 0
Independent Farrell Dobbs 564 0.04% 0
Totals 1,548,530 100.0% 12

Results by county

County Dwight David Eisenhower
Republican
Adlai Stevenson II
Democratic
Thomas Coleman Andrews
Independent
Various candidates
Other parties
Margin Total votes cast[14]
# % # % # % # % # %
Adams 1,854 59.48% 1,244 39.91% 15 0.48% 4 0.13% 610 19.57% 3,117
Ashland 4,121 52.70% 3,677 47.03% 16 0.20% 5 0.06% 444 5.68% 7,819
Barron 8,634 61.12% 5,419 38.36% 44 0.31% 29 0.21% 3,215 22.76% 14,126
Bayfield 3,096 53.32% 2,691 46.35% 8 0.14% 11 0.19% 405 6.98% 5,806
Brown 32,878 70.24% 13,642 29.14% 246 0.53% 42 0.09% 19,236 41.10% 46,808
Buffalo 3,387 59.83% 2,266 40.03% 7 0.12% 1 0.02% 1,121 19.80% 5,661
Burnett 2,198 52.36% 1,986 47.31% 7 0.17% 7 0.17% 212 5.05% 4,198
Calumet 6,166 74.22% 2,099 25.26% 38 0.46% 5 0.06% 4,067 48.95% 8,308
Chippewa 9,781 59.42% 6,617 40.20% 58 0.35% 5 0.03% 3,164 19.22% 16,461
Clark 7,941 62.26% 4,765 37.36% 39 0.31% 9 0.07% 3,176 24.90% 12,754
Columbia 10,120 66.01% 5,158 33.65% 45 0.29% 7 0.05% 4,962 32.37% 15,330
Crawford 4,123 61.71% 2,522 37.75% 31 0.46% 5 0.07% 1,601 23.96% 6,681
Dane 38,955 51.11% 36,891 48.41% 295 0.39% 72 0.09% 2,064 2.71% 76,213
Dodge 17,569 72.10% 6,704 27.51% 76 0.31% 17 0.07% 10,865 44.59% 24,366
Door 6,722 77.96% 1,859 21.56% 32 0.37% 9 0.10% 4,863 56.40% 8,622
Douglas 9,183 44.79% 11,276 55.00% 22 0.11% 21 0.10% -2,093 -10.21% 20,502
Dunn 6,401 60.36% 4,189 39.50% 11 0.10% 3 0.03% 2,212 20.86% 10,604
Eau Claire 13,122 58.48% 9,276 41.34% 33 0.15% 8 0.04% 3,846 17.14% 22,439
Florence 1,003 57.94% 723 41.77% 4 0.23% 1 0.06% 280 16.18% 1,731
Fond du Lac 21,496 72.46% 7,940 26.76% 207 0.70% 23 0.08% 13,556 45.70% 29,666
Forest 2,039 57.03% 1,527 42.71% 8 0.22% 1 0.03% 512 14.32% 3,575
Grant 11,648 68.69% 5,208 30.71% 92 0.54% 10 0.06% 6,440 37.98% 16,958
Green 7,114 66.00% 3,614 33.53% 43 0.40% 8 0.07% 3,500 32.47% 10,779
Green Lake 5,441 76.49% 1,643 23.10% 25 0.35% 4 0.06% 3,798 53.40% 7,113
Iowa 5,201 61.79% 3,176 37.73% 36 0.43% 4 0.05% 2,025 24.06% 8,417
Iron 1,930 46.22% 2,226 53.30% 14 0.34% 6 0.14% -296 -7.09% 4,176
Jackson 3,614 56.66% 2,755 43.20% 7 0.11% 2 0.03% 859 13.47% 6,378
Jefferson 13,357 67.02% 6,452 32.37% 94 0.47% 28 0.14% 6,905 34.64% 19,931
Juneau 5,135 67.58% 2,428 31.96% 30 0.39% 5 0.07% 2,707 35.63% 7,598
Kenosha 21,367 55.08% 17,094 44.06% 269 0.69% 66 0.17% 4,273 11.01% 38,796
Kewaunee 5,106 68.00% 2,364 31.48% 31 0.41% 8 0.11% 2,742 36.52% 7,509
La Crosse 18,264 61.66% 11,258 38.01% 73 0.25% 27 0.09% 7,006 23.65% 29,622
Lafayette 4,733 59.33% 3,212 40.26% 30 0.38% 3 0.04% 1,521 19.06% 7,978
Langlade 5,004 63.82% 2,804 35.76% 28 0.36% 5 0.06% 2,200 28.06% 7,841
Lincoln 6,329 67.74% 2,880 30.83% 118 1.26% 16 0.17% 3,449 36.92% 9,343
Manitowoc 18,078 61.91% 10,800 36.99% 291 1.00% 30 0.10% 7,278 24.93% 29,199
Marathon 22,586 59.36% 15,301 40.21% 126 0.33% 38 0.10% 7,285 19.15% 38,051
Marinette 8,874 63.12% 5,113 36.37% 63 0.45% 10 0.07% 3,761 26.75% 14,060
Marquette 2,796 73.87% 975 25.76% 14 0.37% 0 0.00% 1,821 48.11% 3,785
Milwaukee 227,253 55.79% 177,286 43.53% 1,783 0.44% 996 0.24% 49,967 12.27% 407,318
Monroe 7,460 63.16% 4,311 36.50% 27 0.23% 13 0.11% 3,149 26.66% 11,811
Oconto 6,836 64.95% 3,632 34.51% 51 0.48% 6 0.06% 3,204 30.44% 10,525
Oneida 6,261 64.89% 3,328 34.49% 51 0.53% 8 0.08% 2,933 30.40% 9,648
Outagamie 26,090 76.56% 7,725 22.67% 236 0.69% 26 0.08% 18,365 53.89% 34,077
Ozaukee 9,808 69.63% 4,139 29.38% 126 0.89% 13 0.09% 5,669 40.25% 14,086
Pepin 1,975 65.51% 1,040 34.49% 0 0.00% 0 0.00% 935 31.01% 3,015
Pierce 5,782 61.13% 3,644 38.53% 25 0.26% 7 0.07% 2,138 22.61% 9,458
Polk 5,894 54.04% 4,985 45.71% 14 0.13% 13 0.12% 909 8.33% 10,906
Portage 8,320 54.08% 7,010 45.56% 41 0.27% 15 0.10% 1,310 8.51% 15,386
Price 4,028 58.82% 2,778 40.57% 27 0.39% 15 0.22% 1,250 18.25% 6,848
Racine 31,968 58.21% 22,646 41.24% 248 0.45% 57 0.10% 9,322 16.97% 54,919
Richland 5,062 64.29% 2,783 35.34% 26 0.33% 3 0.04% 2,279 28.94% 7,874
Rock 28,980 67.42% 13,834 32.18% 148 0.34% 25 0.06% 15,146 35.23% 42,987
Rusk 3,433 53.68% 2,929 45.80% 24 0.38% 9 0.14% 504 7.88% 6,395
Sauk 10,644 66.46% 5,292 33.04% 61 0.38% 19 0.12% 5,352 33.42% 16,016
Sawyer 2,823 64.54% 1,520 34.75% 26 0.59% 5 0.11% 1,303 29.79% 4,374
Shawano 9,388 71.54% 3,675 28.01% 54 0.41% 5 0.04% 5,713 43.54% 13,122
Sheboygan 22,077 59.91% 14,540 39.46% 182 0.49% 53 0.14% 7,537 20.45% 36,852
St. Croix 6,956 55.72% 5,499 44.05% 21 0.17% 8 0.06% 1,457 11.67% 12,484
Taylor 3,843 57.75% 2,759 41.46% 35 0.53% 17 0.26% 1,084 16.29% 6,654
Trempealeau 5,476 54.25% 4,602 45.59% 9 0.09% 7 0.07% 874 8.66% 10,094
Vernon 6,200 55.66% 4,923 44.19% 15 0.13% 2 0.02% 1,277 11.46% 11,140
Vilas 3,683 74.07% 1,267 25.48% 19 0.38% 3 0.06% 2,416 48.59% 4,972
Walworth 16,696 76.62% 4,922 22.59% 152 0.70% 20 0.09% 11,774 54.03% 21,790
Washburn 2,798 58.88% 1,935 40.72% 14 0.29% 5 0.11% 863 18.16% 4,752
Washington 12,167 72.93% 4,447 26.66% 59 0.35% 10 0.06% 7,720 46.27% 16,683
Waukesha 35,212 68.93% 15,496 30.33% 313 0.61% 63 0.12% 19,716 38.60% 51,084
Waupaca 11,798 78.64% 3,133 20.88% 66 0.44% 6 0.04% 8,665 57.76% 15,003
Waushara 4,717 76.99% 1,387 22.64% 20 0.33% 3 0.05% 3,330 54.35% 6,127
Winnebago 28,759 71.44% 11,115 27.61% 353 0.88% 27 0.07% 17,644 43.83% 40,254
Wood 15,091 69.92% 6,412 29.71% 66 0.31% 14 0.06% 8,679 40.21% 21,583
Totals954,84461.58%586,76837.84%6,9180.45%2,0280.13%368,07623.74%1,550,558

Notes

  1. Although he was born in Texas and grew up in Kansas before his military career, at the time of the 1952 election Eisenhower was president of Columbia University and was, officially, a resident of New York. During his first term as president, he moved his private residence to Gettysburg, Pennsylvania, and officially changed his residency to Pennsylvania.[1]

References

  1. "The Presidents". David Leip. Retrieved September 27, 2017. Eisenhower's home state for the 1956 Election was Pennsylvania
  2. Burnham, Walter Dean; 'The System of 1896: An Analysis'; in The Evolution of American Electoral Systems, pp. 178-179 ISBN 0313213798
  3. Sundquist, James; Politics and Policy: The Eisenhower, Kennedy, and Johnson Years, p. 526 ISBN 0815719094
  4. Hansen, John Mark; Shigeo Hirano, and Snyder, James M. Jr.; 'Parties within Parties: Parties, Factions, and Coordinated Politics, 1900-1980'; in Gerber, Alan S. and Schickler, Eric; Governing in a Polarized Age: Elections, Parties, and Political Representation in America, pp. 165-168 ISBN 978-1-107-09509-0
  5. Phillips, Kevin P.; The Emerging Republican Majority, pp. 381-382, 414 ISBN 978-0-691-16324-6
  6. Phillips; The Emerging Republican Majority, pp. 387-388
  7. Blair, William M.; 'Stevenson Asserts G.O.P. Fosters Farm Depression: Broken Promises Charged Stevenson Urges Action Stevenson Accuses Republicans of Fostering a Farm Depression 3 States Are Pivotal'; The New York Times, August 30, 1956, p. 1
  8. Salisbury, Harrison E.; 'Stevenson Says Eisenhower Fails to Lead Country: In Kansas City, He Asserts the Question Is, "Who's in Charge Here?" Decries Farm Policy: Nominee Charges That the President Defaulted on 90% Parity Pledge'; Special to The New York Times', September 27, 1956, p. 1
  9. White, William S.; 'G.O.P. Retaining Wisconsin Lead; Democrats Gain: Survey Shows Farm Unrest and Spotty Unemployment Are Having Influence'; Special to The New York Times', October 1, 1956, p. 1
  10. King, Seth H.; 'Major Farm Vote Still Republican: Democrats Fail to Stir Big Revolt – May Lose Votes on Crisis in Mideast'; The New York Times, November 1, 1956, p. 44
  11. "Presidential General Election Results Comparison – Wisconsin". Dave Leip's U.S. Election Atlas.
  12. Sullivan, Robert David; 'How the Red and Blue Map Evolved Over the Past Century'; America Magazine in The National Catholic Review; June 29, 2016
  13. "1956 Presidential General Election Results – Wisconsin". Retrieved August 19, 2016.
  14. "WI US President Race, November 06, 1956". Our Campaigns.
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