| Election Name: | 1908 Washington gubernatorial election |
| Country: | Washington |
| Type: | Presidential |
| Ongoing: | no |
| Previous Election: | 1904 Washington gubernatorial election |
| Previous Year: | 1904 |
| Next Election: | 1912 Washington gubernatorial election |
| Next Year: | 1912 |
| Election Date: | November 3, 1908 |
| Nominee1: | Samuel G. Cosgrove |
| Party1: | Republican Party (United States) |
| Popular Vote1: | 110,190 |
| Percentage1: | 62.56% |
| Nominee2: | John Pattison |
| Party2: | Democratic Party (United States) |
| Popular Vote2: | 58,126 |
| Percentage2: | 33.00% |
| Map Size: | 275px |
| Governor | |
| Before Election: | Albert E. Mead |
| Before Party: | Republican Party (United States) |
| After Election: | Samuel G. Cosgrove |
| After Party: | Republican Party (United States) |
The 1908 Washington gubernatorial election was held on November 3, 1908. Republican nominee Samuel G. Cosgrove defeated Democratic nominee John Pattison with 62.56% of the vote.
Primary elections were held on September 8, 1908.[1] When Washington began using primary elections to nominate candidates, it used a form of ranked-choice voting although the original method was quite different from the modern understanding of RCV. If four or more candidates registered for a party's nomination for a particular office, voters in the primary were to make a first choice and second choice among the candidates. If a candidate received more than 40% of the first choice votes, he was declared the winner. Otherwise, the second choice votes were added to the first choice votes for all candidates and whoever had the highest number of combined votes was declared the winner, even if that was not a majority.[2]
Since no candidate received more than 40% of the first choice votes, the second choice votes were counted.
Since no candidate received more than 40% of the first choice votes, the second choice votes were counted.
Major party candidates
Other candidates
| County | Samuel G. Cosgrove Republican | John Pattison Democratic | George Boomer Socialist | Arthur S. Caton Prohibition | Margin | Total votes cast | |||||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| % | % | % | % | % | |||||||||||||||||||
| Adams | 1,033 | 56.98% | 750 | 41.37% | 0 | 0.00% | 30 | 1.65% | 283 | 15.61% | 1,813 | ||||||||||||
| Asotin | 693 | 65.07% | 338 | 31.74% | 12 | 1.13% | 22 | 2.07% | 355 | 33.33% | 1,065 | ||||||||||||
| Benton | 913 | 60.54% | 479 | 31.76% | 94 | 6.23% | 22 | 1.46% | 434 | 28.78% | 1,508 | ||||||||||||
| Chehalis | 3,422 | 69.54% | 1,186 | 24.10% | 266 | 5.41% | 47 | 0.96% | 2,236 | 45.44% | 4,921 | ||||||||||||
| Chelan | 1,776 | 66.57% | 851 | 31.90% | 0 | 0.00% | 41 | 1.54% | 925 | 34.67% | 2,668 | ||||||||||||
| Clallam | 987 | 67.70% | 459 | 31.48% | 0 | 0.00% | 12 | 0.82% | 528 | 36.21% | 1,458 | ||||||||||||
| Clark | 2,555 | 65.00% | 1,136 | 28.90% | 169 | 4.30% | 71 | 1.81% | 1,419 | 36.10% | 3,931 | ||||||||||||
| Columbia | 872 | 56.92% | 632 | 41.25% | 0 | 0.00% | 28 | 1.83% | 240 | 15.67% | 1,532 | ||||||||||||
| Cowlitz | 1,619 | 70.15% | 623 | 26.99% | 37 | 1.60% | 29 | 1.26% | 996 | 43.15% | 2,308 | ||||||||||||
| Douglas | 2,017 | 56.04% | 1,559 | 43.32% | 0 | 0.00% | 23 | 0.64% | 458 | 12.73% | 3,599 | ||||||||||||
| Ferry | 512 | 55.77% | 402 | 43.79% | 0 | 0.00% | 4 | 0.44% | 110 | 11.98% | 918 | ||||||||||||
| Franklin | 688 | 58.21% | 470 | 39.76% | 7 | 0.59% | 17 | 1.44% | 218 | 18.44% | 1,182 | ||||||||||||
| Garfield | 601 | 61.20% | 354 | 36.05% | 17 | 1.73% | 10 | 1.02% | 247 | 25.15% | 982 | ||||||||||||
| Island | 505 | 67.88% | 157 | 21.10% | 67 | 9.01% | 15 | 2.02% | 348 | 46.77% | 744 | ||||||||||||
| Jefferson | 885 | 67.87% | 392 | 30.06% | 19 | 1.46% | 8 | 0.61% | 493 | 37.81% | 1,304 | ||||||||||||
| King | 23,632 | 61.95% | 13,939 | 36.54% | 0 | 0.00% | 574 | 1.50% | 9,693 | 25.41% | 38,145 | ||||||||||||
| Kitsap | 1,987 | 64.33% | 751 | 24.31% | 297 | 9.61% | 54 | 1.75% | 1,236 | 40.01% | 3,089 | ||||||||||||
| Kittitas | 1,772 | 62.73% | 1,002 | 35.47% | 0 | 0.00% | 51 | 1.81% | 770 | 27.26% | 2,825 | ||||||||||||
| Klickitat | 1,328 | 69.42% | 549 | 28.70% | 0 | 0.00% | 36 | 1.88% | 779 | 40.72% | 1,913 | ||||||||||||
| Lewis | 3,214 | 63.59% | 1,472 | 29.13% | 298 | 5.90% | 70 | 1.39% | 1,742 | 34.47% | 5,054 | ||||||||||||
| Lincoln | 2,107 | 58.28% | 1,453 | 40.19% | 21 | 0.58% | 34 | 0.94% | 654 | 18.09% | 3,615 | ||||||||||||
| Mason | 587 | 63.67% | 322 | 34.92% | 0 | 0.00% | 13 | 1.41% | 265 | 28.74% | 922 | ||||||||||||
| Okanogan | 1,530 | 57.98% | 1,028 | 38.95% | 68 | 2.58% | 13 | 0.49% | 502 | 19.02% | 2,639 | ||||||||||||
| Pacific | 1,470 | 70.13% | 537 | 25.62% | 80 | 3.82% | 9 | 0.43% | 933 | 44.51% | 2,096 | ||||||||||||
| Pierce | 11,586 | 67.10% | 4,701 | 27.23% | 649 | 3.76% | 331 | 1.92% | 6,885 | 39.87% | 17,267 | ||||||||||||
| San Juan | 621 | 74.11% | 143 | 17.06% | 72 | 8.59% | 2 | 0.24% | 478 | 57.04% | 838 | ||||||||||||
| Skagit | 3,110 | 63.97% | 1,367 | 28.12% | 321 | 6.60% | 64 | 1.32% | 1,743 | 35.85% | 4,862 | ||||||||||||
| Skamania | 350 | 73.53% | 119 | 25.00% | 0 | 0.00% | 7 | 1.47% | 231 | 48.53% | 476 | ||||||||||||
| Snohomish | 5,913 | 60.45% | 2,700 | 27.60% | 573 | 5.86% | 595 | 6.08% | 3,213 | 32.85% | 9,781 | ||||||||||||
| Spokane | 11,700 | 59.82% | 6,869 | 35.12% | 597 | 3.05% | 393 | 2.01% | 4,831 | 24.70% | 19,559 | ||||||||||||
| Stevens | 2,613 | 57.48% | 1,554 | 34.18% | 292 | 6.42% | 87 | 1.91% | 1,059 | 23.30% | 4,546 | ||||||||||||
| Thurston | 2,001 | 64.22% | 985 | 31.61% | 0 | 0.00% | 130 | 4.17% | 1,016 | 32.61% | 3,116 | ||||||||||||
| Wahkiakum | 495 | 78.95% | 132 | 21.05% | 0 | 0.00% | 0 | 0.00% | 363 | 57.89% | 627 | ||||||||||||
| Walla Walla | 2,670 | 57.85% | 1,881 | 40.76% | 30 | 0.65% | 34 | 0.74% | 789 | 17.10% | 4,615 | ||||||||||||
| Whatcom | 5,341 | 66.88% | 2,273 | 28.46% | 164 | 2.05% | 208 | 2.60% | 3,068 | 38.42% | 7,986 | ||||||||||||
| Whitman | 3,053 | 49.34% | 2,946 | 47.61% | 0 | 0.00% | 189 | 3.05% | 107 | 1.73% | 6,188 | ||||||||||||
| Yakima | 4,032 | 66.66% | 1,615 | 26.70% | 161 | 2.66% | 241 | 3.98% | 2,417 | 39.96% | 6,049 | ||||||||||||
| Totals | 110,190 | 62.56% | 58,126 | 33.00% | 4,311 | 2.45% | 3,514 | 1.99% | 52,064 | 29.56% | 176,141 | ||||||||||||