Kentucky — 1972 presidential election
Recent presidential results
Akashicstate1972 presidential electionKentucky · PresidentNixonR+28.6
How it voted
Share of the 1972 vote
| Richard Nixon ✓Republican | 63.4% | 676,446 |
|---|---|---|
| George McGovernDemocratic | 34.8% | 371,159 |
| OtherAll other candidates | 1.9% | 19,894 |
1972presidential margin
D+60R+60
120 counties, each filled by 1972 D-vs-R margin. Hover any county for its result.
Kentucky cast 9 electoral votes this cycle.
County-level results (120 counties) — table
| County | Winner | Margin |
|---|---|---|
| Adair County, KY | Republican | R+40.7 |
| Allen County, KY | Republican | R+40.8 |
| Anderson County, KY | Republican | R+27.1 |
| Ballard County, KY | Republican | R+4.2 |
| Barren County, KY | Republican | R+27.7 |
| Bath County, KY | Republican | R+17.4 |
| Bell County, KY | Republican | R+33.4 |
| Boone County, KY | Republican | R+46.3 |
| Bourbon County, KY | Republican | R+25.7 |
| Boyd County, KY | Republican | R+32.8 |
| Boyle County, KY | Republican | R+28.3 |
| Bracken County, KY | Republican | R+29.8 |
| Breathitt County, KY | Democratic | D+18.3 |
| Breckinridge County, KY | Republican | R+29.7 |
| Bullitt County, KY | Republican | R+22.4 |
| Butler County, KY | Republican | R+55.2 |
| Caldwell County, KY | Republican | R+36.1 |
| Calloway County, KY | Republican | R+19.5 |
| Campbell County, KY | Republican | R+38.9 |
| Carlisle County, KY | Republican | R+14.2 |
| Carroll County, KY | Democratic | D+3.1 |
| Carter County, KY | Republican | R+22.2 |
| Casey County, KY | Republican | R+59.5 |
| Christian County, KY | Republican | R+28.6 |
| Clark County, KY | Republican | R+37.8 |
| Clay County, KY | Republican | R+40.4 |
| Clinton County, KY | Republican | R+59.7 |
| Crittenden County, KY | Republican | R+44.2 |
| Cumberland County, KY | Republican | R+53.6 |
| Daviess County, KY | Republican | R+34.5 |
| Edmonson County, KY | Republican | R+52.2 |
| Elliott County, KY | Democratic | D+31.2 |
| Estill County, KY | Republican | R+39.4 |
| Fayette County, KY | Republican | R+35.4 |
| Fleming County, KY | Republican | R+25.8 |
| Floyd County, KY | Democratic | D+10.5 |
| Franklin County, KY | Republican | R+15.9 |
| Fulton County, KY | Republican | R+26.6 |
| Gallatin County, KY | Republican | R+7.9 |
| Garrard County, KY | Republican | R+36.5 |
| Grant County, KY | Republican | R+31.7 |
| Graves County, KY | Republican | R+23.7 |
| Grayson County, KY | Republican | R+37.9 |
| Green County, KY | Republican | R+38.6 |
| Greenup County, KY | Republican | R+20.4 |
| Hancock County, KY | Republican | R+32.3 |
| Hardin County, KY | Republican | R+35.3 |
| Harlan County, KY | Republican | R+19.8 |
| Harrison County, KY | Republican | R+20.8 |
| Hart County, KY | Republican | R+21.5 |
| Henderson County, KY | Republican | R+22.8 |
| Henry County, KY | Republican | R+6.3 |
| Hickman County, KY | Republican | R+18.0 |
| Hopkins County, KY | Republican | R+38.5 |
| Jackson County, KY | Republican | R+84.6 |
| Jefferson County, KY | Republican | R+23.0 |
| Jessamine County, KY | Republican | R+48.7 |
| Johnson County, KY | Republican | R+45.2 |
| Kenton County, KY | Republican | R+36.1 |
| Knott County, KY | Democratic | D+30.2 |
| Knox County, KY | Republican | R+46.7 |
| Larue County, KY | Republican | R+24.3 |
| Laurel County, KY | Republican | R+52.0 |
| Lawrence County, KY | Republican | R+21.8 |
| Lee County, KY | Republican | R+37.1 |
| Leslie County, KY | Republican | R+56.3 |
| Letcher County, KY | Republican | R+18.1 |
| Lewis County, KY | Republican | R+44.1 |
| Lincoln County, KY | Republican | R+31.3 |
| Livingston County, KY | Republican | R+21.8 |
| Logan County, KY | Republican | R+18.0 |
| Lyon County, KY | Republican | R+19.5 |
| Madison County, KY | Republican | R+32.8 |
| Magoffin County, KY | Republican | R+5.1 |
| Marion County, KY | Republican | R+0.4 |
| Marshall County, KY | Republican | R+20.5 |
| Martin County, KY | Republican | R+57.2 |
| Mason County, KY | Republican | R+17.7 |
| McCracken County, KY | Republican | R+18.9 |
| McCreary County, KY | Republican | R+63.4 |
| McLean County, KY | Republican | R+31.4 |
| Meade County, KY | Republican | R+23.3 |
| Menifee County, KY | Democratic | D+10.0 |
| Mercer County, KY | Republican | R+34.5 |
| Metcalfe County, KY | Republican | R+18.2 |
| Monroe County, KY | Republican | R+65.7 |
| Montgomery County, KY | Republican | R+26.4 |
| Morgan County, KY | Democratic | D+8.3 |
| Muhlenberg County, KY | Republican | R+26.2 |
| Nelson County, KY | Republican | R+10.2 |
| Nicholas County, KY | Republican | R+14.2 |
| Ohio County, KY | Republican | R+44.6 |
| Oldham County, KY | Republican | R+38.7 |
| Owen County, KY | Republican | R+11.1 |
| Owsley County, KY | Republican | R+67.9 |
| Pendleton County, KY | Republican | R+36.2 |
| Perry County, KY | Republican | R+19.6 |
| Pike County, KY | Republican | R+13.6 |
| Powell County, KY | Republican | R+17.7 |
| Pulaski County, KY | Republican | R+54.6 |
| Robertson County, KY | Republican | R+3.9 |
| Rockcastle County, KY | Republican | R+55.5 |
| Rowan County, KY | Republican | R+19.7 |
| Russell County, KY | Republican | R+54.1 |
| Scott County, KY | Republican | R+32.1 |
| Shelby County, KY | Republican | R+30.0 |
| Simpson County, KY | Republican | R+26.3 |
| Spencer County, KY | Republican | R+39.2 |
| Taylor County, KY | Republican | R+36.6 |
| Todd County, KY | Republican | R+22.4 |
| Trigg County, KY | Republican | R+7.6 |
| Trimble County, KY | Republican | R+10.4 |
| Union County, KY | Republican | R+18.4 |
| Warren County, KY | Republican | R+35.0 |
| Washington County, KY | Republican | R+20.4 |
| Wayne County, KY | Republican | R+30.6 |
| Webster County, KY | Republican | R+16.4 |
| Whitley County, KY | Republican | R+50.6 |
| Wolfe County, KY | Democratic | D+1.1 |
| Woodford County, KY | Republican | R+43.8 |
Kentucky results by county
120 counties. Third-party and independent votes are reported by the county source as one combined figure; every named candidate is listed in the complete result below.
| Led by | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Adair County | Richard Nixon+2,249 | 3,85969.8% | 1,61029.1% | 621.1% | 5,531 |
| Allen County | Richard Nixon+1,766 | 3,02569.8% | 1,25929.1% | 481.1% | 4,332 |
| Anderson County | Richard Nixon+996 | 2,29862.6% | 1,30235.5% | 701.9% | 3,670 |
| Ballard County | Richard Nixon+131 | 1,54249.9% | 1,41145.7% | 1364.4% | 3,089 |
| Barren County | Richard Nixon+2,686 | 6,07062.6% | 3,38434.9% | 2422.5% | 9,696 |
| Bath County | Richard Nixon+572 | 1,91958.5% | 1,34741.0% | 160.5% | 3,282 |
| Bell County | Richard Nixon+3,299 | 6,51866.1% | 3,21932.6% | 1301.3% | 9,867 |
| Boone County | Richard Nixon+4,760 | 7,35571.5% | 2,59525.2% | 3303.2% | 10,280 |
| Bourbon County | Richard Nixon+1,320 | 3,18062.0% | 1,86036.3% | 871.7% | 5,127 |
| Boyd County | Richard Nixon+6,378 | 12,81265.9% | 6,43433.1% | 1911.0% | 19,437 |
| Boyle County | Richard Nixon+1,922 | 4,31763.7% | 2,39535.3% | 691.0% | 6,781 |
| Bracken County | Richard Nixon+755 | 1,62864.3% | 87334.5% | 311.2% | 2,532 |
| Breathitt County | George McGovern+831 | 1,84640.7% | 2,67759.0% | 180.4% | 4,541 |
| Breckinridge County | Richard Nixon+1,653 | 3,57464.2% | 1,92134.5% | 681.2% | 5,563 |
| Bullitt County | Richard Nixon+1,690 | 4,51759.8% | 2,82737.4% | 2092.8% | 7,553 |
| Butler County | Richard Nixon+2,106 | 2,94177.0% | 83521.9% | 421.1% | 3,818 |
| Caldwell County | Richard Nixon+1,607 | 2,95266.3% | 1,34530.2% | 1543.5% | 4,451 |
| Calloway County | Richard Nixon+1,699 | 5,16759.2% | 3,46839.7% | 971.1% | 8,732 |
| Campbell County | Richard Nixon+11,440 | 20,02568.0% | 8,58529.2% | 8352.8% | 29,445 |
| Carlisle County | Richard Nixon+297 | 1,16955.7% | 87241.6% | 562.7% | 2,097 |
| Carroll County | George McGovern+80 | 1,22847.7% | 1,30850.8% | 381.5% | 2,574 |
| Carter County | Richard Nixon+1,491 | 4,08260.7% | 2,59138.5% | 540.8% | 6,727 |
| Casey County | Richard Nixon+2,814 | 3,72778.8% | 91319.3% | 881.9% | 4,728 |
| Christian County | Richard Nixon+3,351 | 7,41463.3% | 4,06334.7% | 2281.9% | 11,705 |
| Clark County | Richard Nixon+2,486 | 4,50668.4% | 2,02030.7% | 590.9% | 6,585 |
| Clay County | Richard Nixon+2,337 | 4,04670.0% | 1,70929.6% | 260.4% | 5,781 |
| Clinton County | Richard Nixon+1,973 | 2,63279.6% | 65919.9% | 160.5% | 3,307 |
| Crittenden County | Richard Nixon+1,389 | 2,24871.5% | 85927.3% | 361.1% | 3,143 |
| Cumberland County | Richard Nixon+1,608 | 2,29476.4% | 68622.9% | 220.7% | 3,002 |
| Daviess County | Richard Nixon+9,066 | 17,23465.6% | 8,16831.1% | 8543.3% | 26,256 |
| Edmonson County | Richard Nixon+1,605 | 2,32775.7% | 72223.5% | 250.8% | 3,074 |
| Elliott County | George McGovern+717 | 78234.0% | 1,49965.3% | 160.7% | 2,297 |
| Estill County | Richard Nixon+1,732 | 3,05469.4% | 1,32230.1% | 230.5% | 4,399 |
| Fayette County | Richard Nixon+22,534 | 42,36266.5% | 19,82831.1% | 1,4762.3% | 63,666 |
| Fleming County | Richard Nixon+1,029 | 2,48462.4% | 1,45536.5% | 431.1% | 3,982 |
| Floyd County | George McGovern+1,445 | 6,09944.2% | 7,54454.7% | 1571.1% | 13,800 |
| Franklin County | Richard Nixon+2,180 | 7,78156.9% | 5,60140.9% | 2972.2% | 13,679 |
| Fulton County | Richard Nixon+783 | 1,80761.3% | 1,02434.7% | 1163.9% | 2,947 |
| Gallatin County | Richard Nixon+107 | 71953.4% | 61245.4% | 161.2% | 1,347 |
| Garrard County | Richard Nixon+1,702 | 3,14367.5% | 1,44130.9% | 731.6% | 4,657 |
| Grant County | Richard Nixon+1,032 | 2,08664.0% | 1,05432.4% | 1183.6% | 3,258 |
| Graves County | Richard Nixon+2,397 | 6,09860.4% | 3,70136.6% | 3013.0% | 10,100 |
| Grayson County | Richard Nixon+2,316 | 4,15568.0% | 1,83930.1% | 1171.9% | 6,111 |
| Green County | Richard Nixon+1,546 | 2,75568.8% | 1,20930.2% | 391.0% | 4,003 |
| Greenup County | Richard Nixon+2,337 | 6,82859.7% | 4,49139.3% | 1181.0% | 11,437 |
| Hancock County | Richard Nixon+792 | 1,58364.6% | 79132.3% | 763.1% | 2,450 |
| Hardin County | Richard Nixon+4,680 | 8,74065.9% | 4,06030.6% | 4563.4% | 13,256 |
| Harlan County | Richard Nixon+2,178 | 6,52759.4% | 4,34939.6% | 1091.0% | 10,985 |
| Harrison County | Richard Nixon+952 | 2,73259.7% | 1,78038.9% | 641.4% | 4,576 |
| Hart County | Richard Nixon+1,275 | 3,58260.3% | 2,30738.8% | 500.8% | 5,939 |
| Henderson County | Richard Nixon+2,342 | 6,23160.7% | 3,88937.9% | 1491.5% | 10,269 |
| Henry County | Richard Nixon+231 | 1,91952.5% | 1,68846.2% | 491.3% | 3,656 |
| Hickman County | Richard Nixon+454 | 1,43056.7% | 97638.7% | 1184.7% | 2,524 |
| Hopkins County | Richard Nixon+4,004 | 7,13368.7% | 3,12930.1% | 1261.2% | 10,388 |
| Jackson County | Richard Nixon+4,867 | 5,30392.2% | 4367.6% | 140.2% | 5,753 |
| Jefferson County | Richard Nixon+54,293 | 142,43660.4% | 88,14337.4% | 5,1852.2% | 235,764 |
| Jessamine County | Richard Nixon+2,550 | 3,81972.9% | 1,26924.2% | 1502.9% | 5,238 |
| Johnson County | Richard Nixon+3,067 | 4,90772.2% | 1,84027.1% | 450.7% | 6,792 |
| Kenton County | Richard Nixon+15,204 | 28,07666.7% | 12,87230.6% | 1,1732.8% | 42,121 |
| Knott County | George McGovern+1,295 | 1,47934.5% | 2,77464.7% | 340.8% | 4,287 |
| Knox County | Richard Nixon+3,212 | 5,01772.9% | 1,80526.2% | 570.8% | 6,879 |
| Larue County | Richard Nixon+966 | 2,44961.5% | 1,48337.3% | 481.2% | 3,980 |
| Laurel County | Richard Nixon+5,002 | 7,27675.6% | 2,27423.6% | 700.7% | 9,620 |
| Lawrence County | Richard Nixon+863 | 2,39260.5% | 1,52938.7% | 340.9% | 3,955 |
| Lee County | Richard Nixon+885 | 1,62968.2% | 74431.2% | 150.6% | 2,388 |
| Leslie County | Richard Nixon+2,386 | 3,29977.9% | 91321.6% | 240.6% | 4,236 |
| Letcher County | Richard Nixon+1,305 | 4,21358.5% | 2,90840.4% | 761.1% | 7,197 |
| Lewis County | Richard Nixon+1,924 | 3,12471.6% | 1,20027.5% | 410.9% | 4,365 |
| Lincoln County | Richard Nixon+1,741 | 3,62365.0% | 1,88233.8% | 661.2% | 5,571 |
| Livingston County | Richard Nixon+608 | 1,67360.0% | 1,06538.2% | 521.9% | 2,790 |
| Logan County | Richard Nixon+1,114 | 3,57357.9% | 2,45939.8% | 1432.3% | 6,175 |
| Lyon County | Richard Nixon+343 | 1,03058.5% | 68739.0% | 432.4% | 1,760 |
| Madison County | Richard Nixon+4,331 | 8,65965.6% | 4,32832.8% | 2121.6% | 13,199 |
| Magoffin County | Richard Nixon+219 | 2,24352.4% | 2,02447.3% | 140.3% | 4,281 |
| Marion County | Richard Nixon+19 | 2,37049.7% | 2,35149.3% | 440.9% | 4,765 |
| Marshall County | Richard Nixon+1,484 | 4,29059.2% | 2,80638.7% | 1562.2% | 7,252 |
| Martin County | Richard Nixon+1,834 | 2,49577.9% | 66120.6% | 481.5% | 3,204 |
| Mason County | Richard Nixon+1,070 | 3,52958.5% | 2,45940.7% | 490.8% | 6,037 |
| McCracken County | Richard Nixon+3,693 | 11,26057.7% | 7,56738.8% | 6913.5% | 19,518 |
| McCreary County | Richard Nixon+2,519 | 3,20380.6% | 68417.2% | 892.2% | 3,976 |
| McLean County | Richard Nixon+1,107 | 2,29865.1% | 1,19133.7% | 411.2% | 3,530 |
| Meade County | Richard Nixon+951 | 2,49260.9% | 1,54137.7% | 571.4% | 4,090 |
| Menifee County | George McGovern+136 | 59643.9% | 73253.9% | 302.2% | 1,358 |
| Mercer County | Richard Nixon+1,868 | 3,57566.1% | 1,70731.6% | 1282.4% | 5,410 |
| Metcalfe County | Richard Nixon+588 | 1,89658.6% | 1,30840.4% | 341.1% | 3,238 |
| Monroe County | Richard Nixon+3,002 | 3,77082.6% | 76816.8% | 280.6% | 4,566 |
| Montgomery County | Richard Nixon+1,211 | 2,86862.6% | 1,65736.2% | 541.2% | 4,579 |
| Morgan County | George McGovern+280 | 1,53545.6% | 1,81553.9% | 190.6% | 3,369 |
| Muhlenberg County | Richard Nixon+2,350 | 5,59662.3% | 3,24636.2% | 1361.5% | 8,978 |
| Nelson County | Richard Nixon+667 | 3,49553.5% | 2,82843.3% | 2053.1% | 6,528 |
| Nicholas County | Richard Nixon+272 | 1,07656.2% | 80442.0% | 341.8% | 1,914 |
| Ohio County | Richard Nixon+1,486 | 2,39271.7% | 90627.2% | 361.1% | 3,334 |
| Oldham County | Richard Nixon+1,730 | 3,04168.0% | 1,31129.3% | 1202.7% | 4,472 |
| Owen County | Richard Nixon+295 | 1,45654.9% | 1,16143.8% | 341.3% | 2,651 |
| Owsley County | Richard Nixon+1,077 | 1,32883.7% | 25115.8% | 80.5% | 1,587 |
| Pendleton County | Richard Nixon+1,057 | 1,96667.3% | 90931.1% | 471.6% | 2,922 |
| Perry County | Richard Nixon+1,772 | 5,37359.4% | 3,60139.8% | 760.8% | 9,050 |
| Pike County | Richard Nixon+3,022 | 12,53556.5% | 9,51342.9% | 1520.7% | 22,200 |
| Powell County | Richard Nixon+536 | 1,76658.4% | 1,23040.7% | 280.9% | 3,024 |
| Pulaski County | Richard Nixon+7,522 | 10,60277.0% | 3,08022.4% | 880.6% | 13,770 |
| Robertson County | Richard Nixon+35 | 45651.0% | 42147.1% | 171.9% | 894 |
| Rockcastle County | Richard Nixon+2,469 | 3,43777.3% | 96821.8% | 410.9% | 4,446 |
| Rowan County | Richard Nixon+1,076 | 3,24559.5% | 2,16939.7% | 440.8% | 5,458 |
| Russell County | Richard Nixon+2,823 | 3,99276.5% | 1,16922.4% | 591.1% | 5,220 |
| Scott County | Richard Nixon+1,613 | 3,25564.8% | 1,64232.7% | 1292.6% | 5,026 |
| Shelby County | Richard Nixon+1,819 | 3,89364.2% | 2,07434.2% | 981.6% | 6,065 |
| Simpson County | Richard Nixon+960 | 2,28562.6% | 1,32536.3% | 421.2% | 3,652 |
| Spencer County | Richard Nixon+639 | 1,12068.8% | 48129.5% | 281.7% | 1,629 |
| Taylor County | Richard Nixon+2,176 | 4,03567.8% | 1,85931.2% | 581.0% | 5,952 |
| Todd County | Richard Nixon+742 | 1,96459.2% | 1,22236.9% | 1293.9% | 3,315 |
| Trigg County | Richard Nixon+253 | 1,76753.0% | 1,51445.4% | 561.7% | 3,337 |
| Trimble County | Richard Nixon+178 | 93554.6% | 75744.2% | 201.2% | 1,712 |
| Union County | Richard Nixon+846 | 2,70158.7% | 1,85540.3% | 481.0% | 4,604 |
| Warren County | Richard Nixon+6,547 | 12,48166.8% | 5,93431.7% | 2761.5% | 18,691 |
| Washington County | Richard Nixon+826 | 2,37858.7% | 1,55238.3% | 1213.0% | 4,051 |
| Wayne County | Richard Nixon+1,661 | 3,51464.8% | 1,85334.2% | 531.0% | 5,420 |
| Webster County | Richard Nixon+684 | 2,39657.6% | 1,71241.1% | 541.3% | 4,162 |
| Whitley County | Richard Nixon+4,589 | 6,78874.9% | 2,19924.3% | 750.8% | 9,062 |
| Wolfe County | George McGovern+21 | 93648.8% | 95749.9% | 241.3% | 1,917 |
| Woodford County | Richard Nixon+2,095 | 3,36370.3% | 1,26826.5% | 1503.1% | 4,781 |
Nominees: George McGovern (D) · Richard Nixon (R)
Kentucky's presidential margins
1892–2024, the 1972 contest in context
| Year | Margin (D minus R) |
|---|---|
| 1892 | +11.7% |
| 1896 | −0.1% |
| 1900 | +1.7% |
| 1904 | +2.7% |
| 1908 | +1.7% |
| 1912 | +23.2% |
| 1916 | +5.4% |
| 1920 | +0.4% |
| 1924 | −2.9% |
| 1928 | −18.9% |
| 1932 | +18.9% |
| 1936 | +18.6% |
| 1940 | +15.1% |
| 1944 | +9.2% |
| 1948 | +15.3% |
| 1952 | +0.1% |
| 1956 | −9.1% |
| 1960 | −7.2% |
| 1964 | +28.4% |
| 1968 | −6.1% |
| 1972 | −28.6% |
| 1976 | +7.2% |
| 1980 | −1.5% |
| 1984 | −20.7% |
| 1988 | −11.6% |
| 1992 | +3.2% |
| 1996 | +1.0% |
| 2000 | −15.1% |
| 2004 | −19.9% |
| 2008 | −16.2% |
| 2012 | −22.7% |
| 2016 | −29.8% |
| 2020 | −25.9% |
| 2024 | −30.5% |
Source. Compiled historical county records — 1972 presidential returns · official county-level results. Real returns — nothing estimated.