The 1948 United States presidential election in Arkansas took place on November 2, 1948, as part of the 1948 United States presidential election. State voters chose nine representatives, or electors, to the Electoral College, who voted for president and vice president. This would be the last presidential election where Arkansas had nine electoral votes: the Great Migration would see the state lose three congressional districts in the next decade-and-a-half.

Except for the Unionist Ozark counties of Newton and Searcy where Republicans controlled local government, Arkansas since the end of Reconstruction had been a classic one-party Democratic "Solid South" state.See Disfranchisement of effectively all black people and most poor whites had meant that outside those two aberrant counties, the Republican Party was completely moribund and Democratic primaries were the only competitive elections.

However, ever since seeing the potential effect on the United States' image abroad (and ability to win the Cold War against the radically egalitarian rhetoric of Communism) of the beating and blinding of Isaac Woodard three hours after being discharged from the army, President Truman was attempting to launch a Civil Rights bill, involving desegregation of the military. This produced severe opposition from Southern Democrats, who aimed to have South Carolina Governor James Strom Thurmond listed as Democratic presidential nominee and Mississippi Governor Fielding Wright as vice-presidential nominee.

Unlike Oklahoma, Tennessee, North Carolina or Virginia, Arkansas did not have a major threat from the Republican Party to block local Democratic support for Thurmond, but it had only half the proportion of blacks found in Mississippi or South Carolina.Key. Southern Politics, p. 254 At the time when it became clear that a Southern fracture from the national Democratic Party was on the agenda, Arkansas was deeply divided between a Dixiecrat faction headed by outgoing Governor Ben T. Laney and a loyalist faction led by Sidney S. McMath, who went on to win the 1948 Arkansas gubernatorial election.

McMath was to win the Democratic gubernatorial primary that was in this one-party state tantamount to election, and despite the efforts of Laney and state party chairman Arthur Adams, it was clear from the beginning of the campaign that they held little sway over the Democratic rank and file who were loyal to Truman. In May 1948 Governor Laney became chairman of the "States' Rights Democrats"; however on July 12 the possibility of Laney himself becoming the nominee ended when he refused to support anyone. However, as late as the September 22 Democratic Convention the Dixiecrats had hopes of pledging Arkansas' Democratic presidential electors to Thurmond and Wright; however McMath and Congressman Charles Fuller were able to persuade the electors to remain loyal to President Truman.McMath. Promises Kept, p. 203

With the state's Democratic electors pledged to Truman, the incumbent President and running mate Kentucky Senator Alben W. Barkley easily carried Arkansas with 61.72 percent of the popular vote, against New York Governor Thomas E. Dewey and California Governor Earl Warren's 21.02 percent of the popular vote. Vis-à-vis the 1944 election, Truman picked up Benton County and Searcy County, the latter of which had previously only voted Democratic once since the Civil War.

Thurmond, running as a third-party candidate, was able to capture 16.52 percent of Arkansas' vote. The Dixiecrats ran strongest in the Delta region of the state where Truman's Civil Rights and "Fair Deal" policies were most feared by the powerful Black Belt planters;Key. Southern Politics, p. 343 Thurmond carried three counties with entirely nonvoting black majorities and was second in twenty-eight others. However, in the hilly northwestern half of the state, Thurmond failed to crack 5 percent of the vote in eighteen counties. , this is the last election in which Benton County and Sebastian County voted for a Democratic presidential candidate. Arkansas was also the only state in the entire country where Norman Thomas beat Henry Wallace.

Campaign The Republican Party of Arkansas voted to send an uncommitted fourteen member delegation to the Republican National Convention.

Thurmond won 17% of the white vote.

Results

Results by county County Harry S. TrumanDemocratic Thomas E. DeweyRepublican Strom ThurmondDixiecrat Norman ThomasSocialist Henry A. WallaceProgressive Margin Total votescast # % # % # % # % # % # % Arkansas 1,781 53.07% 737 21.96% 806 24.02% 23 0.69% 9 0.27% 975 29.05% 3,356 Ashley 1,844 76.58% 197 8.18% 342 14.20% 24 1.00% 1 0.04% 1,502 62.38% 2,408 Baxter 1,098 62.39% 553 31.42% 54 3.07% 45 2.56% 10 0.57% 545 30.97% 1,760 Benton 3,281 50.38% 2,911 44.70% 274 4.21% 13 0.20% 34 0.52% 370 5.68% 6,513 Boone 3,190 63.86% 1,499 30.01% 274 5.49% 11 0.22% 21 0.42% 1,691 33.85% 4,995 Bradley 1,426 65.20% 213 9.74% 532 24.33% 7 0.32% 9 0.41% 894 40.87% 2,187 Calhoun 768 83.66% 45 4.90% 104 11.33% 0 0.00% 1 0.11% 664 72.33% 918 Carroll 2,032 55.10% 1,525 41.35% 98 2.66% 15 0.41% 18 0.49% 507 13.75% 3,688 Chicot 952 54.03% 203 11.52% 598 33.94% 4 0.23% 5 0.28% 354 20.09% 1,762 Clark 1,750 69.75% 383 15.27% 363 14.47% 9 0.36% 4 0.16% 1,367 54.48% 2,509 Clay 2,069 66.94% 878 28.41% 128 4.14% 14 0.45% 2 0.06% 1,191 38.53% 3,091 Cleburne 1,061 73.32% 312 21.56% 64 4.42% 8 0.55% 2 0.14% 749 51.76% 1,447 Cleveland 679 67.50% 79 7.85% 245 24.35% 3 0.30% 0 0.00% 434 43.15% 1,006 Columbia 1,788 59.98% 217 7.28% 962 32.27% 12 0.40% 2 0.07% 826 27.71% 2,981 Conway 1,771 72.17% 425 17.32% 248 10.11% 5 0.20% 5 0.20% 1,346 54.85% 2,454 Craighead 3,238 63.37% 759 14.85% 1,054 20.63% 42 0.82% 17 0.33% 2,184 42.74% 5,110 Crawford 1,730 58.60% 1,002 33.94% 190 6.44% 18 0.61% 12 0.41% 728 24.66% 2,952 Crittenden 594 24.83% 137 5.73% 1,657 69.27% 2 0.08% 2 0.08% -1,063 -44.44% 2,392 Cross 1,100 48.57% 213 9.40% 949 41.90% 2 0.09% 1 0.04% 151 6.67% 2,265 Dallas 1,174 68.98% 152 8.93% 370 21.74% 4 0.24% 2 0.12% 804 47.24% 1,702 Desha 2,122 69.96% 233 7.68% 670 22.09% 4 0.13% 4 0.13% 1,452 47.87% 3,033 Drew 1,204 59.40% 182 8.98% 630 31.08% 5 0.25% 6 0.30% 574 28.32% 2,027 Faulkner 2,653 73.76% 626 17.40% 304 8.45% 10 0.28% 4 0.11% 2,027 56.36% 3,597 Franklin 1,591 76.05% 391 18.69% 95 4.54% 6 0.29% 9 0.43% 1,200 57.36% 2,092 Fulton 850 69.27% 339 27.63% 32 2.61% 2 0.16% 4 0.33% 511 41.64% 1,227 Garland 3,764 52.61% 2,286 31.95% 994 13.89% 48 0.67% 62 0.87% 1,478 20.66% 7,154 Grant 883 71.50% 121 9.80% 207 16.76% 19 1.54% 5 0.40% 676 54.74% 1,235 Greene 2,657 78.38% 502 14.81% 188 5.55% 25 0.74% 18 0.53% 2,155 63.57% 3,390 Hempstead 1,683 54.84% 386 12.58% 990 32.26% 6 0.20% 4 0.13% 693 22.58% 3,069 Hot Spring 1,932 69.90% 555 20.08% 261 9.44% 12 0.43% 4 0.14% 1,377 49.82% 2,764 Howard 1,250 75.67% 199 12.05% 190 11.50% 13 0.79% 0 0.00% 1,051 63.62% 1,652 Independence 2,340 66.08% 855 24.15% 330 9.32% 4 0.11% 12 0.34% 1,485 41.93% 3,541 Izard 1,283 81.93% 240 15.33% 36 2.30% 4 0.26% 3 0.19% 1,043 66.60% 1,566 Jackson 2,696 82.45% 338 10.34% 226 6.91% 8 0.24% 2 0.06% 2,358 72.11% 3,270 Jefferson 5,086 61.92% 1,176 14.32% 1,879 22.88% 49 0.60% 24 0.29% 3,207 39.04% 8,214 Johnson 1,565 69.59% 523 23.25% 138 6.14% 11 0.49% 12 0.53% 1,042 46.34% 2,249 Lafayette 700 49.16% 113 7.94% 578 40.59% 31 2.18% 2 0.14% 122 8.57% 1,424 Lawrence 2,001 74.89% 497 18.60% 151 5.65% 11 0.41% 12 0.45% 1,504 56.29% 2,672 Lee 528 35.41% 95 6.37% 866 58.08% 1 0.07% 1 0.07% -338 -22.67% 1,491 Lincoln 1,108 65.91% 378 22.49% 188 11.18% 5 0.30% 2 0.12% 730 43.42% 1,681 Little River 900 59.06% 169 11.09% 447 29.33% 4 0.26% 4 0.26% 453 29.73% 1,524 Logan 2,130 66.73% 902 28.26% 143 4.48% 9 0.28% 8 0.25% 1,228 38.47% 3,192 Lonoke 2,065 69.04% 383 12.81% 535 17.89% 3 0.10% 5 0.17% 1,530 51.15% 2,991 Madison 2,041 47.50% 2,201 51.22% 39 0.91% 10 0.23% 6 0.14% -160 -3.72% 4,297 Marion 1,133 72.58% 381 24.41% 31 1.99% 8 0.51% 8 0.51% 752 48.17% 1,561 Miller 2,850 62.24% 488 10.66% 1,223 26.71% 9 0.20% 9 0.20% 1,627 35.53% 4,579 Mississippi 3,763 59.40% 771 12.17% 1,769 27.92% 27 0.43% 5 0.08% 1,994 31.48% 6,335 Monroe 1,431 60.89% 299 12.72% 614 26.13% 1 0.04% 5 0.21% 817 34.76% 2,350 Montgomery 935 75.22% 236 18.99% 60 4.83% 5 0.40% 7 0.56% 699 56.23% 1,243 Nevada 1,140 64.33% 202 11.40% 418 23.59% 10 0.56% 2 0.11% 722 40.74% 1,772 Newton 848 48.51% 879 50.29% 13 0.74% 4 0.23% 4 0.23% -31 -1.78% 1,748 Ouachita 3,315 68.80% 476 9.88% 1,023 21.23% 0 0.00% 4 0.08% 2,292 47.57% 4,818 Perry 731 67.00% 201 18.42% 156 14.30% 0 0.00% 3 0.27% 530 48.58% 1,091 Phillips 1,018 32.85% 351 11.33% 1,722 55.57% 4 0.13% 4 0.13% -704 -22.72% 3,099 Pike 997 73.80% 256 18.95% 89 6.59% 8 0.59% 1 0.07% 741 54.85% 1,351 Poinsett 2,415 65.24% 435 11.75% 830 22.42% 13 0.35% 9 0.24% 1,585 42.82% 3,702 Polk 1,417 66.21% 554 25.89% 127 5.93% 28 1.31% 14 0.65% 863 40.32% 2,140 Pope 2,525 67.95% 764 20.56% 417 11.22% 5 0.13% 5 0.13% 1,761 47.39% 3,716 Prairie 1,020 60.79% 260 15.49% 379 22.59% 18 1.07% 1 0.06% 641 38.20% 1,678 Pulaski 13,120 53.25% 5,910 23.99% 5,443 22.09% 51 0.21% 115 0.47% 7,210 29.26% 24,639 Randolph 2,139 81.24% 377 14.32% 109 4.14% 4 0.15% 4 0.15% 1,762 66.92% 2,633 St. Francis 1,011 46.91% 178 8.26% 957 44.41% 4 0.19% 5 0.23% 54 2.50% 2,155 Saline 2,070 72.18% 390 13.60% 341 11.89% 49 1.71% 18 0.63% 1,680 58.58% 2,868 Scott 1,093 77.63% 260 18.47% 37 2.63% 14 0.99% 4 0.28% 833 59.16% 1,408 Searcy 1,205 51.81% 1,064 45.74% 44 1.89% 9 0.39% 4 0.17% 141 6.07% 2,326 Sebastian 5,075 57.36% 2,928 33.09% 777 8.78% 41 0.46% 27 0.31% 2,147 24.27% 8,848 Sevier 1,314 71.53% 267 14.53% 231 12.57% 21 1.14% 4 0.22% 1,047 57.00% 1,837 Sharp 1,078 74.19% 295 20.30% 71 4.89% 4 0.28% 5 0.34% 783 53.89% 1,453 Stone 1,186 61.80% 644 33.56% 76 3.96% 4 0.21% 9 0.47% 542 28.24% 1,919 Union 5,588 67.01% 1,039 12.46% 1,691 20.28% 11 0.13% 10 0.12% 3,897 46.73% 8,339 Van Buren 1,324 63.96% 617 29.81% 119 5.75% 4 0.19% 6 0.29% 707 34.15% 2,070 Washington 3,493 49.38% 2,859 40.42% 581 8.21% 85 1.20% 56 0.79% 634 8.96% 7,074 White 3,193 69.04% 833 18.01% 563 12.17% 20 0.43% 16 0.35% 2,360 51.03% 4,625 Woodruff 1,008 55.11% 207 11.32% 593 32.42% 16 0.87% 5 0.27% 415 22.69% 1,829 Yell 1,866 77.08% 408 16.85% 135 5.58% 0 0.00% 12 0.50% 1,458 60.23% 2,421Totals149,65961.72%50,95921.02%40,06816.52%1,0370.43%7510.31%98,70040.70%242,475

Counties that flipped from Republican to Democratic Benton Searcy

Counties that flipped from Democratic to Dixiecrat Crittenden Lee Phillips

See also United States presidential elections in Arkansas

Notes

References

Works cited