1988 United States presidential election in Michigan

1988 United States presidential election in Michigan

← 1984 November 8, 1988 1992 →
All 20 Michigan votes to the Electoral College
Turnout	55.3% [1]
Nominee George H. W. Bush Michael Dukakis Party Republican Democratic Home state Texas Massachusetts Running mate Dan Quayle Lloyd Bentsen Electoral vote 20 0 Popular vote 1,965,486 1,675,783 Percentage 53.57% 45.67%
County Results Bush   40–50%   50–60%   60–70%   70–80% Dukakis   50–60%   60–70%
President before election Ronald Reagan Republican Elected President George H. W. Bush Republican

Elections in Michigan
Federal government U.S. President 1836 1840 1844 1848 1852 1856 1860 1864 1868 1872 1876 1880 1884 1888 1892 1896 1900 1904 1908 1912 1916 1920 1924 1928 1932 1936 1940 1944 1948 1952 1956 1960 1964 1968 1972 1976 1980 1984 1988 1992 1996 2000 2004 Dem 2008 Dem GOP 2012 Dem GOP 2016 Dem 2020 Dem GOP 2024 Dem GOP U.S. Senate 1835 1840 (sp) 1841 1847 1849 (sp) 1853 1857 1858 1862 (sp) 1863 1865 1869 1871 1874 1877 1879 (sp) 1881 1881 (sp) 1887 1889 1893 1895 1895 (sp) 1899 1901 1903 (sp) 1905 1907 1907 (sp) 1911 1913 1916 1918 1922 1924 1924 (sp) 1928 1928 (sp) 1930 1934 1936 1940 1942 1946 1948 1952 1952 (sp) 1954 1958 1960 1964 1966 1970 1972 1976 1978 1982 1984 1988 1990 1994 1996 2000 2002 2006 2008 2012 2014 2018 2020 2024 2026 U.S. House 1835 1837 1838 1840 1843 1844 1846 1847 1st sp 1848 1850 1852 1854 1856 1858 1860 1862 1864 1866 1868 1870 1871 4th sp 1872 1873 5th sp 1874 1876 1878 1880 1881 7th sp 1882 1884 1886 1888 11th sp 1890 1891 5th sp 1892 1893 1st sp 1894 1895 3rd sp 1896 1898 1900 1901 10th sp 1902 1904 1906 1907 5th sp 1908 1910 1912 1914 1916 1917 2nd sp 1918 1920 13th sp 1921 3rd sp 1922 1923 3rd sp 1924 1925 3rd sp 1926 1928 1930 1931 8th sp 1932 1934 1935 3rd sp 1936 1938 1940 5th sp 1942 1944 1946 1947 11th sp 1948 1950 1952 1954 1955 15th sp 1956 1958 1960 1961 1st sp 1962 14th sp 1964 1968 1970 1972 1974 5th sp 8th sp 1976 1978 1980 13th sp 1981 4th sp 1982 1984 1986 1988 1990 1992 1993 3rd sp 1994 1996 1998 2000 2002 2004 2006 2008 2010 2012 11th 11th sp 2014 2016 2018 13th sp 2020 2022 2024
State government State elections 2010 2014 2016 2018 2020 2021 2022 2024 Gubernatorial elections 1835 1837 1839 1841 1843 1845 1847 1849 1851 1852 1854 1856 1858 1860 1862 1864 1866 1868 1870 1872 1874 1876 1878 1880 1882 1884 1886 1888 1890 1892 1894 1896 1898 1900 1902 1904 1906 1908 1910 1912 1914 1916 1918 1920 1922 1924 1926 1928 1930 1932 1934 1936 1938 1940 1942 1944 1946 1948 1950 1952 1954 1956 1958 1960 1962 1964 1966 1970 1974 1978 1982 1986 1990 1994 1998 2002 2006 2010 2014 2018 2022 Attorney General elections 1974 1978 1982 1986 1990 1994 1998 2002 2006 2010 2014 2018 2022 Secretary of State elections 1978 1982 1986 1990 1994 1998 2002 2006 2010 2014 2018 2022 Auditor General elections 1962 State Senate elections 2002 2006 2010 2014 2016 4th sp 2018 2021 (sp) 2022 State House elections 2002 2004 2006 2008 2010 2012 2014 2016 2018 2020 2022 2024
Ballot proposals 1996 Proposal E 2004 Proposal 04-2 2006 Proposal 06-2 2008 Proposal 1 2012 Proposal 1 Proposal 2 Proposal 3 Proposal 4 Proposal 5 Proposal 6 2015 Proposal 1 2018 Proposal 1 Proposal 2 Proposal 3 2020 Proposal 1 Proposal 2 2022 Proposal 1 Proposal 2 Proposal 3
Detroit Mayoral elections 1969 1973 1997 2001 2005 2009 (sp) 2009 2013 2017 2021 2025
Flint Mayoral elections 2015 2017 (recall) 2019 2022
Grand Rapids Mayoral elections 2015 2019
Lansing Mayoral elections 2017 2021
v t e

The 1988 United States presidential election in Michigan took place on November 8, 1988. All 50 states and the District of Columbia, were part of the 1988 United States presidential election. Voters chose 20 electors to the Electoral College, which selected the president and vice president.

Michigan was won by incumbent United States Vice President George H. W. Bush of Texas, who was running against Massachusetts Governor Michael Dukakis. Bush ran with Indiana Senator Dan Quayle as Vice President, and Dukakis ran with Texas Senator Lloyd Bentsen.

Michigan weighed in for this election as 0.1% more Republican than the national average. This election marks the last time a Republican carried Michigan with a majority of the vote, and the last time it was carried by a Republican at all until Donald Trump's plurality win in 2016.

Typical for elections in the 1980s, the Upper Peninsula of Michigan turned out mainly Democratic, and the Lower Peninsula turned out mainly Republican, with the notable exception of Detroit's highly populated Wayne County, which voted mainly Democratic. As of the 2020 presidential election^[update], this is the last election in which Ingham County, Kalamazoo County, and Muskegon County voted for a Republican presidential candidate.^[2] As of the 2020 U.S. presidential election, this is also the last time Michigan voted to the right of neighboring Wisconsin, as well as the last time the Lower Peninsula voted for the Republican presidential candidate.

The presidential election of 1988 was a very partisan election for Michigan, with more than 99% of the electorate voting for either the Democratic or Republican parties.^[3] Bush won the election in Michigan with a solid 7.90% point margin. The election of 1988 was, however, the final election where Michigan was won by the Republican Party until 2016, having consistently voted Democratic since 1992.

As of the 2020 U.S. presidential election, this is also the last time Michigan was the most Republican-leaning of the three Rust Belt swing states (also consisting of Wisconsin and Pennsylvania).