History Of Ohio Primary
Going back the Progressive Era origins of nominating primaries, the Ohio Presidential primary has a nearly century long history.
( Here are some basic facts and a brief history of Ohio. The population of Ohio is approximately 11.5 million. George Bush carried the state 51%-49% in 2004.)
Here is a history of some notable results from Ohio since the first primary in 1912.
The first Ohio primary featured something modern political observers can grasp—An ideological fight among Republicans.
Progressive challenger, former President Theodore Roosevelt, defeated incumbent President William Howard Taft, a more conservative figure, by a 55%-40% margin. President Taft was from Cincinnati. This outcome shows the bent of the Ohio Republican electorate at the time and offers a clue why the progressive reform of the primary was embraced early in Ohio.
