Distribution of votes in the 1908 US presidential election

The 1908 US Presidential election saw the return of Democratic nominee William Jennings Bryan, as he competed against the Republican Party's William Howard Taft. Incumbent President Theodore Roosevelt honored his promise not to seek a third term, and nominated his close friend, Taft, to run as his successor. Although Bryan had already been defeated in 1896 and 1900 he remained extremely popular among the liberal wing of the Democratic Party, and he became the obvious choice, as the party's more conservative candidate in 1904, Alton B. Parker, was defeated convincingly. Eugene V. Debs of the Socialist Party was the third party candidate who made the largest impact.

Results

Although Bryan swept the south, he suffered the worst defeat of his three campaigns. Taft received over one million votes more than his opponent, taking almost 52 percent of the popular vote, compared with Bryan's 43 percent. This meant that Taft carried 29 of 46 states, and won just under two thirds of the electoral votes, to become the 27th president of the US.