1976 United States presidential election in Wisconsin explained

See main article: 1976 United States presidential election.

Election Name:	1976 United States presidential election in Wisconsin
Country:	Wisconsin
Flag Year:	1913
Type:	presidential
Ongoing:	no
Previous Election:	1972 United States presidential election in Wisconsin
Previous Year:	1972
Next Election:	1980 United States presidential election in Wisconsin
Next Year:	1980
Election Date:	November 2, 1976
Image1:	Jimmy Carter 1977 cropped.jpg
Nominee1:	Jimmy Carter
Party1:	Democratic Party (United States)
Home State1:	Georgia
Running Mate1:	Walter Mondale
Electoral Vote1:	11
Popular Vote1:	1,040,232
Percentage1:	49.44%
Nominee2:	Gerald Ford
Party2:	Republican Party (United States)
Home State2:	Michigan
Running Mate2:	Bob Dole
Electoral Vote2:	0
Popular Vote2:	1,004,987
Percentage2:	47.76%
Map Size:	310px
President
Before Election:	Gerald Ford
Before Party:	Republican Party (United States)
After Election:	Jimmy Carter
After Party:	Democratic Party (United States)

The 1976 United States presidential election in Wisconsin took place on November 2, 1976 as part of the 1976 United States presidential election. Jimmy Carter won the state of Wisconsin with 49.50 percent of the vote^[1] giving him 11 electoral votes.

In September, President Ford announced he would devote $20,000 to campaigning in Wisconsin. The state was one of ten he considered critical to defeating Carter, but Ford devoted less money to it than any of the others.^[2] During his campaign, Ford focused chiefly on the Catholic working-class electorate in South Milwaukee, whose hierarchy had been disappointed Carter was not committed – following Roe v. Wade – to a constitutional amendment banning abortion.^[3]

Carter himself responded by visiting white ethnic communities in the state during September.^[4] His campaign amongst the Polish-Americans and Greek-Americans in the southeast of the state was strongly aimed at Ford's policy towards the totalitarian regimes of Eastern Europe and their human rights violations.^[5]

In early October, polls showed Wisconsin as a tossup.^[6] Aided by a return of traditionally Democratic Catholic voters and a gain amongst nonpartisans, Carter established a lead in mid-October polls.^[7] The Georgia Governor would retain this lead to election day, and carry Wisconsin by 1.68 points. This result nonetheless made Wisconsin 0.43% more Republican than the nation at large. Wisconsin was the tipping-point state of the election.

Ronald Reagan would flip Wisconsin back into the Republican column in 1980 and 1984, but Carter’s victory was a sign of things to come for the state, as it would transition into a Democratic-leaning swing state in 1988, and would vote Republican only once since then. This is the third most recent election in which Wisconsin voted for a different candidate than neighboring Iowa, a phenomenon that has only been repeated twice since, in 2004, and 2020.

Primaries

Democratic party

Despite the fact that at the time of this election Wisconsin had been dominated for a decade by very liberal Democrats like Senators Gaylord Nelson and William Proxmire, and had been the fifth-best state for George McGovern in his landslide 1972 presidential defeat, Georgia Governor Jimmy Carter won the state on a "nonideological" campaign in the April primaries,^[8] despite claiming that price floors for dairy farmers in the nation's leading dairy state would need to be lowered.^[9]

Republican party

Gerald Ford won the GOP primary against the insurgent conservative challenge of Ronald Reagan, saying that his win was largely due to the endorsement of Henry Kissinger.^[10]

Results

1976 United States presidential election in Wisconsin^[11] ^[12]
Party		Candidate	Votes	Percentage	Electoral votes
	Democratic	Jimmy Carter	1,040,232	49.44%	11
	Republican	Gerald Ford (incumbent)	1,004,987	47.76%	0
	Independent	Eugene McCarthy	34,943	1.66%	0
	American	Lester Maddox	8,552	0.41%	0
	Socialist	Frank Zeidler	4,298	0.20%	0
	Libertarian	Roger L. MacBride	3,814	0.18%	0
	Socialist Workers	Peter Camejo	1,691	0.08%	0
	People's	Margaret Wright	943	0.04%	0
	Communist	Gus Hall	749	0.04%	0
	U.S. Labor	Lyndon H. LaRouche	738	0.04%	0
	Socialist Labor	Julius Levin	389	0.02%	0
	Write-in	Scattering	2,839	0.13%	0
Totals			2,104,175	100.00%	11

Results by county

County	Jimmy Carter Democratic		Gerald R. Ford Republican		Eugene McCarthy Independent		Lester Maddox American		All Others Various		Margin		Total votes cast
		%		%		%		%		%		%
	Adams		3,089		55.22%		2,377		42.49%		77		1.38%		22		0.39%		29		0.52%		712		12.73%		5,594
	Ashland		4,688		58.89%		3,045		38.25%		131		1.65%		43		0.54%		54		0.68%		1,643		20.64%		7,961
	Barron		8,678		52.90%		7,393		45.06%		205		1.25%		62		0.38%		68		0.41%		1,285		7.83%		16,406
	Bayfield		3,885		57.93%		2,624		39.13%		136		2.03%		18		0.27%		43		0.64%		1,261		18.80%		6,706
	Brown		33,572		46.42%		36,571		50.57%		1,480		2.05%		344		0.48%		351		0.49%		-2,999		-4.15%		72,318
	Buffalo		3,448		53.53%		2,844		44.15%		83		1.29%		33		0.51%		33		0.51%		604		9.38%		6,441
	Burnett		3,720		57.51%		2,573		39.77%		89		1.38%		31		0.48%		56		0.87%		1,147		17.73%		6,469
	Calumet		6,241		47.43%		6,589		50.08%		221		1.68%		42		0.32%		64		0.49%		-348		-2.64%		13,157
	Chippewa		11,538		57.25%		8,137		40.37%		270		1.34%		93		0.46%		117		0.58%		3,401		16.87%		20,155
	Clark		7,238		52.51%		6,095		44.22%		204		1.48%		172		1.25%		75		0.54%		1,143		8.29%		13,784
	Columbia		9,457		47.44%		10,075		50.54%		235		1.18%		67		0.34%		99		0.50%		-618		-3.10%		19,933
	Crawford		3,629		50.22%		3,393		46.96%		128		1.77%		32		0.44%		44		0.61%		236		3.27%		7,226
	Dane		82,321		53.89%		63,466		41.55%		4,629		3.03%		369		0.24%		1,971		1.29%		18,855		12.34%		152,756
	Dodge		13,643		43.07%		17,335		54.73%		464		1.46%		104		0.33%		128		0.40%		-3,692		-11.66%		31,674
	Door		4,553		39.87%		6,557		57.42%		198		1.73%		46		0.40%		66		0.58%		-2,004		-17.55%		11,420
	Douglas		13,478		64.21%		6,999		33.35%		326		1.55%		24		0.11%		162		0.77%		6,479		30.87%		20,989
	Dunn		7,882		52.41%		6,751		44.89%		234		1.56%		95		0.63%		78		0.52%		1,131		7.52%		15,040
	Eau Claire		18,263		51.61%		16,388		46.31%		491		1.39%		73		0.21%		171		0.48%		1,875		5.30%		35,386
	Florence		965		50.13%		922		47.90%		28		1.45%		2		0.10%		8		0.42%		43		2.23%		1,925
	Fond du Lac		16,571		41.54%		22,226		55.71%		676		1.69%		224		0.56%		198		0.50%		-5,655		-14.17%		39,895
	Forest		2,574		60.64%		1,604		37.79%		43		1.01%		12		0.28%		12		0.28%		970		22.85%		4,245
	Grant		9,639		43.38%		12,016		54.08%		416		1.87%		57		0.26%		92		0.41%		-2,377		-10.70%		22,220
	Green		5,632		43.07%		7,085		54.18%		169		1.29%		112		0.86%		78		0.60%		-1,453		-11.11%		13,076
	Green Lake		3,411		39.61%		5,020		58.29%		111		1.29%		33		0.38%		37		0.43%		-1,609		-18.68%		8,612
	Iowa		4,252		48.96%		4,195		48.30%		139		1.60%		62		0.71%		37		0.43%		57		0.66%		8,685
	Iron		2,399		63.05%		1,340		35.22%		43		1.13%		4		0.11%		19		0.50%		1,059		27.83%		3,805
	Jackson		3,735		51.33%		3,406		46.81%		73		1.00%		22		0.30%		40		0.55%		329		4.52%		7,276
	Jefferson		12,577		43.56%		15,528		53.77%		454		1.57%		131		0.45%		186		0.64%		-2,951		-10.22%		28,876
	Juneau		4,512		49.65%		4,242		46.68%		96		1.06%		201		2.21%		36		0.40%		270		2.97%		9,087
	Kenosha		27,585		53.73%		22,349		43.53%		832		1.62%		248		0.48%		324		0.63%		5,236		10.20%		51,338
	Kewaunee		4,607		49.42%		4,447		47.70%		135		1.45%		64		0.69%		69		0.74%		160		1.72%		9,322
	La Crosse		16,674		39.98%		24,188		58.00%		564		1.35%		101		0.24%		177		0.42%		-7,514		-18.02%		41,704
	Lafayette		3,839		46.85%		4,131		50.41%		121		1.48%		62		0.76%		42		0.51%		-292		-3.56%		8,195
	Langlade		4,134		46.26%		4,630		51.81%		122		1.37%		25		0.28%		25		0.28%		-496		-5.55%		8,936
	Lincoln		5,800		49.41%		5,672		48.32%		176		1.50%		42		0.36%		48		0.41%		128		1.09%		11,738
	Manitowoc		19,819		53.86%		16,039		43.59%		504		1.37%		293		0.80%		143		0.39%		3,780		10.27%		36,798
	Marathon		24,934		51.89%		21,898		45.57%		811		1.69%		218		0.45%		193		0.40%		3,036		6.32%		48,054
	Marinette		8,482		48.64%		8,591		49.26%		236		1.35%		70		0.40%		60		0.34%		-109		-0.63%		17,439
	Marquette		2,516		48.23%		2,607		49.97%		50		0.96%		19		0.36%		25		0.48%		-91		-1.74%		5,217
	Menominee		766		68.27%		324		28.88%		24		2.14%		1		0.09%		7		0.62%		442		39.39%		1,122
	Milwaukee		249,739		54.70%		192,008		42.06%		7,508		1.64%		1,760		0.39%		5,530		1.21%		57,731		12.65%		456,545
	Monroe		6,465		46.19%		7,242		51.74%		177		1.26%		38		0.27%		76		0.54%		-777		-5.55%		13,998
	Oconto		6,541		50.13%		6,232		47.76%		140		1.07%		75		0.57%		60		0.46%		309		2.37%		13,048
	Oneida		72,16		48.28%		7,347		49.15%		265		1.77%		40		0.27%		79		0.53%		-131		-0.88%		14,947
	Outagamie		23,079		43.90%		28,363		53.95%		770		1.46%		155		0.29%		201		0.38%		-5,284		-10.05%		52,568
	Ozaukee		11,271		35.26%		19,817		62.00%		488		1.53%		133		0.42%		252		0.79%		-8,546		-26.74%		31,961
	Pepin		1,955		58.57%		1,312		39.30%		44		1.32%		19		0.57%		8		0.24%		643		19.26%		3,338
	Pierce		8,039		56.97%		5,676		40.22%		267		1.89%		41		0.29%		89		0.63%		2,363		16.74%		14,112
	Polk		8,485		56.85%		6,159		41.27%		222		1.49%		23		0.15%		35		0.23%		2,326		15.59%		14,924
	Portage		15,912		60.57%		9,520		36.24%		607		2.31%		43		0.16%		187		0.71%		6,392		24.33%		26,269
	Price		4,028		54.23%		3,204		43.13%		103		1.39%		20		0.27%		73		0.98%		824		11.09%		7,428
	Racine		36,740		48.48%		37,088		48.94%		1,222		1.61%		246		0.43%		308		0.53%		-348		-0.46%		75,787
	Richland		3,634		44.01%		4,466		54.08%		96		1.16%		32		0.39%		30		0.36%		-832		-10.08%		8,258
	Rock		28,048		48.48%		28,325		48.95%		933		1.61%		246		0.43%		308		0.53%		-277		-0.48%		57,860
	Rusk		4,050		57.95%		2,724		38.98%		110		1.57%		32		0.46%		73		1.04%		1,326		18.97%		6,989
	Sauk		9,204		47.88%		9,577		49.82%		261		1.36%		92		0.48%		89		0.46%		-373		-1.94%		19,223
	Sawyer		3,055		51.49%		2,720		45.85%		91		1.53%		18		0.30%		49		0.83%		335		5.65%		5,933
	Shawano		6,751		43.36%		8,505		54.62%		168		1.08%		100		0.64%		46		0.30%		-1,754		-11.27%		15,570
	Sheboygan		24,226		51.14%		22,332		47.14%		557		1.18%		110		0.23%		150		0.32%		1,894		4.00%		47,375
	St. Croix		10,601		56.54%		7,685		40.99%		305		1.63%		37		0.20%		121		0.65%		2,916		15.55%		18,749
	Taylor		4,101		51.77%		3,591		45.34%		136		1.72%		39		0.49%		54		0.68%		510		6.44%		7,921
	Trempealeau		6,218		52.96%		5,341		45.49%		117		1.00%		25		0.21%		39		0.33%		877		7.47%		11,740
	Vernon		5,534		46.45%		6,132		51.47%		156		1.31%		60		0.50%		32		0.27%		-598		-5.02%		11,914
	Vilas		3,209		38.43%		4,929		59.03%		108		1.29%		36		0.43%		68		0.81%		-1,720		-20.60%		8,350
	Walworth		12,418		39.59%		18,091		57.68%		540		1.72%		125		0.40%		191		0.61%		-5,673		-18.09%		31,365
	Washburn		3,503		54.17%		2,787		43.10%		114		1.76%		28		0.43%		35		0.54%		716		11.07%		6,467
	Washington		14,422		42.27%		18,798		55.09%		509		1.49%		168		0.49%		223		0.65%		-4,376		-12.83%		34,120
	Waukesha		47,487		39.20%		70,418		58.13%		1,815		1.50%		528		0.44%		885		0.73%		-22,931		-18.93%		121,133
	Waupaca		6,857		37.91%		10,849		59.99%		202		1.12%		68		0.38%		110		0.61%		-3,992		-22.07%		18,086
	Waushara		3,485		43.04%		4,449		54.94%		96		1.19%		30		0.37%		38		0.47%		-964		-11.90%		8,098
	Winnebago		24,485		42.12%		32,149		55.31%		954		1.64%		221		0.38%		318		0.55%		-7,664		-13.18%		58,127
	Wood		14,728		47.52%		15,479		49.95%		438		1.41%		209		0.67%		138		0.45%		-751		-2.42%		30,992
Totals	1,040,232	49.44%	1,004,987	47.76%	34,943	1.66%	8,552	0.41%	15,461	0.73%	35,245	1.68%	2,104,175

Counties that flipped from Republican to Democratic

• Adams
• Barron
• Bayfield
• Buffalo
• Burnett
• Chippewa
• Clark
• Crawford
• Dunn
• Eau Claire
• Florence
• Forest
• Iowa
• Iron
• Jackson
• Juneau
• Kenosha
• Kewaunee
• Lincoln
• Manitowoc
• Marathon
• Oconto
• Pepin
• Pierce
• Polk
• Price
• Sawyer
• Sheboygan
• St. Croix
• Taylor
• Trempealeau
• Washburn

Electors

These were the names of the electors on each ticket. Only the Democratic, Republican, and American parties had full slates of electors.^[11]

See also

• United States presidential elections in Wisconsin

Notes and References

1. Web site: 1976 Presidential General Election Results – Wisconsin. Dave Leip's U.S. Election Atlas.
2. Naughton, James M.; 'Ford to Aim at New York, Jersey And 8 Other Key Industrial States: Ford Will Aim His Election Effort at 10 Major States'Special to The New York Times, September 23, 1976, p. 85
3. 'Ford Banks on Catholic'; The Irish Times, September 10, 1976, p. 6
4. Naughton, James M.; 'Remark by Ford Is Aid to Carter At Rally in Ohio: Carter, in Midwest, reaps an Ethnic Gain'; Special to The New York Times, October 10, 1976, p. 1
5. 'Carter hits Ford about East Europe'; The Irish Times, October 12, 1976, p. 7
6. 'Poll Shows Carter Is Ahead in States Needed for Victory: But His Lead for Electoral Votes Is Found Small and Slipping Close Election Foreseen Poll Shows Carter Ahead in States With Majority in Electoral College'; Special to The New York Times, October 3, 1976, p. 1
7. Apple, R.W.; 'Carter, Focusing on Ford Record, Gains Among Independents in Poll'; The New York Times, October 15, 1976, p. 1
8. News: Apple. R. W.. 1976-04-02. Carter Gains Among Wisconsin Liberals and Unions. en-US. 9. The New York Times. 2021-04-17. 0362-4331.
9. News: King. Seth S.. 1976-04-05. Carter and Udall Vie in Wisconsin. en-US. 25. The New York Times. 2021-04-17. 0362-4331.
10. News: Naughton. James N.. 1976-04-08. Ford Sees Wisconsin Vote As Kissinger Endorsement. en-US. 32. The New York Times. 2021-04-17. 0362-4331.
11. Wisconsin Historical Society, Statement of Board of State Canvassers for President, Vice President and Presidential Electors - General Election - November 2, 1976
12. Book: The State of Wisconsin Blue Book 1977. Wisconsin Legislative Reference Bureau. Vote For President And Vice President By County. Madison, Wisconsin. 904-905.