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 Parish Results Bryan 50–60% 60–70% 70–80% 80–90% 90–100%
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The1908 United States presidential election in Louisiana took place on November 3, 1908. All contemporary 46 states were part of the1908 United States presidential election. State voters chose nine electors to theElectoral College, which selected thepresident andvice president.
Following the passage of a new constitution in 1898, Louisiana became a one-party state dominated by the Democratic Party. The Republican Party became moribund due to thedisenfranchisement of blacks and the complete absence of other support bases as Louisiana completely lacked upland or German refugee whitesopposed to secession.[1] Despite this absolute single-party dominance, non-partisan tendencies remained strong among wealthy sugar planters inAcadiana, within the business elite of New Orleans,[2] and even amongst the“lily-white” faction of the moribund state GOP that supported black disenfranchisement in the effort to become respectable amongst the white elite.[3]
Following disfranchisement, the state's politics became dominated by the Choctaw Club of Louisiana, generally called the “Old Regulars”. This political machine was based in New Orleans and united withBlack Beltcotton planters.[4] Although white Republicans continued to work towards taking over Federal patronage from the“black and tans”, throughout most of the 1900s Louisiana politics was under firm Choctaw control as the Populist movement weakened with the disenfranchisement of manypoor whites via the poll tax.[3]
Louisiana was won by theDemocratic nominees, former RepresentativeWilliam Jennings Bryan ofNebraska and his running mateJohn W. Kern ofIndiana. They defeated theRepublican candidates,United States Secretary of WarWilliam Howard Taft ofOhio and his running mateJames S. Sherman ofNew York. Bryan won the state by a landslide margin of 72.7%.
With 84.63 percent of the popular vote, Louisiana would also prove to be Bryan's third strongest victory in terms of percentage in the popular vote only afterSouth Carolina andMississippi.[5]
Bryan had previously defeatedWilliam McKinley in Louisiana in both1896 and1900.
| 1908 United States presidential election in Louisiana[6] | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Party | Candidate | Votes | Percentage | Electoral votes | |
| Democratic | William Jennings Bryan | 63,568 | 84.63% | 9 | |
| Republican | William Howard Taft | 8,958 | 11.93% | 0 | |
| Socialist | Eugene V. Debs | 2,514 | 3.35% | 0 | |
| Independent | Thomas L. Hisgen | 77 | 0.10% | 0 | |
| Totals | 75,117 | 100.00% | 9 | ||
| Voter turnout | — | ||||
| Parish | William Jennings Bryan Democratic | William Howard Taft Republican | Eugene Victor Debs Socialist | Thomas Louis Hisgen Independent | Margin | Total votes cast | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| # | % | # | % | # | % | # | % | # | % | ||
| Acadia | 1,017 | 74.07% | 214 | 15.59% | 141 | 10.27% | 1 | 0.07% | 803 | 58.49% | 1,373 |
| Ascension | 551 | 82.61% | 107 | 16.04% | 9 | 1.35% | 0 | 0.00% | 444 | 66.57% | 667 |
| Assumption | 511 | 71.97% | 198 | 27.89% | 1 | 0.14% | 0 | 0.00% | 313 | 44.08% | 710 |
| Avoyelles | 1,240 | 94.87% | 50 | 3.83% | 16 | 1.22% | 1 | 0.08% | 1,190 | 91.05% | 1,307 |
| Bienville | 926 | 82.38% | 65 | 5.78% | 131 | 11.65% | 2 | 0.18% | 795[a] | 70.73% | 1,124 |
| Bossier | 470 | 96.51% | 8 | 1.64% | 9 | 1.85% | 0 | 0.00% | 461[a] | 94.66% | 487 |
| Caddo | 1,733 | 91.26% | 125 | 6.58% | 40 | 2.11% | 1 | 0.05% | 1,608 | 84.68% | 1,899 |
| Calcasieu | 1,975 | 69.35% | 683 | 23.98% | 185 | 6.50% | 5 | 0.18% | 1,292 | 45.37% | 2,848 |
| Caldwell | 314 | 79.70% | 21 | 5.33% | 58 | 14.72% | 1 | 0.25% | 256[a] | 64.98% | 394 |
| Cameron | 280 | 94.28% | 15 | 5.05% | 2 | 0.67% | 0 | 0.00% | 265 | 89.23% | 297 |
| Catahoula | 660 | 76.48% | 88 | 10.20% | 114 | 13.21% | 1 | 0.12% | 546[a] | 63.27% | 863 |
| Claiborne | 874 | 93.28% | 38 | 4.06% | 24 | 2.56% | 1 | 0.11% | 836 | 89.22% | 937 |
| Concordia | 288 | 95.05% | 4 | 1.32% | 11 | 3.63% | 0 | 0.00% | 277[a] | 91.42% | 303 |
| De Soto | 881 | 93.72% | 17 | 1.81% | 41 | 4.36% | 1 | 0.11% | 840[a] | 89.36% | 940 |
| East Baton Rouge | 1,090 | 91.29% | 83 | 6.95% | 20 | 1.68% | 1 | 0.08% | 1,007 | 84.34% | 1,194 |
| East Carroll | 194 | 96.52% | 6 | 2.99% | 1 | 0.50% | 0 | 0.00% | 188 | 93.53% | 201 |
| East Feliciana | 589 | 97.68% | 12 | 1.99% | 2 | 0.33% | 0 | 0.00% | 577 | 95.69% | 603 |
| Franklin | 456 | 94.41% | 15 | 3.11% | 12 | 2.48% | 0 | 0.00% | 441 | 91.30% | 483 |
| Grant | 388 | 73.90% | 83 | 15.81% | 52 | 9.90% | 2 | 0.38% | 305 | 58.10% | 525 |
| Iberia | 820 | 68.33% | 328 | 27.33% | 52 | 4.33% | 0 | 0.00% | 492 | 41.00% | 1,200 |
| Iberville | 500 | 91.91% | 44 | 8.09% | 0 | 0.00% | 0 | 0.00% | 456 | 83.82% | 544 |
| Jackson | 493 | 78.88% | 77 | 12.32% | 51 | 8.16% | 4 | 0.64% | 416 | 66.56% | 625 |
| Jefferson | 1,122 | 97.40% | 30 | 2.60% | 0 | 0.00% | 0 | 0.00% | 1,092 | 94.79% | 1,152 |
| Lafayette | 725 | 74.28% | 128 | 13.11% | 121 | 12.40% | 2 | 0.20% | 597 | 61.17% | 976 |
| Lafourche | 1,072 | 78.08% | 296 | 21.56% | 5 | 0.36% | 0 | 0.00% | 776 | 56.52% | 1,373 |
| Lincoln | 634 | 89.04% | 52 | 7.30% | 26 | 3.65% | 0 | 0.00% | 582 | 81.74% | 712 |
| Livingston | 448 | 90.14% | 19 | 3.82% | 30 | 6.04% | 0 | 0.00% | 418[a] | 84.10% | 497 |
| Madison | 156 | 96.30% | 6 | 3.70% | 0 | 0.00% | 0 | 0.00% | 150 | 92.59% | 162 |
| Morehouse | 458 | 92.15% | 20 | 4.02% | 19 | 3.82% | 0 | 0.00% | 438 | 88.13% | 497 |
| Natchitoches | 792 | 81.06% | 143 | 14.64% | 42 | 4.30% | 0 | 0.00% | 649 | 66.43% | 977 |
| Orleans | 25,678 | 87.77% | 3,288 | 11.24% | 253 | 0.86% | 36 | 0.12% | 22,390 | 76.53% | 29,255 |
| Ouachita | 851 | 90.53% | 60 | 6.38% | 27 | 2.87% | 2 | 0.21% | 791 | 84.15% | 940 |
| Plaquemines | 416 | 74.55% | 127 | 22.76% | 15 | 2.69% | 0 | 0.00% | 289 | 51.79% | 558 |
| Pointe Coupee | 653 | 96.60% | 23 | 3.40% | 0 | 0.00% | 0 | 0.00% | 630 | 93.20% | 676 |
| Rapides | 1,302 | 86.68% | 159 | 10.59% | 40 | 2.66% | 1 | 0.07% | 1,143 | 76.10% | 1,502 |
| Red River | 386 | 83.19% | 6 | 1.29% | 72 | 15.52% | 0 | 0.00% | 314[a] | 67.67% | 464 |
| Richland | 445 | 98.02% | 9 | 1.98% | 0 | 0.00% | 0 | 0.00% | 436 | 96.04% | 454 |
| Sabine | 593 | 87.46% | 47 | 6.93% | 38 | 5.60% | 0 | 0.00% | 546 | 80.53% | 678 |
| Saint Bernard | 356 | 95.19% | 18 | 4.81% | 0 | 0.00% | 0 | 0.00% | 338 | 90.37% | 374 |
| Saint Charles | 215 | 90.72% | 22 | 9.28% | 0 | 0.00% | 0 | 0.00% | 193 | 81.43% | 237 |
| Saint Helena | 281 | 88.92% | 34 | 10.76% | 1 | 0.32% | 0 | 0.00% | 247 | 78.16% | 316 |
| Saint James | 364 | 73.24% | 123 | 24.75% | 8 | 1.61% | 2 | 0.40% | 241 | 48.49% | 497 |
| Saint John the Baptist | 287 | 89.13% | 33 | 10.25% | 2 | 0.62% | 0 | 0.00% | 254 | 78.88% | 322 |
| Saint Landry | 1,395 | 84.60% | 238 | 14.43% | 14 | 0.85% | 2 | 0.12% | 1,157 | 70.16% | 1,649 |
| Saint Martin | 651 | 91.95% | 39 | 5.51% | 18 | 2.54% | 0 | 0.00% | 612 | 86.44% | 708 |
| Saint Mary | 767 | 71.68% | 273 | 25.51% | 27 | 2.52% | 3 | 0.28% | 494 | 46.17% | 1,070 |
| Saint Tammany | 755 | 80.58% | 107 | 11.42% | 73 | 7.79% | 2 | 0.21% | 648 | 69.16% | 937 |
| Tangipahoa | 1,116 | 80.64% | 240 | 17.34% | 27 | 1.95% | 1 | 0.07% | 876 | 63.29% | 1,384 |
| Tensas | 300 | 97.72% | 7 | 2.28% | 0 | 0.00% | 0 | 0.00% | 293 | 95.44% | 307 |
| Terrebonne | 634 | 62.59% | 372 | 36.72% | 7 | 0.69% | 0 | 0.00% | 262 | 25.86% | 1,013 |
| Union | 634 | 89.17% | 53 | 7.45% | 24 | 3.38% | 0 | 0.00% | 581 | 81.72% | 711 |
| Vermilion | 547 | 72.64% | 156 | 20.72% | 50 | 6.64% | 0 | 0.00% | 391 | 51.93% | 753 |
| Vernon | 618 | 54.21% | 273 | 23.95% | 241 | 21.14% | 8 | 0.70% | 345 | 30.26% | 1,140 |
| Washington | 550 | 91.51% | 49 | 8.15% | 1 | 0.17% | 1 | 0.17% | 501 | 83.36% | 601 |
| Webster | 853 | 85.73% | 32 | 3.22% | 109 | 10.95% | 1 | 0.10% | 744[a] | 74.78% | 995 |
| West Baton Rouge | 198 | 95.65% | 9 | 4.35% | 0 | 0.00% | 0 | 0.00% | 189 | 91.30% | 207 |
| West Carroll | 189 | 76.83% | 11 | 4.47% | 46 | 18.70% | 0 | 0.00% | 143[a] | 58.13% | 246 |
| West Feliciana | 350 | 94.09% | 22 | 5.91% | 0 | 0.00% | 0 | 0.00% | 328 | 88.17% | 372 |
| Winn | 527 | 59.48% | 153 | 17.27% | 206 | 23.25% | 0 | 0.00% | 321[a] | 36.23% | 886 |
| Totals | 63,568 | 84.62% | 8,958 | 11.92% | 2,514 | 3.35% | 82 | 0.11% | 54,610 | 72.70% | 75,122 |
State and district results of the1908 United States presidential election | ||
|---|---|---|
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