1932 United States presidential election in North Dakota

The 1932 United States presidential election in North Dakota took place on November 8, 1932, as part of the 1932 United States presidential election. Voters chose four[2] representatives, or electors, to the Electoral College, who voted for president and vice president.

1932 United States presidential election in North Dakota

← 1928 November 8, 1932[1] 1936 →

All 4 North Dakota votes to the Electoral College
 
Nominee Franklin D. Roosevelt Herbert Hoover
Party Democratic Republican
Home state New York California
Running mate John Nance Garner Charles Curtis
Electoral vote 4 0
Popular vote 178,350 71,772
Percentage 69.59% 28.00%

County Results
Roosevelt
  50-60%
  60-70%
  70-80%
  80-90%


President before election

Herbert Hoover
Republican

Elected President

Franklin D. Roosevelt
Democratic

Ever since statehood, North Dakota had been overwhelmingly Republican at state level and in many presidential elections,[3] although progressive Democrat Woodrow Wilson was able to carry the state in both his campaigns in 1912 and 1916, in the second due to his anti-war platform. In the following three elections, the state's voting would be shaped by its extreme isolationism in the aftermath of President Wilson's pushing of the nation into World War I and his "League of Nations" proposal, to which the Russian-Germans who dominated North Dakota's populace were vehemently opposed.[4] North Dakota thus shifted markedly from voting four-to-one for Warren G. Harding against the pro-League James M. Cox in 1920, to being the second-strongest state for Robert La Follette under the Nonpartisan League banner in 1924, to strong pro-Catholic and anti-Prohibition voting for Al Smith in 1928 that made the state 7 points more Democratic than the nation at-large.

During the 1910s, North Dakota had been one of the major centres of Socialist and farmer radicalism.[5] With the coming of the Depression, this radicalism returned, although unlike with the Socialist Party and later with La Follette, there was sharp division over whom to support in the ensuing presidential election, with some supporting veteran Populist and free silver advocate "Coin" Harvey and other supporting the Socialist or Communist Parties.[5] Nonetheless, grievances of farmers against the Republicans had existed before incumbent Herbert Hoover's election in 1928. Democratic nominee and New York Governor Franklin D. Roosevelt was himself well-equipped to cater for this issue. After he had won the state's primary against Oklahoma populist "Alfalfa Bill" Murray,[6] Roosevelt cultivated favor with North Dakota congressmen William Lemke, Lynn J. Frazier and Gerald P. Nye,[7] and as Smith had in 1928, gained the support of former Senator Henry C. Hansbrough.[8] Roosevelt's proposal to lessen the Smoot-Hawley Tariff to increase farmers’ foreign purchasing power, and to reduce acreage to increase prices for farmers further added to his support in this most agrarian state. Late proposals by Hoover to offer relief failed to make any impression,[7] especially as the President had refused to support the bankruptcy and refinance bills advocated by Senator Frazier.[9]

The earlier straw poll in the state, at the end of the third week of October, had Roosevelt leading by about seven-to-four over Hoover, and this poll had been taken amongst voters who had given Hoover a larger margin over Al Smith than North Dakota as a whole had.[10] By the weekend preceding the poll, further polls seemed to confirm Hoover's hopes of carrying the state as forlorn,[11] and as it turned out Roosevelt carried the state by a larger margin than even the latest polls expected. With the farming areas decimated by drought, Hoover support held up best in the cities of the Red River valley, but FDR still carried all 53 counties by double-digit majorities.

Roosevelt became the first Democrat to win a majority of North Dakota's vote in a presidential election, a feat he emulated in 1936 but which has otherwise only been achieved by Lyndon B. Johnson in 1964.[12] This was also Roosevelt's strongest performance in any state outside of the Solid South. His 69.59 percent of the vote is the best Democratic performance in North Dakota presidential election history as well as the highest raw vote total for a Democrat in the state.

Results

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1932 United States presidential election in North Dakota[13]
Party Candidate Votes %
Democratic Franklin D. Roosevelt 178,350 69.59%
Republican Herbert Hoover (inc.) 71,772 28.00%
Socialist Norman Thomas 3,521 1.37%
Liberty William Hope Harvey 1,817 0.71%
Communist William Z. Foster 830 0.32%
Total votes 256,290 100%

Results by county

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County[14] Franklin Delano Roosevelt
Democratic
Herbert Clark Hoover
Republican
Norman Mattoon Thomas
Socialist
William Hope Harvey
Liberty
William Z. Foster
Communist
Margin Total votes cast
# % # % # % # % # % # %
Adams 1,514 58.10% 915 35.11% 37 1.42% 128 4.91% 12 0.46% 599 22.99% 2,606
Barnes 4,833 63.04% 2,527 32.96% 120 1.57% 166 2.17% 21 0.27% 2,306 30.08% 7,667
Benson 3,650 74.23% 1,170 23.79% 59 1.20% 27 0.55% 11 0.22% 2,480 50.44% 4,917
Billings 760 70.44% 295 27.34% 10 0.93% 4 0.37% 10 0.93% 465 43.10% 1,079
Bottineau 4,178 75.05% 1,201 21.57% 166 2.98% 15 0.27% 7 0.13% 2,977 53.48% 5,567
Bowman 1,292 59.38% 616 28.31% 213 9.79% 44 2.02% 11 0.51% 676 31.07% 2,176
Burke 2,473 68.81% 906 25.21% 131 3.64% 15 0.42% 69 1.92% 1,567 43.60% 3,594
Burleigh 5,621 66.61% 2,687 31.84% 90 1.07% 9 0.11% 32 0.38% 2,934 34.77% 8,439
Cass 11,094 54.40% 8,937 43.82% 321 1.57% 25 0.12% 17 0.08% 2,157 10.58% 20,394
Cavalier 3,770 71.33% 1,471 27.83% 29 0.55% 5 0.09% 10 0.19% 2,299 43.50% 5,285
Dickey 3,068 66.08% 1,424 30.67% 59 1.27% 25 0.54% 67 1.44% 1,644 35.41% 4,643
Divide 2,374 69.78% 817 24.02% 68 2.00% 124 3.64% 19 0.56% 1,557 45.77% 3,402
Dunn 2,380 79.12% 569 18.92% 27 0.90% 21 0.70% 11 0.37% 1,811 60.21% 3,008
Eddy 1,888 74.71% 537 21.25% 44 1.74% 47 1.86% 11 0.44% 1,351 53.46% 2,527
Emmons 3,089 76.29% 916 22.62% 30 0.74% 8 0.20% 6 0.15% 2,173 53.67% 4,049
Foster 1,838 74.38% 609 24.65% 9 0.36% 14 0.57% 1 0.04% 1,229 49.74% 2,471
Golden Valley 1,023 60.35% 653 38.53% 11 0.65% 4 0.24% 4 0.24% 370 21.83% 1,695
Grand Forks 7,579 58.75% 5,090 39.46% 187 1.45% 17 0.13% 27 0.21% 2,489 19.29% 12,900
Grant 2,912 79.69% 657 17.98% 38 1.04% 33 0.90% 14 0.38% 2,255 61.71% 3,654
Griggs 1,838 77.32% 428 18.01% 41 1.72% 60 2.52% 10 0.42% 1,410 59.32% 2,377
Hettinger 2,336 69.57% 921 27.43% 54 1.61% 33 0.98% 14 0.42% 1,415 42.14% 3,358
Kidder 2,042 73.14% 709 25.39% 29 1.04% 4 0.14% 8 0.29% 1,333 47.74% 2,792
LaMoure 3,310 72.22% 1,134 24.74% 88 1.92% 43 0.94% 8 0.17% 2,176 47.48% 4,583
Logan 2,350 84.93% 390 14.09% 11 0.40% 5 0.18% 11 0.40% 1,960 70.83% 2,767
McHenry 3,937 70.73% 1,396 25.08% 166 2.98% 59 1.06% 8 0.14% 2,541 45.65% 5,566
McIntosh 3,078 86.88% 465 13.12% 0 0.00% 0 0.00% 0 0.00% 2,613 73.75% 3,543
McKenzie 2,655 74.85% 710 20.02% 91 2.57% 74 2.09% 17 0.48% 1,945 54.84% 3,547
McLean 4,354 76.08% 1,369 23.92% 0 0.00% 0 0.00% 0 0.00% 2,985 52.16% 5,723
Mercer 2,491 83.23% 480 16.04% 10 0.33% 2 0.07% 10 0.33% 2,011 67.19% 2,993
Morton 5,548 74.67% 1,828 24.60% 38 0.51% 7 0.09% 9 0.12% 3,720 50.07% 7,430
Mountrail 3,284 73.83% 986 22.17% 84 1.89% 15 0.34% 79 1.78% 2,298 51.66% 4,448
Nelson 3,176 76.86% 956 23.14% 0 0.00% 0 0.00% 0 0.00% 2,220 53.73% 4,132
Oliver 1,152 78.42% 302 20.56% 10 0.68% 3 0.20% 2 0.14% 850 57.86% 1,469
Pembina 3,636 65.04% 1,911 34.19% 40 0.72% 3 0.05% 0 0.00% 1,725 30.86% 5,590
Pierce 2,439 73.18% 856 25.68% 32 0.96% 1 0.03% 5 0.15% 1,583 47.49% 3,333
Ramsey 4,337 68.53% 1,917 30.29% 52 0.82% 8 0.13% 15 0.24% 2,420 38.24% 6,329
Ransom 3,025 66.29% 1,445 31.67% 59 1.29% 28 0.61% 6 0.13% 1,580 34.63% 4,563
Renville 1,969 72.10% 689 25.23% 60 2.20% 8 0.29% 5 0.18% 1,280 46.87% 2,731
Richland 5,663 69.20% 2,304 28.16% 173 2.11% 32 0.39% 11 0.13% 3,359 41.05% 8,183
Rolette 2,855 79.22% 706 19.59% 32 0.89% 4 0.11% 7 0.19% 2,149 59.63% 3,604
Sargent 2,818 75.98% 785 21.16% 73 1.97% 25 0.67% 8 0.22% 2,033 54.81% 3,709
Sheridan 1,945 79.29% 468 19.08% 28 1.14% 2 0.08% 10 0.41% 1,477 60.21% 2,453
Sioux 1,328 77.12% 350 20.33% 25 1.45% 12 0.70% 7 0.41% 978 56.79% 1,722
Slope 1,136 68.43% 461 27.77% 49 2.95% 11 0.66% 3 0.18% 675 40.66% 1,660
Stark 4,786 80.72% 1,143 19.28% 0 0.00% 0 0.00% 0 0.00% 3,643 61.44% 5,929
Steele 1,925 71.69% 695 25.88% 26 0.97% 39 1.45% 0 0.00% 1,230 45.81% 2,685
Stutsman 6,182 69.63% 2,577 29.03% 103 1.16% 11 0.12% 5 0.06% 3,605 40.61% 8,878
Towner 2,190 73.02% 765 25.51% 25 0.83% 7 0.23% 12 0.40% 1,425 47.52% 2,999
Traill 3,112 61.33% 1,893 37.31% 51 1.01% 10 0.20% 8 0.16% 1,219 24.02% 5,074
Walsh 5,342 73.74% 1,616 22.31% 133 1.84% 146 2.02% 7 0.10% 3,726 51.44% 7,244
Ward 8,129 64.38% 4,195 33.23% 187 1.48% 47 0.37% 68 0.54% 3,934 31.16% 12,626
Wells 3,823 77.40% 1,062 21.50% 28 0.57% 19 0.38% 7 0.14% 2,761 55.90% 4,939
Williams 4,823 70.06% 1,509 21.92% 74 1.07% 371 5.39% 107 1.55% 3,314 48.14% 6,884
Totals 178,350 69.59% 71,772 28.00% 3,521 1.37% 1,817 0.71% 830 0.32% 106,578 41.58% 256,290

Counties that flipped from Republican to Democratic

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See also

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References

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  1. ^ "United States Presidential election of 1932 – Encyclopædia Britannica". Retrieved January 29, 2019.
  2. ^ "1932 Election for the Thirty-seventh Term (1933-37)". Retrieved January 29, 2019.
  3. ^ 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. 143-159 ISBN 978-1-107-09509-0
  4. ^ Lubell, Samuel; The Future of American Politics (1956), pp. 156-164
  5. ^ a b See Pratt, William C.; ‘Rural Radicalism on the Northern Plains, 1912–1950’; Montana The Magazine of Western History, vol. 42, no. 1 (Winter, 1992), pp. 42-55
  6. ^ ‘Roosevelt Runs Ahead of Murray in North Dakota: Slow Returns Give New Yorker 3,989 Votes in Primary to 2,280 for Oklahoman’; New York Times, March 16, 1932, p. 1
  7. ^ a b Slichter, Gertrude Almy; ‘Franklin D. Roosevelt and the Farm Problem, 1929–1932’; The Mississippi Valley Historical Review, vol. 43, no. 2 (September 1956), pp. 238-258
  8. ^ ‘Hansbrough Comes Out for Roosevelt: Former Republican Senator Declares Hooverism Has Failed’; The Washington Post, August 1, 1932, p. 3
  9. ^ ‘Some North Dakotans helped get FDR elected’; Bismarck Tribune, July 27, 2008, p. C1
  10. ^ ‘Roosevelt Leading in Digest Poll, 3—2: Hoover Ahead in All New England And in New Jersey—Others Are For Democratic Ticket’; Daily Boston Globe, October 21, 1932, p. 32
  11. ^ "North Dakota: Hoover Supporters Clinging to Forlorn Hope". The New York Times. November 6, 1932. p. 29.
  12. ^ "Presidential General Election Results Comparison – North Dakota". Dave Leip's U.S. Election Atlas.
  13. ^ "1932 Presidential General Election Results – North Dakota". Retrieved January 29, 2019.
  14. ^ "ND US President Race, November 08, 1932". Our Campaigns.