Why did Jimmy Carter win New York State in the 1976 Presidential Election?

[sg0508]

Long Island went stronger for Carter than it normally did for democratic candidates.  That really hurt Ford.

[sg0508]

Nassau/Suffolk went about 53-47%.  Usually, through 1988, the split was closer to the GOP getting near 60%.

This is just an educated guess, but the choice of Dole couldn't have helped Ford in NY.  Rockefeller may have made a difference, although most people don't vote for VP.  Of course, had Rockefeller been the running mate, Ford may have sacrificed states such as OK, SD, etc.  It's tough to tell.  We can only speculate.

[sg0508]

Over performance on Long Island is what gave New York to Carter.  He nearly won both counties there when Republicans back then used to get around 60% in both.  That made up for his horrendous upstate performance where he did nearly as badly as McGovern.  He even lost the Albany area Congressional district that actually flipped to him in 1980 and only barely went for Nixon in 1972.

Correct.