| Election Name: | 1996 United States presidential election in Vermont |
| Country: | Vermont |
| Type: | presidential |
| Ongoing: | no |
| Previous Election: | 1992 United States presidential election in Vermont |
| Previous Year: | 1992 |
| Next Election: | 2000 United States presidential election in Vermont |
| Next Year: | 2000 |
| Election Date: | November 5, 1996 |
| Image1: | Bill Clinton.jpg |
| Nominee1: | Bill Clinton |
| Party1: | Democratic Party (United States) |
| Home State1: | Arkansas |
| Running Mate1: | Al Gore |
| Electoral Vote1: | 3 |
| Popular Vote1: | 137,894 |
| Percentage1: | 53.35% |
| Nominee2: | Bob Dole |
| Party2: | Republican Party (United States) |
| Home State2: | Kansas |
| Running Mate2: | Jack Kemp |
| Electoral Vote2: | 0 |
| Popular Vote2: | 80,352 |
| Percentage2: | 31.09% |
| Image3: | RossPerotColor.jpg |
| Nominee3: | Ross Perot |
| Party3: | Reform Party of the United States of America |
| Home State3: | Texas |
| Running Mate3: | Patrick Choate |
| Electoral Vote3: | 0 |
| Popular Vote3: | 31,024 |
| Percentage3: | 12.00% |
| President | |
| Before Election: | Bill Clinton |
| Before Party: | Democratic Party (United States) |
| After Election: | Bill Clinton |
| After Party: | Democratic Party (United States) |
The 1996 United States presidential election in Vermont took place on November 7, 1996, as part of the 1996 United States presidential election. Voters chose three representatives, or electors to the Electoral College, who voted for president and vice president.
Vermont was won by incumbent Democratic President Bill Clinton over Republican Senator Bob Dole of Kansas, with Clinton winning 53.35% to Dole's 31.09%, a margin of 22.26%. The Reform Party candidate, businessman Ross Perot, finished in third, with 12.00% of the popular vote.[1] Clinton won almost every municipality in the state.
Although Clinton had carried the state comfortably in 1992, prior to that point Vermont had been one of the most reliably Republican states in the nation, voting Republican in every election from 1856 to 1988 except for the 1964 nationwide Democratic landslide. However Vermont had always favored a liberal, secular, Northeastern brand of Republicanism, and by the 1990s, the Republican Party had become increasingly dominated by conservative, Southern, and Evangelical Christian interests. Consequently, Vermont trended increasingly toward the Democratic Party, and Clinton was able to win an even bigger victory in the state in 1996 than he had in 1992, again sweeping every county in the state.
Clinton's win in 1996 marked the first time in history that Vermont had voted Democratic in two consecutive presidential elections, signifying a long-term realignment of the state away from the GOP. It was also the first time since 1964 that a Democratic candidate won a majority of the popular vote (Clinton won the state four years prior, but with only a plurality of 46.11%). Since then Vermont has become regarded as one of the safest of blue states; it has remained Democratic in every election that has followed, often by landslide margins.
To date, this is the last time that the town of Morgan voted Democratic.
| 1996 United States presidential election in Vermont | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Party | Candidate | Running mate | Votes | Percentage | Electoral votes | ||
| Democratic | Bill Clinton (incumbent) | Al Gore (incumbent) | 137,894 | 53.35% | 3 | ||
| Republican | Robert Dole | Jack Kemp | 80,352 | 31.09% | 0 | ||
| Reform | Ross Perot | Patrick Choate | 31,024 | 12.00% | 0 | ||
| Green Coalition | Ralph Nader | Anne Goeke | 5,585 | 2.16% | 0 | ||
| Libertarian | Harry Browne | Jo Jorgensen | 1,183 | 0.46% | 0 | ||
| No party | Write-in | 560 | 0.22% | 0 | |||
| Natural Law | Dr. John Hagelin | Dr. V. Tompkins | 498 | 0.19% | 0 | ||
| Grassroots | Dennis Peron | Arlin Troutt Jr. | 480 | 0.19% | 0 | ||
| U.S. Taxpayers' Party | Howard Phillips | Albion W. Knight Jr.[2] | 382 | 0.15% | 0 | ||
| Liberty Union | Mary Cal Hollis | Eric Chester | 292 | 0.11% | 0 | ||
| Socialist Workers Party | James Harris | Laura Garza | 199 | 0.08% | 0 | ||
| County | Bill Clinton[3] Democratic | Bob Dole Republican | Ross Perot Reform | Ralph Nader Green | Various candidates Other parties | Margin | Total votes cast | ||||||||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| data-sort-type="number" | data-sort-type="number" | % | data-sort-type="number" | data-sort-type="number" | % | data-sort-type="number" | data-sort-type="number" | % | data-sort-type="number" | data-sort-type="number" | % | data-sort-type="number" | data-sort-type="number" | % | data-sort-type="number" | data-sort-type="number" | % | ||||||||||
| Addison | 8,164 | 52.83% | 4,798 | 31.05% | 1,808 | 11.70% | 402 | 2.60% | 281 | 1.82% | 3,366 | 21.78% | 15,453 | ||||||||||||||
| Bennington | 8,139 | 50.39% | 5,229 | 32.37% | 2,278 | 14.10% | 357 | 2.21% | 149 | 0.92% | 2,910 | 18.02% | 16,152 | ||||||||||||||
| Caledonia | 5,593 | 47.40% | 4,089 | 34.66% | 1,782 | 15.10% | 201 | 1.70% | 134 | 1.14% | 1,504 | 12.74% | 11,799 | ||||||||||||||
| Chittenden | 36,299 | 56.84% | 19,020 | 29.78% | 6,180 | 9.68% | 1,395 | 2.18% | 966 | 1.51% | 17,279 | 27.06% | 63,860 | ||||||||||||||
| Essex | 1,120 | 45.73% | 819 | 33.44% | 442 | 18.05% | 25 | 1.02% | 43 | 1.76% | 301 | 12.29% | 2,449 | ||||||||||||||
| Franklin | 8,790 | 54.24% | 4,617 | 28.49% | 2,488 | 15.35% | 147 | 0.91% | 164 | 1.01% | 4,173 | 25.75% | 16,206 | ||||||||||||||
| Grand Isle | 1,555 | 51.13% | 958 | 31.50% | 441 | 14.50% | 45 | 1.48% | 42 | 1.38% | 597 | 19.63% | 3,041 | ||||||||||||||
| Lamoille | 4,997 | 54.40% | 2,705 | 29.45% | 1,216 | 13.24% | 146 | 1.59% | 122 | 1.33% | 2,292 | 24.95% | 9,186 | ||||||||||||||
| Orange | 6,107 | 49.79% | 4,043 | 32.96% | 1,597 | 13.02% | 279 | 2.27% | 240 | 1.96% | 2,064 | 16.83% | 12,266 | ||||||||||||||
| Orleans | 5,137 | 51.44% | 3,114 | 31.18% | 1,508 | 15.10% | 130 | 1.30% | 97 | 0.97% | 2,023 | 20.26% | 9,986 | ||||||||||||||
| Rutland | 13,230 | 48.59% | 9,934 | 36.48% | 3,408 | 12.52% | 320 | 1.18% | 337 | 1.24% | 3,296 | 12.11% | 27,229 | ||||||||||||||
| Washington | 14,267 | 55.12% | 7,750 | 29.94% | 2,788 | 10.77% | 739 | 2.86% | 340 | 1.31% | 6,517 | 25.18% | 25,884 | ||||||||||||||
| Windham | 10,426 | 55.12% | 5,261 | 27.81% | 2,033 | 10.75% | 887 | 4.69% | 308 | 1.63% | 5,165 | 27.31% | 18,915 | ||||||||||||||
| Windsor | 14,070 | 54.07% | 8,015 | 30.80% | 3,055 | 11.74% | 512 | 1.97% | 371 | 1.43% | 6,055 | 23.27% | 26,023 | ||||||||||||||
| Totals | 137,894 | 53.35% | 80,352 | 31.09% | 31,024 | 12.00% | 5,585 | 2.16% | 3,594 | 1.39% | 57,542 | 22.26% | 258,449 | ||||||||||||||