See main article: 2020 United States presidential election.
| Election Name: | 2020 United States presidential election in Massachusetts |
| Country: | Massachusetts |
| Type: | presidential |
| Ongoing: | no |
| College Voted: | yes |
| Previous Election: | 2016 United States presidential election in Massachusetts |
| Previous Year: | 2016 |
| Election Date: | November 3, 2020 |
| Next Election: | 2024 United States presidential election in Massachusetts |
| Next Year: | 2024 |
| Turnout: | 76%[1] |
| Time Zone: | EST[2] |
| Image1: | Joe Biden presidential portrait (cropped).jpg |
| Nominee1: | Joe Biden |
| Party1: | Democratic Party (United States) |
| Home State1: | Delaware |
| Running Mate1: | Kamala Harris |
| Electoral Vote1: | 11 |
| Popular Vote1: | 2,382,202 |
| Percentage1: | 65.60% |
| Nominee2: | Donald Trump |
| Party2: | Republican Party (United States) |
| Home State2: | Florida |
| Running Mate2: | Mike Pence |
| Electoral Vote2: | 0 |
| Popular Vote2: | 1,167,202 |
| Percentage2: | 32.14% |
| President | |
| Before Election: | Donald Trump |
| Before Party: | Republican Party (United States) |
| After Election: | Joe Biden |
| After Party: | Democratic Party (United States) |
The 2020 United States presidential election in Massachusetts was held on Tuesday, November 3, 2020, as part of the 2020 United States presidential election in which all 50 states plus the District of Columbia participated.[3] Massachusetts voters chose electors to represent them in the Electoral College via a popular vote, pitting the Republican Party's nominee, incumbent President Donald Trump, and running mate Vice President Mike Pence against Democratic Party nominee, former Vice President Joe Biden, and his running mate California Senator Kamala Harris. Massachusetts has 11 electoral votes in the Electoral College.[4]
Biden easily carried Massachusetts with a 33-point margin, the largest margin whereby any nominee had carried the state since Lyndon B. Johnson's 1964 landslide. Massachusetts was one of three states where Biden won every county, the other two being Rhode Island and Hawaii.
Massachusetts voted 29% more Democratic than the national average.
Presidential preference primaries were scheduled for March 3, 2020, for each of the political parties with state ballot access.
See main article: 2020 Massachusetts Democratic presidential primary.
Bernie Sanders and Joe Biden were among the declared major Democratic candidates. Elizabeth Warren, one of the two current senators from Massachusetts, formed an exploratory committee in December 2018 and declared her intention to run in February 2019.[5] [6]
See main article: article and 2020 Massachusetts Republican presidential primary. Massachusetts governor Charlie Baker declined to run, as did Utah Senator and former Massachusetts governor Mitt Romney.[7] [8] [9] [10]
See main article: 2020 Libertarian Party presidential primaries.
| Election Name: | 2020 Massachusetts Libertarian presidential primary |
| Country: | Massachusetts |
| Type: | presidential |
| Ongoing: | no |
| Next Election: | 2024 United States presidential election in Massachusetts#Libertarian primary |
| Next Year: | 2024 |
| Election Date: | March 3, 2020 |
| Outgoing Members: | CA |
| Elected Members: | NC |
| Candidate1: | Write-in (uncounted) |
| Color1: | ffffff |
| Home State1: | Various |
| Popular Vote1: | 958 |
| Percentage1: | 25.0% |
| Candidate2: | No preference |
| Color2: | 000000 |
| Home State2: | N/A |
| Popular Vote2: | 804 |
| Percentage2: | 21.0% |
| Candidate3: | Vermin Supreme |
| Color3: | fb9bc2 |
| Home State3: | Massachusetts |
| Popular Vote3: | 398 |
| Percentage3: | 10.4% |
| Candidate4: | Jacob Hornberger |
| Color4: | DAA521 |
| Home State4: | Virginia |
| Popular Vote4: | 369 |
| Percentage4: | 9.6% |
| Candidate5: | Dan Behrman |
| Color5: | ff7102 |
| Home State5: | Nevada |
| Popular Vote5: | 294 |
| Percentage5: | 7.7% |
| Candidate6: | Kim Ruff (withdrawn) |
| Color6: | 88aa00 |
| Home State6: | Arizona |
| Popular Vote6: | 224 |
| Percentage6: | 5.8% |
| Map Size: | 300px |
A number of Libertarian candidates declared for the race, including New Hampshire State Representative Max Abramson, Adam Kokesh, Vermin Supreme and former Libertarian National Committee vice-chair Arvin Vohra.[11] [12] [13]
| Candidate | Votes | Percentage | |
|---|---|---|---|
| All others | 958 | 25.0% | |
| No preference | 804 | 21.0% | |
| Vermin Supreme | 399 | 10.4% | |
| Jacob Hornberger | 369 | 9.6% | |
| Dan Behrman | 294 | 7.7% | |
| Kim Ruff (withdrawn) | 224 | 5.8% | |
| Arvin Vohra | 151 | 3.9% | |
| Ken Armstrong | 145 | 3.8% | |
| Jo Jorgensen | 141 | 3.7% | |
| Sam Robb | 127 | 3.3% | |
| Adam Kokesh | 125 | 3.3% | |
| Max Abramson | 98 | 2.6% | |
| Total | 3,835 | 100% |
See main article: 2020 Green Party presidential primaries.
| Candidate | Votes | Percentage | National delegates | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Dario Hunter | 224 | 16.9 | 2 | |
| Howie Hawkins | 217 | 16.4 | 1 | |
| Sedinam Kinamo Christin Moyowasifza-Curry | 141 | 10.6 | 1 | |
| Kent Mesplay | 55 | 4.1 | 0 | |
| David Rolde | 4 | 0.3 | 0 | |
| Write-In | 369 | 27.8 | 0 | |
| No Preference | 316 | 23.8 | 7 | |
| Total | 1326 | 100.00% | 11 |
| Source | Ranking | As of | |
|---|---|---|---|
| The Cook Political Report[16] | September 10, 2020 | ||
| Inside Elections[17] | September 4, 2020 | ||
| Sabato's Crystal Ball[18] | July 14, 2020 | ||
| Politico[19] | September 8, 2020 | ||
| RCP[20] | August 3, 2020 | ||
| Niskanen[21] | July 26, 2020 | ||
| CNN[22] | August 3, 2020 | ||
| The Economist[23] | September 2, 2020 | ||
| 270towin[24] | August 2, 2020 | ||
| ABC News[25] | July 31, 2020 | ||
| NBC News[26] | August 6, 2020 | ||
| 538[27] | September 9, 2020 |
Aggregate polls
| Donald Trump | Other/ Undecided | Margin | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 270 to Win[28] | October 17 – November 2, 2020 | November 3, 2020 | 65.0% | 28.7% | 6.3% | Biden +36.3 | |||
| RealClearPolitics[29] | July 31 – August 27, 2020 | September 15, 2020 | 64.0% | 28.3% | 7.7% | Biden +35.7 | |||
| FiveThirtyEight[30] | until November 2, 2020 | November 3, 2020 | 64.6% | 28.9% | 6.5% | Biden +35.8 | |||
| Average | 64.5% | 28.6% | 6.8% | Biden +35.9 | |||||
Polls
| Poll source | Date(s) administered | Sample size | Margin | Donald Trump | Joe Biden | Jo Jorgensen | Howie Hawkins | Other | Undecided | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| MassInc[31] | Oct 23–30, 2020 | 929 (LV) | – | 28% | 62% | - | - | 8% | 2% | ||
| SurveyMonkey/Axios[32] | Oct 1–28, 2020 | 5,848 (LV) | – | 28% | 70% | - | - | – | – | ||
| YouGov/UMass Amherst[33] | Oct 14–21, 2020 | 713 (LV) | – | 29% | 64% | - | - | 3% | 3% | ||
| SurveyMonkey/Axios | Sep 1–30, 2020 | 2,655 (LV) | – | 32% | 66% | - | - | – | 2% | ||
| SurveyMonkey/Axios | Aug 1–31, 2020 | 2,286 (LV) | – | 29% | 69% | - | - | – | 2% | ||
| Emerson College/WHDH[34] | Aug 25–27, 2020 | 763 (LV) | ± 3.5% | 31% | 69% | - | - | – | – | ||
| MassINC/WBUR[35] | Aug 6–9, 2020 | 501 (LV) | ± 4.4% | 27% | 63% | - | - | 5% | 4% | ||
| UMass/YouGov[36] | Jul 31 – Aug 7, 2020 | 500 (RV) | ± 5.9% | 28% | 61% | - | - | – | – | ||
| SurveyMonkey/Axios | Jul 1–31, 2020 | 2,509 (LV) | – | 26% | 72% | - | - | – | 2% | ||
| MassINC[37] | Jul 17–20, 2020 | 797 (RV) | – | 23% | 55% | - | - | 10% | 12% | ||
| SurveyMonkey/Axios | Jun 8–30, 2020 | 1,091 (LV) | – | 27% | 71% | - | - | – | 2% | ||
| Emerson College/7 News[38] | May 4–5, 2020 | 740 (RV) | ± 3.5% | 33% | 67% | - | - | – | – | ||
| University of Massachusetts Lowell/YouGov[39] | Apr 27 – May 1, 2020 | 1,000 (RV) | ± 3.6% | 30% | 58% | - | - | 7% | 4% | ||
| Emerson College[40] | Apr 4–7, 2019 | 761 (RV) | ± 3.5% | 31% | 69% | - | - | – | – |
with Donald Trump and Elizabeth Warren
| County | Joe Biden Democratic | Donald Trump Republican | Various candidates Other parties | Margin | Total votes cast | ||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| % | % | % | % | ||||||||||||||||
| Barnstable | 91,994 | 61.20% | 55,311 | 36.79% | 3,020 | 2.01% | 36,683 | 24.41% | 150,325 | ||||||||||
| Berkshire | 51,705 | 72.44% | 18,064 | 25.31% | 1,606 | 2.25% | 33,641 | 47.13% | 71,375 | ||||||||||
| Bristol | 153,377 | 54.92% | 119,872 | 42.92% | 6,030 | 2.16% | 33,505 | 12.00% | 279,279 | ||||||||||
| Dukes | 9,914 | 77.47% | 2,631 | 20.56% | 253 | 1.97% | 7,283 | 56.91% | 12,798 | ||||||||||
| Essex | 267,198 | 63.44% | 144,837 | 34.39% | 9,175 | 2.17% | 122,361 | 29.05% | 421,210 | ||||||||||
| Franklin | 30,030 | 70.73% | 11,201 | 26.38% | 1,227 | 2.89% | 18,829 | 44.35% | 42,458 | ||||||||||
| Hampden | 125,948 | 57.73% | 87,318 | 40.02% | 4,911 | 2.25% | 38,630 | 17.71% | 218,177 | ||||||||||
| Hampshire | 63,362 | 72.12% | 22,281 | 25.36% | 2,211 | 2.52% | 41,081 | 46.76% | 87,854 | ||||||||||
| Middlesex | 617,196 | 71.47% | 226,956 | 26.28% | 19,425 | 2.25% | 390,240 | 45.19% | 863,577 | ||||||||||
| Nantucket | 5,241 | 71.74% | 1,914 | 26.20% | 151 | 2.06% | 3,327 | 45.54% | 7,306 | ||||||||||
| Norfolk | 273,312 | 67.03% | 125,294 | 30.73% | 9,145 | 2.24% | 148,018 | 36.30% | 407,751 | ||||||||||
| Plymouth | 173,630 | 57.53% | 121,227 | 40.17% | 6,959 | 2.30% | 52,403 | 17.36% | 301,816 | ||||||||||
| Suffolk | 270,522 | 80.64% | 58,613 | 17.47% | 6,327 | 1.89% | 211,909 | 63.17% | 335,462 | ||||||||||
| Worcester | 248,773 | 57.58% | 171,683 | 39.74% | 11,558 | 2.68% | 77,090 | 17.84% | 432,014 | ||||||||||
| Totals | 2,382,202 | 65.60% | 1,167,202 | 32.14% | 81,998 | 2.26% | 1,215,000 | 33.46% | 3,631,402 | ||||||||||
Biden won all nine congressional districts, breaking 60% of the vote in eight of them.
| District | Trump | Biden | Representative | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 36.9% | 61.1% | Richard Neal | ||||
| 36% | 61.8% | Jim McGovern | ||||
| 34.6% | 63.4% | Lori Trahan | ||||
| 33.7% | 64.5% | Joe Kennedy III | ||||
| Jake Auchincloss | ||||||
| 23.9% | 74.5% | Katherine Clark | ||||
| 35.6% | 62.6% | Seth Moulton | ||||
| 13.3% | 85.3% | Ayanna Pressley | ||||
| 32.2% | 66.2% | Stephen Lynch | ||||
| 40.3% | 57.9% | Bill Keating |
Massachusetts has been a Democratic-leaning state since 1928, and a Democratic stronghold since 1960, and has maintained extremely large Democratic margins since 1996. This remained true in 2020, with Massachusetts being one of six states (along with Hawaii, Vermont, Maryland, California, and New York) to give Biden over 60% of the vote. Massachusetts is ethnically diverse, highly urbanized, highly educated, and among the least religious states.
Per exit polls by the Associated Press, Biden's strength came from winning 74% of college-educated voters, which carries particular weight in Massachusetts, as the state contains the highest proportion of graduates of any state in the country.[41] Trump's slip among suburban white voters led Biden to carry almost every municipality in the Greater Boston area by at least 60% or more, while Trump carried only several towns on the South Shore and in Central Massachusetts. Biden won 298 of the 351 municipalities.[42] Biden swept all demographic groups, garnering 63% of whites, 84% of Latinos, 58% of Catholics, 56% of Protestants, and 86% of Jewish voters. Additionally, Biden won 52% of whites without a college degree within the state, one of Trump's strongest demographics elsewhere in the country. While Biden overwhelmingly carried Latino voters in the state, Trump improved on his 2016 performance in heavily Hispanic cities such as Lawrence, Chelsea, and Holyoke.[43] Trump had the worst vote share in Massachusetts of any Republican nominee since Bob Dole in 1996, and slightly underperformed George W. Bush's 32.5% vote share in 2000.
Massachusetts was one of five states in the nation in which Biden's victory margin was larger than 1 million raw votes, the others being California, Maryland, New York and Illinois.