United States presidential election in Rhode Island, 1988

Main article: United States presidential election, 1988

United States presidential election in Rhode Island, 1988

November 8, 1988

200x200px Nominee Michael Dukakis George H.W. Bush Party Democratic Republican Home state Massachusetts Texas Running mate Lloyd Bentsen Dan Quayle Electoral vote 4 0 Popular vote 225,123 177,761 Percentage 55.64% 43.93%

180px County Results   Dukakis—50-60%

President before election Ronald Reagan Republican Elected President George H. W. Bush Republican

The 1988 United States presidential election in Rhode Island took place on November 8, 1988 as part of the 1988 United States presidential election, which was held throughout all 50 states and D.C. Voters chose 4 representatives, or electors to the Electoral College, who voted for President and Vice President.

Rhode Island voted for the Democratic nominee, Massachusetts Governor Michael Dukakis, over Republican Vice President George H. W. Bush. Dukakis took 55.64% of the vote to Bush's 43.93%, a margin of 11.71%. This made it one of 10 states (plus the District of Columbia) to vote for Dukakis, while Bush won a convincing electoral victory nationwide.

A liberal New England state, Rhode Island gave Dukakis his strongest state victory in the nation, with only D.C. voting more Democratic. It was one of just two states (along with Iowa) to vote Democratic by a double-digit margin, and one of only two states (Along with Hawaii) to have all of its counties go to Dukakis. Despite this, it was still a relatively strong Republican performance compared to how the state has trended since. Not only has it voted Democratic in every presidential election that followed, but no Republican since has even broken 40% in Rhode Island.

Results

United States presidential election in Rhode Island, 1988
Party		Candidate	Votes	Percentage	Electoral votes
	Democratic	Michael Dukakis	225,123	55.64%	4
	Republican	George H. W. Bush	177,761	43.93%	0
	Libertarian	Ron Paul	825	0.20%	0
	New Alliance	Lenora Fulani	280	0.07%	0
	Peace and Freedom	Herbert G. Lewin	195	0.05%	0
	America First	David Duke	159	0.04%	0
	Socialist Workers	James Warren	130	0.03%	0
	Socialist	Willa Kenoyer	96	0.02%	0
	Write-ins	Write-ins	51	0.01%	0
Totals			404,620	100.00%	4
Voter Turnout (Voting age/Registered)					53%/74%