1996 United States presidential election in Louisiana
The 1996 United States presidential election in Louisiana took place on November 5, 1996. Voters chose nine representatives, or electors to the Electoral College, who voted for president and vice president.
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 Parish Results
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| Elections in Louisiana |
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 Government |
Louisiana was won by President Bill Clinton (D) by a margin of 12.07%, a major increase from the statewide results in 1992 when he carried the state by a margin of 4.61%.[1] Clinton won most of the parishes and congressional districts, and dominated among the rural areas.
Louisiana was in this era generally more competitive than the rest of the Deep South due to its large black population and a sizeable minority of white Blue Dog Democrats. It is also very racially divided, with whites voting Republican and blacks voting Democratic. Clinton was able to carry 33 percent of white voters, which threw the state toward his column.[2] Despite such a sizeable margin, Louisiana was the only state that Clinton won by more than a 2.4 point margin which wasn't called by news networks for him as soon as the polls closed.
This election also marked the end of Louisiana as a competitive state in federal elections, as further years saw the state's political alignment more closely resemble those in other, nearby Deep South states like Mississippi and Alabama, as well as in tandem with Arkansas, Clinton's home state; rural, Democratic-voting cultural conservatives began siding with the Republican Party. Clinton's 927,837 votes is the most received by a Democratic presidential candidate in the state's history.
As of the 2020 presidential election, this is the last time Louisiana supported a Democratic presidential candidate, as well as the last time a Democrat carried the following parishes: Acadia, Allen, Ascension, Avoyelles, Calcasieu, Caldwell, Cameron, Catahoula, Claiborne, Concordia, DeSoto, East Feliciana, Evangeline, Franklin, Iberia, Jackson, Jefferson Davis, Lafourche, Lincoln, Morehouse, Natchitoches, Plaquemines, Rapides, Red River, Richland, Sabine, Saint Bernard, Saint Charles, Saint Martin, Saint Mary, Tangipahoa, Terrebonne, Vermilion, Vernon, Washington, Webster, West Feliciana, and Winn.
It was also the last time a Democrat carried any state in the Deep South in a presidential election until Joe Biden won Georgia in 2020. This was the first time since 1944 that the state voted Democratic in consecutive elections.
Results
| 1996 United States presidential election in Louisiana[1] | ||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Party | Candidate | Running mate | Popular vote | Electoral vote | ||||
| Count | % | Count | % | |||||
| Democratic | Bill Clinton of Arkansas | Al Gore of Tennessee | 927,837 | 52.01% | 9 | 100.00% | ||
| Republican | Bob Dole of Kansas | Jack Kemp of New York | 712,586 | 39.94% | 0 | 0.00% | ||
| Reform | Ross Perot of Texas | Pat Choate of Washington, D.C. | 123,293 | 6.91% | 0 | 0.00% | ||
| Libertarian | Harry Browne of Tennessee | Jo Jorgensen of South Carolina | 7,499 | 0.42% | 0 | 0.00% | ||
| Liberty Ecology Community [lower-alpha 1] | Ralph Nader | Winona LaDuke | 4,719 | 0.26% | 0 | 0.00% | ||
| Constitution | Howard Phillips of Virginia | Herbert Titus of Oregon | 3,366 | 0.19% | 0 | 0.00% | ||
| Natural Law | John Hagelin of Iowa | Mike Tompkins of Massachusetts | 2,981 | 0.17% | 0 | 0.00% | ||
| Workers World | Monica Moorehead of Alabama | Gloria LaRiva of California | 1,678 | 0.09% | 0 | 0.00% | ||
| Total | 1,776,259 | 100.00% | 9 | 100.00% | ||||
Results by parish
| Parish | Bill Clinton Democratic |
Bob Dole Republican |
Ross Perot Reform |
Harry E. Browne Libertarian |
Various candidates Other parties |
Margin | Total votes cast | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| # | % | # | % | # | % | # | % | # | % | # | % | ||
| Acadia | 12,300 | 51.41% | 9,246 | 38.64% | 2,234 | 9.34% | 40 | 0.17% | 107 | 0.45% | 3,054 | 12.76% | 23,927 |
| Allen | 4,960 | 55.89% | 2,589 | 29.18% | 1,187 | 13.38% | 38 | 0.43% | 100 | 1.13% | 2,371 | 26.72% | 8,874 |
| Ascension | 15,263 | 51.91% | 10,885 | 37.02% | 3,027 | 10.30% | 65 | 0.22% | 160 | 0.54% | 4,378 | 14.89% | 29,400 |
| Assumption | 6,416 | 62.83% | 2,698 | 26.42% | 904 | 8.85% | 65 | 0.64% | 129 | 1.26% | 3,718 | 36.41% | 10,212 |
| Avoyelles | 9,689 | 59.04% | 4,433 | 27.01% | 1,937 | 11.80% | 89 | 0.54% | 262 | 1.60% | 5,256 | 32.03% | 16,410 |
| Beauregard | 4,925 | 39.40% | 5,526 | 44.21% | 1,834 | 14.67% | 96 | 0.77% | 118 | 0.94% | -601 | -4.81% | 12,499 |
| Bienville | 4,335 | 58.71% | 2,402 | 32.53% | 457 | 6.19% | 108 | 1.46% | 82 | 1.11% | 1,933 | 26.18% | 7,384 |
| Bossier | 15,504 | 43.82% | 16,852 | 47.63% | 2,660 | 7.52% | 141 | 0.40% | 225 | 0.64% | -1,348 | -3.81% | 35,382 |
| Caddo | 55,543 | 55.89% | 38,445 | 38.69% | 4,821 | 4.85% | 180 | 0.18% | 390 | 0.39% | 17,098 | 17.20% | 99,379 |
| Calcasieu | 38,238 | 51.91% | 26,494 | 35.97% | 8,281 | 11.24% | 213 | 0.29% | 435 | 0.59% | 11,744 | 15.94% | 73,661 |
| Caldwell | 2,117 | 46.44% | 1,842 | 40.40% | 514 | 11.27% | 39 | 0.86% | 47 | 1.03% | 275 | 6.03% | 4,559 |
| Cameron | 2,103 | 50.70% | 1,365 | 32.91% | 594 | 14.32% | 30 | 0.72% | 56 | 1.35% | 738 | 17.79% | 4,148 |
| Catahoula | 2,692 | 52.11% | 1,770 | 34.26% | 615 | 11.90% | 39 | 0.75% | 50 | 0.97% | 922 | 17.85% | 5,166 |
| Claiborne | 3,609 | 53.55% | 2,500 | 37.10% | 530 | 7.86% | 41 | 0.61% | 59 | 0.88% | 1,109 | 16.46% | 6,739 |
| Concordia | 4,565 | 52.38% | 3,134 | 35.96% | 855 | 9.81% | 78 | 0.90% | 83 | 0.95% | 1,431 | 16.42% | 8,715 |
| DeSoto | 6,221 | 59.13% | 3,526 | 33.52% | 646 | 6.14% | 55 | 0.52% | 72 | 0.68% | 2,695 | 25.62% | 10,520 |
| East Baton Rouge | 83,493 | 48.93% | 77,811 | 45.60% | 7,990 | 4.68% | 436 | 0.26% | 917 | 0.54% | 5,682 | 3.33% | 170,647 |
| East Carroll | 2,149 | 63.00% | 1,008 | 29.55% | 186 | 5.45% | 24 | 0.70% | 44 | 1.29% | 1,141 | 33.45% | 3,411 |
| East Feliciana | 4,714 | 56.11% | 2,949 | 35.10% | 660 | 7.86% | 16 | 0.19% | 62 | 0.74% | 1,765 | 21.01% | 8,401 |
| Evangeline | 7,847 | 52.83% | 5,278 | 35.53% | 1,447 | 9.74% | 100 | 0.67% | 182 | 1.23% | 2,569 | 17.30% | 14,854 |
| Franklin | 4,076 | 45.29% | 3,961 | 44.01% | 814 | 9.04% | 61 | 0.68% | 88 | 0.98% | 115 | 1.28% | 9,000 |
| Grant | 2,980 | 40.87% | 3,117 | 42.75% | 1,055 | 14.47% | 52 | 0.71% | 88 | 1.21% | -137 | -1.88% | 7,292 |
| Iberia | 15,087 | 50.35% | 12,014 | 40.09% | 2,448 | 8.17% | 196 | 0.65% | 220 | 0.73% | 3,073 | 10.26% | 29,965 |
| Iberville | 9,553 | 64.20% | 4,031 | 27.09% | 1,076 | 7.23% | 68 | 0.46% | 151 | 1.01% | 5,522 | 37.11% | 14,879 |
| Jackson | 3,368 | 47.66% | 3,030 | 42.88% | 571 | 8.08% | 36 | 0.51% | 62 | 0.88% | 338 | 4.78% | 7,067 |
| Jefferson | 80,407 | 43.59% | 92,820 | 50.32% | 9,667 | 5.24% | 504 | 0.27% | 1,068 | 0.58% | -12,413 | -6.73% | 184,466 |
| Jefferson Davis | 6,897 | 53.29% | 4,311 | 33.31% | 1,543 | 11.92% | 72 | 0.56% | 120 | 0.93% | 2,586 | 19.98% | 12,943 |
| Lafayette | 32,504 | 43.65% | 36,419 | 48.91% | 4,631 | 6.22% | 348 | 0.47% | 566 | 0.76% | -3,915 | -5.26% | 74,468 |
| Lafourche | 18,810 | 52.84% | 12,105 | 34.01% | 3,984 | 11.19% | 309 | 0.87% | 388 | 1.09% | 6,705 | 18.84% | 35,596 |
| LaSalle | 2,543 | 39.09% | 2,925 | 44.96% | 947 | 14.56% | 28 | 0.43% | 63 | 0.97% | -382 | -5.87% | 6,506 |
| Lincoln | 7,903 | 49.85% | 6,973 | 43.98% | 761 | 4.80% | 117 | 0.74% | 101 | 0.64% | 930 | 5.87% | 15,855 |
| Livingston | 13,276 | 38.94% | 16,159 | 47.39% | 4,150 | 12.17% | 188 | 0.55% | 322 | 0.94% | -2,883 | -8.46% | 34,095 |
| Madison | 3,085 | 60.91% | 1,591 | 31.41% | 315 | 6.22% | 26 | 0.51% | 48 | 0.95% | 1,494 | 29.50% | 5,065 |
| Morehouse | 6,160 | 49.31% | 5,193 | 41.57% | 963 | 7.71% | 71 | 0.57% | 106 | 0.85% | 967 | 7.74% | 12,493 |
| Natchitoches | 8,296 | 54.69% | 5,471 | 36.06% | 1,053 | 6.94% | 127 | 0.84% | 223 | 1.47% | 2,825 | 18.62% | 15,170 |
| Orleans | 144,720 | 76.20% | 39,576 | 20.84% | 3,805 | 2.00% | 554 | 0.29% | 1,256 | 0.66% | 105,144 | 55.36% | 189,911 |
| Ouachita | 24,525 | 42.58% | 28,559 | 49.59% | 3,586 | 6.23% | 466 | 0.81% | 458 | 0.80% | -4,034 | -7.00% | 57,594 |
| Plaquemines | 5,348 | 49.53% | 4,493 | 41.61% | 856 | 7.93% | 29 | 0.27% | 71 | 0.66% | 855 | 7.92% | 10,797 |
| Pointe Coupee | 6,835 | 60.32% | 3,545 | 31.28% | 845 | 7.46% | 34 | 0.30% | 73 | 0.64% | 3,290 | 29.03% | 11,332 |
| Rapides | 23,004 | 46.07% | 21,548 | 43.16% | 4,670 | 9.35% | 351 | 0.70% | 358 | 0.72% | 1,456 | 2.92% | 49,931 |
| Red River | 2,641 | 61.48% | 1,344 | 31.28% | 268 | 6.24% | 23 | 0.54% | 20 | 0.47% | 1,297 | 30.19% | 4,296 |
| Richland | 4,143 | 46.50% | 3,965 | 44.50% | 645 | 7.24% | 61 | 0.68% | 96 | 1.08% | 178 | 2.00% | 8,910 |
| Sabine | 4,263 | 47.33% | 3,543 | 39.34% | 1,043 | 11.58% | 59 | 0.66% | 99 | 1.10% | 720 | 7.99% | 9,007 |
| Saint Bernard | 14,312 | 46.33% | 13,549 | 43.86% | 2,664 | 8.62% | 134 | 0.43% | 233 | 0.75% | 763 | 2.47% | 30,892 |
| Saint Charles | 10,612 | 49.61% | 9,316 | 43.55% | 1,307 | 6.11% | 38 | 0.18% | 120 | 0.56% | 1,296 | 6.06% | 21,393 |
| Saint Helena | 3,692 | 65.83% | 1,455 | 25.95% | 417 | 7.44% | 18 | 0.32% | 26 | 0.46% | 2,237 | 39.89% | 5,608 |
| Saint James | 7,247 | 67.46% | 2,832 | 26.36% | 608 | 5.66% | 15 | 0.14% | 41 | 0.38% | 4,415 | 41.10% | 10,743 |
| Saint John the Baptist | 9,937 | 58.28% | 6,025 | 35.34% | 966 | 5.67% | 41 | 0.24% | 82 | 0.48% | 3,912 | 22.94% | 17,051 |
| Saint Landry | 20,636 | 58.21% | 12,273 | 34.62% | 2,311 | 6.52% | 75 | 0.21% | 158 | 0.45% | 8,363 | 23.59% | 35,453 |
| Saint Martin | 12,492 | 60.33% | 6,296 | 30.41% | 1,607 | 7.76% | 112 | 0.54% | 199 | 0.96% | 6,196 | 29.92% | 20,706 |
| Saint Mary | 12,402 | 54.95% | 8,018 | 35.53% | 1,850 | 8.20% | 136 | 0.60% | 163 | 0.72% | 4,384 | 19.42% | 22,569 |
| Saint Tammany | 24,281 | 32.58% | 44,761 | 60.06% | 4,741 | 6.36% | 251 | 0.34% | 492 | 0.66% | -20,480 | -27.48% | 74,526 |
| Tangipahoa | 18,617 | 49.53% | 15,517 | 41.28% | 3,144 | 8.36% | 100 | 0.27% | 213 | 0.57% | 3,100 | 8.25% | 37,591 |
| Tensas | 1,882 | 60.73% | 1,000 | 32.27% | 176 | 5.68% | 12 | 0.39% | 29 | 0.94% | 882 | 28.46% | 3,099 |
| Terrebonne | 18,550 | 51.02% | 13,944 | 38.35% | 3,359 | 9.24% | 203 | 0.56% | 305 | 0.84% | 4,606 | 12.67% | 36,361 |
| Union | 4,260 | 44.64% | 4,418 | 46.30% | 696 | 7.29% | 57 | 0.60% | 112 | 1.17% | -158 | -1.66% | 9,543 |
| Vermilion | 12,609 | 55.64% | 7,653 | 33.77% | 1,954 | 8.62% | 194 | 0.86% | 251 | 1.11% | 4,956 | 21.87% | 22,661 |
| Vernon | 6,195 | 44.36% | 5,449 | 39.02% | 2,068 | 14.81% | 94 | 0.67% | 160 | 1.15% | 746 | 5.34% | 13,966 |
| Washington | 9,603 | 53.28% | 6,642 | 36.85% | 1,643 | 9.12% | 61 | 0.34% | 74 | 0.41% | 2,961 | 16.43% | 18,023 |
| Webster | 9,688 | 55.31% | 6,153 | 35.13% | 1,324 | 7.56% | 168 | 0.96% | 184 | 1.05% | 3,535 | 20.18% | 17,517 |
| West Baton Rouge | 5,697 | 58.14% | 3,254 | 33.21% | 799 | 8.15% | 13 | 0.13% | 35 | 0.36% | 2,443 | 24.93% | 9,798 |
| West Carroll | 1,853 | 38.90% | 2,366 | 49.66% | 461 | 9.68% | 29 | 0.61% | 55 | 1.15% | -513 | -10.77% | 4,764 |
| West Feliciana | 2,416 | 53.62% | 1,616 | 35.86% | 388 | 8.61% | 28 | 0.62% | 58 | 1.29% | 800 | 17.75% | 4,506 |
| Winn | 3,779 | 50.64% | 2,803 | 37.56% | 735 | 9.85% | 47 | 0.63% | 99 | 1.33% | 976 | 13.08% | 7,463 |
| Totals | 927,837 | 52.01% | 712,586 | 39.94% | 123,293 | 6.91% | 7,499 | 0.42% | 12,744 | 0.71% | 215,251 | 12.07% | 1,783,959 |
Parishes that flipped from Republican to Democratic
References
- "1996 Presidential General Election Results – Louisiana". Dave Leip’s U.S. Election Atlas.
- "CNN AllPolitics Election 1998 – 1992 Exit Polls". CNN.
- "LA US President Race, November 05, 1996". Our Campaigns.
Notes
- Though a candidate of the national Green Party, Nader was listed on the Louisiana ballot as a candidate for the “Liberty Ecology Community” Party.[1]