1916 United States presidential election in West Virginia explained

See main article: 1916 United States presidential election.

The 1916 United States presidential election in West Virginia took place on November 7, 1916, as part of the 1916 United States presidential election which was held throughout all contemporary 48 states. Voters chose eight representatives, or electors to the Electoral College, who voted for president and vice president.

West Virginia was won by the Republican nominee, U.S. Supreme Court Justice Charles Evans Hughes of New York, and his running mate Senator Charles W. Fairbanks of Indiana. Hughes and Fairbanks defeated the Democratic nominees, incumbent Democratic President Woodrow Wilson and Vice President Thomas R. Marshall.

Voters in West Virginia chose each of the eight electors individually, rather than how voters in most other states selected between two full slates of electors all pledging support for one candidate or the other. Hughes won West Virginia by a very narrow margin of 0.94% — the state's second-closest presidential election result in history, only behind Grover Cleveland's 0.32% victory in 1888 — but one elector pledged for Wilson won, and as a result, Wilson received one electoral vote from West Virginia.

Notably, this was the only time until 2008 that a Democrat won the presidency without carrying West Virginia (or that a losing Republican would carry the state). The state would transform into a Democratic stronghold after 1932, remaining a cornerstone of the Democratic coalition until the 21st century, when it suddenly and dramatically shifted towards the Republican Party due to declining unionization^[1] and opposition to the Democratic Party’s views on environmental, social and cultural issues.^[2]

Results

1916 United States presidential election in West Virginia[3]
Party		Candidate	Votes	Percentage	Electoral votes
	Republican	Charles Evans Hughes	143,124	49.38%	7
	Democratic	Woodrow Wilson (incumbent)	140,403	48.44%	1
	Socialist	Allan L. Benson	6,150	2.12%	0
	Prohibition	Frank Hanly	175	0.06%	0
Totals			289,852	100.00%	8

Results by county

1916 United States presidential election in West Virginia by county^[4]

County	Republican		Democratic		Socialist		Margin
		%		%		%		%
	Barbour		2,083		52.23%		1,848		46.34%		57		1.43%		235		5.89%		3,988
	Berkeley		2,802		48.09%		2,938		50.43%		86		1.48%		-136		-2.33%		5,826
	Boone		1,504		50.03%		1,397		46.47%		105		3.49%		107		3.56%		3,006
	Braxton		2,332		44.02%		2,957		55.81%		9		0.17%		-625		-11.80%		5,298
	Brooke		1,422		50.73%		1,261		44.99%		120		4.28%		161		5.74%		2,803
	Cabell		5,728		46.18%		6,446		51.97%		229		1.85%		-718		-5.79%		12,403
	Calhoun		936		41.31%		1,317		58.12%		13		0.57%		-381		-16.81%		2,266
	Clay		1,021		48.76%		1,047		50.00%		26		1.24%		-26		-1.24%		2,094
	Doddridge		1,803		62.07%		1,061		36.52%		41		1.41%		742		25.54%		2,905
	Fayette		5,511		48.99%		5,377		47.80%		361		3.21%		134		1.19%		11,249
	Gilmer		943		35.63%		1,695		64.03%		9		0.34%		-752		-28.41%		2,647
	Grant		1,438		78.41%		391		21.32%		5		0.27%		1,047		57.09%		1,834
	Greenbrier		2,601		44.41%		3,170		54.12%		86		1.47%		-569		-9.71%		5,857
	Hampshire		745		25.37%		2,181		74.28%		10		0.34%		-1,436		-48.91%		2,936
	Hancock		1,434		58.72%		891		36.49%		117		4.79%		543		22.24%		2,442
	Hardy		701		32.88%		1,425		66.84%		6		0.28%		-724		-33.96%		2,132
	Harrison		6,262		48.86%		5,970		46.58%		584		4.56%		292		2.28%		12,816
	Jackson		2,474		54.55%		2,032		44.81%		29		0.64%		442		9.75%		4,535
	Jefferson		1,181		31.33%		2,544		67.50%		44		1.17%		-1,363		-36.16%		3,769
	Kanawha		10,096		48.14%		10,276		49.00%		598		2.85%		-180		-0.86%		20,970
	Lewis		2,263		49.06%		2,248		48.73%		102		2.21%		15		0.33%		4,613
	Lincoln		2,104		49.20%		2,113		49.42%		59		1.38%		-9		-0.21%		4,276
	Logan		2,107		38.74%		3,270		60.12%		62		1.14%		-1,163		-21.38%		5,439
	Marion		4,443		42.81%		5,493		52.92%		443		4.27%		-1,050		-10.12%		10,379
	Marshall		3,699		53.42%		2,997		43.28%		229		3.31%		702		10.14%		6,925
	Mason		2,454		50.17%		2,336		47.76%		101		2.07%		118		2.41%		4,891
	McDowell		7,086		65.62%		3,692		34.19%		20		0.19%		3,394		31.43%		10,798
	Mercer		4,788		49.47%		4,836		49.96%		55		0.57%		-48		-0.50%		9,679
	Mineral		1,965		51.83%		1,747		46.08%		79		2.08%		218		5.75%		3,791
	Mingo		2,223		47.25%		2,472		52.54%		10		0.21%		-249		-5.29%		4,705
	Monongalia		3,412		57.48%		2,227		37.52%		297		5.00%		1,185		19.96%		5,936
	Monroe		1,584		49.48%		1,609		50.27%		8		0.25%		-25		-0.78%		3,201
	Morgan		1,208		63.45%		666		34.98%		30		1.58%		542		28.47%		1,904
	Nicholas		2,056		44.77%		2,467		53.72%		69		1.50%		-411		-8.95%		4,592
	Ohio		7,349		52.75%		6,074		43.60%		509		3.65%		1,275		9.15%		13,932
	Pendleton		888		40.87%		1,276		58.72%		9		0.41%		-388		-17.86%		2,173
	Pleasants		876		49.16%		899		50.45%		7		0.39%		-23		-1.29%		1,782
	Pocahontas		1,550		44.90%		1,849		53.56%		53		1.54%		-299		-8.66%		3,452
	Preston		3,838		68.09%		1,694		30.05%		105		1.86%		2,144		38.03%		5,637
	Putnam		1,925		49.45%		1,837		47.19%		131		3.37%		88		2.26%		3,893
	Raleigh		3,791		52.21%		3,319		45.71%		151		2.08%		472		6.50%		7,261
	Randolph		2,165		39.78%		3,024		55.57%		253		4.65%		-859		-15.78%		5,442
	Ritchie		2,225		56.03%		1,657		41.73%		89		2.24%		568		14.30%		3,971
	Roane		2,406		51.97%		2,186		47.21%		38		0.82%		220		4.75%		4,630
	Summers		1,781		42.47%		2,389		56.96%		24		0.57%		-608		-14.50%		4,194
	Taylor		2,002		53.23%		1,672		44.46%		87		2.31%		330		8.77%		3,761
	Tucker		1,531		49.76%		1,388		45.11%		158		5.13%		143		4.65%		3,077
	Tyler		1,900		57.51%		1,336		40.44%		68		2.06%		564		17.07%		3,304
	Upshur		2,553		70.14%		1,019		27.99%		68		1.87%		1,534		42.14%		3,640
	Wayne		2,215		42.21%		2,989		56.97%		43		0.82%		-774		-14.75%		5,247
	Webster		854		35.87%		1,513		63.54%		14		0.59%		-659		-27.68%		2,381
	Wetzel		1,910		39.92%		2,797		58.47%		77		1.61%		-887		-18.54%		4,784
	Wirt		951		46.73%		1,072		52.68%		12		0.59%		-121		-5.95%		2,035
	Wood		4,521		47.69%		4,817		50.81%		142		1.50%		-296		-3.12%		9,480
	Wyoming		1,484		55.17%		1,199		44.57%		7		0.26%		285		10.59%		2,690
Totals	143,124	49.41%	140,403	48.47%	6,150	2.12%	2,721	0.94%	289,677

Notes and References

1. Schwartzman, Gabe; ‘How Central Appalachia Went Right’; Daily Yonder, January 13, 2015
2. Cohn, Nate; ‘Demographic Shift: Southern Whites’ Loyalty to G.O.P. Nearing That of Blacks to Democrats’, New York Times, April 24, 2014
3. Web site: 1916 Presidential General Election Results — West Virginia. 2013-08-02 . Dave Leip's Atlas of U.S. Presidential Elections.
4. West Virginia Secretary of State. 1917. West Virginia Vote for President — 1916-1912. The Tribune Printing Co., Charleston, West Virginia. West Virginia Legislative Hand Book and Manual and Official Register.