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1984 United States presidential election in Minnesota

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Field	Value
election_name	1984 United States presidential election in Minnesota
country	Minnesota
flag_year	1983
flag_image	File:Flag of Minnesota (1983-2024).svg
type	presidential
ongoing	no
previous_election	1980 United States presidential election in Minnesota
previous_year	1980
next_election	1988 United States presidential election in Minnesota
turnout	70.94%
next_year	1988
election_date	November 6, 1984
image_size	x200px
image2	File:Ronald Reagan 1985 presidential portrait (4x5 cropped).jpg
nominee2	Ronald Reagan
party2	Independent-Republicans of Minnesota
home_state2	California
running_mate2	George H. W. Bush
electoral_vote2	0
popular_vote2	1,032,603
percentage2	49.54%
image1	Walter Mondale 1977 vice presidential portrait (cropped3).jpg
nominee1	Walter Mondale
party1	Minnesota Democratic–Farmer–Labor Party
home_state1	Minnesota
running_mate1	Geraldine Ferraro
electoral_vote1	10
popular_vote1	1,036,364
percentage1	49.72%
map_image
map_size	350px
map_caption
title	President
before_election	Ronald Reagan
before_party	Republican Party of Minnesota
after_election	Ronald Reagan
after_party	Republican Party of Minnesota

Main article: 1984 United States presidential election

Mondale Reagan Other

The 1984 United States presidential election in Minnesota took place on November 6, 1984, as part of the 1984 United States presidential election. Voters chose ten representatives, or electors to the Electoral College, who voted for president and vice president.

Minnesota voted for the DFL candidate, former Vice President Walter Mondale. He narrowly won his home state over incumbent President Ronald Reagan by just 3,761 votes, giving him his only state victory in the election (Mondale also carried the District of Columbia), resulting in the state weighing in at around 18 percentage points more Democratic than the nation at large. Minnesota was the only state not to back Reagan in either of his two presidential campaigns. Although Mondale won only twenty of the state's 87 counties – making Reagan the only presidential nominee to win a majority of counties in every state – his large majorities in the heavily unionized Iron Range of the northeast overbalanced Reagan's majorities in the more Republican west of the state. Had Reagan overcome Mondale's 3,761 vote margin, he would have been the first nominee since 1820 to carry all the states, with Nixon's 1972 49-state victory being less narrow both on account of Massachusetts's 14 electoral votes and the margin of 220,000 votes (nearly 9%).

As Reagan won all 49 other states in 1984, this established Minnesota's status as the state with the longest streak of voting Democratic. As of 2025, it still has not voted for a Republican presidential candidate since Richard Nixon carried it when he was re-elected in 1972, though this remains the closest that a Republican presidential candidate has come to carrying the state since then. However, the District of Columbia has voted Democratic in all presidential elections since 1964, when it was first granted the right to vote in presidential elections. As of 2020, only five of the 20 counties Mondale won in 1984 were won by either Hillary Clinton in 2016 or Joe Biden in 2020. Some examples of counties that have been lost to the Republican Party include those after 1996 (Anoka County), after 2008 (Aitkin County), or after 2012 (Itasca County). Carlton County also abandoned the Democrats after 2020, leaving just four Mondale counties to also vote for Kamala Harris in 2024. Minnesota regenerated as a left-leaning force in the 1990s, late 2000s, and early 2010s, but has become a Democratic-leaning state in the 21st century, ironically with many former rural Mondale counties voting Republican in the 21st century. As Mondale won the state with a plurality, he became the only major party nominee to fail to get a majority of the vote in any state since William Howard Taft in 1912. Lac qui Parle County would not vote Republican again until 2016.

Despite Mondale carrying his home state, Republican Senator Rudy Boschwitz was re-elected the same night. When Reagan was asked in December 1984 what he wanted for Christmas, he joked, "Well, Minnesota would have been nice". This was also the first time in history that a Republican president was elected twice without ever carrying Minnesota, and the first of any party since Woodrow Wilson did so in 1916. This feat has since been repeated twice, in 2004 and 2024.

Results

1984 United States presidential election in Minnesota	Party	Candidate	Votes	Percentage
Democratic-Farmer-Labor	Walter Mondale	1,036,364	49.72%	10
Republican	Ronald Reagan (incumbent)	1,032,603	49.54%	0
Independent Democrat	Lyndon LaRouche	3,865	0.19%	0
Socialist Workers	Melvin Mason	3,180	0.15%	0
Libertarian	David Bergland	2,996	0.14%	0
America First	Bob Richards	2,377	0.11%	0
Citizens	Sonia Johnson	1,219	0.06%	0
Write-ins	Write-ins	723	0.03%	0
Communist	Gus Hall	630	0.03%	0
Workers League	Edward Winn	260	0.01%	0
New Alliance	Dennis Serrette	232	0.01%	0
Invalid or blank votes			—
Totals	2,084,449	100.00%	10
Voter turnout	68%	—

Results by county

County	Walter Mondale
DFL	Ronald Reagan
Republican	Various candidates
Other parties	Margin	Total votes cast	#	%	#	%	#	%	#	%	Totals	1,036,364	49.72%	1,032,603	49.54%	15,482	0.74%	3,761	0.18%	2,084,449
	Aitkin		3,943		53.17%		3,422		46.14%		51		0.69%		521		7.03%		7,416
	Anoka		50,305		51.63%		46,578		47.80%		557		0.57%		3,727		3.83%		97,440
	Becker		5,456		41.65%		7,553		57.65%		92		0.70%		-2,097		-16.00%		13,101
	Beltrami		7,481		49.88%		7,414		49.43%		103		0.69%		67		0.45%		14,998
	Benton		4,922		41.42%		6,830		57.48%		131		1.10%		-1,908		-16.06%		11,883
	Big Stone		1,994		51.83%		1,821		47.34%		32		0.83%		173		4.49%		3,847
	Blue Earth		11,877		45.08%		14,298		54.27%		172		0.65%		-2,421		-9.19%		26,347
	Brown		4,469		34.44%		8,399		64.72%		109		0.84%		-3,930		-30.28%		12,977
	Carlton		9,189		64.70%		4,877		34.34%		137		0.96%		4,312		30.36%		14,203
	Carver		6,725		35.75%		11,963		63.60%		121		0.64%		-5,238		-27.85%		18,809
	Cass		4,773		41.61%		6,619		57.71%		78		0.68%		-1,846		-16.10%		11,470
	Chippewa		3,047		43.01%		3,964		55.95%		74		1.04%		-917		-12.94%		7,085
	Chisago		6,683		51.21%		6,279		48.12%		87		0.67%		404		3.09%		13,049
	Clay		10,294		46.84%		11,565		52.62%		119		0.54%		-1,271		-5.78%		21,978
	Clearwater		1,917		47.63%		2,066		51.33%		42		1.04%		-149		-3.70%		4,025
	Cook		1,129		47.82%		1,219		51.63%		13		0.55%		-90		-3.81%		2,361
	Cottonwood		3,073		41.61%		4,275		57.89%		37		0.50%		-1,202		-16.28%		7,385
	Crow Wing		8,719		43.10%		11,362		56.16%		151		0.75%		-2,643		-13.06%		20,232
	Dakota		49,125		46.83%		55,119		52.54%		667		0.64%		-5,994		-5.71%		104,911
	Dodge		2,786		38.36%		4,428		60.97%		48		0.66%		-1,642		-22.61%		7,262
	Douglas		5,444		37.43%		9,005		61.92%		94		0.65%		-3,561		-24.49%		14,543
	Faribault		3,993		41.01%		5,690		58.44%		53		0.54%		-1,697		-17.43%		9,736
	Fillmore		4,351		40.44%		6,342		58.94%		67		0.62%		-1,991		-18.50%		10,760
	Freeborn		9,338		52.26%		8,413		47.09%		116		0.65%		925		5.17%		17,867
	Goodhue		8,679		43.44%		11,171		55.92%		128		0.64%		-2,492		-12.48%		19,978
	Grant		1,867		46.73%		2,111		52.84%		17		0.43%		-244		-6.11%		3,995
	Hennepin		272,401		51.47%		253,921		47.98%		2,912		0.55%		18,480		3.49%		529,234
	Houston		3,512		37.99%		5,645		61.06%		88		0.95%		-2,133		-23.07%		9,245
	Hubbard		2,806		37.50%		4,621		61.76%		55		0.74%		-1,815		-24.26%		7,482
	Isanti		5,378		48.38%		5,660		50.91%		79		0.71%		-282		-2.53%		11,117
	Itasca		11,455		54.68%		9,306		44.42%		187		0.89%		2,149		10.26%		20,948
	Jackson		3,437		51.89%		3,131		47.27%		55		0.83%		306		4.62%		6,623
	Kanabec		2,660		46.47%		3,027		52.88%		37		0.65%		-367		-6.41%		5,724
	Kandiyohi		8,402		46.41%		9,539		52.69%		163		0.90%		-1,137		-6.28%		18,104
	Kittson		1,610		48.07%		1,716		51.24%		23		0.69%		-106		-3.17%		3,349
	Koochiching		4,238		54.74%		3,466		44.77%		38		0.49%		772		9.97%		7,742
	Lac qui Parle		2,685		48.84%		2,731		49.68%		81		1.47%		-46		-0.84%		5,497
	Lake		4,468		68.43%		2,003		30.68%		58		0.89%		2,465		37.75%		6,529
	Lake of the Woods		824		42.47%		1,094		56.39%		22		1.13%		-270		-13.92%		1,940
	Le Sueur		5,070		45.47%		6,033		54.10%		48		0.43%		-963		-8.63%		11,151
	Lincoln		1,827		48.04%		1,905		50.09%		71		1.87%		-78		-2.05%		3,803
	Lyon		5,389		42.57%		7,170		56.64%		100		0.79%		-1,781		-14.07%		12,659
	Mahnomen		1,241		47.79%		1,328		51.14%		28		1.08%		-87		-3.35%		2,597
	Marshall		2,705		43.58%		3,433		55.31%		69		1.11%		-728		-11.73%		6,207
	Martin		4,673		38.80%		7,308		60.67%		64		0.53%		-2,635		-21.87%		12,045
	McLeod		4,864		35.43%		8,728		63.58%		135		0.98%		-3,864		-28.15%		13,727
	Meeker		4,156		42.76%		5,511		56.70%		53		0.55%		-1,355		-13.94%		9,720
	Mille Lacs		4,011		47.92%		4,307		51.45%		53		0.63%		-296		-3.53%		8,371
	Morrison		6,225		44.85%		7,556		54.44%		99		0.71%		-1,331		-9.59%		13,880
	Mower		12,498		60.53%		8,054		39.01%		95		0.46%		4,444		21.52%		20,647
	Murray		2,741		49.17%		2,780		49.87%		54		0.97%		-39		-0.70%		5,575
	Nicollet		5,789		43.37%		7,472		55.97%		88		0.66%		-1,683		-12.60%		13,349
	Nobles		4,619		48.09%		4,876		50.77%		110		1.15%		-257		-2.68%		9,605
	Norman		2,202		50.31%		2,152		49.17%		23		0.53%		50		1.14%		4,377
	Olmsted		16,335		36.44%		28,129		62.76%		359		0.80%		-11,794		-26.32%		44,823
	Otter Tail		9,714		38.02%		15,664		61.30%		173		0.68%		-5,950		-23.28%		25,551
	Pennington		2,913		44.89%		3,536		54.49%		40		0.62%		-623		-9.60%		6,489
	Pine		5,223		53.41%		4,493		45.95%		63		0.64%		730		7.46%		9,779
	Pipestone		2,391		43.46%		3,043		55.32%		67		1.22%		-652		-11.86%		5,501
	Polk		7,033		44.56%		8,617		54.60%		132		0.84%		-1,584		-10.04%		15,782
	Pope		2,757		47.03%		3,064		52.27%		41		0.70%		-307		-5.24%		5,862
	Ramsey		141,623		59.15%		95,667		39.95%		2,153		0.90%		45,956		19.20%		239,443
	Red Lake		1,294		51.91%		1,184		47.49%		15		0.60%		110		4.42%		2,493
	Redwood		2,957		32.64%		6,020		66.45%		82		0.91%		-3,063		-33.81%		9,059
	Renville		3,972		41.25%		5,571		57.86%		86		0.89%		-1,599		-16.61%		9,629
	Rice		10,880		50.55%		10,456		48.58%		189		0.88%		424		1.97%		21,525
	Rock		2,188		42.11%		2,971		57.18%		37		0.71%		-783		-15.07%		5,196
	Roseau		2,319		39.91%		3,445		59.28%		47		0.81%		-1,126		-19.37%		5,811
	St. Louis		77,683		68.83%		34,162		30.27%		1,013		0.90%		43,521		38.56%		112,858
	Scott		9,452		42.71%		12,573		56.81%		108		0.49%		-3,121		-14.10%		22,133
	Sherburne		6,140		43.98%		7,738		55.43%		82		0.59%		-1,598		-11.45%		13,960
	Sibley		2,761		36.97%		4,638		62.10%		69		0.92%		-1,877		-25.13%		7,468
	Stearns		20,944		40.55%		30,216		58.51%		485		0.94%		-9,272		-17.96%		51,645
	Steele		5,060		36.38%		8,780		63.12%		70		0.50%		-3,720		-26.74%		13,910
	Stevens		2,451		42.66%		3,251		56.58%		44		0.77%		-800		-13.92%		5,746
	Swift		3,531		54.42%		2,893		44.59%		64		0.99%		638		9.83%		6,488
	Todd		4,657		41.19%		6,585		58.25%		63		0.56%		-1,928		-17.06%		11,305
	Traverse		1,325		48.30%		1,399		51.00%		19		0.69%		-74		-2.70%		2,743
	Wabasha		3,872		41.87%		5,299		57.31%		76		0.82%		-1,427		-15.44%		9,247
	Wadena		2,454		36.13%		4,306		63.40%		32		0.47%		-1,852		-27.27%		6,792
	Waseca		3,527		38.80%		5,509		60.60%		55		0.60%		-1,982		-21.80%		9,091
	Washington		28,527		49.23%		29,046		50.13%		369		0.64%		-519		-0.90%		57,942
	Watonwan		2,425		40.57%		3,526		58.98%		27		0.45%		-1,101		-18.41%		5,978
	Wilkin		1,410		37.14%		2,367		62.36%		19		0.50%		-957		-25.22%		3,796
	Winona		9,577		43.99%		11,981		55.03%		212		0.97%		-2,404		-11.04%		21,770
	Wright		12,486		44.45%		15,399		54.82%		205		0.73%		-2,913		-10.37%		28,090
	Yellow Medicine		3,018		43.64%		3,819		55.22%		79		1.14%		-801		-11.58%		6,916

Counties that flipped from Republican to Democratic

Big Stone
Freeborn
Jackson

Counties that flipped from Democratic to Republican

Clearwater
Dakota
Isanti
Kanabec
Mille Lacs
Morrison
Scott
Sherburne
Washington
Wright

References

"Office of the State Of Minnesota Secretary of State".
(December 4, 1984). "Minnesota heads Reagan's wish list". The Tuscaloosa News.
"1984 Presidential Election Results – Minnesota". Dave Leip's U.S. Election Atlas.
[[Minnesota Secretary of State]], "Voter Participation and Vote for President and Vice President, ... November 6, 1984 General Election," The Minnesota Legislative Manual 1985-1986 (St. Paul, 1985)

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