State-By-State Presidential Election Results Since 1972

The table on this page shows the state-by-state winner in each presidential election since 1972.

A plurality of votes is all that is required for a presidential contender to win a state. A candidate simply has to poll a greater number of votes than any other candidate in that state. This may be less than 50%.

Presidents are elected via an Electoral College which represents the States and has 538 votes. To win, a candidate must secure 270 votes.

Each state’s entitlement equals the number of members it has in the House of Representatives plus its two senators. Eg. Alabama has 7 members in the House, plus 2 senators, hence it has 9 electoral votes. Electoral College votes (EV) allocated to each state are shown in the last column. Whilst not a state, the District of Columbia, Washington DC, is allocated 3 electoral votes.

Electoral College votes are allocated on a first-past-the-post, winner-take-all basis, except in Maine and Nebraska where votes are allocated by a combination of the popular vote and victories in congressional districts.

NOTE: Electoral College vote changes are shown in the table below. Votes are allocated according to population changes as measured by the 10-yearly census. Votes shown after the slash are the new totals following the 2020 Census. They will apply for the 2024 and 2028 elections.

The winners in each of these election years were: Richard Nixon (Rep – 1972), Jimmy Carter (Dem – 1976), Ronald Reagan (Rep – 1980 & 1984), George H.W. Bush (Rep – 1988), Bill Clinton (Dem – 1992 & 1996), George W. Bush (Rep – 2000 & 2004), Barack Obama (Dem – 2008 & 2012), Donald J. Trump (Rep – 2016), Joe Biden (Dem – 2020) and Donald J. Trump (Rep – 2024). The number of electoral votes won by each successful candidate is shown in the column headers.

2016 Presidential Election: Donald Trump (Rep) won 30 States, plus the 2nd district in Maine, to secure 306 electoral college votes. Hillary Clinton (Dem) won 20 states, plus the District of Columbia, to secure 232 electoral votes. Six states that voted Democratic in 2012 shifted to the Republican candidate: Florida, Iowa, Ohio, Wisconsin, Michigan and Pennysylvania.

2020 Presidential Election: Joseph Biden (Dem) won 25 states, plus the District of Columbia and one district in Nebraska, to secure 306 electoral college votes. President Donald Trump won 25 states, plus one House district in Maine, to secure 232 electoral college votes. This was an exact reversal of the 2016 result. In addition to gaining Arizona and Georgia, three of the six states (Wisconsin, Michigan, Pennsylvania) that shifted to the Republican Party in 2016 were regained by the Democrats.

2024 Presidential Election: Former President Donald Trump (Rep) won 31 states, plus the single House districts in Nebraska and Maine, to secure 312 electoral college votes. Vice-President Kamala Harris won 19 states, plus the District of Columbia, to secure 226 electoral college votes. In addition to gaining Nevada for the first time since 2004, five of the six states (Arizona, Georgia, Wisconsin, Michigan and Pennsylvania) that shifted to the Democratic Party in 2016 were regained by the Republicans.