CALIFORNIA 55 Electoral Votes
Population 
(Source: U.S. Census Bureau, Calif. Secretary of State)
Total Population, July 1, 2008 est. 36,756,666
Total Registration, Oct. 20, 2008 17,304,091
Dem. 7,683,495 (44.40%)   Rep. 5,428,052 (31.37%)   AIP 370,405 (2.14%)   Grn. 118,416 (0.68%)   Lib. 83,574 (0.48%)   P&F 56,350 (0.33%)  Misc. 118,876 (0.69%)   Decline 3,444,923 (19.91%)
California has: 58 counties.
Nine counties over 1 million: Los Angeles, Orange, San Diego, San Bernardino, Riverside, Santa Clara, Alameda, Sacramento, and Contra Costa. >
Four cities over 500,000: Los Angeles, San Diego, San Jose, San Francisco. >

Government
Governor: Arnold Schwarzenegger (R) elected Oct. 7, 2003; re-elected in 2006.
State Legislature: California State Assembly: 80 seats  California State Senate: 40 seats
Local: Counties, Cities   NACO Counties
U.S. House: 33D, 20R - 1. M.Thompson (D) | 2. W.Herger (R) | 3. D.Lungren (R) | 4. J.Doolittle (R) | 5. R.Matsui (D) | 6. L.Woolsey (D) | 7. Geo.Miller (D) | 8. N.Pelosi (D) | 9. B.Lee (D) | 10. E.Tauscher (D) | 11. J.McNerney (D) | 12. J.Speier (D) | 13. P.Stark (D) | 14. A.Eshoo (D) | 15. M.Honda (D | 16. Z.Lofgren (D) | 17. S.Farr (D) | 18. D.Cardoza (D) | 19. G.Radanovich (R) | 20. J.Costa (D) | 21. D.Nunes (R) | 22. K.McCarthy (R) | 23. L.Capps (D) | 24. E.Gallegly (R) | 25. H.McKeon (R) | 26. D.Dreier (R) | 27. B.Sherman (D) | 28. H.Berman (D) | 29. A.Schiff (D) | 30. H.Waxman (D) | 31. X.Becerra (D) | 32. H.Solis (D) | 33. D.Watson (D) | 34. L.Roybal-Allard (D) | 35. M.Waters (D) | 36. J.Harman (D) | 37. L.Richardson (D) | 38. G.Napolitano (D) | 39. L.Sanchez (D) | 40. Ed. Royce (R) | 41. J.Lewis (R) | 42. GaryMiller (R) | 43. J.Baca (D) | 44. K.Calvert (R) | 45. M.Bono (R) | 46. D.Rohrabacher (R) | 47. L.Sanchez (D) | 48. J.Campbell (R) | 49. D.Issa (R) | 50. B.Bilbray (R) | 51. B.Filner (D) | 52. D.Hunter (R) | 53. S.Davis (D)
U.S. Senate: Dianne Feinstein (D) re-elected in 2006, Barbara Boxer (D) re-elected in 2004.
2008  
update
U.S. House:  There were two open U.S. House seats.  In the 4th CD (Roseville, Rocklin, Auburn north to OR border) State Sen. Tom McClintock (R) eked out a 1,800-vote (0.60%) win over Charlie Brown (D) in the race to succeed Rep. John Doolittle (R).  This was one of the most expensive races in the country.  In the 52nd CD (part of San Diego County), opened by the retirement of Rep. Duncan Hunter (R), Duncan D. Hunter (R), son of the incumbent, defeated Mike Lumpkin (D) by a comfortable margin.  In a closely watched race, in the 11th CD (east and south of the Bay area) freshman Rep. Jerry McNerney (D) defeated Dean Andal (R).  The U.S. House delegation remains at 33D, 20R.
More:  California voters faced 12 ballot measures; after a very expensive campaign the California Marriage Protection Act (Proposition 8) won by a margin of 52.3% to 47.7%, eliminating the right of same sex couples to marry
. 
Post-Election: On Dec. 19, 2008 President-Elect Obama named Rep. Hilda Solis (D) as his nominee for Secretary of Labor.  Solis was confirmed on and resigned effective Feb. 24, 2009.  MORE

California Home Page
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Rough & Tumble
 
 


The Golden State

General Election -- Tuesday, November 4, 2008
Voting Eligible Population*: 21,993,429.
VEP Highest Office Turnout Rate: 61.7%.

Mail in voting began on Oct. 6, 2008.  Last day to request a vote-by-mail ballot was Oct. 28, 2008. 

Vote by Mail: 5,722,465 [41.64% of Total Voters].


Total Registration: 17,304,091.
Registration Deadline: Oct. 20, 2008.
Official Results >


+Obama/Biden (Dem.) 8,274,473
(61.01)
McCain/Palin (Rep.) 5,011,781 (36.95)
Keyes/Drake (AIP)
40,673
(0.30)
McKinney/Clemente (Grn.)
38,774
(0.29)
Barr/Root (Lib.) 67,582
(0.50)
Nader/Gonzalez (P&F)
 108,381
(0.80)
Baldwin (w/in)
3,145
(0.02)
Moore (w/in
36
 -
Harris (w/in)
49
-
Paul (w/in)
17,006
(0.13)
Total........13,561,900


Total Voters: 13,743,177. >
2008 Overview
The Obama-Biden ticket easily won California, gaining a plurality of 3,262,692 votes (24.06 percentage points), and carrying 34 counties to 24 for McCain.  Both campaigns milked the state for money (visits) and "Tonight Show" appearances.  In third party news the AIP disaffiliated from the Constitution Party and ran Alan Keyes as its nominee rather than Chuck Baldwin.
Obama/Allies  |  McCain/Allies  |  Nader
[Primary Election: June 3, 2008]
Presidential Primary Election -- Tuesday, February 5, 2008
Registration, Jan. 22, 2008:  Dem. 6,749,406 (42.95%)   Rep. 5,229,425 (33.28%)   AIP 328,261 (2.09%)   Grn. 127,042  (0.81%)   Lib. 80,435 (0.51%)   P&F 57,182 (0.36%)  Misc. 97,838 (0.62%)   Decline 3,043,164 (19.37%)   Total 15,712,753.
Early voting (vote by mail) began Jan. 7, 2008, 29 days before the primary. 

Voters registered as Decline to State (more than 19% of the California electorate) could participate in the Democratic or American Independent Party primary.  According to the Secretary of State's website: "Political parties have until 135 days prior to an election to provide a written notice to the Secretary of State indicating the adoption of a rule allowing decline to state voters to vote the ballot of that individual party.  The deadline for the February 5, 2008 Presidential Primary Election was September 23, 2007."  Only the Democrats and AIP submitted letters.  (Note that in Los Angeles County the ballot layout for decline-to-state voters caused some problems [the "double bubble"]).

Turnout: Nine million Californians voted in the primary.  "57.71% of registered voters cast ballots in the February election, marking the highest primary turnout on a percentage basis since 1980."  41.7% of ballots were cast by mail.  -Calif. Secretary of State

Democrats
441 Delegates (370 Pledged, 71 Unpledged) and 62 Alternates. 1, 2, 3-[PDF]
10.89% of the 4,049 Delegate Votes.  10.42% of the 4,234 Delegate Votes.

Clinton  |  Obama
former: Dodd  |  Edwards  |  Kucinich  |  Richardson

Debates:
-Jan. 31, 2008 - CNN/Los Angeles Times Democratic debate in Hollywood, CA. >

Official Results 
Joe Biden
18,261
0.36%
Dennis Kucinich
24,126
0.48%
Barack Obama
2,186,662
43.16%
Bill Richardson
19,939
0.39%
+Hillary Clinton
2,608,184
51.47%
Chris Dodd
8,005
0.16%
John Edwards
193,617
3.82%
Mike Gravel
8,184
0.16%
w/ins (8)
15
-
Total
5,066,993

 

Republicans
173 Delegates: 3 RNC; 11 at-large; 159 by CD (3 x 53) and 170 alternates.
7.27% of the 2,380 Delegates.

Allocation: At-large statewide "winner-take-all."  CD winner-take-all by district.

Huckabee  |  McCain  |  Paul  |  Romney
former: Giuliani  |  Hunter F.Thompson

Debates:
-May 3, 2007 - Reagan Presidential Library Foundation/MSNBC/THE POLITICO debate in Simi Valley, CA.
-Jan. 30, 2008 - Reagan Presidential Library Foundation/CNN/Los Angeles Times/POLITICO debate in Simi Valley, CA. >

Official Results 
Mike Huckabee
340,669
11.62%
Duncan Hunter
14,021
0.48%
Alan Keyes
11,742
0.40%
Sam Brownback
2,486
0.08%
John Cox
3,219
0.11%
Rudy Giuliani
128,681
4.39%
+John McCain
1,238,988
42.25%
Ron Paul
125,365
4.27%
Mitt Romney
1,013,471
34.56%
Tom Tancredo
3,884
0.13%
Fred Thompson
50,275
1.71%
w/ins (9)
10
-
Total
2,932,811

American Independent
Mad Max Riekse 13,597 (30.5%), Diane Beall Templin 14,811 (33.3%), Don J. Grundmann 16,068 (36.2%).
Greens
Ralph Nader 20,373 (60.7%), Cynthia McKinney 8,895 (265%), Elaine Brown 1,502 (4.5%), Kat Swift 1,028 (3.1%), Kent Mesplay 690 (2.0%), Jesse Johnson 590 (1.7%), Jared Ball 528 (1.5%).
Libertarian
top 5 candidates: Christine Smith 4,073 (25.0%), Steve Kubby 2,787 (17.1%), Wayne A. Root 2,284 (14.1%), Bob Jackson 1,441 (8.9%), Barry Hess 864 (5.3%).
Peace & Freedom
top 3 candidates: Ralph Nader 2,515 (40.9%), Cynthia McKinney 1,346 (21.4%), Gloria E. La Riva 1316 (21.0%).

More Notes on the Feb. 5, 2008 Presidential Primary Election


General Election -- Tuesday, November 2, 2004
Voting Eligible Population: 21,132,533.
VEP Highest Office Turnout Rate: 58.8%.

Registration: Dem. 7,120,425 (43.00%)    Rep. 5,745,518 (34.70%)   AIP 326,763 (1.97%)   Grn. 160,579 (0.97%)   Lib. 89,617 (0.54%)   NL 28,779 (0.17%)   P&F 68,100 (0.41%)  Misc. 91,581 (0.55%)   Decline 2,925,901 (17.67%)
...Total 16,557,273

Official Results
24,035 of 24,035 precincts


+Kerry/Edwards (Dem.)
6,737,355
(54.41)
Bush/Cheney (Rep.) 
5,501,496
(44.43)
Peroutka/Baldwin (AIP) 26,580 (0.21)
Cobb/LaMarche (Grn.) 40,598
(0.33)
Badnarik/Campagna (Lib.)
50,101
(0.40)
Peltier/Jordan (P&F)
27,548
(0.22)
Total........12,383,678
2004 Overview
Although Republicans had made some headway by electing Gov. Schwarzenegger and cutting the Democrats' registration edge, California remained a "safe Kerry" state.  Kerry gained a plurality of 1,235,859 votes (9.98 percentage points); he won in 22 counties to Bush's 36.
General Election Details
Kerry/Democrats  |  Bush-Cheney '04
[Primary Election: March 2, 2004]

General Election -- Tuesday, November 7, 2000
Voting Eligible Population: 19,685,258.
VEP Highest Office Turnout Rate: 55.7%.

2,739,155 of the 11,142,843 total votes cast were by absentee ballot -- 24.58%.

Registration: Dem. 7,134,601 (45.4%)   Rep. 5,485,492 (34.9%)   AIP 321,838 (2.1%)   Grn. 138,734 (0.9%)   Lib. 94,900 (0.6%)   Ref. 79,152 (0.5%)   NL 58,275 (0.4%)   Misc. 137,999 (0.9%)   Decline 2,256,316 (14.4%)  ...Total 15,707,307

Official Results


+Gore/Lieberman (Dem.) 5,861,203
(53.45)
Bush/Cheney (Rep.) 4,567,429 (41.65)
Phillips/Frazier (AIP) 17,042 (0.16)
Nader/LaDuke (Grn.) 418,707
(3.82)
Browne/Olivier (Lib.) 45,520
(0.42)
Hagelin/Goldhaber (NLP) 10,934
(0.09)
Buchanan/Foster (Ref.)
44,987
(0.41)
W.M.Kenyon, Sr. (Ind.w/i)
6
-
David McReynolds (Ind.w/i) 28 -
Total........10,965,856

Total Votes Not Cast in Presidential Race 177,010 (1.6%)
2000 Overview
Brash talk and a significant investment of resources by the Bush campaign and the Republican party failed to pry California's 54 electors out of the Democratic column.  As in other recent statewide elections, the Democrats' registration edge of about 10% held solid; Vice President Gore won with a plurality of 1,293,774 votes (11.80 percentage points).  Los Angeles County weighed in heavily, producing a plurality of more than 800,000 votes for Gore.  Overall, Gore won in 20 counties to Bush's 38.  Early in the campaign it appeared Ralph Nader might be a factor.  From Aug. 1 to Election Day he spent 13 days campaigning in Calif., but he ended up not having much impact on Gore's showing.  Pat Buchanan failed to make a mark despite significant TV buys. 
General Election Activity

1992 and 1996 General Elections

1992
Clinton (Dem.).....5,121,325
(46.01)
Bush (Rep.).........3,630,574
(32.61)
Perot (Ind.)..........2,296,006
(20.62)
Others (3+w/ins).......83,816
(0.75)
Total........11,131,721

1996
Clinton (Dem.).....5,119,835
(51.10)
Dole (Rep.)..........3,828,380
(38.21)
Perot (Ref.).............697,847
(6.96)
Nader (Grn.)...........237,016
(2.36)
Others (4+w/ins).....136,406
(1.36)
Total........10,019,484

2004 page >
2000 page >
Copyright © 2002, 2003, 2004, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2008, 2009 Eric M. Appleman/Democracy in Action.