The secular Republican retreat in the cities

(These are not meant to be complete lists, but show how the GOP's problems in urban areas have mounted over the course of the 20th century. In particular, most of the counties listed below typically voted Democratic except in Republican landslides, but in general, fewer and fewer of them went along with each successive Republican landslide.)

Counties that voted Republican in 1916, 1920, and 1924, but voted Democratic in 1928

St Louis City, MO  

A slew of other urban counties that had voted Republican in 1920 and 1924 turned blue in 1928, even as Hoover won in a national landslide--Suffolk, MA, Ramsey, MN, and Brooklyn, The Bronx, and Manhattan, NY. At the time, however, most of these already had a Democratic lean (although Ramsey and Brooklyn had voted Republican in 1896, 1900, 1904, and 1908), whereas St Louis had been a Republican-leaning city, voting Republican in every election from 1888 through 1924 save 1912.

None of these counties or county-equivalents has voted Republican since 1924.

Counties that voted Republican in 1920, 1924, and 1928, but did not vote for Eisenhower in 1952 or 1956, Nixon in 1972, or Reagan in 1984

Wayne, MI
Philadelphia, PA

(Wayne also voted for Hughes in 1916; Philadelphia also voted for Hughes in 1916 and for Hoover in 1932.)

Counties that voted for Eisenhower twice but did not vote for Nixon in 1972 or Reagan in 1984

Alameda, CA
San Francisco, CA
Johnson, IA
Hennepin, MN
Multnomah, OR
Dane, WI
Milwaukee, WI

Johnson, Hennepin, and Multnomah also voted for Nixon in 1960. (Johnson County [Iowa City] is not an 'urban county' per se; it is home to the University of Iowa.)

Counties that voted for Eisenhower twice and for Nixon in 1972 but not for Reagan in 1984

Denver, CO
Cook, IL
Polk, IA
Essex, NJ
Albany, NY
Erie, NY
Queens, NY
Cuyahoga, OH
Hidalgo, TX
Richmond City, VA

Denver and Polk had also voted for Reagan in 1980. Polk and Richmond had also voted for Nixon in 1960.

Other urban counties in Republican landslides in the 20th century

-Hartford County, CT voted for Eisenhower in 1952 and 1956, Nixon in 1972, and Reagan in 1984. It had also voted for Hoover in 1932, but has voted Republican only those four times since then.
-Fulton County, GA has voted Republican only in 1872, 1928, and 1972. In 1928, it cast only 18,240 votes.
-Lake County, IN voted Republican 1916-1928, for Eisenhower in 1956, and for Nixon in 1972.
-Wyandotte County, KS voted Republican 1920-1928, and since then only in 1972.
-Orleans Parish, LA has voted Republican only in 1956 and 1972.
-Baltimore (city), MD voted Republican 1920-1928, and since then only in 1956.
-Jackson County, MO voted Republican 1920-1928, and since then only in 1972.
-Hudson County, NJ's last four Republican votes were in 1920, 1956, 1972, and 1984.
-Allegheny County, PA voted Republican 1916-1928, and since then only in 1956 and 1972.
-Providence County, RI voted Republican 1916-1924, and since then only in 1956 and 1972.

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