1952 United States presidential election in Wisconsin explained

See main article: article and 1952 United States presidential election.

Election Name:	1952 United States presidential election in Wisconsin
Country:	Wisconsin
Flag Year:	1913
Type:	presidential
Ongoing:	no
Previous Election:	1948 United States presidential election in Wisconsin
Previous Year:	1948
Next Election:	1956 United States presidential election in Wisconsin
Next Year:	1956
Election Date:	November 4, 1952
Image1:	Dwight David Eisenhower 1952 crop.jpg
Nominee1:	Dwight D. Eisenhower
Party1:	Republican Party (United States)
Home State1:	New York^[1]
Running Mate1:	Richard Nixon
Electoral Vote1:	12
Popular Vote1:	979,744
Percentage1:	60.95%
Nominee2:	Adlai Stevenson
Party2:	Democratic Party (United States)
Home State2:	Illinois
Running Mate2:	John Sparkman
Electoral Vote2:	0
Popular Vote2:	622,175
Percentage2:	38.71%
Map Size:	315px
President
Before Election:	Harry S. Truman
Before Party:	Democratic Party (United States)
After Election:	Dwight D. Eisenhower
After Party:	Republican Party (United States)

The 1952 United States presidential election in Wisconsin was held on November 4, 1952 as part of the 1952 United States presidential election. State voters chose 12 electors to the Electoral College, who voted for president and vice president.

Politics in Wisconsin since the Populist movement had been dominated by the Republican Party.^[2] The Democratic Party became uncompetitive away from the Laue Michigan coast as the upper classes, along with the majority of workers who followed them, fled from William Jennings Bryan's agrarian and free silver sympathies.^[3] Although the state did develop a strong Socialist Party to provide opposition to the GOP, Wisconsin developed the direct Republican primary in 1903 and this ultimately created competition between the "League" under Robert M. La Follette, and the conservative "Regular" faction.^[4] This ultimately would develop into the Wisconsin Progressive Party in the late 1930s, which was opposed to the conservative German Democrats and to the national Republican Party, and allied with Franklin D. Roosevelt at the federal level.

During the two wartime elections, the formerly Democratic German counties in the east of the state – which had been powerfully opposed to the Civil War because they saw it as a "Yankee" war and opposed the military draft instituted during it^[5] – viewed Communism as a much greater threat to America than Nazism and consequently opposed President Roosevelt's war effort.^[6] Consequently, these historically Democratic counties became virtually the most Republican in the entire state, and with the fall of the Progressive Party that had provided the main opposition to the Republicans in the 1930s, the state sent an all-Republican congressional delegation to the 80th Congress for the first time since the 71st, and Democratic representation in the state legislature reached the lowest level since that same date, although it improved to a quarter of the state House in 1950.

During the second term of now-unpopular President Truman, populist conservative Wisconsin Senator Joe McCarthy became notorious for his investigations into Communists inside the American government. It was thought that he would be a hindrance both to Democratic nominee Adlai Stevenson II, and to Republican nominee Dwight D. Eisenhower.^[7] Stevenson would call for McCarthy's defeat during his campaign in the state because he thought Eisenhower was using unfair political tactics,^[8] that Eisenhower was a "scaremonger",^[9] and that the Republican Party was the "Same Old Political Hokum".^[10]

Polls in the state during the third week of October showed that most voters were for Eisenhower, although it was thought Stevenson was gaining.^[11] The poll however said that if Stevenson was to carry Wisconsin he would be required to win over a large majority of undecided voters.^[11] The probability of Stevenson achieving this was made more remote by a poll near the end of October that showed him trailing Eisenhower amongst Wisconsin's farmers by a two-to-one margin.^[12]

Results

1952 United States presidential election in Wisconsin^[13] ^[14]
Party		Candidate	Votes	Percentage	Electoral votes
	Republican	Dwight D. Eisenhower	979,744	60.95%	12
	Democratic	Adlai Stevenson	622,175	38.71%	0
	Independent Progressive	Vincent Hallinan	2,174	0.14%	0
	Independent Socialist Workers	Farrell Dobbs	1,350	0.08%	0
	Independent Socialist	Darlington Hoopes	1,157	0.07%	0
	Independent Socialist Labor	Eric Hass	770	0.05%	0
Totals			1,607,370	100.00%	12

Results by county

County	Dwight D. Eisenhower Republican		Adlai Stevenson Democratic		All Others Various		Margin		Total votes cast
		%		%		%		%
	Adams		2,259		65.35%		1,180		34.13%		18		0.52%		1,079		31.22%		3,457
	Ashland		4,451		53.50%		3,828		46.01%		41		0.49%		623		7.49%		8,320
	Barron		10,013		66.84%		4,902		32.72%		66		0.44%		5,111		34.12%		14,981
	Bayfield		3,419		55.98%		2,616		42.84%		72		1.18%		803		13.14%		6,107
	Brown		30,400		67.80%		14,342		31.99%		94		0.21%		16,058		35.81%		44,836
	Buffalo		4,233		67.92%		1,988		31.90%		11		0.18%		2,245		36.02%		6,232
	Burnett		2,683		60.43%		1,741		39.21%		16		0.36%		942		21.22%		4,440
	Calumet		6,640		77.07%		1,970		22.87%		5		0.06%		4,670		54.20%		8,615
	Chippewa		11,429		64.01%		6,380		35.73%		45		0.25%		5,049		28.28%		17,854
	Clark		9,406		71.71%		3,652		27.84%		58		0.44%		5,754		43.87%		13,116
	Columbia		11,133		67.78%		5,272		32.10%		20		0.12%		5,861		35.68%		16,425
	Crawford		5,323		70.15%		2,256		29.73%		9		0.12%		3,067		40.42%		7,588
	Dane		38,724		50.34%		37,987		49.38%		216		0.28%		737		0.96%		76,927
	Dodge		19,298		73.28%		7,001		26.58%		37		0.14%		12,297		46.70%		26,336
	Door		7,621		80.82%		1,790		18.98%		19		0.20%		5,831		61.84%		9,430
	Douglas		9,677		45.40%		11,538		54.14%		98		0.46%		-1,861		-8.74%		21,313
	Dunn		7,475		67.38%		3,593		32.39%		26		0.23%		3,882		34.99%		11,094
	Eau Claire		14,069		59.47%		9,554		40.38%		35		0.15%		4,515		19.09%		23,658
	Florence		1,147		58.43%		809		41.21%		7		0.36%		338		17.22%		1,963
	Fond du Lac		22,794		74.43%		7,724		25.22%		107		0.35%		15,070		49.21%		30,625
	Forest		1,990		52.47%		1,791		47.22%		12		0.32%		199		5.25%		3,793
	Grant		14,327		77.21%		4,197		22.62%		32		0.17%		10,130		54.59%		18,556
	Green		7,949		70.46%		3,326		29.48%		6		0.05%		4,623		40.98%		11,281
	Green Lake		6,117		79.27%		1,590		20.60%		10		0.13%		4,527		58.67%		7,717
	Iowa		6,211		69.38%		2,722		30.41%		19		0.21%		3,489		38.97%		8,952
	Iron		1,733		39.24%		2,662		60.28%		21		0.48%		-929		-21.04%		4,416
	Jackson		4,235		59.89%		2,819		39.87%		17		0.24%		1,416		20.02%		7,071
	Jefferson		13,884		66.93%		6,827		32.91%		32		0.15%		7,057		34.02%		20,743
	Juneau		5,978		73.22%		2,163		26.49%		23		0.28%		3,815		46.73%		8,164
	Kenosha		18,917		48.72%		19,768		50.91%		142		0.37%		-851		-2.19%		38,827
	Kewaunee		6,482		76.42%		1,972		23.25%		28		0.33%		4,510		53.17%		8,482
	La Crosse		19,271		61.90%		11,808		37.93%		53		0.17%		7,463		23.97%		31,132
	Lafayette		5,731		66.23%		2,905		33.57%		17		0.20%		2,826		32.66%		8,653
	Langlade		5,841		63.02%		3,371		36.37%		57		0.61%		2,470		26.65%		9,269
	Lincoln		6,877		68.72%		3,092		30.90%		38		0.38%		3,785		37.82%		10,007
	Manitowoc		18,950		61.32%		11,879		38.44%		72		0.23%		7,071		22.88%		30,901
	Marathon		20,702		58.52%		14,541		41.11%		130		0.37%		6,161		17.41%		35,373
	Marinette		9,313		61.73%		5,727		37.96%		47		0.31%		3,586		23.77%		15,087
	Marquette		3,379		80.11%		835		19.80%		4		0.09%		2,544		60.31%		4,218
	Milwaukee		219,477		51.52%		204,474		48.00%		2,055		0.48%		15,003		3.52%		426,006
	Monroe		8,744		69.98%		3,717		29.75%		34		0.27%		5,027		40.23%		12,495
	Oconto		7,807		69.58%		3,382		30.14%		31		0.28%		4,425		39.44%		11,220
	Oneida		6,224		61.86%		3,808		37.85%		30		0.30%		2,416		24.01%		10,062
	Outagamie		26,603		73.86%		9,373		26.02%		44		0.12%		17,230		47.84%		36,020
	Ozaukee		8,665		66.97%		4,241		32.78%		33		0.26%		4,424		34.19%		12,939
	Pepin		2,348		72.14%		896		27.53%		11		0.34%		1,452		44.61%		3,255
	Pierce		6,763		67.49%		3,241		32.34%		17		0.17%		3,522		35.15%		10,021
	Polk		6,966		61.74%		4,274		37.88%		42		0.37%		2,692		23.86%		11,282
	Portage		8,499		52.83%		7,537		46.85%		51		0.32%		962		5.98%		16,087
	Price		4,376		58.42%		3,048		40.69%		67		0.89%		1,328		17.73%		7,491
	Racine		30,628		54.65%		25,241		45.03%		180		0.32%		5,387		9.62%		56,049
	Richland		6,605		74.42%		2,260		25.46%		10		0.11%		4,345		48.96%		8,875
	Rock		27,837		64.64%		15,183		35.26%		45		0.10%		12,654		29.38%		43,065
	Rusk		4,134		59.36%		2,777		39.88%		53		0.76%		1,357		19.48%		6,964
	Sauk		12,347		69.89%		5,267		29.81%		52		0.29%		7,080		40.08%		17,666
	Sawyer		3,146		67.02%		1,527		32.53%		21		0.45%		1,619		34.49%		4,694
	Shawano		11,131		76.76%		3,334		22.99%		36		0.25%		7,797		53.77%		14,501
	Sheboygan		22,084		59.00%		15,136		40.44%		212		0.57%		6,948		18.56%		37,432
	St. Croix		7,607		59.78%		5,094		40.03%		25		0.20%		2,513		19.75%		12,726
	Taylor		4,892		63.45%		2,768		35.90%		50		0.65%		2,124		27.55%		7,710
	Trempealeau		6,501		61.63%		4,021		38.12%		26		0.25%		2,480		23.51%		10,548
	Vernon		7,619		65.33%		4,032		34.57%		12		0.10%		3,587		30.76%		11,663
	Vilas		3,687		70.85%		1,497		28.77%		20		0.38%		2,190		42.08%		5,204
	Walworth		16,906		75.57%		5,417		24.21%		49		0.22%		11,489		51.36%		22,372
	Washburn		3,184		60.80%		2,039		38.93%		14		0.27%		1,145		21.87%		5,237
	Washington		12,626		73.84%		4,440		25.96%		34		0.20%		8,186		47.88%		17,100
	Waukesha		30,238		65.58%		15,756		34.17%		117		0.25%		14,482		31.41%		46,111
	Waupaca		13,693		81.38%		3,105		18.45%		28		0.17%		10,588		62.93%		16,826
	Waushara		5,447		81.14%		1,242		18.50%		24		0.36%		4,205		62.64%		6,713
	Winnebago		28,172		68.17%		13,016		31.49%		140		0.34%		15,156		36.68%		41,328
	Wood		14,707		67.62%		6,914		31.79%		128		0.59%		7,793		35.83%		21,749
Totals	979,744	60.95%	622,175	38.71%	5,451	0.34%	357,569	22.24%	1,607,370

Counties that flipped from Democratic to Republican

• Adams
• Ashland
• Barron
• Bayfield
• Brown
• Buffalo
• Burnett
• Chippewa
• Crawford
• Dane
• Dunn
• Eau Claire
• Florence
• Forest
• Iowa
• Jackson
• La Crosse
• Lafayette
• Langlade
• Manitowoc
• Marathon
• Marinette
• Milwaukee
• Oneida
• Pepin
• Pierce
• Polk
• Portage
• Price
• Racine
• Rusk
• Sheboygan
• St. Croix
• Taylor
• Trempealeau
• Vernon
• Washburn

Electors

These were the names of the electors on each ticket.^[13]

Analysis

As it turned out, Eisenhower nearly matched the poll of farmers a week before the election, carrying Wisconsin by 22.25 points for the best Republican performance in the state since Warren G. Harding carried the state in 1920. Eisenhower carried all but three counties – Kenosha in the urban far south and the two Scandinavian unionized mining and industrial counties of Douglas and Iron. His large victory was due to the unpopularity of the Korean War in a traditionally isolationist state,^[15] to the ongoing fear of Communist subversion in those German Catholic regions that had turned against the Democrats during the 1940s, and to solid traditional Yankee support in the southern interior. Eisenhower was also the first Republican since Warren G. Harding in 1920 to win Portage County.

See also

• United States presidential elections in Wisconsin

Notes and References

1. Web site: U.S. presidential election, 1952 . Facts on File . October 24, 2013 . Eisenhower, born in Texas, considered a resident of New York, and headquartered at the time in Paris, finally decided to run for the Republican nomination . https://web.archive.org/web/20131029195323/http://www.fofweb.com/History/HistRefMain.asp?iPin=EAPPE0334&SID=2&DatabaseName=American+History+Online&InputText=%22presidential+election+1952%22&SearchStyle=&dTitle=U.S.+presidential+election%2C+1952&TabRecordType=Subject+Entry&BioCountPass=0&SubCountPass=1&DocCountPass=0&ImgCountPass=0&MapCountPass=0&FedCountPass=&MedCountPass=0&NewsCountPass=0&RecPosition=1&AmericanData=Set . October 29, 2013 . dead .
2. Burnham, Walter Dean; 'The System of 1896: An Analysis'; in The Evolution of American Electoral Systems, pp. 178-179
3. Sundquist, James; Politics and Policy: The Eisenhower, Kennedy, and Johnson Years, p. 526
4. 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. 165-168
5. [Kevin Phillips (political commentator)|Phillips, Kevin P.]
6. Phillips; The Emerging Republican Majority, pp. 387-388
7. Phillips, Cabell; 'M'Carthy POSPoses Problems for Both Parties: His Wisconsin Sweep Will Embarrass Eisenhower, Aid Foes of Stevenson'; The New York Times September 14, 1953, p. E3
8. Reston, James; 'Stevenson Scores Rival on M'Carthy in Wisconsin Talks: Calls for Defeat of Senator, Sees Eisenhower's Support Showing Lack of "Backbone"'; The New York Times, October 9, 1952, p. 1
9. Folliard, Edward T.; 'Adlai Calls Eisenhower Scaremonger On Red Issue: McCarthy Hasn't Caught a Communist, Governor Declares; Jibes at Hecklers Stevenson Goes After Eisenhower, McCarthy'; The Washington Post, October 8, 1952, p. 1
10. 'Text of Governor Stevenson's Talks at Madison and Milwaukee: Governor Criticizes G. O. P. Program as "Same Old Political Hokum"'; The New York Times, October 9, 1952, p. 26
11. Hagerty, James A.; 'Survey Sees Stevenson Gain With Outcome Still Uncertain: Nation-Wide'; The New York Times October 20, 1952, p. 1
12. 'Wisconsin Farm Poll Favors Eisenhower'; Special to The New York Times, October 29, 1952, p. 23
13. Wisconsin Historical Society, Statement of Board of State Canvassers for President, Vice President and Presidential Electors - General Election - 1952
14. Book: The Wisconsin Blue Book 1954. Wisconsin Legislative Reference Library. Vote For President And Vice President By Counties. Madison, Wisconsin. 752.
15. Phillips; The Emerging Republican Majority, p. 167