1908 United States presidential election in California

The 1908 United States presidential election in California took place on November 3, 1908, as part of the 1908 United States presidential election. State voters chose 10 representatives, or electors, to the Electoral College, who voted for president and vice president.

1908 United States presidential election in California

← 1904 November 3, 1908 1912 →
 
Nominee William Howard Taft William Jennings Bryan Eugene V. Debs
Party Republican Democratic Socialist
Home state Ohio Nebraska Indiana
Running mate James S. Sherman John W. Kern Ben Hanford
Electoral vote 10 0 0
Popular vote 214,398 127,492 28,659
Percentage 55.46% 32.98% 7.41%

County Results

President before election

Theodore Roosevelt
Republican

Elected President

William Howard Taft
Republican

California voted for the Republican nominee, former War Secretary William Howard Taft and his running mate James S. Sherman of New York. They defeated the Democratic nominees, former representative and the 1896 and 1900 nominee, William Jennings Bryan of Nebraska and his running with John W. Kern, a former Indiana state senator. Taft won the state by a margin of 22.48%. This was the first presidential election in which more votes were cast in Los Angeles County than in San Francisco, although this had also previously occurred in the 1906 gubernatorial election.[a]

Bryan had previously lost California to William McKinley in both 1896 and 1900.

Results

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General Election Results[1]
Party Pledged to Elector Votes
Republican Party William Howard Taft Ulysses S. Grant, Jr. 214,398
Republican Party William Howard Taft Samuel M. Shortridge 213,598
Republican Party William Howard Taft Francis M. Smith 213,552
Republican Party William Howard Taft Alden Anderson 213,533
Republican Party William Howard Taft G. W. Dwinnell 213,532
Republican Party William Howard Taft Thomas J. Field 213,292
Republican Party William Howard Taft H. G. W. Dinkelspiel 213,225
Republican Party William Howard Taft Delos O. Druffel 213,071
Republican Party William Howard Taft Byron Erkenbrecher 212,931
Republican Party William Howard Taft Lyman M. King 212,314
Democratic Party William Jennings Bryan James D. Phelan 127,492
Democratic Party William Jennings Bryan Harry P. Flannery 126,796
Democratic Party William Jennings Bryan Eugene German 126,696
Democratic Party William Jennings Bryan W. B. Shearer 126,617
Democratic Party William Jennings Bryan D. W. Carmichael 126,527
Democratic Party William Jennings Bryan Charles Edelman 126,483
Democratic Party William Jennings Bryan A. W. Maltby 126,465
Democratic Party William Jennings Bryan E. E. Bush 126,393
Democratic Party William Jennings Bryan Thomas E. Gibbon 126,312
Democratic Party William Jennings Bryan John W. Martin 126,190
Socialist Party Eugene V. Debs Mary E. Garbutt 28,659
Socialist Party Eugene V. Debs G. W. Woodbey 28,572
Socialist Party Eugene V. Debs Benjamin Chambers 28,547
Socialist Party Eugene V. Debs Oliver Everett 28,534
Socialist Party Eugene V. Debs J. H. Wilder 28,533
Socialist Party Eugene V. Debs J. C. Weybright 28,532
Socialist Party Eugene V. Debs Mary F. Merrill 28,518
Socialist Party Eugene V. Debs Henry Meyer 28,507
Socialist Party Eugene V. Debs F. C. Wheeler 28,500
Socialist Party Eugene V. Debs Bertha W. Starkweather 28,351
Prohibition Party Eugene W. Chafin Frederick Heard 11,770
Prohibition Party Eugene W. Chafin Ray T. Kimball 11,735
Prohibition Party Eugene W. Chafin Albert K. Nash 11,674
Prohibition Party Eugene W. Chafin William H. Dorman 11,663
Prohibition Party Eugene W. Chafin Adolph R. Buckman 11,654
Prohibition Party Eugene W. Chafin Horace A. Johnson 11,653
Prohibition Party Eugene W. Chafin Henry C. Weisenburger 11,648
Prohibition Party Eugene W. Chafin Granville P. Hurst 11,644
Prohibition Party Eugene W. Chafin Christopher C. Crowell 11,616
Prohibition Party Eugene W. Chafin John H. Allin 11,597
Independence League Thomas L. Hisgen Al Murphy 4,278
Independence League Thomas L. Hisgen Frank R. Wehe 4,122
Independence League Thomas L. Hisgen Richard Kinsella 4,075
Independence League Thomas L. Hisgen J. D. McGaughey 4,065
Independence League Thomas L. Hisgen R. H. Norton 4,060
Independence League Thomas L. Hisgen Raymond E. Fair 4,058
Independence League Thomas L. Hisgen C. K. Lambie 4,055
Independence League Thomas L. Hisgen Z. W. Craig 4,047
Independence League Thomas L. Hisgen T. E. Amlin 4,043
Independence League Thomas L. Hisgen Henry E. Mills 4,042
Write-in Scattering 28[b]
Votes cast[c] 386,625

Results by county

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County William Howard Taft
Republican
William Jennings Bryan
Democratic
Eugene V. Debs
Socialist
Eugene W. Chafin
Prohibition
Thomas L. Hisgen
Independence
Margin Total votes cast[d][e]
# % # % # % # % # % # %
Alameda 21,380 64.24% 7,110 21.36% 3,462 10.40% 608 1.83% 723 2.17% 14,270 42.87% 33,283
Alpine 75 87.21% 11 12.79% 0 0.00% 0 0.00% 0 0.00% 64 74.42% 86
Amador 1,035 51.88% 874 43.81% 38 1.90% 25 1.25% 23 1.15% 161 8.07% 1,995
Butte 3,094 52.74% 2,146 36.58% 384 6.55% 199 3.39% 43 0.73% 948 16.16% 5,866
Calaveras 1,323 55.54% 833 34.97% 167 7.01% 17 0.71% 42 1.76% 490 20.57% 2,382
Colusa 730 38.58% 1,064 56.24% 52 2.75% 33 1.74% 13 0.69% -334 -17.65% 1,892
Contra Costa 3,336 60.61% 1,599 29.05% 438 7.96% 71 1.29% 60 1.09% 1,737 31.56% 5,504
Del Norte 450 59.29% 202 26.61% 71 9.35% 28 3.69% 8 1.05% 248 32.67% 759
El Dorado 986 44.74% 1,019 46.23% 148 6.72% 22 1.00% 29 1.32% -33 -1.50% 2,204
Fresno 6,384 50.89% 4,743 37.81% 868 6.92% 508 4.05% 42 0.33% 1,641 13.08% 12,545
Glenn 618 44.72% 711 51.45% 19 1.37% 28 2.03% 6 0.43% -93 -6.73% 1,382
Humboldt 4,221 65.02% 1,206 18.58% 865 13.32% 138 2.13% 62 0.96% 3,015 46.44% 6,492
Imperial 909 47.64% 675 35.38% 204 10.69% 102 5.35% 18 0.94% 234 12.26% 1,908
Inyo 583 40.94% 618 43.40% 158 11.10% 37 2.60% 28 1.97% -35 -2.46% 1,424
Kern 2,270 45.60% 2,215 44.50% 380 7.63% 57 1.15% 56 1.12% 55 1.10% 4,978
Kings 1,198 53.22% 859 38.16% 112 4.98% 70 3.11% 12 0.53% 339 15.06% 2,251
Lake 625 42.84% 628 43.04% 110 7.54% 64 4.39% 32 2.19% -3 -0.21% 1,459
Lassen 551 54.61% 361 35.78% 81 8.03% 9 0.89% 7 0.69% 190 18.83% 1,009
Los Angeles 41,483 56.77% 22,076 30.21% 4,702 6.43% 4,033 5.52% 783 1.07% 19,407 26.56% 73,077
Madera 596 44.85% 574 43.19% 121 9.10% 21 1.58% 17 1.28% 22 1.66% 1,329
Marin 2,732 68.25% 983 24.56% 219 5.47% 28 0.70% 41 1.02% 1,749 43.69% 4,003
Mariposa 352 36.86% 480 50.26% 86 9.01% 14 1.47% 23 2.41% -128 -13.40% 955
Mendocino 2,746 55.56% 1,752 35.45% 293 5.93% 88 1.78% 63 1.27% 994 20.11% 4,942
Merced 1,107 44.58% 1,100 44.30% 152 6.12% 104 4.19% 20 0.81% 7 0.28% 2,483
Modoc 620 49.92% 574 46.22% 24 1.93% 12 0.97% 12 0.97% 46 3.70% 1,242
Mono 224 59.89% 121 32.35% 25 6.68% 0 0.00% 4 1.07% 103 27.54% 374
Monterey 2,486 53.64% 1,616 34.87% 211 4.55% 265 5.72% 57 1.23% 870 18.77% 4,635
Napa 2,405 59.08% 1,336 32.82% 206 5.06% 100 2.46% 24 0.59% 1,069 26.26% 4,071
Nevada 1,825 50.86% 1,368 38.13% 296 8.25% 76 2.12% 23 0.64% 457 12.74% 3,588
Orange 3,244 53.74% 1,911 31.65% 375 6.21% 451 7.47% 56 0.93% 1,333 22.08% 6,037
Placer 1,865 51.45% 1,491 41.13% 171 4.72% 69 1.90% 29 0.80% 374 10.32% 3,625
Plumas 659 57.91% 395 34.71% 59 5.18% 12 1.05% 13 1.14% 264 23.20% 1,138
Riverside 3,229 57.24% 1,374 24.36% 565 10.02% 427 7.57% 46 0.82% 1,855 32.88% 5,641
Sacramento 6,515 55.15% 4,533 38.37% 608 5.15% 106 0.90% 52 0.44% 1,982 16.78% 11,814
San Benito 937 53.57% 684 39.11% 63 3.60% 52 2.97% 13 0.74% 253 14.47% 1,749
San Bernardino 4,729 52.90% 2,685 30.03% 777 8.69% 618 6.91% 131 1.47% 2,044 22.86% 8,940
San Diego 5,412 57.56% 2,393 25.45% 1,342 14.27% 212 2.25% 44 0.47% 3,019 32.11% 9,403
San Francisco 33,184 55.19% 21,260 35.36% 4,523 7.52% 406 0.68% 751 1.25% 11,924 19.83% 60,124
San Joaquin 4,470 52.20% 3,331 38.90% 547 6.39% 167 1.95% 49 0.57% 1,139 13.30% 8,564
San Luis Obispo 2,008 50.76% 1,381 34.91% 370 9.35% 154 3.89% 43 1.09% 627 15.85% 3,956
San Mateo 2,865 62.91% 1,314 28.85% 301 6.61% 29 0.64% 45 0.99% 1,551 34.06% 4,554
Santa Barbara 2,713 55.19% 1,640 33.36% 376 7.65% 104 2.12% 83 1.69% 1,073 21.83% 4,916
Santa Clara 7,950 58.88% 3,836 28.41% 883 6.54% 696 5.15% 137 1.01% 4,114 30.47% 13,502
Santa Cruz 2,886 54.71% 1,643 31.15% 450 8.53% 237 4.49% 59 1.12% 1,243 23.56% 5,275
Shasta 1,891 47.61% 1,389 34.97% 577 14.53% 69 1.74% 46 1.16% 502 12.64% 3,972
Sierra 600 55.40% 510 37.86% 54 4.99% 11 1.02% 8 0.74% 190 17.54% 1,083
Siskiyou 1,813 47.40% 1,657 43.32% 264 6.90% 39 1.02% 52 1.36% 156 4.08% 3,825
Solano 3,115 54.72% 2,033 35.71% 402 7.06% 102 1.79% 41 0.72% 1,082 19.01% 5,693
Sonoma 5,427 57.50% 3,168 33.56% 483 5.12% 285 3.02% 76 0.81% 2,259 23.93% 9,439
Stanislaus 1,663 46.45% 1,390 38.83% 182 5.08% 315 8.80% 30 0.84% 273 7.63% 3,580
Sutter 896 54.94% 652 39.98% 45 2.76% 28 1.72% 10 0.61% 244 14.96% 1,631
Tehama 1,064 47.46% 894 39.88% 204 9.10% 62 2.77% 18 0.80% 170 7.58% 2,242
Trinity 393 44.41% 331 37.40% 130 14.69% 14 1.58% 17 1.92% 62 7.01% 885
Tulare 2,742 47.95% 2,329 40.73% 466 8.15% 143 2.50% 38 0.66% 413 7.22% 5,718
Tuolumne 943 44.40% 878 41.34% 187 8.80% 72 3.39% 44 2.07% 65 3.06% 2,124
Ventura 1,864 56.57% 1,181 35.84% 158 4.80% 48 1.46% 44 1.34% 683 20.73% 3,295
Yolo 1,707 49.01% 1,553 44.59% 127 3.65% 74 2.12% 22 0.63% 154 4.42% 3,483
Yuba 1,270 55.92% 902 39.72% 78 3.43% 11 0.48% 10 0.44% 368 16.20% 2,271
Total 214,398 55.45% 127,492 32.98% 28,659 7.41% 11,770 3.04% 4,278 1.11% 86,906 22.48% 386,597

Counties that flipped from Republican to Democratic

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See also

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Notes

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  1. ^ However, this was not the first time San Francisco did not provide the largest county vote in the state; more votes were cast in El Dorado County than in San Francisco in 1852. Additionally, the Sacramento District had more raw votes than San Francisco in the state's first gubernatorial election in 1849.
  2. ^ The source does not list these votes by county
  3. ^ Based on totals for highest elector on each ticket
  4. ^ Based on the highest elector on each ticket
  5. ^ Individual county totals do not include the Scattering votes

References

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  1. ^ Statement of the Vote of California at the General Election, Held November 3, 1908. Sacramento, California. pp. 3–7. Retrieved July 14, 2024.