1972 United States presidential election in Minnesota

none June 2025 June 2022 1972 United States presidential election 1972 United States presidential election in Minnesota Minnesota 1957 presidential no 1968 United States presidential election in Minnesota 1968 1976 United States presidential election in Minnesota 1976 70.31%http://www.sos.state.mn.us/election-administration-campaigns/data-maps/historical-voter-turnout-statistics/ Office of the State Of Minnesota Secretary of State sos.state.mn.us en July 22, 2017 November 7, 1972 x200px Richard Nixon presidential portrait (1).jpg Richard Nixon Republican Party of Minnesota California Spiro Agnew 10 898,269 51.58% George McGovern (D-SD) (3x4-1).jpg George McGovern Minnesota Democratic–Farmer–Labor Party South Dakota Sargent Shriver 0 802,346 46.07% 320px County results 320px Precinct/Township resultsThe twin cities and parts of northern Minnesota are done by precinct. The rest of the state is done by township 320px Nixon #F2B3BE 40–50% #E27F90 50–60% #CC2F4A 60–70% #D40000 70–80% #AA0000 80–90% #800000 90–100% McGovern #B9D7FF 40–50% #86B6F2 50–60% #4389E3 60–70% #1666CB 70–80% #0645B4 80–90% #002B84 90–100% President Richard Nixon Republican Party of Minnesota Richard Nixon Republican Party of Minnesota The 1972 United States presidential election in Minnesota took place on November 7, 1972, as part of the 1972 United States presidential election. Voters chose ten electors, or representatives to the Electoral College, who voted for president and vice president. Minnesota was won by the Republican candidate, incumbent President Richard Nixon, who won the state over U.S. Senator George McGovern of South Dakota by a margin of 95,923 votes, or 5.51%, the closest state in the election. This result made Minnesota around 18% more Democratic than the nation as a whole. Nixon went on to win the election nationally, by a landslide margin of 23.15% of the popular vote. McGovern carried only Massachusetts and the District of Columbia. As of 2026, this is the only presidential race since 1956 that Minnesota has voted Republican, as well as the last election in which the Midwest voted unanimously in the electoral college. Minnesota would go on to have the longest streak voting for Democrats out of any state after this election, as every other state would be won by Ronald Reagan in his landslide re-election in 1984. This is also the last time a Republican has won heavily populated Hennepin County, while Rice County would not vote Republican again until 2016 and Pine County until 2012. Nixon further became the first-ever Republican to win the White House without carrying Stevens County, which was one of six counties outside of McGovern's home state of South Dakota that he flipped nationwide. Had Nixon lost the state, then this would have been a time in history that a Republican president was elected twice without ever carrying Minnesota at least once, and the first of any party since Woodrow Wilson did so in 1916; this feat would be eventually accomplished 12 years later by Reagan. Minnesota would also have had the longest streak of any state voting for same party since 1960. During Nixon's second term as president, the Watergate scandal resulted in the loss of the Republican Party's credibility both nationally and in Minnesota. The damage caused by Watergate was so pronounced that the Republican Party of Minnesota was forced to rebrand itself as the "Independent-Republican Party" from 1975 to 1995 to distance itself from the national Republican Party. Results 1972 United States presidential election in Minnesotahttp://uselectionatlas.org/RESULTS/state.php?year=1972&f=1&off=0&elect=0&fips=27&submit=Retrieve January 24, 2014 1972 Presidential Election Results, 1972 Dave Leip's U.S. Election AtlasPartyCandidateVotesPercentageElectoral votes Republican Richard Nixon (incumbent) 898,269 51.58% 10 Democratic-Farmer-Labor George McGovern 802,346 46.07% 0 American John G. Schmitz 31,407 1.80% 0 Socialist Labor Louis Fisher 4,261 0.24% 0 People's Benjamin Spock 2,805 0.16% 0 Write-ins Write-ins 962 0.06% 0 Socialist Workers Linda Jenness 940 0.05% 0 Communist Gus Hall 662 0.04% 0 Invalid or blank votes — Totals 1,978,590 100.00% 10 Voter turnout 77% — Results by county CountyOur Campaigns; MN US President Race, November 07, 1972 Richard NixonRepublican George McGovernDFL John G. SchmitzAmerican Various candidatesOther parties Margin Total votes cast # % # % # % # % # % Aitkin 3,241 53.73% 2,687 44.55% 58 0.96% 46 0.76% 554 9.18% 6,032 Anoka 29,546 49.77% 28,031 47.22% 1,312 2.21% 471 0.79% 1,515 2.55% 59,360 Becker 6,033 55.43% 4,695 43.14% 123 1.13% 33 0.30% 1,338 12.29% 10,884 Beltrami 5,947 52.20% 5,194 45.59% 210 1.84% 42 0.37% 753 6.61% 11,393 Benton 4,652 49.35% 4,282 45.43% 438 4.65% 54 0.57% 370 3.92% 9,426 Big Stone 1,748 43.52% 2,185 54.39% 71 1.77% 13 0.32% -437 -10.87% 4,017 Blue Earth 12,702 53.68% 10,638 44.96% 216 0.91% 106 0.45% 2,064 8.72% 23,662 Brown 7,791 61.21% 4,347 34.15% 557 4.38% 34 0.27% 3,444 27.06% 12,729 Carlton 5,445 42.77% 7,116 55.90% 111 0.87% 58 0.46% -1,671 -13.13% 12,730 Carver 8,546 61.46% 4,852 34.89% 446 3.21% 61 0.44% 3,694 26.57% 13,905 Cass 4,906 57.70% 3,347 39.36% 219 2.58% 31 0.36% 1,559 18.34% 8,503 Chippewa 3,787 50.18% 3,630 48.10% 114 1.51% 16 0.21% 157 2.08% 7,547 Chisago 4,718 51.06% 4,174 45.17% 306 3.31% 43 0.47% 544 5.89% 9,241 Clay 11,089 54.36% 9,076 44.49% 169 0.83% 66 0.32% 2,013 9.87% 20,400 Clearwater 1,819 49.39% 1,751 47.54% 90 2.44% 23 0.62% 68 1.85% 3,683 Cook 1,047 57.62% 742 40.84% 21 1.16% 7 0.39% 305 16.78% 1,817 Cottonwood 4,396 60.19% 2,802 38.37% 94 1.29% 11 0.15% 1,594 21.82% 7,303 Crow Wing 8,774 53.01% 7,328 44.28% 329 1.99% 120 0.73% 1,446 8.73% 16,551 Dakota 34,967 53.96% 28,479 43.95% 951 1.47% 399 0.62% 6,488 10.01% 64,796 Dodge 3,863 65.08% 1,921 32.36% 139 2.34% 13 0.22% 1,942 32.72% 5,936 Douglas 6,678 52.97% 5,501 43.64% 389 3.09% 38 0.30% 1,177 9.33% 12,606 Faribault 6,503 64.05% 3,519 34.66% 105 1.03% 26 0.26% 2,984 29.39% 10,153 Fillmore 7,107 67.94% 3,155 30.16% 161 1.54% 37 0.35% 3,952 37.78% 10,460 Freeborn 9,747 56.90% 7,163 41.82% 162 0.95% 58 0.34% 2,584 15.08% 17,130 Goodhue 11,107 63.00% 6,147 34.86% 293 1.66% 84 0.48% 4,960 28.14% 17,631 Grant 1,899 46.84% 2,085 51.43% 55 1.36% 15 0.37% -186 -4.59% 4,054 Hennepin 228,951 51.64% 205,943 46.45% 6,386 1.44% 2,078 0.47% 23,008 5.19% 443,358 Houston 5,186 66.57% 2,467 31.67% 103 1.32% 34 0.44% 2,719 34.90% 7,790 Hubbard 3,294 59.31% 2,136 38.46% 105 1.89% 19 0.34% 1,158 20.85% 5,554 Isanti 3,715 48.66% 3,660 47.94% 223 2.92% 36 0.47% 55 0.72% 7,634 Itasca 7,558 45.58% 8,683 52.36% 238 1.44% 104 0.63% -1,125 -6.78% 16,583 Jackson 3,599 51.50% 3,304 47.27% 65 0.93% 21 0.30% 295 4.23% 6,989 Kanabec 2,395 51.71% 1,969 42.51% 243 5.25% 25 0.54% 426 9.20% 4,632 Kandiyohi 6,624 45.74% 7,241 50.00% 511 3.53% 105 0.73% -617 -4.26% 14,481 Kittson 1,832 52.66% 1,584 45.53% 50 1.44% 13 0.37% 248 7.13% 3,479 Koochiching 3,681 50.91% 3,396 46.97% 118 1.63% 35 0.48% 285 3.94% 7,230 Lac qui Parle 2,773 48.43% 2,845 49.69% 96 1.68% 12 0.21% -72 -1.26% 5,726 Lake 2,575 40.70% 3,640 57.53% 65 1.03% 47 0.74% -1,065 -16.83% 6,327 Lake of the Woods 877 55.44% 672 42.48% 29 1.83% 4 0.25% 205 12.96% 1,582 Le Sueur 5,388 52.50% 4,725 46.04% 107 1.04% 42 0.41% 663 6.46% 10,262 Lincoln 1,881 45.93% 2,148 52.45% 55 1.34% 11 0.27% -267 -6.52% 4,095 Lyon 5,820 50.04% 5,614 48.27% 141 1.21% 55 0.47% 206 1.77% 11,630 Mahnomen 1,246 46.30% 1,397 51.91% 37 1.37% 11 0.41% -151 -5.61% 2,691 Marshall 3,264 52.73% 2,790 45.07% 100 1.62% 36 0.58% 474 7.66% 6,190 Martin 7,569 64.59% 3,816 32.57% 311 2.65% 22 0.19% 3,753 32.02% 11,718 McLeod 7,820 61.42% 4,538 35.64% 321 2.52% 54 0.42% 3,282 25.78% 12,733 Meeker 5,097 57.06% 3,601 40.31% 196 2.19% 39 0.44% 1,496 16.75% 8,933 Mille Lacs 4,291 55.83% 3,221 41.91% 147 1.91% 27 0.35% 1,070 13.92% 7,686 Morrison 5,714 46.35% 5,993 48.61% 568 4.61% 54 0.44% -279 -2.26% 12,329 Mower 9,929 48.36% 10,286 50.10% 193 0.94% 122 0.59% -357 -1.74% 20,530 Murray 2,959 49.92% 2,893 48.81% 58 0.98% 17 0.29% 66 1.11% 5,927 Nicollet 6,230 56.28% 4,680 42.28% 110 0.99% 49 0.44% 1,550 14.00% 11,069 Nobles 4,951 47.04% 5,464 51.91% 72 0.68% 38 0.36% -513 -4.87% 10,525 Norman 2,536 50.76% 2,444 48.92% 2 0.04% 14 0.28% 92 1.84% 4,996 Olmsted 23,806 68.96% 9,817 28.44% 753 2.18% 145 0.42% 13,989 40.52% 34,521 Otter Tail 13,519 62.21% 7,881 36.27% 264 1.21% 67 0.31% 5,638 25.94% 21,731 Pennington 3,548 53.72% 2,892 43.79% 147 2.23% 18 0.27% 656 9.93% 6,605 Pine 3,881 48.41% 3,794 47.32% 306 3.82% 36 0.45% 87 1.09% 8,017 Pipestone 3,543 55.57% 2,758 43.26% 59 0.93% 16 0.25% 785 12.31% 6,376 Polk 8,139 51.24% 7,366 46.37% 337 2.12% 43 0.27% 773 4.87% 15,885 Pope 2,610 45.94% 2,910 51.22% 150 2.64% 11 0.19% -300 -5.28% 5,681 Ramsey 95,716 45.59% 108,392 51.63% 3,559 1.70% 2,284 1.09% -12,676 -6.04% 209,951 Red Lake 1,052 41.40% 1,409 55.45% 72 2.83% 8 0.31% -357 -14.05% 2,541 Redwood 5,776 62.43% 3,177 34.34% 275 2.97% 24 0.26% 2,599 28.09% 9,252 Renville 5,329 53.06% 4,499 44.79% 177 1.76% 39 0.39% 830 8.27% 10,044 Rice 9,195 52.62% 8,065 46.15% 156 0.89% 59 0.34% 1,130 6.47% 17,475 Rock 3,470 61.83% 2,089 37.22% 44 0.78% 9 0.16% 1,381 24.61% 5,612 Roseau 2,844 53.22% 2,396 44.84% 85 1.59% 19 0.36% 448 8.38% 5,344 St. Louis 41,435 39.77% 61,103 58.65% 862 0.83% 780 0.75% -19,668 -18.88% 104,180 Scott 7,310 50.85% 6,745 46.92% 259 1.80% 62 0.43% 565 3.93% 14,376 Sherburne 4,332 50.03% 4,070 47.01% 209 2.41% 47 0.54% 262 3.02% 8,658 Sibley 4,543 64.17% 2,433 34.36% 77 1.09% 27 0.38% 2,110 29.81% 7,080 Stearns 18,951 45.78% 19,315 46.65% 2,873 6.94% 261 0.63% -364 -0.87% 41,400 Steele 7,678 64.69% 4,010 33.79% 146 1.23% 34 0.29% 3,668 30.90% 11,868 Stevens 2,830 48.70% 2,870 49.39% 92 1.58% 19 0.33% -40 -0.69% 5,811 Swift 2,673 40.40% 3,823 57.78% 116 1.75% 5 0.08% -1,150 -17.38% 6,617 Todd 5,387 53.14% 4,270 42.12% 447 4.41% 33 0.33% 1,117 11.02% 10,137 Traverse 1,276 41.77% 1,744 57.09% 30 0.98% 5 0.16% -468 -15.32% 3,055 Wabasha 5,158 61.31% 3,017 35.86% 214 2.54% 24 0.29% 2,141 25.45% 8,413 Wadena 3,408 57.05% 2,430 40.68% 124 2.08% 12 0.20% 978 16.37% 5,974 Waseca 5,064 63.89% 2,767 34.91% 69 0.87% 26 0.33% 2,297 28.98% 7,926 Washington 19,142 53.03% 16,102 44.61% 615 1.70% 239 0.66% 3,040 8.42% 36,098 Watonwan 3,960 63.35% 2,229 35.66% 49 0.78% 13 0.21% 1,731 27.69% 6,251 Wilkin 2,292 56.00% 1,739 42.49% 47 1.15% 15 0.37% 553 13.51% 4,093 Winona 10,910 56.45% 8,080 41.81% 237 1.23% 100 0.52% 2,830 14.64% 19,327 Wright 9,996 51.56% 8,695 44.85% 615 3.17% 80 0.41% 1,301 6.71% 19,386 Yellow Medicine 3,683 50.32% 3,462 47.30% 128 1.75% 46 0.63% 221 3.02% 7,319Totals898,26951.58%802,34646.07%31,4071.80%9,6300.55%95,9235.51%1,741,652 See also United States presidential elections in Minnesota References expanded 1972 Minnesota Category:1972 Minnesota elections