See main article: 1968 United States presidential election.
| Election Name: | 1968 United States presidential election in Florida |
| Country: | Florida |
| Flag Year: | 1900 |
| Type: | presidential |
| Ongoing: | no |
| Previous Election: | 1964 United States presidential election in Florida |
| Previous Year: | 1964 |
| Election Date: | November 5, 1968 |
| Next Election: | 1972 United States presidential election in Florida |
| Next Year: | 1972 |
| Turnout: | 79% |
| Image1: | Nixon_30-0316a_(cropped).jpg |
| Nominee1: | Richard Nixon |
| Party1: | Republican Party (United States) |
| Home State1: | New York |
| Running Mate1: | Spiro Agnew |
| Electoral Vote1: | 14 |
| Popular Vote1: | 886,804 |
| Percentage1: | 40.53% |
| Map Size: | x400px |
| President | |
| Before Election: | Lyndon B. Johnson |
| Before Party: | Democratic Party (United States) |
| After Election: | Richard Nixon |
| After Party: | Republican Party (United States) |
| Nominee2: | Hubert Humphrey |
| Party2: | Democratic Party (United States) |
| Running Mate2: | Edmund Muskie |
| Home State2: | Minnesota |
| Popular Vote2: | 676,794 |
| Percentage2: | 30.93% |
| Electoral Vote2: | 0 |
| Nominee3: | George Wallace |
| Image3: | File: George Wallace (D-AL) (3x4).jpg |
| Party3: | American Independent Party |
| Colour3: | ff9955 |
| Home State3: | Alabama |
| Running Mate3: | Curtis LeMay |
| Electoral Vote3: | 0 |
| Popular Vote3: | 624,207 |
| Percentage3: | 28.53% |
The 1968 United States presidential election in Florida was held on November 5, 1968. Florida voters chose fourteen electors, or representatives to the Electoral College, who voted for president and vice president.
Nixon obtained his support in Central Florida, Democratic candidate Hubert Humphrey got his support from Southern Florida, and third-party candidate George Wallace got his support from the Florida Panhandle, or Northern Florida. This was one of the better states for George Wallace, due to the Northern part of the state being against the Civil Rights Act of 1964, which Lyndon Johnson had signed into law. This led to Democratic party gains in support from black voters. The party simultaneously lost the great majority of white voters. One exception to this abandonment by white voters came in the Jewish sections of Miami.[1]
45% of white voters supported Nixon, 32% supported Wallace, and 23% supported Humphrey. The Republican Party held their convention in Miami Beach that year.[2]
Florida held its Democratic presidential primary on May 28, 1968. George Smathers won the Florida Democratic primary.[3] Scott Kelly lead the unpledged delegation.[4]
| Candidate | Number of votes | % | |
|---|---|---|---|
| George Smathers | 236,242 | 46.11% | |
| Eugene McCarthy | 147,216 | 28.73% | |
| (no preference) | 128,899 | 25.16% | |
| Total | 512,357 | 100% |
Florida held its Republican primary on May 28, 1968. The only option on the ballot was "no preference".[5]
| County[6] | Richard Nixon Republican | Hubert Humphrey Democratic | George Wallace American Independent | Margin | Total votes cast | ||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| % | % | % | % | ||||||||||||||||
| Alachua | 9,670 | 34.02% | 10,060 | 35.39% | 8,696 | 30.59% | -390 | -1.37% | 28,426 | ||||||||||
| Baker | 294 | 10.72% | 487 | 17.75% | 1,962 | 71.53% | -1,475 | -53.78% | 2,743 | ||||||||||
| Bay | 5,121 | 21.07% | 4,020 | 16.54% | 15,161 | 62.39% | -10,040 | -41.32% | 24,302 | ||||||||||
| Bradford | 718 | 15.18% | 1,173 | 24.79% | 2,840 | 60.03% | -1,667 | -35.24% | 4,731 | ||||||||||
| Brevard | 37,124 | 48.02% | 18,281 | 23.65% | 21,909 | 28.34% | 15,215 | 19.68% | 77,314 | ||||||||||
| Broward | 106,122 | 54.50% | 56,613 | 29.07% | 31,992 | 16.43% | 49,509 | 25.43% | 194,727 | ||||||||||
| Calhoun | 356 | 11.38% | 398 | 12.72% | 2,375 | 75.90% | -1,977 | -63.18% | 3,129 | ||||||||||
| Charlotte | 6,056 | 50.58% | 3,647 | 30.46% | 2,270 | 18.96% | 2,409 | 20.12% | 11,973 | ||||||||||
| Citrus | 2,767 | 38.71% | 1,775 | 24.83% | 2,606 | 36.46% | 161 | 2.25% | 7,148 | ||||||||||
| Clay | 3,251 | 35.14% | 1,954 | 21.12% | 4,046 | 43.74% | -795 | -8.60% | 9,251 | ||||||||||
| Collier | 5,362 | 50.85% | 2,230 | 21.15% | 2,952 | 28.00% | 2,410 | 22.85% | 10,544 | ||||||||||
| Columbia | 1,553 | 21.13% | 1,750 | 23.81% | 4,046 | 55.06% | -2,296 | -31.25% | 7,349 | ||||||||||
| Dade | 135,222 | 37.02% | 176,689 | 48.37% | 53,391 | 14.62% | -41,467 | -11.35% | 365,302 | ||||||||||
| DeSoto | 1,103 | 26.94% | 937 | 22.89% | 2,054 | 50.17% | -951 | -23.23% | 4,094 | ||||||||||
| Dixie | 217 | 10.39% | 325 | 15.57% | 1,546 | 74.04% | -1,221 | -58.47% | 2,088 | ||||||||||
| Duval | 51,585 | 30.89% | 54,834 | 32.84% | 60,559 | 36.27% | -5,725 | -3.43% | 166,978 | ||||||||||
| Escambia | 15,089 | 22.07% | 16,281 | 23.81% | 37,000 | 54.12% | -20,719 | -30.31% | 68,370 | ||||||||||
| Flagler | 360 | 20.25% | 601 | 33.80% | 817 | 45.95% | -216 | -12.15% | 1,778 | ||||||||||
| Franklin | 529 | 16.86% | 699 | 22.28% | 1,909 | 60.85% | -1,210 | -38.57% | 3,137 | ||||||||||
| Gadsden | 1,337 | 14.76% | 3,274 | 36.15% | 4,446 | 49.09% | -1,172 | -12.94% | 9,057 | ||||||||||
| Gilchrist | 183 | 12.12% | 208 | 13.77% | 1,119 | 74.11% | -911 | -60.34% | 1,510 | ||||||||||
| Glades | 261 | 23.92% | 230 | 21.08% | 600 | 55.00% | -339 | -31.08% | 1,091 | ||||||||||
| Gulf | 364 | 9.58% | 711 | 18.71% | 2,725 | 71.71% | -2,014 | -53.00% | 3,800 | ||||||||||
| Hamilton | 337 | 12.34% | 820 | 30.03% | 1,574 | 57.63% | -754 | -27.60% | 2,731 | ||||||||||
| Hardee | 1,278 | 28.34% | 703 | 15.59% | 2,529 | 56.08% | -1,251 | -27.74% | 4,510 | ||||||||||
| Hendry | 900 | 27.04% | 791 | 23.76% | 1,638 | 49.20% | -738 | -22.16% | 3,329 | ||||||||||
| Hernando | 2,053 | 34.42% | 1,524 | 25.55% | 2,387 | 40.02% | -334 | -5.60% | 5,964 | ||||||||||
| Highlands | 4,560 | 42.95% | 2,582 | 24.32% | 3,475 | 32.73% | 1,085 | 10.22% | 10,617 | ||||||||||
| Hillsborough | 49,441 | 34.77% | 45,848 | 32.24% | 46,913 | 32.99% | 2,528 | 1.78% | 142,202 | ||||||||||
| Holmes | 377 | 7.00% | 312 | 5.79% | 4,700 | 87.21% | -4,323 | -80.21% | 5,389 | ||||||||||
| Indian River | 6,518 | 51.25% | 3,179 | 24.99% | 3,022 | 23.76% | 3,339 | 26.26% | 12,719 | ||||||||||
| Jackson | 1,236 | 10.02% | 2,472 | 20.05% | 8,622 | 69.93% | -6,150 | -49.88% | 12,330 | ||||||||||
| Jefferson | 459 | 14.84% | 1,066 | 34.48% | 1,567 | 50.68% | -501 | -16.20% | 3,092 | ||||||||||
| Lafayette | 137 | 9.28% | 215 | 14.56% | 1,125 | 76.17% | -910 | -61.61% | 1,477 | ||||||||||
| Lake | 11,763 | 47.42% | 4,599 | 18.54% | 8,442 | 34.03% | 3,321 | 13.39% | 24,804 | ||||||||||
| Lee | 14,376 | 46.23% | 7,978 | 25.66% | 8,741 | 28.11% | 5,635 | 18.12% | 31,095 | ||||||||||
| Leon | 9,288 | 28.49% | 10,440 | 32.02% | 12,878 | 39.50% | -2,438 | -7.48% | 32,606 | ||||||||||
| Levy | 745 | 18.81% | 767 | 19.36% | 2,449 | 61.83% | -1,682 | -42.47% | 3,961 | ||||||||||
| Liberty | 154 | 8.96% | 242 | 14.09% | 1,322 | 76.95% | -1,080 | -62.86% | 1,718 | ||||||||||
| Madison | 654 | 13.81% | 1,378 | 29.10% | 2,703 | 57.09% | -1,325 | -27.99% | 4,735 | ||||||||||
| Manatee | 18,247 | 52.51% | 8,286 | 23.85% | 8,214 | 23.64% | 9,961 | 28.66% | 34,747 | ||||||||||
| Marion | 7,468 | 32.66% | 5,798 | 25.36% | 9,600 | 41.98% | -2,132 | -9.32% | 22,866 | ||||||||||
| Martin | 5,179 | 50.63% | 2,580 | 25.22% | 2,471 | 24.15% | 2,599 | 25.41% | 10,230 | ||||||||||
| Monroe | 5,094 | 34.19% | 5,534 | 37.14% | 4,271 | 28.67% | -440 | -2.95% | 14,899 | ||||||||||
| Nassau | 1,301 | 19.91% | 1,598 | 24.46% | 3,634 | 55.63% | -2,036 | -31.17% | 6,533 | ||||||||||
| Okaloosa | 5,525 | 26.54% | 3,059 | 14.69% | 12,237 | 58.77% | -6,712 | -32.23% | 20,821 | ||||||||||
| Okeechobee | 862 | 28.66% | 542 | 18.02% | 1,604 | 53.32% | -742 | -24.66% | 3,008 | ||||||||||
| Orange | 50,874 | 50.54% | 22,548 | 22.40% | 27,247 | 27.07% | 23,627 | 23.47% | 100,669 | ||||||||||
| Osceola | 4,172 | 43.90% | 1,870 | 19.68% | 3,462 | 36.43% | 710 | 7.47% | 9,504 | ||||||||||
| Palm Beach | 62,191 | 53.19% | 32,837 | 28.08% | 21,894 | 18.73% | 29,354 | 25.11% | 116,922 | ||||||||||
| Pasco | 9,743 | 42.36% | 6,292 | 27.36% | 6,966 | 30.29% | 2,777 | 12.07% | 23,001 | ||||||||||
| Pinellas | 109,235 | 51.71% | 68,209 | 32.29% | 33,814 | 16.01% | 41,026 | 19.42% | 211,258 | ||||||||||
| Polk | 27,839 | 36.98% | 15,898 | 21.12% | 31,540 | 41.90% | -3,701 | -4.92% | 75,277 | ||||||||||
| Putnam | 2,955 | 26.80% | 2,920 | 26.49% | 5,150 | 46.71% | -2,195 | -19.91% | 11,025 | ||||||||||
| St. Johns | 3,880 | 34.31% | 2,748 | 24.30% | 4,682 | 41.40% | -802 | -7.09% | 11,310 | ||||||||||
| St. Lucie | 7,281 | 43.02% | 5,232 | 30.92% | 4,410 | 26.06% | 2,049 | 12.10% | 16,923 | ||||||||||
| Santa Rosa | 2,567 | 20.19% | 1,600 | 12.58% | 8,549 | 67.23% | -5,982 | -47.04% | 12,716 | ||||||||||
| Sarasota | 30,160 | 63.73% | 10,127 | 21.40% | 7,041 | 14.88% | 20,033 | 42.33% | 47,328 | ||||||||||
| Seminole | 10,821 | 44.69% | 6,120 | 25.27% | 7,275 | 30.04% | 3,546 | 14.65% | 24,216 | ||||||||||
| Sumter | 910 | 17.96% | 1,277 | 25.21% | 2,879 | 56.83% | -1,602 | -31.62% | 5,066 | ||||||||||
| Suwannee | 845 | 14.13% | 1,182 | 19.76% | 3,955 | 66.12% | -2,773 | -46.36% | 5,982 | ||||||||||
| Taylor | 794 | 15.71% | 941 | 18.62% | 3,318 | 65.66% | -2,377 | -47.04% | 5,053 | ||||||||||
| Union | 179 | 10.78% | 290 | 17.46% | 1,192 | 71.76% | -902 | -54.30% | 1,661 | ||||||||||
| Volusia | 28,024 | 39.91% | 24,987 | 35.58% | 17,209 | 24.51% | 3,037 | 4.33% | 70,220 | ||||||||||
| Wakulla | 247 | 10.49% | 440 | 18.68% | 1,668 | 70.83% | -1,228 | -52.15% | 2,355 | ||||||||||
| Walton | 963 | 13.45% | 1,064 | 14.86% | 5,135 | 71.70% | -4,071 | -56.84% | 7,162 | ||||||||||
| Washington | 528 | 10.71% | 722 | 14.64% | 3,682 | 74.66% | -2,960 | -60.02% | 4,932 | ||||||||||
| Totals | 886,804 | 40.53% | 676,794 | 30.93% | 624,207 | 28.53% | 210,010 | 9.60% | 2,187,805 | ||||||||||
Nixon won 8 congressional districts (including five held by Democrats), while Wallace won 3 (all held by Democrats), and Humphrey won a single district.[7]
| District[8] | Nixon | Humphrey | Wallace | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1st | 19.9% | 18.9% | 61.2% | |||||
| 2nd | 23.5% | 27.6% | 48.9% | |||||
| 3rd | 28.2% | 34.6% | 37.2% | |||||
| 4th | 39.7% | 27.7% | 32.6% | |||||
| 5th | 49.5% | 23.1% | 27.5% | |||||
| 6th | 34.7% | 31.3% | 34% | |||||
| 7th | 47.9% | 23.1% | 29% | |||||
| 8th | 50.8% | 31.8% | 17.4% | |||||
| 9th | 53.0% | 26.2% | 20.8% | |||||
| 10th | 45.9% | 36.7% | 17.4% | |||||
| 11th | 28.5% | 58.4% | 13.1% | |||||
| 12th | 44.8% | 38.6% | 16.6% |
Between the imposition of a poll tax in 1889 and the migration of numerous northerners seeking a hotter climate in the 1940s,[9] Florida had been a one-party Democratic state, lacking any traditional white Republicanism due to the absence of mountains or German "Forty-Eighter" settlements. So late as the landmark court case of Smith v. Allwright (1944), half of Florida's registered Republicans were still black,[10] although very few blacks in Florida had ever voted within the previous fifty-five years. When new migrants from traditionally Republican northern states took up residence in Central Florida and brought with them their Republican voting habits at the presidential level,[11]
1964 saw a complete reversal of the 1950s voting pattern of a largely Republican south and central Florida and continuing Democratic loyalty in the North, with almost zero correlation between 1960 and 1964 county returns.[12] Following his landslide sweep of the northern states, Lyndon Johnson's Great Society at first appeared to be helping him in Florida;[13] however, the relationship soured quickly as the Democratic Party factionalized. In 1966, via a campaign portraying his opponent as a dangerous liberal, Claude R. Kirk defeated Miami Mayor Robert King Hugh to become (alongside Winthrop Rockefeller) the first GOP Governor of any Confederate State since Alfred A. Taylor in 1922.[14]
, this is the last election in which Escambia County, Clay County, Okaloosa County, and Santa Rosa County did not support the Republican candidate.[15]