2008 Presidential Nomination Contest Turnout Rates

Last Updated: 10/08/08

Please see the FAQ for information on the construction of these statistics. Presidential nomination contest dates are drawn from electionline.org. The number of people participating in a primary is collected from official state elections websites. Total ballots cast is the sum of the voters in the nomination contests, and where possible, includes minor party candidates and blank or otherwise spoiled ballots. The number of people who participated in a caucus is collected from various sources, including state party websites, newspaper articles, and in some cases phone calls to state parties. Note that caucus turnout numbers are often of less reliable since they are reported by parties who have an incentive to exaggerate participation in their caucus and do not have the same data collection infrastructure as their states. Where possible, links are provided to the turnout data source, including separate state report of total ballots cast, if it exists.

The denominator data reflect the July 1, 2006 and 2007 voting-age population estimates extrapolated to first of the month of the 2008 nomination contest within a state, non-citizen estimates from the 2007 American Community Survey, the year end-year 2006 DOJ prison report and the end-year 2006 DOJ probation and parole report. The overseas eligible estimate is recently updated with data provided by the Federal Voting Assistance Program. Note that these data provide preliminary estimates of the turnout and voting-eligible population for the 2008 presidential nomination elections. These statistics are updated continually as new data become available.

VEP Total Ballots Cast Turnout Rate is the total ballots cast divided by the voting-eligible population or VEP. In instances where the two political parties did not simultaneously hold their nomination contests, the first instance reflects turnout of the first party to hold their context and the second instance reflects the total turnout of the two parties' contests combined and a turnout rate is reported for the two contests.

Again, please see the FAQ for more information.

Date	State	Election Type	VAP Estimate	VEP Estimate	Vote in Democratic Contest	Vote in Republican Contest	Minor Party Candidates	Total Ballots Cast	VEP Total Ballots Cast Turnout Rate
Jan. 3	Iowa	Caucus	2,284,730	2,196,724	236,000	118,696		354,355	16.1%
Jan. 5	Wyoming	Rep. Caucus	401,306	387,058		1,200
Jan. 8	New Hampshire	Primary	1,021,849	988,708	288,672	241,039		529,711	53.6%
Jan. 15	Michigan	Primary	7,627,954	7,304,120	594,398	869,169		1,463,567	20.0%
Jan. 19	Nevada	Caucus	1,931,679	1,669,337	117,559	44,315		161,874	9.7%
	South Carolina	Rep. Primary	3,380,941	3,230,163		445,499
Jan. 26	South Carolina	Dem. Primary	3,380,941	3,230,163	532,151			977,650	30.3%
Jan. 29	Florida	Primary	14,299,134	12,553,134	1,749,920	1,949,498		4,268,602	34.0%
Feb. 1-3	Maine	Rep. Caucus	1,041,335	1,023,959		5,338
Feb. 5	Alabama	Primary	3,523,994	3,379,070	536,626	552,209		1,088,835	32.2%
	Alaska	Caucus	505,524	475,224	8,621	15,000		23,621	5.0%
	Arizona	Primary	4,744,180	4,121,551	456,626	541,767		998,393	24.2%
	Arkansas	Primary	2,146,616	2,029,675	315,839	229,882	838	544,170	26.8%
	California	Primary	27,356,412	22,726,155	5,066,992	2,932,812	105,168	9,086,415	40.0%
	Colorado	Caucus	3,713,368	3,412,102	120,001	65,400		185,401	5.4%
	Connecticut	Primary	2,689,915	2,467,974	355,561	151,605		507,166	20.5%
	Delaware	Primary	665,181	616,724	96,341	50,237		146,578	23.8%
	Georgia	Primary	7,098,566	6,329,221	1,060,851	963,541		2,024,392	32.0%
	Idaho	Dem. Caucus	1,107,344	1,026,963	21,224
	Illinois	Primary	9,699,779	8,832,544	2,038,614	899,422	2,672	2,986,982	33.8%
	Kansas	Dem. Caucus	2,090,119	1,971,844	37,089
	Massachusetts	Primary	5,033,718	4,624,671	1,263,764	501,997	2,445	1,768,206	38.2%
	Minnesota	Caucus	3,962,872	3,724,120	214,066	62,828	269	277,163	7.4%
	Missouri	Primary	4,477,478	4,297,028	825,050	588,844	2,057	1,415,951	33.0%
	Montana	Rep. Caucus	744,486	734,265		1,817(a)
	New Jersey	Primary	6,642,923	5,850,338	1,141,199	566,201		1,707,400	29.2%
	New Mexico	Dem. Caucus	1,484,232	1,364,055	153,299
	New York	Primary	14,924,774	13,166,835	1,891,143	670,078		2,561,221	19.5%
	North Dakota	Caucus	498,641	489,003	19,102	9,785		28,887	5.9%
	Oklahoma	Primary	2,735,269	2,584,090	417,207	335,054		752,261	29.1%
	Tennessee	Primary	4,727,718	4,522,727	624,764	553,815		1,178,579	26.1%
	Utah	Primary	1,855,254	1,731,819	131,403	296,061		428,459	24.7%
	West Virginia	Rep. Caucus	1,427,224	1,407,186		1,100(b)
Feb. 9	Kansas	Rep. Caucus	2,090,119	1,971,844		19,432		56,521	2.9%
	Louisiana	Primary	3,235,413	3,083,603	384,346	161,169		545,515	17.7%
	Nebraska	Dem. Caucus	1,334,116	1,268,115	38,670
	Washington	Caucus	4,980,527	4,525,823	?	?
Feb. 10	Maine	Dem. Caucus	1,041,335	1,023,959	44,670			50,008	4.9%
Feb. 12	District of Columbia	Primary	476,698	435,511	123,994	6,211	530	131,103	30.1%
	Maryland	Primary	4,274,714	3,887,403	878,174	320,989		1,224,318	31.5%
	Virginia	Primary	5,924,917	5,487,966	986,203	489,252		1,475,455	26.9%
Feb. 19	Hawaii	Dem. Caucus	999,231	913,611	?
	Washington	Primary	4,980,527	4,525,823	691,381(c)	529,932		1,386,701	30.6%
	Wisconsin	Primary	4,300,601	4,105,710	1,113,753	410,607		1,524,360	37.1%
March 4	Ohio	Primary	8,732,630	8,502,366	2,354,721	1,095,917		3,603,523	42.4%
	Rhode Island	Primary	824,580	759,793	186,657	27,237		215,868	28.4%
	Texas	Primary	17,523,049	14,942,119	2,874,986	1,362,322		4,237,308	28.4%
	Vermont	Primary	491,902	483,489	155,279	40,120	462	196,715	40.7%
March 8	Wyoming	Dem. Caucus	402,586	388,310	8,753			9,953	2.6%
March 11	Mississippi	Primary	2,160,244	2,097,253	434,110	143,286		577,438	27.5%
April 22	Pennsylvania	Primary	9,683,978	9,360,067	2,354,005	829,129		3,183,134	34.0%
May 6	Indiana	Primary	4,792,223	4,623,736	1,278,355	412,684		1,725,951	37.3%
	North Carolina	Primary	6,957,520	6,488,268	1,580,726	1,335,052		2,125,215	32.8%
May 13	Nebraska	Rep. Primary	1,336,555	1,270,460	94,535(d)	136,648	152	260,150	20.5%
	West Virginia	Dem. Primary	1,428,326	1,408,281	456,282			457,382	32.5%
May 20	Kentucky	Primary	3,267,951	3,156,075	701,768	197,793		922,456	29.2%
	Oregon	Primary	2,927,075	2,711,305	641,499	353,476		1,170,526	43.2%
May 27	Idaho	Rep. Primary	1,114,053	1,033,390	42,802(e)	168,372		182,627	17.7%
June 3	Montana	Primary	747,985	737,733	273,793	95,730		285,215	38.7%
	New Mexico	Rep. Primary	1,492,570	1,371,818		110,939		264,238	19.3%
	South Dakota	Primary	605,821	593,121	97,797	60,964		168,340	28.4%

Notes: (a) This is the number of credentialed Republicans who voted in Montana's caucus. (b) This is the number of West Virginia Republican State Convention Delegates. (c) The Washington state Democratic primary was a straw vote only; delegates were selected at the Feb 9 caucus. Republicans selected delegates by a combination of primary and caucus. (d) Nebraska Democrats selected their delegates in a Feb. 9 caucus. (e) Idaho Democrats selected their delegates through a Feb. 5 caucus.