The 1916 United States presidential election in New Mexico took place on November 7, 1916. All contemporary forty-eight states were part of 1916 United States presidential election. Voters chose three electors to represent them in the United States Electoral College, Electoral College, which voted for President of the United States, President and Vice President of the United States, Vice President.
During the period between New Mexico's annexation by the United States and statehood, the area was divided between largely Republican machine-run highland regions and its firmly Southern Democrats, Southern Democrat and Baptist "Eastern New Mexico, Little Texas" region to the southeast. A split in the "Old Guard" of highland Republicanism meant that in the state's inaugural presidential election in 1912 United States presidential election in New Mexico, 1912 Woodrow Wilson carried the state through overwhelming "Little Texas" and southern desert support over Progressive Party (United States, 1912), Progressive Theodore Roosevelt and incumbent Republican Party (United States), Republican William Howard Taft.
[Hodgson, Illa D. and Garthwaite, Eloyse M.; 'New Mexico's Early Elections: Statehood to New Deal'; ''New Mexico Historical Review'', January 1, 1995; vol. 70, issue 1, pp. 29-46] Nonetheless, New Mexico was still Taft's fourth-strongest state by vote percentage reflecting the strong Hispanic machine loyalties to him in the northern highlands.
In the East, supporters of Theodore Roosevelt's "Bull Moose" Party rapidly returned to the Republicans, in the Mountain states, Mountain States many if not most of these supporters turned to the Democratic Party not only in presidential elections, but also in state and federal legislative ones.
[Sarasohn, David; 'The Election of 1916: Realigning the Rockies', ''Western Historical Quarterly'', Vol. 11, No. 3 (July 1980), pp. 285-305] Wilson was also helped by a powerful "peace vote" in the Western states
[Menendez; ''The Geography of Presidential Elections in the United States'', p. 47] due to opposition to participation in World War I.
New Mexico was won by incumbent President Woodrow Wilson, who secured a tumultuous reelection against List of justices of the Supreme Court of the United States, Supreme Court Justice Charles Evans Hughes, and Socialist Party of America, Socialist Party icon Allan L. Benson. Wilson's reluctance to bid armed forces in World War I improved his image for this election, as a "peace candidate".
However, whilst many Progressive business leaders believed the Republican Old Guard stood for fraud and dishonesty, they nonetheless supported Hughes even whilst opposing GOP candidates for other statewide positions.
Consequently, despite its strong Democratic base at a local level that was completely absent in most parts of the West during the "Fourth Party System, System of 1896",
[Burnham, Walter Dean; 'The System of 1896: An Analysis'; in ''The Evolution of American Electoral Systems'', pp. 178-179 ] New Mexico was Wilson's third-weakest state in the West.
Results
Results by county
References
{{United States elections
1916 United States presidential election by state, New Mexico
1916 New Mexico elections
United States presidential elections in New Mexico, 1916