1948 United States presidential election in Tennessee
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County Results
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Elections in Tennessee |
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Government |
The 1948 United States presidential election in Tennessee took place on November 2, 1948, as part of the 1948 United States presidential election. Tennessee voters chose 12[2] representatives, or electors, to the Electoral College, who voted for president and vice president.
For over a century after the
Between 1896 and 1948, the Republicans would win statewide contests three times but only in the second did they receive down-ballot coattails by winning three congressional seats in addition to the rock-ribbed GOP First and Second Districts.[8] In the early 1910s, prohibitionist “Independent Democrats” fled the party and formed a coalition, known as the “Fusionists,” with Republicans to elect Ben W. Hooper Governor,[9] whilst in 1920 the national anti-Wilson and anti-League of Nations tide allowed the GOP to carry a few traditionally Democratic areas in Middle Tennessee and with them the state,[10] and in 1928 anti-Catholicism against Democratic nominee Al Smith gave this powerfully fundamentalist state to Herbert Hoover.[11]
After the beginning of the
14% of white voters supported Thurmond.[16]
Polls
Source | Rating | As of |
---|---|---|
Chattanooga Daily Times[17]
|
Likely D | October 15, 1948 |
The Montgomery Advertiser[18]
|
Tilt R | October 24, 1948 |
The Miami News[19] | Tossup | October 25, 1948 |
Mount Vernon Argus[20] | Lean D | November 1, 1948 |
Oakland Tribune[21] | Likely D | November 1, 1948 |
Results
1948 United States presidential election in Tennessee[22][23] | |||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Party | Candidate | Votes | Percentage | Electoral votes | |
Democratic | Harry S. Truman (inc.) | 270,402 | 49.14% | 11 | |
States’ Rights | Strom Thurmond | 73,815 | 13.41% | 1 | |
Republican | Thomas Dewey
|
202,914 | 36.87% | 0 | |
Progressive
|
Henry A. Wallace | 1,864 | 0.34% | 0 | |
Socialist | Norman Thomas | 1,288 | 0.23% | 0 | |
Totals | 550,283 | 100.00% | 12 |
Results by county
1948 United States presidential election in Tennessee by county[24] | |||||||||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
County | Harry S. Truman Democratic |
Thomas Edmund Dewey Republican |
James Strom Thurmond States’ Rights |
Henry Agard Wallace Progressive |
Norman Mattoon Thomas Socialist |
Margin | Total votes cast | ||||||
# | % | # | % | # | % | # | % | # | % | # | % | ||
Anderson | 5,915 | 49.97% | 5,372 | 45.38% | 433 | 3.66% | 53 | 0.45% | 64 | 0.54% | 543 | 4.59% | 11,837 |
Bedford | 2,393 | 55.64% | 771 | 17.93% | 1,127 | 26.20% | 4 | 0.09% | 6 | 0.14% | 1,266[a] | 29.44% | 4,301 |
Benton | 1,757 | 63.02% | 908 | 32.57% | 116 | 4.16% | 6 | 0.22% | 1 | 0.04% | 849 | 30.45% | 2,788 |
Bledsoe | 1,092 | 48.58% | 1,103 | 49.07% | 49 | 2.18% | 4 | 0.18% | 0 | 0.00% | -11 | -0.49% | 2,248 |
Blount | 3,141 | 32.91% | 6,152 | 64.47% | 214 | 2.24% | 13 | 0.14% | 23 | 0.24% | -3,011 | -31.55% | 9,543 |
Bradley | 2,036 | 39.52% | 2,942 | 57.10% | 164 | 3.18% | 6 | 0.12% | 4 | 0.08% | -906 | -17.59% | 5,152 |
Campbell | 2,267 | 42.61% | 2,922 | 54.92% | 87 | 1.64% | 31 | 0.58% | 13 | 0.24% | -655 | -12.31% | 5,320 |
Cannon | 1,408 | 66.20% | 558 | 26.23% | 141 | 6.63% | 10 | 0.47% | 10 | 0.47% | 850 | 39.96% | 2,127 |
Carroll | 2,818 | 45.65% | 2,651 | 42.95% | 606 | 9.82% | 52 | 0.84% | 46 | 0.75% | 167 | 2.71% | 6,173 |
Carter | 1,809 | 25.96% | 4,943 | 70.94% | 179 | 2.57% | 13 | 0.19% | 24 | 0.34% | -3,134 | -44.98% | 6,968 |
Cheatham | 2,731 | 88.58% | 193 | 6.26% | 150 | 4.87% | 8 | 0.26% | 1 | 0.03% | 2,538 | 82.32% | 3,083 |
Chester | 980 | 50.52% | 766 | 39.48% | 193 | 9.95% | 1 | 0.05% | 0 | 0.00% | 214 | 11.03% | 1,940 |
Claiborne | 2,068 | 44.13% | 2,507 | 53.50% | 66 | 1.41% | 33 | 0.70% | 12 | 0.26% | -439 | -9.37% | 4,686 |
Clay | 1,146 | 60.28% | 703 | 36.98% | 46 | 2.42% | 5 | 0.26% | 1 | 0.05% | 443 | 23.30% | 1,901 |
Cocke | 939 | 20.35% | 3,576 | 77.50% | 72 | 1.56% | 18 | 0.39% | 9 | 0.20% | -2,637 | -57.15% | 4,614 |
Coffee | 2,041 | 56.68% | 599 | 16.63% | 933 | 25.91% | 11 | 0.31% | 17 | 0.47% | 1,108[a] | 30.77% | 3,601 |
Crockett | 1,415 | 53.60% | 601 | 22.77% | 615 | 23.30% | 5 | 0.19% | 4 | 0.15% | 800[a] | 30.30% | 2,640 |
Cumberland | 1,607 | 43.19% | 1,988 | 53.43% | 95 | 2.55% | 9 | 0.24% | 22 | 0.59% | -381 | -10.24% | 3,721 |
Davidson | 20,877 | 55.46% | 8,410 | 22.34% | 8,103 | 21.53% | 169 | 0.45% | 84 | 0.22% | 12,467 | 33.12% | 37,643 |
Decatur | 1,565 | 51.82% | 1,291 | 42.75% | 156 | 5.17% | 3 | 0.10% | 5 | 0.17% | 274 | 9.07% | 3,020 |
DeKalb | 2,412 | 54.67% | 1,751 | 39.69% | 249 | 5.64% | 0 | 0.00% | 0 | 0.00% | 661 | 14.98% | 4,412 |
Dickson | 2,337 | 74.31% | 485 | 15.42% | 315 | 10.02% | 3 | 0.10% | 5 | 0.16% | 1,852 | 58.89% | 3,145 |
Dyer | 3,503 | 65.31% | 989 | 18.44% | 855 | 15.94% | 7 | 0.13% | 10 | 0.19% | 2,514 | 46.87% | 5,364 |
Fayette | 226 | 12.66% | 66 | 3.70% | 1,488 | 83.36% | 2 | 0.11% | 3 | 0.17% | -1,262[a] | -70.70% | 1,785 |
Fentress | 962 | 36.52% | 1,587 | 60.25% | 46 | 1.75% | 14 | 0.53% | 25 | 0.95% | -625 | -23.73% | 2,634 |
Franklin | 2,948 | 66.08% | 589 | 13.20% | 892 | 20.00% | 7 | 0.16% | 25 | 0.56% | 2,056[a] | 46.09% | 4,461 |
Gibson | 3,917 | 65.60% | 1,137 | 19.04% | 905 | 15.16% | 6 | 0.10% | 6 | 0.10% | 2,780 | 46.56% | 5,971 |
Giles | 3,676 | 75.45% | 717 | 14.72% | 443 | 9.09% | 19 | 0.39% | 17 | 0.35% | 2,959 | 60.73% | 4,872 |
Grainger | 644 | 25.33% | 1,824 | 71.75% | 57 | 2.24% | 8 | 0.31% | 9 | 0.35% | -1,180 | -46.42% | 2,542 |
Greene | 3,282 | 41.68% | 4,375 | 55.56% | 154 | 1.96% | 27 | 0.34% | 37 | 0.47% | -1,093 | -13.88% | 7,875 |
Grundy | 2,009 | 78.02% | 431 | 16.74% | 113 | 4.39% | 13 | 0.50% | 9 | 0.35% | 1,578 | 61.28% | 2,575 |
Hamblen | 1,552 | 39.46% | 2,116 | 53.80% | 228 | 5.80% | 18 | 0.46% | 19 | 0.48% | -564 | -14.34% | 3,933 |
Hamilton | 16,968 | 56.21% | 10,434 | 34.56% | 2,571 | 8.52% | 150 | 0.50% | 66 | 0.22% | 6,534 | 21.64% | 30,189 |
Hancock | 416 | 20.15% | 1,598 | 77.38% | 38 | 1.84% | 2 | 0.10% | 11 | 0.53% | -1,182 | -57.24% | 2,065 |
Hardeman | 1,609 | 48.76% | 317 | 9.61% | 1,364 | 41.33% | 3 | 0.09% | 7 | 0.21% | 245[a] | 7.42% | 3,300 |
Hardin | 1,270 | 38.75% | 1,779 | 54.29% | 189 | 5.77% | 28 | 0.85% | 11 | 0.34% | -509 | -15.53% | 3,277 |
Hawkins | 2,019 | 34.70% | 3,637 | 62.50% | 117 | 2.01% | 24 | 0.41% | 22 | 0.38% | -1,618 | -27.81% | 5,819 |
Haywood | 1,050 | 49.32% | 148 | 6.95% | 931 | 43.73% | 0 | 0.00% | 0 | 0.00% | 119[a] | 5.59% | 2,129 |
Henderson | 1,155 | 31.70% | 2,278 | 62.53% | 205 | 5.63% | 5 | 0.14% | 0 | 0.00% | -1,123 | -30.83% | 3,643 |
Henry | 3,292 | 76.99% | 604 | 14.13% | 372 | 8.70% | 6 | 0.14% | 2 | 0.05% | 2,688 | 62.86% | 4,276 |
Hickman | 2,140 | 74.36% | 478 | 16.61% | 226 | 7.85% | 25 | 0.87% | 9 | 0.31% | 1,662 | 57.75% | 2,878 |
Houston | 1,159 | 79.66% | 202 | 13.88% | 88 | 6.05% | 1 | 0.07% | 5 | 0.34% | 957 | 65.77% | 1,455 |
Humphreys | 1,327 | 59.24% | 355 | 15.85% | 547 | 24.42% | 5 | 0.22% | 6 | 0.27% | 780[a] | 34.82% | 2,240 |
Jackson | 1,502 | 68.68% | 536 | 24.51% | 142 | 6.49% | 5 | 0.23% | 2 | 0.09% | 966 | 44.17% | 2,187 |
Jefferson | 900 | 22.39% | 2,979 | 74.12% | 121 | 3.01% | 9 | 0.22% | 10 | 0.25% | -2,079 | -51.73% | 4,019 |
Johnson | 433 | 14.89% | 2,413 | 82.98% | 47 | 1.62% | 6 | 0.21% | 9 | 0.31% | -1,980 | -68.09% | 2,908 |
Knox | 15,946 | 40.68% | 21,074 | 53.77% | 1,822 | 4.65% | 221 | 0.56% | 133 | 0.34% | -5,128 | -13.08% | 39,196 |
Lake | 833 | 55.46% | 179 | 11.92% | 482 | 32.09% | 5 | 0.33% | 3 | 0.20% | 351[a] | 23.37% | 1,502 |
Lauderdale | 2,556 | 65.89% | 298 | 7.68% | 1,007 | 25.96% | 7 | 0.18% | 11 | 0.28% | 1,549[a] | 39.93% | 3,879 |
Lawrence | 4,854 | 53.43% | 3,837 | 42.24% | 373 | 4.11% | 13 | 0.14% | 7 | 0.08% | 1,017 | 11.20% | 9,084 |
Lewis | 1,148 | 70.17% | 381 | 23.29% | 88 | 5.38% | 14 | 0.86% | 5 | 0.31% | 767 | 46.88% | 1,636 |
Lincoln | 2,969 | 72.63% | 361 | 8.83% | 758 | 18.54% | 0 | 0.00% | 0 | 0.00% | 2,211[a] | 54.09% | 4,088 |
Loudon | 1,673 | 37.05% | 2,605 | 57.70% | 200 | 4.43% | 19 | 0.42% | 18 | 0.40% | -932 | -20.64% | 4,515 |
Macon | 738 | 29.40% | 1,708 | 68.05% | 59 | 2.35% | 3 | 0.12% | 2 | 0.08% | -970 | -38.65% | 2,510 |
Madison | 4,722 | 52.48% | 1,681 | 18.68% | 2,586 | 28.74% | 1 | 0.01% | 7 | 0.08% | 2,136[a] | 23.74% | 8,997 |
Marion | 2,554 | 57.17% | 1,738 | 38.91% | 153 | 3.43% | 16 | 0.36% | 6 | 0.13% | 816 | 18.27% | 4,467 |
Marshall | 3,059 | 71.22% | 517 | 12.04% | 691 | 16.09% | 10 | 0.23% | 18 | 0.42% | 2,368[a] | 55.13% | 4,295 |
Maury | 2,906 | 51.57% | 895 | 15.88% | 1,792 | 31.80% | 20 | 0.35% | 22 | 0.39% | 1,114[a] | 19.77% | 5,635 |
McMinn | 3,016 | 39.36% | 4,432 | 57.84% | 184 | 2.40% | 14 | 0.18% | 16 | 0.21% | -1,416 | -18.48% | 7,662 |
McNairy | 2,267 | 45.62% | 2,390 | 48.10% | 286 | 5.76% | 16 | 0.32% | 10 | 0.20% | -123 | -2.48% | 4,969 |
Meigs | 788 | 49.56% | 748 | 47.04% | 43 | 2.70% | 8 | 0.50% | 3 | 0.19% | 40 | 2.52% | 1,590 |
Monroe | 3,553 | 47.08% | 3,905 | 51.75% | 73 | 0.97% | 6 | 0.08% | 9 | 0.12% | -352 | -4.66% | 7,546 |
Montgomery | 3,310 | 73.47% | 646 | 14.34% | 525 | 11.65% | 13 | 0.29% | 11 | 0.24% | 2,664 | 59.13% | 4,505 |
Moore | 523 | 62.94% | 102 | 12.27% | 206 | 24.79% | 0 | 0.00% | 0 | 0.00% | 317[a] | 38.15% | 831 |
Morgan | 1,500 | 48.62% | 1,570 | 50.89% | 10 | 0.32% | 5 | 0.16% | 0 | 0.00% | -70 | -2.27% | 3,085 |
Obion | 3,490 | 75.59% | 642 | 13.91% | 460 | 9.96% | 9 | 0.19% | 16 | 0.35% | 2,848 | 61.69% | 4,617 |
Overton | 1,835 | 63.17% | 917 | 31.57% | 118 | 4.06% | 23 | 0.79% | 12 | 0.41% | 918 | 31.60% | 2,905 |
Perry | 1,196 | 68.42% | 459 | 26.26% | 85 | 4.86% | 6 | 0.34% | 2 | 0.11% | 737 | 42.16% | 1,748 |
Pickett | 566 | 39.39% | 849 | 59.08% | 19 | 1.32% | 3 | 0.21% | 0 | 0.00% | -283 | -19.69% | 1,437 |
Polk | 1,412 | 47.22% | 1,529 | 51.14% | 26 | 0.87% | 19 | 0.64% | 4 | 0.13% | -117 | -3.91% | 2,990 |
Putnam | 3,134 | 56.33% | 1,879 | 33.77% | 511 | 9.18% | 26 | 0.47% | 14 | 0.25% | 1,255 | 22.56% | 5,564 |
Rhea | 1,897 | 45.70% | 2,077 | 50.04% | 159 | 3.83% | 11 | 0.26% | 7 | 0.17% | -180 | -4.34% | 4,151 |
Roane | 2,306 | 39.89% | 3,236 | 55.98% | 218 | 3.77% | 15 | 0.26% | 6 | 0.10% | -930 | -16.09% | 5,781 |
Robertson | 3,044 | 77.14% | 376 | 9.53% | 514 | 13.03% | 6 | 0.15% | 6 | 0.15% | 2,530[a] | 64.12% | 3,946 |
Rutherford | 4,151 | 68.30% | 854 | 14.05% | 1,017 | 16.73% | 23 | 0.38% | 33 | 0.54% | 3,134[a] | 51.56% | 6,078 |
Scott | 972 | 32.14% | 2,016 | 66.67% | 18 | 0.60% | 12 | 0.40% | 6 | 0.20% | -1,044 | -34.52% | 3,024 |
Sequatchie | 907 | 66.06% | 420 | 30.59% | 41 | 2.99% | 3 | 0.22% | 2 | 0.15% | 487 | 35.47% | 1,373 |
Sevier | 840 | 13.99% | 5,049 | 84.11% | 70 | 1.17% | 39 | 0.65% | 5 | 0.08% | -4,209 | -70.11% | 6,003 |
Shelby | 23,854 | 36.60% | 14,566 | 22.35% | 26,396 | 40.50% | 229 | 0.35% | 131 | 0.20% | -2,542[a] | -3.90% | 65,176 |
Smith | 1,764 | 62.38% | 773 | 27.33% | 275 | 9.72% | 9 | 0.32% | 7 | 0.25% | 991 | 35.04% | 2,828 |
Stewart | 1,962 | 81.38% | 331 | 13.73% | 115 | 4.77% | 3 | 0.12% | 0 | 0.00% | 1,631 | 67.65% | 2,411 |
Sullivan | 7,626 | 50.44% | 6,984 | 46.19% | 472 | 3.12% | 32 | 0.21% | 6 | 0.04% | 642 | 4.25% | 15,120 |
Sumner | 3,688 | 73.67% | 793 | 15.84% | 515 | 10.29% | 10 | 0.20% | 0 | 0.00% | 2,895 | 57.83% | 5,006 |
Tipton | 3,066 | 65.50% | 209 | 4.46% | 1,394 | 29.78% | 8 | 0.17% | 4 | 0.09% | 1,672[a] | 35.72% | 4,681 |
Trousdale | 1,014 | 82.51% | 104 | 8.46% | 110 | 8.95% | 1 | 0.08% | 0 | 0.00% | 904[a] | 73.56% | 1,229 |
Unicoi | 844 | 29.50% | 1,927 | 67.35% | 81 | 2.83% | 7 | 0.24% | 2 | 0.07% | -1,083 | -37.85% | 2,861 |
Union | 513 | 23.79% | 1,603 | 74.35% | 19 | 0.88% | 16 | 0.74% | 5 | 0.23% | -1,090 | -50.56% | 2,156 |
Van Buren | 636 | 65.03% | 298 | 30.47% | 39 | 3.99% | 4 | 0.41% | 1 | 0.10% | 338 | 34.56% | 978 |
Warren | 2,969 | 66.51% | 807 | 18.08% | 667 | 14.94% | 21 | 0.47% | 0 | 0.00% | 2,162 | 48.43% | 4,464 |
Washington | 4,023 | 34.80% | 7,056 | 61.04% | 426 | 3.69% | 34 | 0.29% | 20 | 0.17% | -3,033 | -26.24% | 11,559 |
Wayne | 820 | 28.65% | 1,957 | 68.38% | 76 | 2.66% | 5 | 0.17% | 4 | 0.14% | -1,137 | -39.73% | 2,862 |
Weakley | 3,099 | 64.02% | 1,310 | 27.06% | 418 | 8.63% | 11 | 0.23% | 3 | 0.06% | 1,789 | 36.96% | 4,841 |
White | 1,719 | 64.09% | 635 | 23.68% | 312 | 11.63% | 11 | 0.41% | 5 | 0.19% | 1,084 | 40.42% | 2,682 |
Williamson | 2,294 | 59.41% | 556 | 14.40% | 983 | 25.46% | 16 | 0.41% | 12 | 0.31% | 1,311[a] | 33.95% | 3,861 |
Wilson | 3,133 | 66.67% | 854 | 18.17% | 685 | 14.58% | 12 | 0.26% | 15 | 0.32% | 2,279 | 48.50% | 4,699 |
Totals | 270,402 | 49.14% | 202,914 | 36.87% | 73,815 | 13.41% | 1,864 | 0.34% | 1,288 | 0.23% | 67,488 | 12.26% | 550,283 |
Analysis
Truman carried Tennessee more comfortably than expected, defeating Republican nominees New York Governor Thomas Dewey and California Governor Earl Warren by 12.26 percentage points and Thurmond by 35.73 percentage points. Thurmond did however make significant inroads into traditional Democratic support in the Black Belt of West Tennessee, where he received over eighty percent in Fayette County, and also did well in prosperous urban precincts in Nashville.
Truman received eleven of Tennessee's twelve electoral votes, with the other cast in favor of Thurmond by Preston Parks of Somerville, TN, who was also on the Dixiecrat slate.[15] [25] As of the 2020 presidential election[update], this is the last election in which Hamilton County voted for a Democratic presidential candidate.[26]
Notes
References
- ^ "United States Presidential election of 1948 — Encyclopædia Britannica". Retrieved October 31, 2017.
- ^ "1948 Election for the Forty-First Term (1949-53)". Retrieved October 31, 2017.
- ^ Wright, John K. (October 1932). "Voting Habits in the United States: A Note on Two Maps". Geographical Review. 22 (4): 666–672.
- Key (Jr.), Valdimer Orlando; Southern Politics in State and Nation (New York, 1949), pp. 282-283
- ISBN 1572331410.
- ISBN 9780691163246
- ^ Grantham, Dewey W. (Fall 1995). "Tennessee and Twentieth-Century American Politics'". Tennessee Historical Quarterly. 54 (3): 210–229.
- ^ Phillips; The Emerging Republican Majority, p. 287
- ^ Langsdon, Phillip (2000). Tennessee: A Political History. Franklin, Tennessee: Hillsboro Press. pp. 287–295.
- The Journal of Southern History. 36 (1): 33–49.
- ISBN 9780465075102.
- ^ ISBN 9780865542099.
- ^ a b Guthrie, Paul Daniel (1955). The Dixiecrat Movement of 1948 (Thesis). Bowling Green State University. pp. 181–182. Docket 144207.
- ISBN 9781577361251.
- ^ a b Guthrie; The Dixiecrat Movement of 1948 (Thesis). pp. 211-212
- ^ Black & Black 1992, p. 147.
- Chattanooga Daily Times. Chattanooga, Tennessee. p. 6-A.
- The Montgomery Advertiser. Montgomery, Alabama. p. 16.
- ^ Moss, Charles (October 25, 1948). "Tennessee". The Miami News. Miami, Florida. p. 8.
- ^ Tucker, Ray (November 1, 1948). "Truman Whistling in a White House Graveyard, Says Tucker, Predicting It'll Be a Dewey Sweep". Mount Vernon Argus. Mount Vernon, New York. p. 8.
- ^ Gallup, George (November 1, 1948). "Final Gallup Poll Shows Dewey Winning Election with Wide Electoral Vote Margin". Oakland Tribune. Oakland, California. pp. 1–2.
- ^ "1948 Presidential General Election Results – Tennessee". Retrieved October 31, 2017.
- ^ "The American Presidency Project — Election of 1948". Retrieved October 31, 2017.
- ^ "TN US President, November 02, 1948". Our Campaigns.
- ^ https://nyti.ms/3PPf2IN
- ^ Sullivan, Robert David; ‘How the Red and Blue Map Evolved Over the Past Century’; America Magazine in The National Catholic Review; June 29, 2016
Works cited
- ISBN 0674941306.