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65Democratic National Convention delegates (56 pledged, 9 unpledged) | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Apresidential primary was held in theU.S. state ofAlabama on March 8, 1988, to elect delegates representing Alabama to the1988 Democratic National Convention. Alabama was allocated sixty-five delegates, fifty-six of which were pledged. Thirty-seven delegates were elected fromthe seven congressional districts and the remaining nineteen were chosen by the State Democratic Executive Committee to reflect candidates' statewide vote totals. Nine delegates were unpledged delegates, or "superdelegates," made up of five party officers and four congressmen.[1]
Jesse Jackson ofSouth Carolina won more statewide votes thanAl Gore ofTennessee, but both took the same number of delegates, twenty-eight, to the Convention, due to Gore's strength in the state's congressional districts.[2] Later in the campaign, Gore withdrew his bid for the nomination and released his delegates while urging them to supportMassachusetts governorMichael Dukakis. Dukakis won the support of every superdelegate and Gore delegate, and at the Convention, Alabama cast thirty-seven votes for Dukakis to Jackson's twenty-eight.[3]
| Candidate | Popular vote[4] | Delegates | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| # | % | Pledged | Unpledged | Total | |
| Jesse Jackson | 176,764 | 43.56% | 28 | 0 | |
| Al Gore | 151,739 | 37.39% | 28 | 0 | |
| Michael Dukakis | 31,206 | 7.69% | 0 | 0 | |
| Dick Gephardt | 30,214 | 7.44% | 0 | 0 | |
| Gary Hart | 7,518 | 1.85% | 0 | 0 | |
| Paul Simon | 3,063 | 0.75% | 0 | 0 | |
| Bruce Babbitt | 2,410 | 0.59% | 0 | 0 | |
| Lyndon LaRouche | 845 | 0.21% | 0 | 0 | |
| Uncommitted | 2,072 | 0.51% | 0 | 0 | |
| Total | 405,831 | 100.00% | 56 | 9 | 65 |
| District | Al Gore | Jesse Jackson | Total |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1st | 2 | 3 | 5 |
| 2nd | 2 | 3 | 5 |
| 3rd | 2 | 3 | 5 |
| 4th | 6 | 0 | 6 |
| 5th | 4 | 1 | 5 |
| 6th | 1 | 4 | 5 |
| 7th | 2 | 4 | 6 |
| CD total | 19 | 18 | 37 |
| At-large | 9 | 10 | 19 |
| Total | 28 | 28 | 56 |
| Source:Associated Press[5] | |||