1972 United States presidential election in Nevada

The 1972 United States presidential election in Nevada took place on November 7, 1972. All fifty states and the District of Columbia were part of the 1972 United States presidential election. State voters chose three electors to the Electoral College, who voted for president and vice president.

1972 United States presidential election in Nevada

November 7, 1972
 
Nominee Richard Nixon George McGovern
Party Republican Democratic
Home state California South Dakota
Running mate Spiro Agnew Sargent Shriver
Electoral vote 3 0
Popular vote 115,750 66,016
Percentage 63.68% 36.32%

County Results
Nixon
  50-60%
  60-70%
  70-80%


President before election

Richard Nixon
Republican

Elected President

Richard Nixon
Republican

Background

Since being won for the third time by William Jennings Bryan whose populism had attracted a state heavily dependent upon silver mining,[1] Nevada had been a consistent bellwether swing state, although it had been trending Republican since World War II as air conditioning led to the development of Las Vegas as a “Sun Belt” city. Richard Nixon had narrowly lost this heavily Catholic state to John F. Kennedy in 1960, but would comfortably defeat both Hubert Humphrey and George Wallace in 1968. However, the Democrats had rebounded in 1970 to regain the governorship, although the party lost the attorney general position for the first time since 1890.[2]

Nevada held no Democratic primary in 1972, and once McGovern's nomination was an established fact every poll suggested Nixon would win the state very easily,[3] typically by around a two-to-one margin.[4]

Vote

Nevada was won by the Republican nominees, incumbent President Richard Nixon of California and his running mate Vice President Spiro Agnew of Maryland. Nixon and Agnew defeated the Democratic nominees, Senator George McGovern of South Dakota and his running mate U.S. Ambassador Sargent Shriver of Maryland.

Nixon carried Nevada with 63.68% of the vote to McGovern's 36.32%, a victory margin of 27.36%. In a state that would reflect McGovern's national results, the Democratic nominee did not win a single county in Nevada, making Nixon only the second Republican after Theodore Roosevelt in 1904 to sweep all Nevada's counties.[5]

Statewide Results

1972 United States presidential election in Nevada[6]
Party Candidate Votes %
Republican Richard Nixon 115,750 63.68%
Democratic George McGovern 66,016 36.32%
Total votes 181,766 100%

Results by county

County or City Richard Milhous Nixon
Republican
George Stanley McGovern
Democratic
Margin Total votes cast
# % # % # %
Churchill 2,970 74.10% 1,038 25.90% 1,932 48.20% 4,008
Clark 53,101 59.06% 36,807 40.94% 16,294 18.12% 89,908
Douglas 2,898 74.67% 983 25.33% 1,915 49.34% 3,881
Elko 3,886 72.59% 1,467 27.41% 2,419 45.19% 5,353
Esmeralda 273 68.25% 127 31.75% 146 36.50% 400
Eureka 371 72.75% 139 27.25% 232 45.49% 510
Humboldt 1,659 69.94% 713 30.06% 946 39.88% 2,372
Lander 798 63.03% 468 36.97% 330 26.07% 1,266
Lincoln 841 68.77% 382 31.23% 459 37.53% 1,223
Lyon 2,813 74.58% 959 25.42% 1,854 49.15% 3,772
Mineral 2,111 73.32% 768 26.68% 1,343 46.65% 2,879
Nye 1,287 61.61% 802 38.39% 485 23.22% 2,089
Pershing 853 70.03% 365 29.97% 488 40.07% 1,218
Storey 508 69.21% 226 30.79% 282 38.42% 734
Washoe 33,539 66.22% 17,106 33.78% 16,433 32.45% 50,645
White Pine 2,446 61.27% 1,546 38.73% 900 22.55% 3,992
Carson City 5,396 71.79% 2,120 28.21% 3,276 43.59% 7,516
Totals115,75063.68%66,01636.32%49,73427.36%181,766

References

  1. Phillips, Kevin P.; The Emerging Republican Majority, p. 458 ISBN 9780691163246
  2. Driggs, Don W.; ‘The 1970 Election in Nevada’; The Western Political Quarterly, vol. 24, no. 2 (June 1971), pp. 308-315
  3. Apple, R.W. junior; ‘50-State Survey Indicates Massive Sweep for Nixon: Reporters, Political Leaders and Polls Agree on Big Lead, But McGovern Gain Is Expected In Final Month’; The New York Times, October 8, 1972, p. 50
  4. ‘State by State: A Nationwide Survey’; The Washington Post, October 8, 1972, p. D4
  5. Menendez, Albert J.; The Geography of Presidential Elections in the United States, 1868-2004, pp. 256-257 ISBN 0786422173
  6. David Leip. "1972 Presidential General Election Results – Nevada". Dave Leip's Atlas of U.S. Presidential Elections. Retrieved 2018-10-29.
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