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| Turnout | 72.3% (of registered voters) 51.7% (of voting age population)[1]  | |||||||||||||||||||||||||
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 County Results
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The1984 United States presidential election in West Virginia took place on November 6, 1984. All 50 states andthe District of Columbia, were part of the1984 United States presidential election. West Virginia voters chose 6 electors to theElectoral College, which selected thepresident andvice president of the United States.West Virginia was won by incumbent United StatesPresidentRonald Reagan ofCalifornia, who was running against formerVice PresidentWalter Mondale ofMinnesota. Reagan ran for a second time with incumbent Vice President and formerC.I.A. DirectorGeorge H. W. Bush ofTexas, and Mondale ran withRepresentativeGeraldine Ferraro ofNew York, the first major female candidate for the vice presidency.
The presidential election of 1984 was a verypartisan election for West Virginia, with over 99% of the electorate voting for either theDemocratic orRepublican parties, and only five parties appearing on the ballot.[2] Most counties turned out for Reagan except for a bloc of heavily unionized, coal-dependent counties in the southern part of the state bordering Virginia and Kentucky.
Reagan won the election in West Virginia by a decisive 10.6 percentage point margin. While a comfortable victory, this made West Virginia 7.6 percentage points more Democratic than the nation at large, as well as Walter Mondale's ninth-best state. Mondale's greatest strength came from heavily unionized southern West Virginia, where he broke 60% inMcDowell,Logan,Mingo,Boone, andFayette Counties; he also carried a number of counties in central West Virginia and two in theNorthern Panhandle. Reagan comfortably carriedKanawha County, the state's biggest county and one that was less typically Democratic at the time than some others in the state (having voted to re-elect Carter by only 0.3 percent), and also carried the state's other then-typically Democratic population centers,Harrison County (Clarksburg),Raleigh County (Beckley), andMonongalia County (Morgantown), by margins ranging from narrow to substantial. He won the swing population center ofCabell County (Huntington) by about the same as his national margin, and got over 2/3 of the vote in the state's largest typically Republican county,Wood County (Parkersburg).
| 1984 United States presidential election in West Virginia | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Party | Candidate | Votes | Percentage | Electoral votes | |
| Republican | Ronald Reagan (incumbent) | 405,483 | 55.11% | 6 | |
| Democratic | Walter Mondale | 328,125 | 44.60% | 0 | |
| America First | Bob Richards | 996 | 0.14% | 0 | |
| Socialist Workers Party | Melvin Mason | 645 | 0.09% | 0 | |
| New Alliance Party | Dennis Serrette | 493 | 0.07% | 0 | |
| Totals | 735,742 | 100.00% | 6 | ||
| County[3] | Ronald Reagan Republican | Walter Mondale Democratic | Bob Richards Populist | Melvin Mason Socialist Workers | Dennis Serrette New Alliance | Margin | Total | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| # | % | # | % | # | % | # | % | # | % | # | % | ||
| Barbour | 3,877 | 55.43% | 3,108 | 44.43% | 6 | 0.09% | 2 | 0.03% | 2 | 0.03% | 769 | 11.00% | 6,995 |
| Berkeley | 12,887 | 67.50% | 6,181 | 32.37% | 14 | 0.07% | 7 | 0.04% | 3 | 0.02% | 6,706 | 35.13% | 19,092 |
| Boone | 4,656 | 39.39% | 7,121 | 60.24% | 19 | 0.16% | 16 | 0.14% | 9 | 0.08% | -2,465 | -20.85% | 11,821 |
| Braxton | 2,902 | 46.32% | 3,350 | 53.47% | 7 | 0.11% | 3 | 0.05% | 3 | 0.05% | -448 | -7.15% | 6,265 |
| Brooke | 4,819 | 41.91% | 6,636 | 57.71% | 18 | 0.16% | 13 | 0.11% | 12 | 0.10% | -1,817 | -15.80% | 11,498 |
| Cabell | 21,815 | 58.26% | 15,513 | 41.43% | 56 | 0.15% | 33 | 0.09% | 28 | 0.07% | 6,302 | 16.83% | 37,445 |
| Calhoun | 1,765 | 53.88% | 1,473 | 44.96% | 8 | 0.24% | 29 | 0.89% | 1 | 0.03% | 292 | 8.92% | 3,276 |
| Clay | 1,667 | 43.91% | 2,117 | 55.77% | 5 | 0.13% | 5 | 0.13% | 2 | 0.05% | -450 | -11.86% | 3,796 |
| Doddridge | 2,343 | 73.33% | 836 | 26.17% | 9 | 0.28% | 4 | 0.13% | 3 | 0.09% | 1,507 | 47.16% | 3,195 |
| Fayette | 7,360 | 38.56% | 11,650 | 61.04% | 46 | 0.24% | 16 | 0.08% | 14 | 0.07% | -4,290 | -22.48% | 19,086 |
| Gilmer | 1,953 | 56.58% | 1,494 | 43.28% | 4 | 0.12% | 1 | 0.03% | 0 | 0.00% | 459 | 13.30% | 3,452 |
| Grant | 3,715 | 81.58% | 828 | 18.18% | 4 | 0.09% | 4 | 0.09% | 3 | 0.07% | 2,887 | 63.40% | 4,554 |
| Greenbrier | 7,337 | 56.55% | 5,599 | 43.16% | 18 | 0.14% | 9 | 0.07% | 11 | 0.08% | 1,738 | 13.39% | 12,974 |
| Hampshire | 4,065 | 65.70% | 2,102 | 33.97% | 8 | 0.13% | 4 | 0.06% | 8 | 0.13% | 1,963 | 31.73% | 6,187 |
| Hancock | 7,326 | 45.44% | 8,708 | 54.01% | 34 | 0.21% | 28 | 0.17% | 28 | 0.17% | -1,382 | -8.57% | 16,124 |
| Hardy | 2,938 | 64.05% | 1,641 | 35.78% | 2 | 0.04% | 2 | 0.04% | 4 | 0.09% | 1,297 | 28.27% | 4,587 |
| Harrison | 19,400 | 56.33% | 14,969 | 43.47% | 32 | 0.09% | 21 | 0.06% | 15 | 0.04% | 4,431 | 12.86% | 34,437 |
| Jackson | 7,117 | 62.93% | 4,147 | 36.67% | 24 | 0.21% | 7 | 0.06% | 15 | 0.13% | 2,970 | 26.26% | 11,310 |
| Jefferson | 5,884 | 58.06% | 4,216 | 41.60% | 18 | 0.18% | 10 | 0.10% | 6 | 0.06% | 1,668 | 16.46% | 10,134 |
| Kanawha | 51,499 | 57.51% | 37,832 | 42.25% | 81 | 0.09% | 84 | 0.09% | 46 | 0.05% | 13,667 | 15.26% | 89,542 |
| Lewis | 5,297 | 65.96% | 2,693 | 33.53% | 32 | 0.40% | 9 | 0.11% | 0 | 0.00% | 2,604 | 32.43% | 8,031 |
| Lincoln | 4,405 | 44.49% | 5,467 | 55.21% | 15 | 0.15% | 11 | 0.11% | 4 | 0.04% | -1,062 | -10.72% | 9,902 |
| Logan | 6,425 | 36.96% | 10,892 | 62.66% | 23 | 0.13% | 25 | 0.14% | 17 | 0.10% | -4,467 | -25.70% | 17,382 |
| Marion | 13,106 | 48.50% | 13,833 | 51.20% | 52 | 0.19% | 24 | 0.09% | 5 | 0.02% | -727 | -2.70% | 27,020 |
| Marshall | 8,615 | 51.85% | 7,947 | 47.83% | 17 | 0.10% | 13 | 0.08% | 24 | 0.14% | 668 | 4.02% | 16,616 |
| Mason | 6,648 | 53.64% | 5,701 | 46.00% | 17 | 0.14% | 11 | 0.09% | 16 | 0.13% | 947 | 7.64% | 12,393 |
| McDowell | 4,284 | 33.25% | 8,546 | 66.34% | 13 | 0.10% | 31 | 0.24% | 9 | 0.07% | -4,262 | -33.09% | 12,883 |
| Mercer | 13,910 | 60.07% | 9,164 | 39.58% | 43 | 0.19% | 20 | 0.09% | 18 | 0.08% | 4,746 | 20.49% | 23,155 |
| Mineral | 7,291 | 65.46% | 3,832 | 34.40% | 10 | 0.09% | 4 | 0.04% | 1 | 0.01% | 3,459 | 31.06% | 11,138 |
| Mingo | 4,275 | 33.59% | 8,434 | 66.27% | 6 | 0.05% | 7 | 0.06% | 4 | 0.03% | -4,159 | -32.68% | 12,726 |
| Monongalia | 14,972 | 52.95% | 13,236 | 46.81% | 23 | 0.08% | 27 | 0.10% | 16 | 0.06% | 1,736 | 6.14% | 28,274 |
| Monroe | 3,612 | 60.67% | 2,333 | 39.18% | 5 | 0.08% | 3 | 0.05% | 1 | 0.02% | 1,279 | 21.49% | 5,954 |
| Morgan | 3,469 | 70.34% | 1,457 | 29.54% | 5 | 0.10% | 1 | 0.02% | 0 | 0.00% | 2,012 | 40.80% | 4,932 |
| Nicholas | 4,656 | 50.21% | 4,588 | 49.48% | 16 | 0.17% | 5 | 0.05% | 8 | 0.09% | 68 | 0.73% | 9,273 |
| Ohio | 13,447 | 56.83% | 10,163 | 42.95% | 24 | 0.10% | 13 | 0.05% | 15 | 0.06% | 3,284 | 13.88% | 23,662 |
| Pendleton | 2,047 | 58.19% | 1,464 | 41.61% | 5 | 0.14% | 2 | 0.06% | 0 | 0.00% | 583 | 16.58% | 3,518 |
| Pleasants | 2,255 | 60.54% | 1,458 | 39.14% | 6 | 0.16% | 2 | 0.05% | 4 | 0.11% | 797 | 21.40% | 3,725 |
| Pocahontas | 2,479 | 56.52% | 1,903 | 43.39% | 2 | 0.05% | 1 | 0.02% | 1 | 0.02% | 576 | 13.13% | 4,386 |
| Preston | 6,955 | 63.05% | 4,054 | 36.75% | 8 | 0.07% | 7 | 0.06% | 7 | 0.06% | 2,901 | 26.30% | 11,031 |
| Putnam | 9,238 | 63.75% | 5,208 | 35.94% | 20 | 0.14% | 13 | 0.09% | 13 | 0.09% | 4,030 | 27.81% | 14,492 |
| Raleigh | 14,571 | 50.03% | 14,442 | 49.59% | 68 | 0.23% | 24 | 0.08% | 17 | 0.06% | 129 | 0.44% | 29,122 |
| Randolph | 6,100 | 55.64% | 4,839 | 44.14% | 11 | 0.10% | 7 | 0.06% | 7 | 0.06% | 1,261 | 11.50% | 10,964 |
| Ritchie | 3,355 | 72.79% | 1,231 | 26.71% | 17 | 0.37% | 5 | 0.11% | 1 | 0.02% | 2,124 | 46.08% | 4,609 |
| Roane | 3,751 | 60.11% | 2,468 | 39.55% | 9 | 0.14% | 8 | 0.13% | 4 | 0.06% | 1,283 | 20.56% | 6,240 |
| Summers | 2,975 | 52.57% | 2,670 | 47.18% | 4 | 0.07% | 4 | 0.07% | 6 | 0.11% | 305 | 5.39% | 5,659 |
| Taylor | 4,007 | 59.23% | 2,754 | 40.71% | 1 | 0.01% | 2 | 0.03% | 1 | 0.01% | 1,253 | 18.52% | 6,765 |
| Tucker | 2,240 | 55.80% | 1,766 | 44.00% | 8 | 0.20% | 0 | 0.00% | 0 | 0.00% | 474 | 11.80% | 4,014 |
| Tyler | 3,170 | 69.29% | 1,395 | 30.49% | 3 | 0.07% | 4 | 0.09% | 3 | 0.07% | 1,775 | 38.80% | 4,575 |
| Upshur | 5,951 | 70.29% | 2,468 | 29.15% | 26 | 0.31% | 5 | 0.06% | 16 | 0.19% | 3,483 | 41.14% | 8,466 |
| Wayne | 8,811 | 51.12% | 8,378 | 48.61% | 23 | 0.13% | 11 | 0.06% | 13 | 0.08% | 433 | 2.51% | 17,236 |
| Webster | 1,565 | 39.86% | 2,355 | 59.98% | 5 | 0.13% | 1 | 0.03% | 0 | 0.00% | -790 | -20.12% | 3,926 |
| Wetzel | 4,626 | 56.37% | 3,549 | 43.24% | 7 | 0.09% | 15 | 0.18% | 10 | 0.12% | 1,077 | 13.13% | 8,207 |
| Wirt | 1,450 | 62.45% | 868 | 37.38% | 1 | 0.04% | 3 | 0.13% | 0 | 0.00% | 582 | 25.07% | 2,322 |
| Wood | 24,821 | 68.42% | 11,357 | 31.30% | 66 | 0.18% | 18 | 0.05% | 17 | 0.05% | 13,464 | 37.12% | 36,279 |
| Wyoming | 5,379 | 48.48% | 5,691 | 51.29% | 10 | 0.09% | 15 | 0.14% | 0 | 0.00% | -312 | -2.81% | 11,095 |
| Total | 405,483 | 55.11% | 328,125 | 44.60% | 996 | 0.14% | 645 | 0.09% | 493 | 0.07% | 77,358 | 10.51% | 735,742 |
Reagan's best county was theUnionist and ancestrally RepublicanGrant County, where no Democrat has ever reached forty percent and which gave Reagan over eighty percent of its ballots. His strongest performances, in general, were in the northeast of the state, where, along with strong support from Grant and likewise unionist and ancestrally RepublicanMorgan County, he also did well inHampshire andHardy Counties, which had begun to transition from typically Democratic to typically Republican in1968; and along the middle portion of West Virginia's river border with Ohio. Both were typically Republican-leaning regions within what was otherwise an overall Democratic state at the time. Republicans did not win West Virginia again in a presidential race until 2000, after which the state has always gone Republican. West Virginia was one of five states, alongsideGeorgia,Hawaii,Maryland andRhode Island, that Reagan lost in1980 but won in 1984.
State and district results of the1984 United States presidential election | ||
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