Arkansas — 1988 presidential election
Recent presidential results
Akashicstate1988 presidential electionArkansas · PresidentBushR+14.2
How it voted
Share of the 1988 vote
| George H. W. Bush ✓Republican | 56.4% | 466,578 |
|---|---|---|
| Michael DukakisDemocratic | 42.2% | 349,237 |
| OtherAll other candidates | 1.4% | 11,923 |
1988presidential margin
D+60R+60
75 counties, each filled by 1988 D-vs-R margin. Hover any county for its result.
Arkansas cast 6 electoral votes this cycle.
County-level results (75 counties) — table
| County | Winner | Margin |
|---|---|---|
| Arkansas County, AR | Republican | R+12.9 |
| Ashley County, AR | Democratic | D+4.1 |
| Baxter County, AR | Republican | R+28.0 |
| Benton County, AR | Republican | R+43.7 |
| Boone County, AR | Republican | R+30.2 |
| Bradley County, AR | Democratic | D+1.8 |
| Calhoun County, AR | Republican | R+12.5 |
| Carroll County, AR | Republican | R+26.5 |
| Chicot County, AR | Democratic | D+12.1 |
| Clark County, AR | Democratic | D+15.8 |
| Clay County, AR | Democratic | D+10.8 |
| Cleburne County, AR | Republican | R+18.2 |
| Cleveland County, AR | Republican | R+2.0 |
| Columbia County, AR | Republican | R+21.5 |
| Conway County, AR | Democratic | D+0.8 |
| Craighead County, AR | Republican | R+13.0 |
| Crawford County, AR | Republican | R+42.9 |
| Crittenden County, AR | Republican | R+5.1 |
| Cross County, AR | Republican | R+3.2 |
| Dallas County, AR | Democratic | D+1.1 |
| Desha County, AR | Democratic | D+9.7 |
| Drew County, AR | Republican | R+7.4 |
| Faulkner County, AR | Republican | R+18.5 |
| Franklin County, AR | Republican | R+18.6 |
| Fulton County, AR | Democratic | D+2.5 |
| Garland County, AR | Republican | R+24.9 |
| Grant County, AR | Republican | R+11.7 |
| Greene County, AR | Republican | R+0.9 |
| Hempstead County, AR | Republican | R+1.2 |
| Hot Spring County, AR | Democratic | D+9.7 |
| Howard County, AR | Republican | R+16.0 |
| Independence County, AR | Republican | R+18.9 |
| Izard County, AR | Republican | R+3.1 |
| Jackson County, AR | Democratic | D+15.8 |
| Jefferson County, AR | Democratic | D+13.9 |
| Johnson County, AR | Republican | R+17.7 |
| Lafayette County, AR | Democratic | D+1.4 |
| Lawrence County, AR | Republican | R+0.4 |
| Lee County, AR | Democratic | D+21.1 |
| Lincoln County, AR | Democratic | D+17.1 |
| Little River County, AR | Democratic | D+7.7 |
| Logan County, AR | Republican | R+27.1 |
| Lonoke County, AR | Republican | R+20.1 |
| Madison County, AR | Republican | R+18.4 |
| Marion County, AR | Republican | R+18.5 |
| Miller County, AR | Republican | R+13.2 |
| Mississippi County, AR | Republican | R+7.3 |
| Monroe County, AR | Democratic | D+4.8 |
| Montgomery County, AR | Republican | R+12.5 |
| Nevada County, AR | Democratic | D+0.5 |
| Newton County, AR | Republican | R+25.1 |
| Ouachita County, AR | Republican | R+8.9 |
| Perry County, AR | Republican | R+5.0 |
| Phillips County, AR | Democratic | D+17.1 |
| Pike County, AR | Republican | R+11.2 |
| Poinsett County, AR | Democratic | D+3.0 |
| Polk County, AR | Republican | R+25.9 |
| Pope County, AR | Republican | R+34.0 |
| Prairie County, AR | Republican | R+7.1 |
| Pulaski County, AR | Republican | R+11.5 |
| Randolph County, AR | Democratic | D+4.1 |
| Saline County, AR | Republican | R+18.7 |
| Scott County, AR | Republican | R+18.8 |
| Searcy County, AR | Republican | R+33.9 |
| Sebastian County, AR | Republican | R+42.8 |
| Sevier County, AR | Republican | R+5.0 |
| Sharp County, AR | Republican | R+10.1 |
| St. Francis County, AR | Democratic | D+4.0 |
| Stone County, AR | Republican | R+11.6 |
| Union County, AR | Republican | R+26.9 |
| Van Buren County, AR | Republican | R+15.4 |
| Washington County, AR | Republican | R+30.1 |
| White County, AR | Republican | R+22.7 |
| Woodruff County, AR | Democratic | D+27.3 |
| Yell County, AR | Republican | R+12.2 |
Arkansas results by county
75 counties. Third-party and independent votes are reported by the county source as one combined figure; every named candidate is listed in the complete result below.
| Led by | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Arkansas County | Bush, George H.W.+932 | 4,00755.6% | 3,07542.7% | 1231.7% | 7,205 |
| Ashley County | Dukakis, Michael+355 | 4,11147.5% | 4,46651.6% | 820.9% | 8,659 |
| Baxter County | Bush, George H.W.+3,806 | 8,61463.4% | 4,80835.4% | 1751.3% | 13,597 |
| Benton County | Bush, George H.W.+14,896 | 24,29571.2% | 9,39927.6% | 4161.2% | 34,110 |
| Boone County | Bush, George H.W.+3,569 | 7,56764.0% | 3,99833.8% | 2512.1% | 11,816 |
| Bradley County | Dukakis, Michael+78 | 2,08948.9% | 2,16750.8% | 130.3% | 4,269 |
| Calhoun County | Bush, George H.W.+292 | 1,31656.1% | 1,02443.7% | 40.2% | 2,344 |
| Carroll County | Bush, George H.W.+1,921 | 4,55362.8% | 2,63236.3% | 680.9% | 7,253 |
| Chicot County | Dukakis, Michael+525 | 1,90143.7% | 2,42655.8% | 190.4% | 4,346 |
| Clark County | Dukakis, Michael+1,286 | 3,38941.7% | 4,67557.5% | 660.8% | 8,130 |
| Clay County | Dukakis, Michael+676 | 2,76644.3% | 3,44255.2% | 320.5% | 6,240 |
| Cleburne County | Bush, George H.W.+1,528 | 4,93258.8% | 3,40440.6% | 450.5% | 8,381 |
| Cleveland County | Bush, George H.W.+58 | 1,46250.7% | 1,40448.7% | 150.5% | 2,881 |
| Columbia County | Bush, George H.W.+2,104 | 5,81059.3% | 3,70637.8% | 2862.9% | 9,802 |
| Conway County | Dukakis, Michael+68 | 4,06649.4% | 4,13450.2% | 390.5% | 8,239 |
| Craighead County | Bush, George H.W.+2,804 | 11,88755.0% | 9,08342.0% | 6453.0% | 21,615 |
| Crawford County | Bush, George H.W.+5,510 | 9,09270.9% | 3,58227.9% | 1581.2% | 12,832 |
| Crittenden County | Bush, George H.W.+739 | 7,44151.7% | 6,70246.6% | 2411.7% | 14,384 |
| Cross County | Bush, George H.W.+197 | 3,18651.3% | 2,98948.1% | 370.6% | 6,212 |
| Dallas County | Dukakis, Michael+43 | 1,94749.2% | 1,99050.3% | 210.5% | 3,958 |
| Desha County | Dukakis, Michael+525 | 2,33442.9% | 2,85952.6% | 2424.5% | 5,435 |
| Drew County | Bush, George H.W.+417 | 2,99553.3% | 2,57845.9% | 470.8% | 5,620 |
| Faulkner County | Bush, George H.W.+3,376 | 10,67858.4% | 7,30239.9% | 2991.6% | 18,279 |
| Franklin County | Bush, George H.W.+1,130 | 3,58858.9% | 2,45840.4% | 430.7% | 6,089 |
| Fulton County | Dukakis, Michael+100 | 1,91848.5% | 2,01851.0% | 210.5% | 3,957 |
| Garland County | Bush, George H.W.+7,875 | 19,28160.9% | 11,40636.0% | 9553.0% | 31,642 |
| Grant County | Bush, George H.W.+575 | 2,71755.4% | 2,14243.7% | 450.9% | 4,904 |
| Greene County | Bush, George H.W.+96 | 5,16150.1% | 5,06549.1% | 840.8% | 10,310 |
| Hempstead County | Bush, George H.W.+97 | 3,93850.5% | 3,84149.2% | 200.3% | 7,799 |
| Hot Spring County | Dukakis, Michael+909 | 4,18144.5% | 5,09054.1% | 1341.4% | 9,405 |
| Howard County | Bush, George H.W.+692 | 2,51057.9% | 1,81841.9% | 90.2% | 4,337 |
| Independence County | Bush, George H.W.+2,114 | 6,63759.2% | 4,52340.4% | 480.4% | 11,208 |
| Izard County | Bush, George H.W.+172 | 2,82451.2% | 2,65248.1% | 410.7% | 5,517 |
| Jackson County | Dukakis, Michael+1,150 | 3,04941.9% | 4,19957.7% | 280.4% | 7,276 |
| Jefferson County | Dukakis, Michael+4,144 | 12,52042.1% | 16,66456.0% | 5681.9% | 29,752 |
| Johnson County | Bush, George H.W.+1,228 | 4,04658.3% | 2,81840.6% | 771.1% | 6,941 |
| Lafayette County | Dukakis, Michael+55 | 1,86048.9% | 1,91550.4% | 250.7% | 3,800 |
| Lawrence County | Bush, George H.W.+26 | 3,20549.9% | 3,17949.5% | 370.6% | 6,421 |
| Lee County | Dukakis, Michael+1,015 | 1,86338.7% | 2,87859.8% | 711.5% | 4,812 |
| Lincoln County | Dukakis, Michael+647 | 1,55741.0% | 2,20458.1% | 330.9% | 3,794 |
| Little River County | Dukakis, Michael+393 | 2,34745.8% | 2,74053.5% | 320.6% | 5,119 |
| Logan County | Bush, George H.W.+949 | 2,20362.9% | 1,25435.8% | 471.3% | 3,504 |
| Lonoke County | Bush, George H.W.+2,429 | 7,21559.7% | 4,78639.6% | 890.7% | 12,090 |
| Madison County | Bush, George H.W.+961 | 3,06758.7% | 2,10640.3% | 501.0% | 5,223 |
| Marion County | Bush, George H.W.+960 | 2,99357.8% | 2,03339.3% | 1522.9% | 5,178 |
| Miller County | Bush, George H.W.+1,673 | 7,11056.3% | 5,43743.1% | 820.6% | 12,629 |
| Mississippi County | Bush, George H.W.+1,082 | 7,84152.7% | 6,75945.4% | 2881.9% | 14,888 |
| Monroe County | Dukakis, Michael+190 | 1,86246.9% | 2,05251.7% | 581.5% | 3,972 |
| Montgomery County | Bush, George H.W.+390 | 1,75256.0% | 1,36243.5% | 150.5% | 3,129 |
| Nevada County | Dukakis, Michael+18 | 1,71449.6% | 1,73250.1% | 130.4% | 3,459 |
| Newton County | Bush, George H.W.+1,015 | 2,50462.0% | 1,48936.9% | 461.1% | 4,039 |
| Ouachita County | Bush, George H.W.+1,068 | 6,29752.3% | 5,22943.4% | 5174.3% | 12,043 |
| Perry County | Bush, George H.W.+157 | 1,62752.0% | 1,47047.0% | 311.0% | 3,128 |
| Phillips County | Dukakis, Michael+1,688 | 3,89239.5% | 5,58056.6% | 3893.9% | 9,861 |
| Pike County | Bush, George H.W.+424 | 2,10555.4% | 1,68144.3% | 110.3% | 3,797 |
| Poinsett County | Dukakis, Michael+229 | 3,64448.2% | 3,87351.2% | 490.6% | 7,566 |
| Polk County | Bush, George H.W.+1,709 | 4,09962.2% | 2,39036.2% | 1061.6% | 6,595 |
| Pope County | Bush, George H.W.+5,143 | 10,08466.7% | 4,94132.7% | 980.6% | 15,123 |
| Prairie County | Bush, George H.W.+259 | 1,94753.3% | 1,68846.2% | 210.6% | 3,656 |
| Pulaski County | Bush, George H.W.+14,705 | 70,56255.0% | 55,85743.5% | 1,9141.5% | 128,333 |
| Randolph County | Dukakis, Michael+221 | 2,56047.2% | 2,78151.3% | 771.4% | 5,418 |
| Saline County | Bush, George H.W.+3,917 | 12,35358.9% | 8,43640.2% | 1880.9% | 20,977 |
| Scott County | Bush, George H.W.+800 | 2,50758.8% | 1,70740.1% | 481.1% | 4,262 |
| Searcy County | Bush, George H.W.+1,403 | 2,74366.2% | 1,34032.3% | 601.4% | 4,143 |
| Sebastian County | Bush, George H.W.+14,742 | 24,42670.9% | 9,68428.1% | 3220.9% | 34,432 |
| Sevier County | Bush, George H.W.+217 | 2,25452.1% | 2,03747.1% | 360.8% | 4,327 |
| Sharp County | Bush, George H.W.+668 | 3,62354.8% | 2,95544.7% | 340.5% | 6,612 |
| St. Francis County | Dukakis, Michael+358 | 4,29847.9% | 4,65651.8% | 260.3% | 8,980 |
| Stone County | Bush, George H.W.+458 | 2,18655.2% | 1,72843.6% | 481.2% | 3,962 |
| Union County | Bush, George H.W.+4,650 | 10,58161.3% | 5,93134.4% | 7444.3% | 17,256 |
| Van Buren County | Bush, George H.W.+955 | 3,56257.4% | 2,60742.0% | 400.6% | 6,209 |
| Washington County | Bush, George H.W.+11,044 | 23,60164.4% | 12,55734.3% | 5001.4% | 36,658 |
| White County | Bush, George H.W.+4,137 | 11,09460.8% | 6,95738.2% | 1831.0% | 18,234 |
| Woodruff County | Dukakis, Michael+827 | 1,09736.2% | 1,92463.4% | 130.4% | 3,034 |
| Yell County | Bush, George H.W.+772 | 3,53555.8% | 2,76343.6% | 330.5% | 6,331 |
complete certified result
Arkansas candidate results
Top three shown first · expand for every reported candidate and write-in category
Source: MIT Election Data + Science Lab — U.S. President 1976–2024 state candidate returns
Nominees: Michael Dukakis (D) · George H. W. Bush (R)
Arkansas's presidential margins
1892–2024, the 1988 contest in context
| Year | Margin (D minus R) |
|---|---|
| 1892 | +27.6% |
| 1896 | +48.6% |
| 1900 | +28.5% |
| 1904 | +15.2% |
| 1908 | +20.3% |
| 1912 | +35.9% |
| 1916 | +40.9% |
| 1920 | +18.9% |
| 1924 | +31.9% |
| 1928 | +20.9% |
| 1932 | +73.9% |
| 1936 | +63.9% |
| 1940 | +57.4% |
| 1944 | +40.1% |
| 1948 | +40.7% |
| 1952 | +12.1% |
| 1956 | +6.6% |
| 1960 | +7.1% |
| 1964 | +12.7% |
| 1968 | −0.4% |
| 1972 | −38.1% |
| 1976 | +30.0% |
| 1980 | −0.6% |
| 1984 | −22.2% |
| 1988 | −14.2% |
| 1992 | +17.7% |
| 1996 | +16.9% |
| 2000 | −5.4% |
| 2004 | −9.8% |
| 2008 | −19.9% |
| 2012 | −23.7% |
| 2016 | −27.8% |
| 2020 | −27.6% |
| 2024 | −30.6% |
Same ballot, 1988AR
Source. MIT Election Data + Science Lab — 1988 presidential returns · official county-level results. Real returns — nothing estimated.