The 1940 United States presidential election in Alabama took place on November 5, 1940, as part of the 1940 United States presidential election. Alabama voters chose 11 representatives, or electors, to the Electoral College, who voted for president and vice president. In Alabama, voters voted for electors individually instead of as a slate, as in the other states.

Since the 1890s, Alabama had been effectively a one-party state ruled by the Democratic Party. Disenfranchisement of almost all African-Americans and a large proportion of Poor Whites via poll taxes, literacy tests and informal harassment had essentially eliminated opposition parties outside Unionist Winston County and a few nearby northern hill counties that had been Populist strongholds. The only competitive statewide elections became Democratic Party primaries that were limited by law to white voters. Unlike most other Confederate states, however, soon after black disenfranchisement Alabama's remaining white Republicans made rapid efforts to expel blacks from the state Republican Party. Indeed, under Oscar D. Street, who ironically was appointed state party boss as part of the pro-Taft "black and tan" faction in 1912, the state GOP would permanently turn "lily-white", with the last black delegates from the state at any Republican National Convention serving in 1920.

The 1920 election, aided by isolationism in Appalachia and the whitening of the state GOP,Heersink and Jenkins, Republican Party Politics and the American South, p. 19 saw the Republicans even exceed forty percent in the House of Representatives races for the 4th, 7th and 10th congressional districts. However, funding issues meant the Republicans would not emulate this achievement for several decades subsequently.See Nevertheless, a bitter "civil war" over how best to maintain white supremacy after the Democrats nominated urban, anti-Prohibition Catholic Al Smith saw so many Democrats defect to dry, Protestant Republican Herbert Hoover that he came within seven thousand votes of winning the state.

However, the economic catastrophe of the Great Depression meant that this trend towards the GOP would be short-lived. The Depression had extremely severe effects in the South, which had the highest unemployment rate in the nation, and many Southerners blamed this on the North and on Wall Street. Consequently, the South gave Democratic nominee Franklin D. Roosevelt hefty support in 1932 – he became the only presidential candidate to sweep all of Alabama's counties — and in 1936.

For 1940, opposition amongst Alabama's ruling elite to the New Deal meant that planter and business interests led by former Congressman George Huddleston attempted to organize the "independent elector" movements that would increase after Harry S. Truman's civil rights proposals. Other "Big Mules" already supported Republican nominees, corporate lawyer Wendell Willkie and Senate Minority Leader Charles L. McNary. However, the hatred of the Republican label, in spite of five election cycles as a party exclusive of blacks,Heersink; Jenkins. Republican Party Politics and the American South, pp. 48–50 meant that the state Democratic Party was far too strong to allow such a revolt.Feldman. The Irony of the Solid South, pp. 151–152

Campaign No polls were carried out in the state until a Gallup poll in the middle of September, which had Roosevelt winning 85 percent of the two-party vote to. Another poll from late October said that Willkie could gain around one hundred thousand votes or one-third of the expected statewide total.

Alabama was won in a landslide by Roosevelt – now running with Secretary of Agriculture Henry A. Wallace of Iowa — with 85.22 percent of the popular vote against Willkie's 14.34 percent for a Democratic margin of 70.88 percent. Third-party candidates only managed to pick up 0.44 percent of the vote. Roosevelt was undoubtedly helped, especially in Appalachian regions of the state, by support for aid to Britain in World War II, which he had emphasised in his campaign.Phillips. The Emerging Republican Majority, p. 93 In many Appalachian rural counties, Roosevelt indeed improved upon his 1932 and 1936 performances for this reason.

Results + General election resultsParty Pledged to Elector Votes Democratic Party Franklin D. Roosevelt Charles W. Edwards250,726 Democratic Party Franklin D. Roosevelt Ben Bloodworth250,723 Democratic Party Franklin D. Roosevelt Otis R. Burton250,714 Democratic Party Franklin D. Roosevelt W. F. Covington Jr.250,710 Democratic Party Franklin D. Roosevelt Tully A. Goodwin250,709 Democratic Party Franklin D. Roosevelt Roy Mayhall250,706 Democratic Party Franklin D. Roosevelt Norvelle R. Leigh, III250,701 Democratic Party Franklin D. Roosevelt Walter C. Lusk250,701 Democratic Party Franklin D. Roosevelt W. E. James250,692 Democratic Party Franklin D. Roosevelt Bart J. Cowart250,687 Democratic Party Franklin D. Roosevelt Walter F. Miller250,682 Republican Party Wendell Willkie W. B. R. Pennington42,184 Republican Party Wendell Willkie R. M. Wilbanks42,180 Republican Party Wendell Willkie R. DuPont Thompson42,179 Republican Party Wendell Willkie James S. Coleman Sr.42,174 Republican Party Wendell Willkie J. E. Paterson42,174 Republican Party Wendell Willkie William H. Armbrecht42,172 Republican Party Wendell Willkie C. L. Burton42,170 Republican Party Wendell Willkie Morris B. Malone42,168 Republican Party Wendell Willkie David S. Anderson42,167 Republican Party Wendell Willkie T. M. Jones Sr.42,161 Republican Party Wendell Willkie G. C. Youngerman42,084 Prohibition Party Roger Babson W. C. McMachan700 Prohibition Party Roger Babson J. A. Fields699 Prohibition Party Roger Babson W. A. Wheeler699 Prohibition Party Roger Babson Frank Barnard698 Prohibition Party Roger Babson L. E. Barton698 Prohibition Party Roger Babson Charles Lehman696 Prohibition Party Roger Babson J. B. Lockhart696 Prohibition Party Roger Babson John C. Orr696 Prohibition Party Roger Babson Joseph K. Suggs695 Prohibition Party Roger Babson Leander M. Coop693 Prohibition Party Roger Babson George W. Crosby693 Communist Party USA Earl Browder John W. Campbell509 Communist Party USA Earl Browder Bob F. Hall345 Communist Party USA Earl Browder Reany Smith344 Communist Party USA Earl Browder A. M. Forsman343 Communist Party USA Earl Browder Anton Valla Jr.343 Communist Party USA Earl Browder D. W. Gilbert342 Communist Party USA Earl Browder Anna Kral341 Communist Party USA Earl Browder Theron Ward341 Communist Party USA Earl Browder Joseph Machulka339 Communist Party USA Earl Browder Frank Maildorf337 Communist Party USA Earl Browder Joe Stuchly337 Socialist Party of America Norman Thomas D. R. Calloway100 Socialist Party of America Norman Thomas John W. Estes Jr.96 Socialist Party of America Norman Thomas Joseph Ciganek92 Socialist Party of America Norman Thomas W. H. Chichester91Total votes 294,219

Results by county