1912 United States presidential election in Massachusetts

none June 2025 May 2026 1912 United States presidential election 1912 United States presidential election in Massachusetts Massachusetts 1908 presidential no 1908 United States presidential election in Massachusetts 1908 1916 United States presidential election in Massachusetts 1916 63.4%Bicentennial Edition: Historical Statistics of the United States, Colonial Times to 1970, part 2, p. 1072. 1.7 pp November 5, 1912 x160px Woodrow Wilson-H&E.jpg Woodrow Wilson Democratic Party (United States) New Jersey Thomas R. Marshall 18 173,408 35.53% File:William Howard Taft Portrait (3x4 cropped).jpg William Howard Taft Republican Party (United States) Ohio Nicholas Murray Butler 0 155,948 31.95% Unsuccessful 1912 2.jpg Theodore Roosevelt Progressive New York Hiram Johnson A2ED70 0 142,228 29.14% 350px County results 350px| Municipality results 1 350px Wilson #D3E7FF 30–40% #b9d7ff 40–50% #86b6f2 50–60% #4389e3 60–70% Taft #FFCCD0 30–40% #f2b3be 40–50% #e27f90 50–60% #cc2f4a 60–70% #d40000 70–80% Roosevelt #C7FFAF 30–40% #C6E9AF 40–50% #AADE87 50–60% #8DD35F 60–70% #71C837 70–80% Tie #DECDE6 30–40% #D4C4DC 40–50% President William Howard Taft Republican Party (United States) Woodrow Wilson Democratic Party (United States) The 1912 United States presidential election in Massachusetts took place on November 5, 1912, as part of the 1912 United States presidential election, which was held throughout all contemporary 48 states. Voters chose 18 representatives, or electors to the Electoral College, who voted for president and vice president. Massachusetts was won by the Democratic nominees, New Jersey Governor Woodrow Wilson and his running mate, Indiana Governor Thomas R. Marshall, marking the first time in history that the state had backed a Democrat for president. Opposing him were the Republican nominees, incumbent President William Howard Taft and Vice President James S. Sherman, and the Progressive Party candidates, former President Theodore Roosevelt and his running mate California Governor Hiram Johnson. Also in the running was the Socialist Party candidate, Eugene V. Debs, who ran with Emil Seidel. Wilson won Massachusetts with a plurality of 35.53% of the vote, Taft came in second, with 31.95%, and Roosevelt came in third, with 29.14%, Wilson's margin over Taft being 3.58%. Debs came in fourth, with 2.58% of the total vote. In terms of margin, Massachusetts was about 11% more Republican than the national average. Massachusetts had long been a typical Yankee Republican bastion in the wake of the Civil War, having voted Republican in every election from 1856 through 1908. However, in 1912, former Republican President Theodore Roosevelt decided to run as a third-party candidate with his Bull Moose Party against incumbent Republican President William Howard Taft, splitting the Republican vote and allowing Woodrow Wilson as the Democratic candidate to win Massachusetts with a plurality of only 35.53% of the vote. Were Taft and Roosevelt voters united behind a single Republican candidate, they would have taken a combined majority of over 61% of the vote, but the split would instead prove fatal to the Republicans both nationally and in Massachusetts. As a result of Wilson's win, 1912 marked the first time in history that Massachusetts had ever given its electoral votes to a Democratic presidential candidate. Theodore Roosevelt finished strong for a third-party candidate with 29.14% of the vote, about 2% more than he received nationally, although Massachusetts was not amongst his strongest states. Nonetheless, Roosevelt's performance remains as of 2020 the best-ever third-party presidential performance in Massachusetts.Thomas, G. Scott; The Pursuit of the White House: A Handbook of Presidential Election Statistics and History, p. 433 0313257957 The state's traditional Republican voters, especially in rural Western Massachusetts,Robinson, Edgar Eugene; ‘Distribution of the Presidential Vote of 1912’; American Journal of Sociology, vol. 20, no. 1 (July 1914), pp. 18–30 proved to be mostly loyal to President Taft as the official Republican nominee. While Roosevelt came in second place nationally ahead of Taft, in Massachusetts, Taft beat Roosevelt and finished second behind Wilson. Results 1912 United States presidential election in Massachusettshttp://www.uselectionatlas.org/RESULTS/state.php?year=1912&fips=25&f=0&off=0&elect=0 1912 Presidential General Election Results – Massachusetts February 7, 2013 Dave Leip's Atlas of U.S. Presidential ElectionsPartyCandidateVotesPercentageElectoral votes Democratic Woodrow Wilson 173,408 35.53% 18 Republican William Howard Taft (incumbent) 155,948 31.95% 0 Progressive Theodore Roosevelt 142,228 29.14% 0 Socialist Eugene V. Debs 12,616 2.58% 0 Prohibition Eugene W. Chafin 2,754 0.56% 0 Socialist Labor Arthur E. Reimer 1,102 0.23% 0 Write-ins Write-ins 1 0.00% 0 Totals 488,057 100.00% 18 Results by county County Woodrow Wilson Democratic William H. Taft Republican Theodore Roosevelt Progressive "Bull Moose" Eugene Debs Socialist Eugene Chafin Prohibition Arthur Reimer Socialist Labor Margin Total votes castMassachusetts Taylor Charles Henry Robinson William S. Stowe William Kimball James W. Coolidge Henry D. Sleeper George T. Clapp E. Herbert McLaughlin Edward A. Marden Geo A. Gifford Stephen Nye 1858 A manual for the use of the General Court. https://catalog.hathitrust.org/Record/000552451 Manual for the General Court v. 0196-5298#%#%#%#%#%#%#% Barnstable 1,322 26.57% 1,249 25.11% 2,315 46.53% 20 0.40% 67 1.35%20.04% -993 -19.96% 4,975 Berkshire 6,211 36.10% 6,397 37.19% 3,809 22.14% 598 3.48% 124 0.72%640.37% -186 -1.09% 17,203 Bristol 12,420 32.72% 13,279 34.98% 10,630 28.00% 1,118 2.94% 377 0.99%1390.37% -859 -2.26% 37,963 Dukes 215 27.78% 269 34.75% 278 35.92% 1 0.13% 11 1.42%00.00% -9 -1.17% 774 Essex 20,691 31.05% 21,441 32.17% 21,098 31.66% 2,716 4.08% 444 0.67%2490.37% -343 -0.51% 66,639 Franklin 2,046 28.00% 2,636 36.08% 2,268 31.04% 269 3.68% 73 1.00%140.19% -368 -5.04% 7,306 Hampden 10,620 34.91% 11,393 37.45% 7,099 23.34% 1,094 3.60% 132 0.43%840.28% -773 -2.54% 30,423 Hampshire 3,088 32.06% 4,512 46.84% 1,606 16.67% 292 3.03% 112 1.16%220.23% -1,424 -14.78% 9,632 Middlesex 36,689 35.67% 30,511 29.66% 33,517 32.58% 1,530 1.49% 446 0.43%1740.17% 3,172 3.09% 102,867 Nantucket 247 43.79% 123 21.81% 194 34.40% 0 0.00% 0 0.00%00.00% 53 9.39% 564 Norfolk 9,244 31.41% 9,650 32.79% 9,779 33.23% 609 2.07% 101 0.34%480.16% -129 -0.44% 29,431 Plymouth 6,991 29.56% 5,590 23.63% 9,645 40.78% 1,216 5.14% 171 0.72%400.17% -2,654 -11.22% 23,653 Suffolk 46,059 47.07% 24,179 24.71% 24,977 25.53% 2,155 2.20% 299 0.31%1820.19% 21,082 21.54% 97,851 Worcester 17,565 29.88% 24,719 42.06% 15,013 25.54% 998 1.70% 397 0.68%840.14% -7,154 -12.18% 58,776Totals174,20835.64%155,94831.90%142,22829.09%12,6162.58%2,7540.56%1,1020.23%18,2603.74%488,856 Analysis Taft carried the most counties in Massachusetts, winning 6 of the state's 14 counties, while Wilson and Roosevelt each took 4. Taft's support was strongest in Western and Central Massachusetts, his most significant win being Worcester County, where he won with over 40% of the vote. Roosevelt was strongest in the southeast part of the state, his overall most significant win being Plymouth County, where he won with over 40% of the vote. Roosevelt's most populous county win was Norfolk County, although he only won it with a plurality of less than forty percent of the vote. However, Wilson was able to edge them out statewide by holding on to the Democratic base of support in the cities. Wilson's most important county victory by far was winning Suffolk County, home to the state's capital and largest city, Boston, winning it with over 40% of the vote. Wilson also won heavily populated Middlesex County with a plurality of less than 40% of the vote. While, due to vote-splitting, Massachusetts finally voted Democratic for the first time ever in 1912, this was not indicative of any long-term trend at the time. With the Republican base re-united in 1916, Massachusetts returned to the Republican column and remained solidly Republican until the 1928 election. See also United States presidential elections in Massachusetts Notes References expanded Massachusetts 1912 Category:1912 Massachusetts elections