Percent of Population Voting in 1936 Presidential Election

From the December 1937 issue of The Southern Planter

Included an article asking the Commonwealth of Virginia to do away with its poll tax, was a list of the percentage of population voting in the previous presidential election (1936). It ranged from a high of 88 percent voting in West Virginia to a low of 13 percent voting in South Carolina. South Carolina did have a poll tax, but that obviously wasn’t the only issue. Louisiana had no poll tax and yet only 29 percent of the population voted. North Carolina had no poll tax; 50 percent voted.

Percentage of population over 21 years of age who voted in the 1936 presidential election:

88 percent--West Virginia

81 percent—Illinois and Utah

80 percent—Delaware

78 percent—New Mexico and Indiana

77 percent—Kansas, Colorado, South Dakota

76 percent—Idaho, Wyoming

75 percent—Rhode Island

74 percent—North Dakota, Nebraska, Missouri, Iowa, Minnesota, Montana

73 percent—Ohio

72 percent—Wisconsin

70 percent—New Jersey and Pennsylvania

69 percent—New Hampshire

67 percent—New York, Massachusetts

66 percent—Connecticut, Nevada

65 percent—Washington, California

64 percent—Oregon

63 percent—Michigan

62 percent—Maryland

61 percent—Maine

60 percent—Kentucky

58 percent—Vermont

55 percent--Arizona, Oklahoma

50 percent—North Carolina

35 percent—Florida

29 percent—Louisiana

STATES HAVING VOTER POLL TAX

31 percent—Tennessee

25 percent—Texas

24 percent—Virginia

19 percent—Alabama, Georgia

17 percent—Arkansas

16 percent—Mississippi

13 percent—South Carolina