Elections / 1976 · President · CA
California — 1976 presidential election
Recent presidential results
Akashicstate1976 presidential electionCalifornia · PresidentFordR+1.8
How it voted
Share of the 1976 vote
| Gerald Ford ✓Republican | 49.3% | 3,882,244 |
|---|---|---|
| Jimmy CarterDemocratic | 47.6% | 3,742,284 |
| OtherAll other candidates | 3.1% | 242,589 |
1976presidential margin
D+60R+60
58 counties, each filled by 1976 D-vs-R margin. Hover any county for its result.
California cast 45 electoral votes this cycle.
County-level results (58 counties) — table
| County | Winner | Margin |
|---|---|---|
| Alameda County, CA | Democratic | D+19.8 |
| Alpine County, CA | Republican | R+8.1 |
| Amador County, CA | Democratic | D+4.2 |
| Butte County, CA | Republican | R+7.7 |
| Calaveras County, CA | Republican | R+1.2 |
| Colusa County, CA | Republican | R+7.6 |
| Contra Costa County, CA | Republican | R+1.1 |
| Del Norte County, CA | Democratic | D+5.6 |
| El Dorado County, CA | Democratic | D+1.1 |
| Fresno County, CA | Democratic | D+1.6 |
| Glenn County, CA | Republican | R+7.6 |
| Humboldt County, CA | Democratic | D+12.6 |
| Imperial County, CA | Republican | R+1.8 |
| Inyo County, CA | Republican | R+18.9 |
| Kern County, CA | Republican | R+6.7 |
| Kings County, CA | Republican | R+1.2 |
| Lake County, CA | Democratic | D+7.4 |
| Lassen County, CA | Democratic | D+11.3 |
| Los Angeles County, CA | Democratic | D+1.9 |
| Madera County, CA | Democratic | D+5.2 |
| Marin County, CA | Republican | R+9.7 |
| Mariposa County, CA | Democratic | D+1.9 |
| Mendocino County, CA | Democratic | D+4.0 |
| Merced County, CA | Democratic | D+5.6 |
| Modoc County, CA | Republican | R+4.9 |
| Mono County, CA | Republican | R+21.1 |
| Monterey County, CA | Republican | R+5.0 |
| Napa County, CA | Republican | R+6.9 |
| Nevada County, CA | Republican | R+1.4 |
| Orange County, CA | Republican | R+26.8 |
| Placer County, CA | Democratic | D+7.1 |
| Plumas County, CA | Democratic | D+8.3 |
| Riverside County, CA | Republican | R+0.8 |
| Sacramento County, CA | Democratic | D+7.6 |
| San Benito County, CA | Republican | R+4.1 |
| San Bernardino County, CA | Republican | R+1.6 |
| San Diego County, CA | Republican | R+14.1 |
| San Francisco County, CA | Democratic | D+11.7 |
| San Joaquin County, CA | Republican | R+1.5 |
| San Luis Obispo County, CA | Republican | R+5.3 |
| San Mateo County, CA | Republican | R+6.2 |
| Santa Barbara County, CA | Republican | R+4.9 |
| Santa Clara County, CA | Republican | R+2.5 |
| Santa Cruz County, CA | Democratic | D+8.0 |
| Shasta County, CA | Democratic | D+5.1 |
| Sierra County, CA | Democratic | D+10.2 |
| Siskiyou County, CA | Republican | R+0.1 |
| Solano County, CA | Democratic | D+12.2 |
| Sonoma County, CA | Republican | R+0.2 |
| Stanislaus County, CA | Democratic | D+7.5 |
| Sutter County, CA | Republican | R+11.0 |
| Tehama County, CA | Democratic | D+6.5 |
| Trinity County, CA | Democratic | D+4.2 |
| Tulare County, CA | Republican | R+10.8 |
| Tuolumne County, CA | Democratic | D+3.0 |
| Ventura County, CA | Republican | R+9.1 |
| Yolo County, CA | Democratic | D+11.9 |
| Yuba County, CA | Democratic | D+7.8 |
Nominees: Jimmy Carter (D) · Gerald Ford (R)
California's presidential margins
1892–2024, the 1976 contest in context
| Year | Margin (D minus R) |
|---|---|
| 1892 | +1.2% |
| 1896 | −0.6% |
| 1900 | −13.1% |
| 1904 | −34.9% |
| 1908 | −22.5% |
| 1912 | +41.8% |
| 1916 | +0.4% |
| 1920 | −41.9% |
| 1924 | −49.0% |
| 1928 | −30.5% |
| 1932 | +21.0% |
| 1936 | +35.3% |
| 1940 | +16.1% |
| 1944 | +13.5% |
| 1948 | +0.4% |
| 1952 | −13.6% |
| 1956 | −11.1% |
| 1960 | −0.5% |
| 1964 | +18.3% |
| 1968 | −3.1% |
| 1972 | −13.5% |
| 1976 | −1.8% |
| 1980 | −16.8% |
| 1984 | −16.2% |
| 1988 | −3.6% |
| 1992 | +13.4% |
| 1996 | +12.9% |
| 2000 | +11.8% |
| 2004 | +9.9% |
| 2008 | +24.0% |
| 2012 | +23.1% |
| 2016 | +30.0% |
| 2020 | +29.1% |
| 2024 | +20.1% |
County-by-county results — 58 counties
| County | Won | Margin | Democratic | Republican | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Alameda County | D | 235,988 | 155,280 | 407,681 | |
| Alpine County | R | 189 | 225 | 447 | |
| Amador County | D | 4,037 | 3,699 | 8,018 | |
| Butte County | R | 24,203 | 28,400 | 54,854 | |
| Calaveras County | R | 3,607 | 3,695 | 7,528 | |
| Colusa County | R | 2,340 | 2,733 | 5,182 | |
| Contra Costa County | R | 123,742 | 126,598 | 256,534 | |
| Del Norte County | D | 2,789 | 2,481 | 5,478 | |
| El Dorado County | D | 12,763 | 12,472 | 26,154 | |
| Fresno County | D | 74,958 | 72,533 | 150,805 | |
| Glenn County | R | 3,501 | 4,094 | 7,773 | |
| Humboldt County | D | 23,500 | 18,034 | 43,372 | |
| Imperial County | R | 10,244 | 10,618 | 21,262 | |
| Inyo County | R | 2,635 | 3,905 | 6,706 | |
| Kern County | R | 50,567 | 58,023 | 110,961 | |
| Kings County | R | 8,061 | 8,263 | 16,642 | |
| Lake County | D | 6,374 | 5,462 | 12,285 | |
| Lassen County | D | 3,801 | 3,007 | 6,998 | |
| Los Angeles County | D | 1,221,893 | 1,174,926 | 2,459,077 | |
| Madera County | D | 7,625 | 6,844 | 14,892 | |
| Marin County | R | 43,590 | 53,425 | 101,715 | |
| Mariposa County | D | 2,093 | 2,012 | 4,317 | |
| Mendocino County | D | 10,653 | 9,784 | 21,509 | |
| Merced County | D | 16,637 | 14,842 | 32,208 | |
| Modoc County | R | 1,733 | 1,917 | 3,744 | |
| Mono County | R | 1,025 | 1,600 | 2,721 | |
| Monterey County | R | 36,849 | 40,896 | 80,153 | |
| Napa County | R | 18,048 | 20,839 | 40,205 | |
| Nevada County | R | 7,926 | 8,170 | 16,881 | |
| Orange County | R | 232,246 | 408,632 | 657,433 | |
| Placer County | D | 21,026 | 18,154 | 40,311 | |
| Plumas County | D | 3,429 | 2,884 | 6,563 | |
| Riverside County | R | 96,228 | 97,774 | 198,558 | |
| Sacramento County | D | 144,203 | 123,110 | 275,876 | |
| San Benito County | R | 3,122 | 3,398 | 6,680 | |
| San Bernardino County | R | 109,636 | 113,265 | 228,885 | |
| San Diego County | R | 263,654 | 353,302 | 633,795 | |
| San Francisco County | D | 133,733 | 103,561 | 256,888 | |
| San Joaquin County | R | 48,733 | 50,277 | 101,361 | |
| San Luis Obispo County | R | 24,926 | 27,785 | 54,298 | |
| San Mateo County | R | 102,896 | 117,338 | 231,741 | |
| Santa Barbara County | R | 55,018 | 60,922 | 119,844 | |
| Santa Clara County | R | 208,023 | 219,188 | 443,138 | |
| Santa Cruz County | D | 37,772 | 31,872 | 73,969 | |
| Shasta County | D | 19,200 | 17,273 | 37,854 | |
| Sierra County | D | 841 | 680 | 1,576 | |
| Siskiyou County | R | 7,060 | 7,070 | 14,615 | |
| Solano County | D | 33,682 | 26,136 | 61,644 | |
| Sonoma County | R | 50,353 | 50,555 | 105,952 | |
| Stanislaus County | D | 38,448 | 32,937 | 73,465 | |
| Sutter County | R | 6,966 | 8,745 | 16,131 | |
| Tehama County | D | 6,990 | 6,110 | 13,635 | |
| Trinity County | D | 2,172 | 1,989 | 4,356 | |
| Tulare County | R | 25,551 | 31,864 | 58,442 | |
| Tuolumne County | D | 6,492 | 6,104 | 13,003 | |
| Ventura County | R | 68,529 | 82,670 | 155,400 | |
| Yolo County | D | 23,533 | 18,376 | 43,317 | |
| Yuba County | D | 6,451 | 5,496 | 12,285 |
Same ballot, 1976CA
Source. MIT Election Data + Science Lab — 1976 presidential returns · official county-level results. Real returns — nothing estimated.