Democratic presidential nominee Hubert Humphrey did not get much of a home state advantage – carrying Minnesota by just a dozen points. His loss to Richard Nixon ended a streak of 12 consecutive elections in which the state cast its Electoral College votes for the winning presidential nominee.
The DFL won the first election to the renamed Public Service Commission with (previously named) Railroad and Warehouse Commissioner Paul Rasmussen narrowly holding his seat.
Down the ballot, all five Republican and all three DFL U.S. Representatives were reelected to another term.
Associate Justice William P. Murphy was reelected to a fourth term on the Supreme Court.
Elections
Date
Office
Stage
Winners
Details
11/05/1968
U.S. House, District 08
General
John A. Blatnik (Democratic-Farmer-Labor) won with 115,343 votes (67.63%) and a winning margin of +35.26
Paul A. Rasmussen (Democratic-Farmer-Labor) won with 712,700 votes (50.94%) and a winning margin of +1.87
Candidate
Gender
Party
Votes
Percent
Paul A. Rasmussen
Incumbent
Man
Democratic-Farmer-Labor
712,700
50.94
Lyle Nelson
Man
Republican
686,507
49.06
This election was the most narrowly decided race for Railroad Commissioner, Railroad and Warehouse Commissioner, and Public Service Commissioner in Minnesota history.
Commissioner Rasmussen was reelected to a fourth term and his first to the newly named Public Service Commission. He had served three terms as a member of the Railroad and Warehouse Commission.
William P. Murphy (Nonpartisan) won with 1,092,814 votes (100.00%) and a winning margin of +100.00
Candidate
Gender
Party
Votes
Percent
William P. Murphy
Incumbent
Man
Nonpartisan
1,092,814
100.00
Associate Justice Murphy was reelected to a fourth term without opposition. Murphy resigned on April 4, 1972 to retire from public office. Governor Wendell Anderson appointed Harry MacLaughlin to fill the vacancy on April 4, 1972. MacLaughlin was an attorney from Minneapolis and instructor at William Mitchell College of Law.
Hubert H. Humphrey (Democratic-Farmer-Labor) won with 857,738 votes (54.00%) and a winning margin of +12.53
Candidate
Gender
Party
Votes
Percent
Hubert H. Humphrey
with Edmund Muskie
Man
Democratic-Farmer-Labor
857,738
54.00
Richard Nixon
with Spiro Agnew
Man
Republican
658,643
41.46
George Wallace
with S. Marvin Griffin
Man
American
68,931
4.34
Leroy Eldridge Cleaver
with Peggy Terry
Man
Peace and Freedom
935
0.06
Fred Halstead
with Paul Boutelle
Man
Socialist Workers
808
0.05
Eugene J. McCarthy
Man
Write-In
585
0.04
Charlene Mitchell
with Michael Zagarell
Woman
Communist
415
0.03
Henning Blomen
with George Taylor
Man
Industrial Government
285
0.02
Scattering
Write-In
170
0.01
Humphrey and Muskie each received Minnesota's 10 Electoral College votes. The 54.00 percent won by Humphrey in his home state was his best showing in the 12-state Midwest region but only his sixth best across the country behind Washington D.C. (81.82 percent), Rhode Island (64.03 percent), Massachusetts (63.01 percent), Hawaii (59.83 percent), and Maine (55.30 percent). The sitting Vice President did not receive a majority of the vote in any other state.