West Virginia — 1972 presidential election
Recent presidential results
Akashicstate1972 presidential electionWest Virginia · PresidentNixonR+27.2
How it voted
Share of the 1972 vote
| Richard Nixon ✓Republican | 63.6% | 484,964 |
|---|---|---|
| George McGovernDemocratic | 36.4% | 277,435 |
| OtherAll other candidates | 0.0% | 0 |
1972presidential margin
D+60R+60
55 counties, each filled by 1972 D-vs-R margin. Hover any county for its result.
West Virginia cast 6 electoral votes this cycle.
County-level results (55 counties) — table
| County | Winner | Margin |
|---|---|---|
| Barbour County, WV | Republican | R+32.5 |
| Berkeley County, WV | Republican | R+41.6 |
| Boone County, WV | Republican | R+5.7 |
| Braxton County, WV | Republican | R+6.5 |
| Brooke County, WV | Republican | R+18.2 |
| Cabell County, WV | Republican | R+34.8 |
| Calhoun County, WV | Republican | R+13.2 |
| Clay County, WV | Republican | R+8.5 |
| Doddridge County, WV | Republican | R+56.0 |
| Fayette County, WV | Republican | R+8.7 |
| Gilmer County, WV | Republican | R+20.4 |
| Grant County, WV | Republican | R+70.6 |
| Greenbrier County, WV | Republican | R+33.2 |
| Hampshire County, WV | Republican | R+30.7 |
| Hancock County, WV | Republican | R+22.5 |
| Hardy County, WV | Republican | R+26.7 |
| Harrison County, WV | Republican | R+26.5 |
| Jackson County, WV | Republican | R+41.2 |
| Jefferson County, WV | Republican | R+26.8 |
| Kanawha County, WV | Republican | R+26.2 |
| Lewis County, WV | Republican | R+47.4 |
| Lincoln County, WV | Republican | R+9.3 |
| Logan County, WV | Democratic | D+2.6 |
| Marion County, WV | Republican | R+15.1 |
| Marshall County, WV | Republican | R+26.5 |
| Mason County, WV | Republican | R+28.0 |
| McDowell County, WV | Republican | R+13.5 |
| Mercer County, WV | Republican | R+39.0 |
| Mineral County, WV | Republican | R+37.2 |
| Mingo County, WV | Republican | R+14.5 |
| Monongalia County, WV | Republican | R+22.0 |
| Monroe County, WV | Republican | R+27.5 |
| Morgan County, WV | Republican | R+45.9 |
| Nicholas County, WV | Republican | R+23.9 |
| Ohio County, WV | Republican | R+27.5 |
| Pendleton County, WV | Republican | R+27.8 |
| Pleasants County, WV | Republican | R+25.3 |
| Pocahontas County, WV | Republican | R+18.8 |
| Preston County, WV | Republican | R+44.8 |
| Putnam County, WV | Republican | R+26.8 |
| Raleigh County, WV | Republican | R+28.8 |
| Randolph County, WV | Republican | R+29.0 |
| Ritchie County, WV | Republican | R+57.2 |
| Roane County, WV | Republican | R+28.1 |
| Summers County, WV | Republican | R+21.5 |
| Taylor County, WV | Republican | R+35.5 |
| Tucker County, WV | Republican | R+19.5 |
| Tyler County, WV | Republican | R+49.9 |
| Upshur County, WV | Republican | R+56.5 |
| Wayne County, WV | Republican | R+22.0 |
| Webster County, WV | Republican | R+1.1 |
| Wetzel County, WV | Republican | R+29.7 |
| Wirt County, WV | Republican | R+35.2 |
| Wood County, WV | Republican | R+43.0 |
| Wyoming County, WV | Republican | R+27.9 |
West Virginia results by county
55 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 | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Barbour County | Richard Nixon+2,174 | 4,43266.2% | 2,25833.8% | 00.0% | 6,690 |
| Berkeley County | Richard Nixon+6,431 | 10,95470.8% | 4,52329.2% | 00.0% | 15,477 |
| Boone County | Richard Nixon+643 | 5,98552.8% | 5,34247.2% | 00.0% | 11,327 |
| Braxton County | Richard Nixon+384 | 3,15553.2% | 2,77146.8% | 00.0% | 5,926 |
| Brooke County | Richard Nixon+2,318 | 7,54459.1% | 5,22640.9% | 00.0% | 12,770 |
| Cabell County | Richard Nixon+15,270 | 29,58267.4% | 14,31232.6% | 00.0% | 43,894 |
| Calhoun County | Richard Nixon+464 | 1,99256.6% | 1,52843.4% | 00.0% | 3,520 |
| Clay County | Richard Nixon+338 | 2,16854.2% | 1,83045.8% | 00.0% | 3,998 |
| Doddridge County | Richard Nixon+1,639 | 2,28478.0% | 64522.0% | 00.0% | 2,929 |
| Fayette County | Richard Nixon+1,910 | 11,87654.4% | 9,96645.6% | 00.0% | 21,842 |
| Gilmer County | Richard Nixon+697 | 2,05660.2% | 1,35939.8% | 00.0% | 3,415 |
| Grant County | Richard Nixon+2,942 | 3,55685.3% | 61414.7% | 00.0% | 4,170 |
| Greenbrier County | Richard Nixon+4,404 | 8,82766.6% | 4,42333.4% | 00.0% | 13,250 |
| Hampshire County | Richard Nixon+1,447 | 3,08465.3% | 1,63734.7% | 00.0% | 4,721 |
| Hancock County | Richard Nixon+3,907 | 10,63461.3% | 6,72738.7% | 00.0% | 17,361 |
| Hardy County | Richard Nixon+1,099 | 2,60963.3% | 1,51036.7% | 00.0% | 4,119 |
| Harrison County | Richard Nixon+9,286 | 22,19663.2% | 12,91036.8% | 00.0% | 35,106 |
| Jackson County | Richard Nixon+4,219 | 7,22670.6% | 3,00729.4% | 00.0% | 10,233 |
| Jefferson County | Richard Nixon+2,040 | 4,82263.4% | 2,78236.6% | 00.0% | 7,604 |
| Kanawha County | Richard Nixon+26,989 | 65,02163.1% | 38,03236.9% | 00.0% | 103,053 |
| Lewis County | Richard Nixon+3,716 | 5,77873.7% | 2,06226.3% | 00.0% | 7,840 |
| Lincoln County | Richard Nixon+797 | 4,67354.7% | 3,87645.3% | 00.0% | 8,549 |
| Logan County | George McGovern+512 | 9,53348.7% | 10,04551.3% | 00.0% | 19,578 |
| Marion County | Richard Nixon+4,231 | 16,09557.6% | 11,86442.4% | 00.0% | 27,959 |
| Marshall County | Richard Nixon+4,588 | 10,96663.2% | 6,37836.8% | 00.0% | 17,344 |
| Mason County | Richard Nixon+3,121 | 7,12964.0% | 4,00836.0% | 00.0% | 11,137 |
| McDowell County | Richard Nixon+2,131 | 8,94256.8% | 6,81143.2% | 00.0% | 15,753 |
| Mercer County | Richard Nixon+10,020 | 17,84669.5% | 7,82630.5% | 00.0% | 25,672 |
| Mineral County | Richard Nixon+3,881 | 7,15768.6% | 3,27631.4% | 00.0% | 10,433 |
| Mingo County | Richard Nixon+1,899 | 7,48457.3% | 5,58542.7% | 00.0% | 13,069 |
| Monongalia County | Richard Nixon+6,037 | 16,75861.0% | 10,72139.0% | 00.0% | 27,479 |
| Monroe County | Richard Nixon+1,602 | 3,71663.7% | 2,11436.3% | 00.0% | 5,830 |
| Morgan County | Richard Nixon+1,896 | 3,01472.9% | 1,11827.1% | 00.0% | 4,132 |
| Nicholas County | Richard Nixon+2,279 | 5,90762.0% | 3,62838.0% | 00.0% | 9,535 |
| Ohio County | Richard Nixon+7,944 | 18,43563.7% | 10,49136.3% | 00.0% | 28,926 |
| Pendleton County | Richard Nixon+959 | 2,20763.9% | 1,24836.1% | 00.0% | 3,455 |
| Pleasants County | Richard Nixon+818 | 2,02562.7% | 1,20737.3% | 00.0% | 3,232 |
| Pocahontas County | Richard Nixon+756 | 2,39159.4% | 1,63540.6% | 00.0% | 4,026 |
| Preston County | Richard Nixon+4,830 | 7,80772.4% | 2,97727.6% | 00.0% | 10,784 |
| Putnam County | Richard Nixon+3,494 | 8,26563.4% | 4,77136.6% | 00.0% | 13,036 |
| Raleigh County | Richard Nixon+8,564 | 19,15064.4% | 10,58635.6% | 00.0% | 29,736 |
| Randolph County | Richard Nixon+3,114 | 6,92364.5% | 3,80935.5% | 00.0% | 10,732 |
| Ritchie County | Richard Nixon+2,645 | 3,63578.6% | 99021.4% | 00.0% | 4,625 |
| Roane County | Richard Nixon+1,867 | 4,25364.1% | 2,38635.9% | 00.0% | 6,639 |
| Summers County | Richard Nixon+1,377 | 3,89560.7% | 2,51839.3% | 00.0% | 6,413 |
| Taylor County | Richard Nixon+2,300 | 4,38567.8% | 2,08532.2% | 00.0% | 6,470 |
| Tucker County | Richard Nixon+706 | 2,16359.8% | 1,45740.2% | 00.0% | 3,620 |
| Tyler County | Richard Nixon+2,237 | 3,36274.9% | 1,12525.1% | 00.0% | 4,487 |
| Upshur County | Richard Nixon+4,654 | 6,44978.2% | 1,79521.8% | 00.0% | 8,244 |
| Wayne County | Richard Nixon+3,524 | 9,77561.0% | 6,25139.0% | 00.0% | 16,026 |
| Webster County | Richard Nixon+45 | 2,11450.5% | 2,06949.5% | 00.0% | 4,183 |
| Wetzel County | Richard Nixon+2,770 | 6,04664.9% | 3,27635.1% | 00.0% | 9,322 |
| Wirt County | Richard Nixon+751 | 1,44267.6% | 69132.4% | 00.0% | 2,133 |
| Wood County | Richard Nixon+16,429 | 27,31571.5% | 10,88628.5% | 00.0% | 38,201 |
| Wyoming County | Richard Nixon+3,458 | 7,92664.0% | 4,46836.0% | 00.0% | 12,394 |
Nominees: George McGovern (D) · Richard Nixon (R)
West Virginia's presidential margins
1892–2024, the 1972 contest in context
| Year | Margin (D minus R) |
|---|---|
| 1892 | +2.4% |
| 1896 | −5.4% |
| 1900 | −9.5% |
| 1904 | −13.2% |
| 1908 | −10.2% |
| 1912 | +21.3% |
| 1916 | −0.9% |
| 1920 | −12.0% |
| 1924 | −5.4% |
| 1928 | −17.4% |
| 1932 | +10.0% |
| 1936 | +21.4% |
| 1940 | +14.2% |
| 1944 | +9.8% |
| 1948 | +15.1% |
| 1952 | +3.8% |
| 1956 | −8.2% |
| 1960 | +5.5% |
| 1964 | +35.9% |
| 1968 | +8.8% |
| 1972 | −27.2% |
| 1976 | +16.1% |
| 1980 | +4.5% |
| 1984 | −10.5% |
| 1988 | +4.7% |
| 1992 | +13.0% |
| 1996 | +14.7% |
| 2000 | −6.3% |
| 2004 | −12.9% |
| 2008 | −13.1% |
| 2012 | −26.7% |
| 2016 | −41.7% |
| 2020 | −38.9% |
| 2024 | −41.9% |
Source. Compiled historical county records — 1972 presidential returns · official county-level results. Real returns — nothing estimated.