Election 1920 Results
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1920 presidential election results by state and county
Warren G. Harding won a sweeping Republican victory over James M. Cox, taking 37 states and 404 electoral votes on a promise of a return to normalcy.
Warren G. Harding (Republican) beat James M. Cox in 1920, winning 404 electoral votes to 127. James M. Cox carried 11 states and Warren G. Harding 37. Across the states, the Democratic and Republican vote came to 9,140,680 and 16,142,330 (R+26.2 of all votes cast).
The closest states were Kentucky (D+0.6), Tennessee (R+3.0) and Oklahoma (R+5.5). 19 states changed party from 1916: Arizona to the Republicans, California to the Republicans, Colorado to the Republicans, Idaho to the Republicans, Kansas to the Republicans, Maryland to the Republicans, Missouri to the Republicans, Montana to the Republicans, Nebraska to the Republicans, Nevada to the Republicans, New Hampshire to the Republicans, New Mexico to the Republicans, North Dakota to the Republicans, Ohio to the Republicans, Oklahoma to the Republicans, Tennessee to the Republicans, Utah to the Republicans, Washington to the Republicans and Wyoming to the Republicans.
Early projection, based on early and incomplete polling: the likely matchups, each weighted by the betting markets' odds of both nominations, not a result. Each county is its 2024 presidential margin moved by its state's projected swing; set a national vote and every state, district and county moves by the same amount from our projection. Colours run in 100 steps from a safe Republican to a safe Democratic margin. Boundaries: US Census Bureau.
About the 1920 presidential election
The 1920 election followed the First World War, a sharp postwar recession, strikes and the Red Scare. Wilson had been incapacitated by a stroke, and the Senate had rejected the Treaty of Versailles and membership of the League of Nations. It was also the first presidential election after the Nineteenth Amendment guaranteed women the right to vote nationwide. Republicans nominated Warren G. Harding, a senator from Ohio, who promised a "return to normalcy." Democrats chose another Ohioan, Governor James M. Cox, with Franklin D. Roosevelt as his running mate. Harding won one of the largest popular-vote margins on record and carried 37 states, flipping 19 that Wilson had won in 1916, among them Ohio, California, Missouri and every state in the mountain West. He also broke into the South, winning Tennessee by 3.0 points and Oklahoma by 5.7. Cox held only 11 states, the rest of the South plus Kentucky, which he won by just 0.6 points. Eugene V. Debs, the Socialist candidate, won close to a million votes while in federal prison. Harding's administration was later marked by the Teapot Dome scandal, and he died in office in 1923.
Every state
| State | Democrat | Votes | Republican | Votes | Others | Margin | EV |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Alabama | James M. Cox | 159,965 (67.3%) | Warren G. Harding | 74,556 (31.4%) | 3,117 | D+35.9 | 12 |
| Arizona flip | James M. Cox | 29,546 (44.4%) | Warren G. Harding | 37,016 (55.6%) | R+11.2 | 3 | |
| Arkansas | James M. Cox | 107,406 (58.5%) | Warren G. Harding | 71,107 (38.7%) | 5,108 | D+19.8 | 9 |
| California flip | James M. Cox | 229,191 (24.3%) | Warren G. Harding | 624,992 (66.2%) | Eugene V. Debs (Socialist) 64,076 (6.8%) |
R+41.9 | 13 |
| Colorado flip | James M. Cox | 104,936 (35.9%) | Warren G. Harding | 173,248 (59.3%) | 13,869 | R+23.4 | 6 |
| Connecticut | James M. Cox | 120,721 (33.0%) | Warren G. Harding | 229,238 (62.7%) | 15,559 | R+29.7 | 7 |
| Delaware | James M. Cox | 39,911 (42.1%) | Warren G. Harding | 52,858 (55.7%) | 2,095 | R+13.7 | 3 |
| Florida | James M. Cox | 90,515 (62.1%) | Warren G. Harding | 44,853 (30.8%) | 10,313 | D+31.3 | 6 |
| Georgia | James M. Cox | 107,162 (72.3%) | Warren G. Harding | 41,089 (27.7%) | D+44.6 | 14 | |
| Idaho flip | James M. Cox | 46,579 (34.3%) | Warren G. Harding | 88,975 (65.6%) | 70 | R+31.3 | 4 |
| Illinois | James M. Cox | 534,395 (25.5%) | Warren G. Harding | 1,420,480 (67.8%) | 139,840 | R+42.3 | 29 |
| Indiana | James M. Cox | 511,364 (40.5%) | Warren G. Harding | 696,370 (55.1%) | 55,240 | R+14.7 | 15 |
| Iowa | James M. Cox | 227,924 (25.5%) | Warren G. Harding | 634,671 (70.9%) | 32,487 | R+45.4 | 13 |
| Kansas flip | James M. Cox | 185,464 (32.5%) | Warren G. Harding | 369,268 (64.7%) | 15,586 | R+32.2 | 10 |
| Kentucky | James M. Cox | 457,203 (49.8%) | Warren G. Harding | 451,480 (49.1%) | 10,122 | D+0.6 | 13 |
| Louisiana | James M. Cox | 87,355 (69.2%) | Warren G. Harding | 38,539 (30.5%) | 342 | D+38.7 | 10 |
| Maine | James M. Cox | 58,961 (29.8%) | Warren G. Harding | 136,355 (68.9%) | 2,524 | R+39.1 | 6 |
| Maryland flip | James M. Cox | 180,626 (42.2%) | Warren G. Harding | 236,117 (55.1%) | 11,700 | R+13.0 | 8 |
| Massachusetts | James M. Cox | 276,691 (27.8%) | Warren G. Harding | 681,153 (68.5%) | 35,872 | R+40.7 | 18 |
| Michigan | James M. Cox | 233,450 (22.3%) | Warren G. Harding | 762,865 (72.8%) | 52,096 | R+50.5 | 15 |
| Minnesota | James M. Cox | 142,994 (19.4%) | Warren G. Harding | 519,421 (70.6%) | Eugene V. Debs (Socialist) 56,106 (7.6%) |
R+51.2 | 12 |
| Mississippi | James M. Cox | 69,252 (84.0%) | Warren G. Harding | 11,527 (14.0%) | 1,639 | D+70.0 | 10 |
| Missouri flip | James M. Cox | 574,799 (43.1%) | Warren G. Harding | 727,162 (54.6%) | 30,839 | R+11.4 | 18 |
| Montana flip | James M. Cox | 57,372 (32.1%) | Warren G. Harding | 109,430 (61.1%) | Parley P. Christensen (Farmer-Labor) 12,204 (6.8%) |
R+29.1 | 4 |
| Nebraska flip | James M. Cox | 119,608 (31.3%) | Warren G. Harding | 247,498 (64.7%) | 15,637 | R+33.4 | 8 |
| Nevada flip | James M. Cox | 9,851 (36.2%) | Warren G. Harding | 15,479 (56.9%) | Eugene V. Debs (Socialist) 1,864 (6.9%) |
R+20.7 | 3 |
| New Hampshire flip | James M. Cox | 62,662 (39.4%) | Warren G. Harding | 95,196 (59.8%) | 1,234 | R+20.5 | 4 |
| New Jersey | James M. Cox | 256,887 (28.4%) | Warren G. Harding | 611,541 (67.7%) | 35,455 | R+39.2 | 14 |
| New Mexico flip | James M. Cox | 46,668 (44.3%) | Warren G. Harding | 57,634 (54.7%) | 1,104 | R+10.4 | 3 |
| New York | James M. Cox | 781,238 (27.0%) | Warren G. Harding | 1,871,167 (64.6%) | Eugene V. Debs (Socialist) 203,201 (7.0%) |
R+37.6 | 45 |
| North Carolina | James M. Cox | 305,367 (56.7%) | Warren G. Harding | 232,819 (43.3%) | D+13.5 | 12 | |
| North Dakota flip | James M. Cox | 37,422 (18.2%) | Warren G. Harding | 160,072 (77.8%) | 8,282 | R+59.6 | 5 |
| Ohio flip | James M. Cox | 780,037 (38.6%) | Warren G. Harding | 1,182,022 (58.5%) | 59,594 | R+19.9 | 24 |
| Oklahoma flip | James M. Cox | 217,053 (44.6%) | Warren G. Harding | 243,831 (50.1%) | Eugene V. Debs (Socialist) 25,726 (5.3%) |
R+5.5 | 10 |
| Oregon | James M. Cox | 80,019 (33.5%) | Warren G. Harding | 143,592 (60.2%) | 14,911 | R+26.7 | 5 |
| Pennsylvania | James M. Cox | 503,843 (27.2%) | Warren G. Harding | 1,218,216 (65.8%) | 130,558 | R+38.6 | 38 |
| Rhode Island | James M. Cox | 55,062 (32.8%) | Warren G. Harding | 107,463 (64.0%) | 5,456 | R+31.2 | 5 |
| South Carolina | James M. Cox | 64,170 (96.1%) | Warren G. Harding | 2,610 (3.9%) | 28 | D+92.1 | 9 |
| South Dakota | James M. Cox | 35,938 (19.7%) | Warren G. Harding | 110,692 (60.7%) | Parley P. Christensen (Farmer-Labor) 34,707 (19.0%) |
R+41.0 | 5 |
| Tennessee flip | James M. Cox | 206,558 (48.3%) | Warren G. Harding | 219,229 (51.2%) | 2,249 | R+3.0 | 12 |
| Texas | James M. Cox | 288,767 (59.3%) | Warren G. Harding | 114,538 (23.5%) | Black-and-Tan Republican electors (Black-and-Tan Republican) 27,247 (5.6%) |
D+35.8 | 20 |
| Utah flip | James M. Cox | 56,639 (38.8%) | Warren G. Harding | 81,555 (55.9%) | 7,634 | R+17.1 | 4 |
| Vermont | James M. Cox | 20,919 (23.3%) | Warren G. Harding | 68,212 (75.8%) | 830 | R+52.6 | 4 |
| Virginia | James M. Cox | 142,252 (61.4%) | Warren G. Harding | 87,380 (37.7%) | 1,877 | D+23.7 | 12 |
| Washington flip | James M. Cox | 84,298 (21.1%) | Warren G. Harding | 223,137 (56.0%) | Parley P. Christensen (Farmer-Labor) 77,246 (19.4%) |
R+34.8 | 7 |
| West Virginia | James M. Cox | 220,789 (43.3%) | Warren G. Harding | 282,010 (55.3%) | 7,135 | R+12.0 | 8 |
| Wisconsin | James M. Cox | 113,422 (16.2%) | Warren G. Harding | 498,576 (71.1%) | Eugene V. Debs (Socialist) 80,635 (11.5%) |
R+54.9 | 13 |
| Wyoming flip | James M. Cox | 17,429 (31.9%) | Warren G. Harding | 35,091 (64.2%) | 2,180 | R+32.3 | 3 |
Margin: the Democrat's share of all votes minus the Republican's. Margins are Democrat minus Republican, of all votes. Certified results, from the states' own archives, the MIT Election Data and Science Lab, Heideman (2026) and Algara & Amlani (2021). Maine and Nebraska are shown whole, without their district votes. By county: "As they were" draws each county as it stood on election day; "Today's" shares the old votes among today's counties by area. County boundaries: Newberry Library, Atlas of Historical County Boundaries (CC BY-NC-SA 2.5). How these results were checked.