List of United States presidential elections by popular vote margin explained

In a United States presidential election, the popular vote is the total number or the percentage of votes cast for a candidate by voters in the 50 states and Washington, D.C.; the candidate who gains the most votes nationwide is said to have won the popular vote. However, the popular vote is not used to determine who is elected as the nation's president or vice president. Thus it is possible for the winner of the popular vote to end up losing the election, an outcome that has occurred on five occasions, most recently in the 2016 election. This is because presidential elections are indirect elections; the votes cast on Election Day are not cast directly for a candidate, but for members of the Electoral College. The Electoral College's electors then formally elect the president and vice president.[1] [2]

The Twelfth Amendment to the United States Constitution (1804) provides the procedure by which the president and vice president are elected; electors vote separately for each office. Previously, electors cast two votes for president, and the winner and runner up became president and vice-president respectively. The appointment of electors is a matter for each state's legislature to determine; in 1872 and in every presidential election since 1880, all states have used a popular vote to do so.

The 1824 election was the first in which the popular vote was first fully recorded and reported. Since then, 19 presidential elections have occurred in which a candidate was elected or reelected without gaining a majority of the popular vote.[3] Since the 1988 election, the popular vote of presidential elections was decided by single-digit margins, the longest since states began popularly electing presidents in the 1820s.[4]

List

The table below is a list of United States presidential elections by popular vote margin. It is sorted to display elections by their presidential term / year of election, name, margin by percentage in popular vote, popular vote, margin in popular vote by number, and the runner up in the Electoral College.

Key
Parties: Federalist • Democratic-Republican • National Republican • Whig • Democratic • Republican • Progressive • Independent
Vote outcomes: Winner did not receive a majority of the popular vote • Winner lost the popular vote • Winner chosen by the House of Representatives
ElectionWinner and partyRunner-up and partyTurnout[5]
Votes%%MarginVotesMargin
1788–89align=center Ind.69/69100%100%100%43,78243,782,No candidate11.6%
1792align=center Ind.132/132100%100%100%28,57928,579,No candidate6.3%
1796align=center Fed.71/13851.45%53.45%6.90%35,7264,611align=center D-R20.1%
1800align=center D-R73/13852.90%61.43%22.86%41,33015,378align=center D-R32.3%
1804align=center D-R162/17692.05%72.79%45.58%104,11065,191Pinckney,Charles C. Pinckneyalign=center Fed.23.8%
1808align=center D-R122/17569.72%64.74%32.33%124,73262,301Pinckney,Charles C. Pinckneyalign=center Fed.36.8%
1812align=center D-R128/21758.99%50.37%2.74%140,4317,650align=center D-R40.4%
1816align=center D-R183/21784.33%68.16%37.24%76,59241,852align=center Fed.23.5%
1820align=center D-R231/23299.57%80.61%64.69%87,34369,878align=center D-R10.1%
1824align=center D-R84/26132.18%30.92%−10.44%113,142−38,221align=center D-R26.9%
1828align=center Dem.178/26168.20%55.93%12.25%642,806140,839align=center NR57.3%
1832align=center Dem.219/28676.57%54.74%17.81%702,735228,628align=center NR57.0%
1836align=center Dem.170/29457.82%50.79%14.20%763,291213,384align=center Whig56.5%
1840align=center Whig234/29479.59%52.87%6.05%1,275,583145,938align=center Dem.80.3%
1844align=center Dem.170/27561.82%49.54%1.45%1,339,57039,413align=center Whig79.2%
1848align=center Whig163/29056.21%47.28%4.79%1,360,235137,882align=center Dem.72.8%
1852align=center Dem.254/29685.81%50.83%6.95%1,605,943219,525align=center Whig69.5%
1856align=center Dem.174/29658.78%45.29%12.20%1,835,140494,472align=center Rep.79.4%
1860align=center Rep.180/30359.41%39.65%10.13%1,855,993474,049align=center Dem.81.8%
1864align=center Rep.212/23390.99%55.03%10.08%2,211,317405,090align=center Dem.76.3%
1868align=center Rep.214/29472.79%52.66%5.32%3,013,790304,810align=center Dem.80.9%
1872align=center Rep.286/35281.25%55.58%11.80%3,597,439763,729align=center Dem.72.1%
1876align=center Rep.185/36950.14%47.92%−3.00%4,034,142−252,666align=center Dem.82.6%
1880align=center Rep.214/36957.99%48.31%0.09%4,453,3371,898align=center Dem.80.5%
1884align=center Dem.219/40154.61%48.85%0.57%4,914,48257,579align=center Rep.78.2%
1888align=center Rep.233/40158.10%47.80%−0.83%5,443,892−90,596align=center Dem.80.5%
1892align=center Dem.277/44462.39%46.02%3.01%5,553,898363,099align=center Rep.75.8%
1896align=center Rep.271/44760.63%51.02%4.31%7,112,138 601,331align=center Dem.79.6%
1900align=center Rep.292/44765.23%51.64%6.12%7,228,864857,932align=center Dem.73.7%
1904align=center Rep.336/47670.59%56.42%18.83%7,630,5572,546,677align=center Dem.65.5%
1908align=center Rep.321/48366.46%51.57%8.53%7,678,3351,269,356align=center Dem.65.7%
1912align=center Dem.435/53181.92%41.84%14.44%6,296,2842,173,563align=center Prog.59.0%
1916align=center Dem.277/53152.17%49.24%3.12%9,126,868578,140align=center Rep.61.8%
1920align=center Rep.404/53176.08%60.32%26.17%16,144,0937,004,432align=center Dem.49.2%
1924align=center Rep.382/53171.94%54.04%25.22%15,723,7897,337,547align=center Dem.48.9%
1928align=center Rep.444/53183.62%58.21%17.41%21,427,1236,411,659align=center Dem.56.9%
1932align=center Dem.472/53188.89%57.41%17.76%22,821,2777,060,023align=center Rep.56.9%
1936align=center Dem.523/53198.49%60.80%24.26%27,752,64811,070,786align=center Rep.61.0%
1940align=center Dem.449/53184.56%54.74%9.96%27,313,9454,966,201align=center Rep.62.4%
1944align=center Dem.432/53181.36%53.39%7.50%25,612,9163,594,987align=center Rep.55.9%
1948align=center Dem.303/53157.06%49.55%4.48%24,179,3472,188,055align=center Rep.52.2%
1952align=center Rep.442/53183.24%55.18%10.85%34,075,5296,700,439align=center Dem.62.3%
1956align=center Rep.457/53186.06%57.37%15.40%35,579,180 9,551,152align=center Dem.60.2%
1960align=center Dem.303/53756.42%49.72%0.17%34,220,984112,827align=center Rep.63.8%
1964align=center Dem.486/53890.33%61.05%22.58%43,127,04115,951,287align=center Rep.62.8%
1968align=center Rep.301/53855.95%43.42%0.70%31,783,783511,944align=center Dem.62.5%
1972align=center Rep.520/53896.65%60.67%23.15%47,168,71017,995,488align=center Dem.56.2%
1976align=center Dem.297/53855.20%50.08%2.06%40,831,8811,683,247align=center Rep.54.8%
1980align=center Rep.489/53890.89%50.75%9.74%43,903,2308,423,115align=center Dem.54.2%
1984align=center Rep.525/53897.58%58.77%18.21%54,455,47216,878,120align=center Dem.55.2%
1988align=center Rep.426/53879.18%53.37%7.72%48,886,5977,077,121align=center Dem.52.8%
1992align=center Dem.370/53868.77%43.01%5.56%44,909,8065,805,256align=center Rep.58.1%
1996align=center Dem.379/53870.45%49.23%8.51%47,400,1258,201,370align=center Rep.51.7%
2000align=center Rep.271/53850.47%47.87%−0.51%50,455,156−538,179align=center Dem.54.2%
2004align=center Rep.286/53853.16%50.73%2.46%62,040,6103,012,171align=center Dem.60.1%
2008align=center Dem.365/53867.84%52.93%7.27%69,498,5169,550,193align=center Rep.61.6%
2012align=center Dem.332/53861.71%51.06%3.86%65,915,7954,982,291align=center Rep.58.6%
2016align=center Rep.304/53856.50%46.09%−2.09%62,984,828−2,868,686align=center Dem.57.3%
2020align=center Dem.306/53856.88%51.31%4.45%81,284,6667,060,347align=center Rep.66.6%

Timeline

See also

Bibliography

External links

Notes and References

  1. Web site: Clinton on pace to win popular vote despite losing election. November 9, 2016. CBS News. March 31, 2019.
  2. Web site: How it happened: Clinton wins popular vote but loses Election. Bostedt. Shelbie Lynn. November 9, 2016. RedEye. Chicago Tribune. March 31, 2019.
  3. McPherson, J. (2001). To the Best of My Ability: The American Presidents. Dorling Kindersly Publishing.
  4. News: The most underdiscussed fact of the 2022 election: how historically close it was. CNN. Enten. Harry. December 26, 2022. December 26, 2022.
  5. Web site: National General Election VEP Turnout Rates, 1789-Present . McDonald . Michael P. . Michael P. McDonald . 11 June 2014 . United States Elections Project . 16 November 2016.

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