1972 United States presidential election in California
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Turnout | 82.13% (of registered voters) ![]() 64.52% (of eligible voters) ![]() | |||||||||||||||||||||||||
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![]() County Results
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Elections in California |
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The 1972 United States presidential election in California took place on November 7, 1972 as part of the 1972 United States presidential election. State voters chose 45 representatives, or electors, to the Electoral College, who voted for president and vice president.
California voted for the Republican incumbent, Richard Nixon, over the Democratic challenger, South Dakota Senator George McGovern. Nixon took 55.00% of the vote to McGovern's 41.54%, a margin of 13.46%. Although California was Richard Nixon's home state, his performance in the state was somewhat underwhelming, as California's result was about 9% more Democratic than the nation as a whole. This was the first time since 1928 that a Republican won Fresno, Lassen, Solano, and Sacramento counties.
Nixon had previously won California against John F. Kennedy in 1960 and then against Hubert Humphrey in 1968. This was the first presidential election in which California had the most electoral college votes as a result of the 1970 census, a status it has maintained ever since.
Primaries
Democratic
Republican
Richard Nixon would easily win the California Republican Primary by a wide margin over his only state challenger.
Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
---|---|---|---|---|
Republican | Richard Nixon | 90.14% | ||
Republican | John M. Ashbrook | 9.85% | ||
Total votes | 100 |
Results
1972 United States presidential election in California[2] | |||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Party | Candidate | Votes | Percentage | Electoral votes | |
Republican | Richard Nixon (incumbent) | 4,602,096 | 55.00% | 45 | |
Democratic | George McGovern | 3,475,847 | 41.54% | 0 | |
American Independent | John G. Schmitz | 232,554 | 2.78% | 0 | |
Peace and Freedom | Benjamin Spock | 55,167 | 0.66% | 0 | |
Libertarian | John Hospers (write-in) | 980 | 0.01% | 0 | |
Socialist Workers | Linda Jenness (write-in) | 574 | 0.01% | 0 | |
Communist | Gus Hall (write-in) | 373 | 0.00% | 0 | |
Socialist Labor | Louis Fisher (write-in) | 197 | 0.00% | 0 | |
Prohibition Party | E. Harold Munn (write-in) | 53 | 0.00% | 0 | |
Universal Party | Gabriel Green (write-in) | 21 | 0.00% | 0 | |
Invalid or blank votes | — | ||||
Totals | 8,367,862 | 100.00% | 45 | ||
Voter turnout | — |
Results by county
County | Richard Milhous Nixon Republican |
George Stanley McGovern Democratic |
John George Schmitz American Independent |
Various candidates Other parties |
Margin | |||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
% | # | % | # | % | # | % | # | % | # | |
Orange | 68.27% | 448,291 | 26.93% | 176,847 | 4.36% | 28,634 | 0.44% | 2,881 | 41.34% | 271,444 |
Inyo | 68.07% | 4,873 | 28.02% | 2,006 | 3.35% | 240 | 0.56% | 40 | 40.05% | 2,867 |
Mono | 66.88% | 1,872 | 29.58% | 828 | 2.79% | 78 | 0.75% | 21 | 37.30% | 1,044 |
Ventura | 63.20% | 95,310 | 32.70% | 49,307 | 3.70% | 5,586 | 0.40% | 602 | 30.50% | 46,003 |
Alpine | 63.54% | 366 | 33.85% | 195 | 1.22% | 7 | 1.39% | 8 | 29.69% | 171 |
Sutter | 62.45% | 10,224 | 33.04% | 5,409 | 3.95% | 647 | 0.56% | 92 | 29.41% | 4,815 |
San Diego | 61.82% | 371,627 | 34.34% | 206,455 | 3.36% | 20,188 | 0.48% | 2,867 | 27.48% | 165,172 |
Calaveras | 60.76% | 4,119 | 33.46% | 2,268 | 4.48% | 304 | 1.30% | 88 | 27.30% | 1,851 |
Imperial | 62.05% | 14,178 | 34.93% | 7,982 | 2.66% | 607 | 0.36% | 82 | 27.12% | 6,196 |
Kern | 60.14% | 71,686 | 35.18% | 41,937 | 4.29% | 5,112 | 0.38% | 458 | 24.96% | 29,749 |
Glenn | 59.01% | 4,569 | 34.62% | 2,681 | 5.92% | 458 | 0.45% | 35 | 24.39% | 1,888 |
San Bernardino | 59.73% | 144,689 | 35.49% | 85,986 | 4.27% | 10,342 | 0.51% | 1,239 | 24.24% | 58,703 |
Tulare | 59.93% | 36,048 | 36.20% | 21,775 | 3.45% | 2,076 | 0.42% | 251 | 23.73% | 14,273 |
Modoc | 58.49% | 2,085 | 35.65% | 1,271 | 5.27% | 188 | 0.59% | 21 | 22.84% | 814 |
Napa | 59.61% | 23,403 | 37.01% | 14,529 | 2.91% | 1,141 | 0.48% | 188 | 22.60% | 8,874 |
Butte | 57.61% | 28,819 | 36.78% | 18,401 | 4.93% | 2,468 | 0.68% | 340 | 20.83% | 10,418 |
San Benito | 57.56% | 3,961 | 37.52% | 2,582 | 4.48% | 308 | 0.44% | 30 | 20.04% | 1,379 |
Riverside | 58.00% | 108,120 | 38.41% | 71,591 | 3.13% | 5,843 | 0.46% | 850 | 19.59% | 36,529 |
Colusa | 57.56% | 2,715 | 38.37% | 1,810 | 3.54% | 167 | 0.53% | 25 | 19.19% | 905 |
Yuba | 56.95% | 6,623 | 38.13% | 4,435 | 4.45% | 518 | 0.46% | 54 | 18.82% | 2,188 |
Monterey | 57.04% | 47,004 | 39.49% | 32,545 | 2.76% | 2,274 | 0.71% | 585 | 17.55% | 14,459 |
Kings | 56.52% | 10,509 | 39.12% | 7,274 | 3.99% | 742 | 0.38% | 70 | 17.40% | 3,235 |
Mariposa | 56.15% | 2,122 | 39.35% | 1,487 | 3.73% | 141 | 0.77% | 29 | 16.80% | 635 |
Nevada | 54.68% | 8,004 | 38.89% | 5,693 | 5.93% | 868 | 0.50% | 73 | 15.79% | 2,311 |
San Joaquin | 55.30% | 61,646 | 39.53% | 44,062 | 4.51% | 5,027 | 0.66% | 734 | 15.77% | 17,584 |
San Luis Obispo | 55.98% | 28,566 | 40.72% | 20,779 | 2.27% | 1,156 | 1.04% | 532 | 15.26% | 7,787 |
Lake | 55.12% | 6,477 | 40.13% | 4,715 | 4.33% | 509 | 0.42% | 49 | 14.99% | 1,762 |
Del Norte | 51.82% | 2,927 | 38.17% | 2,156 | 9.12% | 515 | 0.89% | 50 | 13.65% | 771 |
Santa Barbara | 55.19% | 67,075 | 41.64% | 50,609 | 2.55% | 3,103 | 0.62% | 754 | 13.55% | 16,466 |
Sonoma | 54.72% | 57,697 | 41.49% | 43,746 | 3.03% | 3,192 | 0.76% | 799 | 13.23% | 13,951 |
El Dorado | 54.20% | 11,330 | 41.40% | 8,654 | 3.80% | 794 | 0.61% | 127 | 12.80% | 2,676 |
Los Angeles | 54.75% | 1,549,717 | 42.04% | 1,189,977 | 2.54% | 71,978 | 0.66% | 18,698 | 12.71% | 359,740 |
Amador | 53.40% | 3,533 | 40.89% | 2,705 | 5.14% | 340 | 0.57% | 38 | 12.51% | 828 |
Tuolumne | 54.29% | 5,894 | 42.34% | 4,596 | 2.75% | 299 | 0.62% | 67 | 11.95% | 1,298 |
Merced | 54.33% | 17,737 | 42.62% | 13,914 | 2.56% | 836 | 0.49% | 161 | 11.71% | 3,823 |
Solano | 54.02% | 31,314 | 42.73% | 24,766 | 2.79% | 1,616 | 0.46% | 269 | 11.29% | 6,548 |
Contra Costa | 54.13% | 139,044 | 43.49% | 111,718 | 1.83% | 4,701 | 0.55% | 1,421 | 10.64% | 27,326 |
San Mateo | 52.82% | 135,377 | 42.82% | 109,745 | 1.59% | 4,079 | 2.77% | 7,096 | 10.00% | 25,632 |
Madera | 52.61% | 7,835 | 44.18% | 6,580 | 2.87% | 428 | 0.33% | 49 | 8.43% | 1,255 |
Mendocino | 51.01% | 11,128 | 43.25% | 9,435 | 4.81% | 1,050 | 0.92% | 201 | 7.76% | 1,693 |
Siskiyou | 51.46% | 7,563 | 43.78% | 6,434 | 4.23% | 621 | 0.53% | 78 | 7.68% | 1,129 |
Tehama | 48.73% | 6,054 | 41.65% | 5,175 | 9.34% | 1,161 | 0.27% | 34 | 7.08% | 879 |
Lassen | 50.80% | 3,618 | 44.00% | 3,134 | 4.49% | 320 | 0.70% | 50 | 6.80% | 484 |
Trinity | 50.75% | 1,868 | 44.04% | 1,621 | 4.59% | 169 | 0.62% | 23 | 6.71% | 247 |
Marin | 52.10% | 54,123 | 45.64% | 47,414 | 1.28% | 1,326 | 0.98% | 1,020 | 6.46% | 6,709 |
Santa Clara | 51.90% | 237,334 | 45.60% | 208,506 | 1.80% | 8,236 | 0.70% | 3,217 | 6.30% | 28,828 |
Stanislaus | 51.41% | 39,521 | 45.54% | 35,005 | 2.53% | 1,943 | 0.52% | 398 | 5.87% | 4,516 |
Placer | 50.34% | 18,597 | 45.77% | 16,911 | 3.39% | 1,251 | 0.50% | 186 | 4.57% | 1,686 |
Fresno | 50.44% | 79,051 | 46.38% | 72,682 | 2.51% | 3,927 | 0.68% | 1,059 | 4.06% | 6,369 |
Santa Cruz | 49.88% | 34,799 | 46.35% | 32,336 | 2.77% | 1,931 | 0.99% | 693 | 3.53% | 2,463 |
Humboldt | 48.83% | 22,345 | 46.18% | 21,132 | 4.14% | 1,896 | 0.85% | 390 | 2.65% | 1,213 |
Sacramento | 49.00% | 141,218 | 47.63% | 137,287 | 2.72% | 7,841 | 0.65% | 1,875 | 1.37% | 3,931 |
Plumas | 46.42% | 2,952 | 48.07% | 3,057 | 5.00% | 318 | 0.52% | 33 | -1.65% | -105 |
Shasta | 46.68% | 16,618 | 48.35% | 17,214 | 4.48% | 1,595 | 0.49% | 176 | -1.67% | -596 |
Sierra | 47.51% | 629 | 49.70% | 658 | 2.04% | 27 | 0.76% | 10 | -2.19% | -29 |
Alameda | 42.84% | 201,862 | 55.02% | 259,254 | 1.47% | 6,930 | 0.67% | 3,149 | -12.18% | -57,392 |
Yolo | 42.04% | 17,969 | 55.44% | 23,694 | 1.87% | 800 | 0.64% | 275 | -13.40% | -5,725 |
San Francisco | 41.82% | 127,461 | 56.07% | 170,882 | 1.21% | 3,702 | 0.89% | 2,725 | -14.25% | -43,421 |
References
- ^ "Historical Voter Registration and Participation in Statewide General Elections 1910-2018" (PDF). California Secretary of State. Retrieved May 5, 2022.
- ^ "1972 Presidential General Election Results - California". Dave Leip's U.S. Election Atlas. Retrieved August 25, 2008.