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How did Theodore Roosevelt’s 1912 presidential campaign affect the Republican vote?

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A large crowd of Rwandan Patriotic Front supporters holds up red, white, and blue FPR flags and campaign posters at a political rally in Kayonza, Eastern Province. — political party Rwandan Patriotic Front political rally in Kayonza, Rwanda, August 2010.

Theodore Roosevelt’s 1912 presidential campaign caused a significant split within the Republican Party, which ultimately led to the party's defeat in the presidential election of 1912.12

After failing to secure the Republican nomination against incumbent William Howard Taft, Roosevelt bolted the party to form the Progressive Party, popularly known as the "Bull Moose" party. This action divided the Republican vote between the two factions. While Roosevelt and Taft collectively secured 7.6 million votes—outpolling the Democratic candidate, Woodrow Wilson, by 1.3 million—the split allowed Wilson to win the presidency with a plurality of the popular vote.132

The division was so severe that Taft, the Republican incumbent, received only 8 electoral votes, marking the worst performance by an incumbent seeking reelection in U.S. history. The Republican Party remained fractured until it was reunited four years later.21