1984 United States presidential election in Idaho

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Main article: 1984 United States presidential election
1984 United States presidential election in Idaho
← 1980 November 6, 1984 1988 →
  Ronald Reagan presidential portrait (cropped).jpg Vice President Mondale 1977 closeup.jpg
Nominee Ronald Reagan Walter Mondale
Party Republican Democratic
Home state California Minnesota
Running mate George H.W. Bush Geraldine Ferraro
Electoral vote 4 0
Popular vote 297,523 108,510
Percentage 72.36% 26.39%
Idaho Presidential Election Results 1984.svg
County Results
Reagan
  50–60%
  60–70%
  70–80%
  80–90%
  90–100%

President before election

Ronald Reagan
Republican

Elected President

Ronald Reagan
Republican

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The 1984 United States presidential election in Idaho took place on November 6, 1984. All 50 states and the District of Columbia, were part of the 1984 United States presidential election. State voters chose four electors to the Electoral College, which selected the president and vice president of the United States.

Idaho was won by incumbent United States President Ronald Reagan of California, who was running against former Vice President Walter Mondale of Minnesota. Reagan ran for a second time with incumbent Vice President and former C.I.A. Director George H. W. Bush of Texas, and Mondale ran with Representative Geraldine Ferraro of New York, the first major female candidate for the vice presidency.

Partisan background[]

The presidential election of 1984 was a very partisan election for Idaho, with just under 99 percent of the electorate voting for either the Democratic or Republican parties, and only four parties appearing on the ballot.[1] Every county in the state gave Reagan an outright majority. Reagan's weakest county, and Mondale's best, was Shoshone County, which Reagan won 50.2%-48.3%. It was the only county Reagan did not win by double digits. Reagan's best county was Madison County, which Reagan won 92.9%-6.6%. This was Mondale's worst showing in any county nationwide.[2]

Idaho weighed in for this election as 27.75 percentage points more Republican than the national average and with 72.36 percent of the popular vote, made it Reagan's second strongest state after neighboring Utah.[3]

Democratic platform[]

Walter Mondale accepted the Democratic nomination for presidency after pulling narrowly ahead of Senator Gary Hart of Colorado and Rev. Jesse Jackson of Illinois - his main contenders during what would be a very contentious[4] Democratic primary. During the campaign, Mondale was vocal about reduction of government spending, and, in particular, was vocal against heightened military spending on the nuclear arms race against the Soviet Union,[5] which was reaching its peak on both sides in the early 1980s.

Taking a (what was becoming the traditional liberal) stance on the social issues of the day, Mondale advocated for gun control, the right to choose regarding abortion, and strongly opposed the repeal of laws regarding institutionalized prayer in public schools. He also criticized Reagan for his economic marginalization of the poor, stating that Reagan's reelection campaign was "a happy talk campaign," not focused on the real issues at hand.[6]

A very significant political move during this election: the Democratic Party nominated Representative Geraldine Ferraro to run with Mondale as Vice-President. Ferraro is the first female candidate to receive such a nomination in United States history. She said in an interview at the 1984 Democratic National Convention that this action "opened a door which will never be closed again,"[7] speaking to the role of women in politics.

Republican platform[]

Reagan challenging Soviet General Secretary Mikhail Gorbachev to "tear down this wall!," from the Brandenburg Gate in June, 1987. Reagan's firm stance with the Soviet Union was an important contributor to his 1984 reelection.

By 1984, Reagan was very popular with voters across the nation as the President who saw them out of the economic stagflation of the early and middle 1970's, and into a period of (relative) economic stability.[8]

The economic success seen under Reagan was politically accomplished (principally) in two ways. The first was initiation of deep tax cuts for the wealthy,[9] and the second was a wide-spectrum of tax cuts for crude oil production and refinement, namely, with the 1980 Windfall profits tax cuts.[10] These policies were augmented with a call for heightened military spending,[11] the cutting of social welfare programs for the poor,[12] and the increasing of taxes on those making less than $50,000 per year.[9] Collectively called "Reaganomics", these economic policies were established through several pieces of legislation passed between 1980 and 1987.

Some of these new policies also arguably curbed several existing tax loopholes, preferences, and exceptions, but Reaganomics is typically remembered for its trickle down effect of taxing poor Americans more than rich ones. Reaganomics has (along with legislation passed under presidents George H. W. Bush and Bill Clinton) been criticized by many analysts as "setting the stage" for economic troubles in the United States after 2007, such as the Great Recession.[13]

Virtually unopposed during the Republican primaries, Reagan ran on a campaign of furthering his economic policies. Reagan vowed to continue his "war on drugs," passing sweeping legislation after the 1984 election in support of mandatory minimum sentences for drug possession.[14] Furthermore, taking a (what was becoming the traditional conservative) stance on the social issues of the day, Reagan strongly opposed legislation regarding comprehension of gay marriage, abortion, and (to a lesser extent) environmentalism,[15] regarding the final as simply being bad for business.

Republican victory[]

Reagan won Idaho in a 46-point landslide. His 72.36% vote share made it his second-best state in the nation, after neighboring Utah. The Mountain West in general had begun trending Republican in 1952,[16] after having been a swing region that was critical for Democrats' hopes of winning the presidency between 1896 and 1948.[17] In Idaho, this happened relatively quickly; in 1964, Barry Goldwater came within less than 2% of carrying Idaho, his closest near-win in the country. However, the trend accelerated, in Idaho and elsewhere, in 1980, as the incumbent president, Jimmy Carter, had been widely perceived as carrying out a 'war on the West' with his water, energy, and development policies.[18] That year, Reagan exceeded the vote shares Eisenhower had received in 1952 and 1956, and that Nixon had received in 1972, in the Gem State, despite garnering only a bare majority nationally. In 1984, he improved even further, becoming the first (and thus far, the only) nominee of either party to crack 70% in the state since William Jennings Bryan in 1896.

Reagan exhibited strength throughout Idaho. He got over 60% in all six of its most populous counties--Ada (Boise), Canyon (Nampa), Bonneville (Idaho Falls), Bannock (Pocatello), Kootenai (Coeur d'Alene), and Twin Falls (Twin Falls). In four of the six (including Ada, by far the largest), he got over 70%; and in one (Bonneville), he exceeded 80%. Amongst smaller counties, Reagan did particularly well in heavily Mormon southeast and south central Idaho, winning over 90% of the vote in Madison County, and over 80% in Jefferson, Franklin, Cassia, Clark, Bear Lake, Caribou, Fremont, Minodoka, and Oneida Counties. However, his strength in the state was broad as well as deep; in only one county (Shoshone) did he fail to run up a double-digit margin over Mondale. Mondale's strength, relatively speaking, was concentrated in and around the Silver Valley region; he was able to break 40% only in Benewah, Latah, Nez Perce, Clearwater, and Shoshone Counties.

This election is the most recent in which every county in Idaho went for one candidate.

Results[]

1984 United States presidential election in Idaho
Party Candidate Votes Percentage Electoral votes
Republican Ronald Reagan 297,523 72.36% 4
Democratic Walter Mondale 108,510 26.39% 0
Libertarian David Bergland 2,823 0.69% 0
America First Bob Richards 2,288 0.56% 0
Totals 411,144 100.00% 4

Results by county[]

County Ronald Wilson Reagan
Republican 		Walter Frederick Mondale
Democratic 		David Peter Bergland[19]
Libertarian 		Robert Eugene Richards[19]
Populist 		Margin Total votes cast
# % # % # % # % # %
Ada 60,036 72.40% 21,760 26.24% 771 0.93% 357 0.43% 38,276 46.16% 82,924
Adams 1,381 70.60% 540 27.61% 9 0.46% 26 1.33% 841 43.00% 1,956
Bannock 18,742 65.77% 9,399 32.98% 190 0.67% 165 0.58% 9,343 32.79% 28,496
Bear Lake 2,760 84.48% 481 14.72% 7 0.21% 19 0.58% 2,279 69.76% 3,267
Benewah 2,039 57.70% 1,447 40.95% 28 0.79% 20 0.57% 592 16.75% 3,534
Bingham 11,900 78.72% 3,064 20.27% 99 0.65% 53 0.35% 8,836 58.45% 15,116
Blaine 3,603 63.69% 1,971 34.84% 55 0.97% 28 0.49% 1,632 28.85% 5,657
Boise 1,249 72.57% 436 25.33% 22 1.28% 14 0.81% 813 47.24% 1,721
Bonner 6,889 58.89% 4,628 39.56% 72 0.62% 110 0.94% 2,261 19.33% 11,699
Bonneville 24,392 82.71% 4,877 16.54% 120 0.41% 101 0.34% 19,515 66.17% 29,490
Boundary 2,159 63.46% 1,158 34.04% 28 0.82% 57 1.68% 1,001 29.42% 3,402
Butte 1,245 73.89% 429 25.46% 5 0.30% 6 0.36% 816 48.43% 1,685
Camas 364 74.13% 123 25.05% 4 0.81% 0 0.00% 241 49.08% 491
Canyon 24,613 75.53% 7,527 23.10% 275 0.84% 172 0.53% 17,086 52.43% 32,587
Caribou 3,032 84.29% 535 14.87% 11 0.31% 19 0.53% 2,497 69.42% 3,597
Cassia 6,503 85.60% 1,036 13.64% 23 0.30% 35 0.46% 5,467 71.96% 7,597
Clark 353 85.06% 59 14.22% 3 0.72% 0 0.00% 294 70.84% 415
Clearwater 2,176 56.55% 1,608 41.79% 28 0.73% 36 0.94% 568 14.76% 3,848
Custer 1,653 77.10% 461 21.50% 12 0.56% 18 0.84% 1,192 55.60% 2,144
Elmore 4,595 75.27% 1,458 23.88% 19 0.31% 33 0.54% 3,137 51.38% 6,105
Franklin 3,261 87.15% 439 11.73% 15 0.40% 27 0.72% 2,822 75.41% 3,742
Fremont 4,006 82.55% 818 16.86% 13 0.27% 16 0.33% 3,188 65.69% 4,853
Gem 3,644 68.11% 1,607 30.04% 48 0.90% 51 0.95% 2,037 38.07% 5,350
Gooding 3,819 74.60% 1,247 24.36% 21 0.41% 32 0.63% 2,572 50.24% 5,119
Idaho 4,219 66.45% 1,996 31.44% 50 0.79% 84 1.32% 2,223 35.01% 6,349
Jefferson 5,770 87.92% 743 11.32% 21 0.32% 29 0.44% 5,027 76.60% 6,563
Jerome 4,913 78.49% 1,284 20.51% 27 0.43% 35 0.56% 3,629 57.98% 6,259
Kootenai 17,330 64.93% 9,004 33.74% 137 0.51% 218 0.82% 8,326 31.20% 26,689
Latah 7,709 57.10% 5,571 41.27% 151 1.12% 69 0.51% 2,138 15.84% 13,500
Lemhi 2,810 75.78% 852 22.98% 22 0.59% 24 0.65% 1,958 52.80% 3,708
Lewis 1,000 60.02% 648 38.90% 9 0.54% 9 0.54% 352 21.13% 1,666
Lincoln 1,211 74.98% 386 23.90% 8 0.50% 10 0.62% 825 51.08% 1,615
Madison 6,798 92.88% 483 6.60% 15 0.20% 23 0.31% 6,315 86.28% 7,319
Minidoka 5,938 80.03% 1,398 18.84% 41 0.57% 43 0.60% 4,540 61.19% 7,420
Nez Perce 8,153 56.89% 5,981 41.74% 108 0.88% 88 0.71% 2,172 15.16% 14,330
Oneida 1,528 80.51% 360 18.97% 6 0.32% 4 0.21% 1,168 61.54% 1,898
Owyhee 2,141 77.71% 574 20.83% 22 0.80% 18 0.65% 1,567 56.88% 2,755
Payette 4,605 75.23% 1,410 23.04% 53 0.87% 53 0.87% 3,195 52.20% 6,121
Power 2,298 76.50% 678 22.57% 18 0.60% 10 0.33% 1,620 53.93% 3,004
Shoshone 3,156 50.22% 3,033 48.27% 49 0.78% 46 0.73% 123 1.96% 6,284
Teton 1,242 76.48% 370 22.78% 6 0.37% 6 0.37% 872 53.69% 1,624
Twin Falls 16,974 77.97% 4,567 20.98% 145 0.67% 85 0.39% 12,407 56.99% 21,771
Valley 2,299 69.96% 945 28.76% 27 0.82% 15 0.46% 1,354 41.21% 3,286
Washington 3,015 71.99% 1,119 26.72% 30 0.72% 24 0.57% 1,896 45.27% 4,188
Totals 297,523 72.36% 108,510 26.39% 2,823 0.69% 2,288 0.56% 189,013 45.97% 411,144

See also[]

  • Presidency of Ronald Reagan

References[]

  1. ^ "1984 Presidential General Election Results – Idaho". Dave Leip's Atlas of U.S. Presidential Elections. Retrieved 2013-11-11.
  2. ^ "1984 Presidential General Election Statistics". Dave Leip's Atlas of U.S. Presidential Elections. Retrieved 2013-11-11.
  3. ^ "1984 Presidential Election Statistics". Dave Leip's Atlas of U.S. Presidential Elections. Retrieved 2018-03-05.
  4. ^ Kurt Andersen, "A Wild Ride to the End", Time, May 28, 1984
  5. ^ Trying to Win the Peace, by Even Thomas, Time, July 2, 1984
  6. ^ Mondale's Acceptance Speech, 1984, AllPolitics
  7. ^ Martin, Douglas (2011-03-27). "Geraldine A. Ferraro, First Woman on Major Party Ticket, Dies at 75". The New York Times. pp. A1. Retrieved November 5, 2013.
  8. ^ Raines, Howell (November 7, 1984). "Reagan Wins By a Landslide, Sweeping at Least 48 States; G.O.P. Gains Strength in House". The New York Times. Retrieved November 11, 2013.
  9. ^ a b "U.S. Federal Individual Income Tax Rates History, 1913–2011 (Nominal and Inflation-Adjusted Brackets)". Tax Foundation. September 9, 2011. Archived from the original on January 16, 2013. Retrieved November 10, 2013.
  10. ^ Joseph J. Thorndike (Nov 10, 2005). "Historical Perspective: The Windfall Profit Tax". Retrieved November 11, 2013.
  11. ^ Historical tables, Budget of the United States Government Archived 2012-04-17 at the Wayback Machine, 2013, table 6.1.
  12. ^ Niskanen, William A. (1992). "Reaganomics". In David R. Henderson (ed.). Concise Encyclopedia of Economics (1st ed.). Library of Economics and Liberty. OCLC 317650570, 50016270, 163149563
  13. ^ Jerry Lanson (2008-11-06). "A historic victory. A changed nation. Now, can Obama deliver?". Christian Science Monitor. Retrieved 2013-11-02.
  14. ^ Alexander, Michelle (2010). The New Jim Crow. New York: The New Press. p. 5. ISBN 978-1595581037.
  15. ^ Prendergast, William B. (1999). The Catholic vote in American politics. Washington DC: Georgetown University Press. pp. 186, 191–193. ISBN 0-87840-724-3.
  16. ^ Paulson, Arthur C. (2000). Realignment and Party Revival: Understanding American Electoral Politics at the Turn of the Twenty-first Century. Greenwood Publishing Group. ISBN 978-0-275-96865-6.
  17. ^ Paulson, Arthur C. (2000). Realignment and Party Revival: Understanding American Electoral Politics at the Turn of the Twenty-first Century. Greenwood Publishing Group. ISBN 978-0-275-96865-6.
  18. ^ Cannon, Lou (1978-01-09). "Vice President Embarks on Mission to Mend Western Fences". Washington Post. ISSN 0190-8286. Retrieved 2021-01-17.
  19. ^ a b Our Campaigns; ID US President, November 06, 1984
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