North Carolina — 1980 presidential election
Recent presidential results
Akashicstate1980 presidential electionNorth Carolina · PresidentReaganR+2.1
How it voted
Share of the 1980 vote
| Ronald Reagan ✓Republican | 49.3% | 915,018 |
|---|---|---|
| Jimmy CarterDemocratic | 47.2% | 875,635 |
| OtherAll other candidates | 3.5% | 65,180 |
1980presidential margin
D+60R+60
100 counties, each filled by 1980 D-vs-R margin. Hover any county for its result.
North Carolina cast 13 electoral votes this cycle.
County-level results (100 counties) — table
| County | Winner | Margin |
|---|---|---|
| Alamance County, NC | Republican | R+8.9 |
| Alexander County, NC | Republican | R+16.5 |
| Alleghany County, NC | Democratic | D+4.7 |
| Anson County, NC | Democratic | D+42.4 |
| Ashe County, NC | Republican | R+11.5 |
| Avery County, NC | Republican | R+37.7 |
| Beaufort County, NC | Republican | R+5.7 |
| Bertie County, NC | Democratic | D+38.5 |
| Bladen County, NC | Democratic | D+37.6 |
| Brunswick County, NC | Democratic | D+6.6 |
| Buncombe County, NC | Republican | R+2.4 |
| Burke County, NC | Republican | R+5.0 |
| Cabarrus County, NC | Republican | R+21.0 |
| Caldwell County, NC | Republican | R+18.9 |
| Camden County, NC | Democratic | D+19.1 |
| Carteret County, NC | Republican | R+8.5 |
| Caswell County, NC | Democratic | D+23.8 |
| Catawba County, NC | Republican | R+23.8 |
| Chatham County, NC | Democratic | D+13.1 |
| Cherokee County, NC | Republican | R+10.4 |
| Chowan County, NC | Democratic | D+19.7 |
| Clay County, NC | Republican | R+22.9 |
| Cleveland County, NC | Democratic | D+5.9 |
| Columbus County, NC | Democratic | D+29.4 |
| Craven County, NC | Republican | R+4.6 |
| Cumberland County, NC | Democratic | D+1.2 |
| Currituck County, NC | Democratic | D+8.2 |
| Dare County, NC | Republican | R+5.3 |
| Davidson County, NC | Republican | R+21.5 |
| Davie County, NC | Republican | R+30.5 |
| Duplin County, NC | Democratic | D+16.2 |
| Durham County, NC | Democratic | D+11.9 |
| Edgecombe County, NC | Democratic | D+14.4 |
| Forsyth County, NC | Republican | R+4.1 |
| Franklin County, NC | Democratic | D+21.1 |
| Gaston County, NC | Republican | R+13.5 |
| Gates County, NC | Democratic | D+42.6 |
| Graham County, NC | Republican | R+9.8 |
| Granville County, NC | Democratic | D+22.1 |
| Greene County, NC | Democratic | D+12.0 |
| Guilford County, NC | Republican | R+8.6 |
| Halifax County, NC | Democratic | D+15.9 |
| Harnett County, NC | Democratic | D+9.2 |
| Haywood County, NC | Democratic | D+14.9 |
| Henderson County, NC | Republican | R+27.0 |
| Hertford County, NC | Democratic | D+37.1 |
| Hoke County, NC | Democratic | D+47.7 |
| Hyde County, NC | Democratic | D+20.0 |
| Iredell County, NC | Republican | R+10.3 |
| Jackson County, NC | Democratic | D+7.7 |
| Johnston County, NC | Republican | R+4.1 |
| Jones County, NC | Democratic | D+22.0 |
| Lee County, NC | Democratic | D+5.5 |
| Lenoir County, NC | Republican | R+12.9 |
| Lincoln County, NC | Republican | R+7.1 |
| Macon County, NC | Republican | R+6.9 |
| Madison County, NC | Democratic | D+9.6 |
| Martin County, NC | Democratic | D+29.5 |
| McDowell County, NC | Republican | R+9.2 |
| Mecklenburg County, NC | Republican | R+1.0 |
| Mitchell County, NC | Republican | R+40.8 |
| Montgomery County, NC | Democratic | D+6.9 |
| Moore County, NC | Republican | R+11.0 |
| Nash County, NC | Republican | R+14.6 |
| New Hanover County, NC | Republican | R+11.1 |
| Northampton County, NC | Democratic | D+45.0 |
| Onslow County, NC | Republican | R+8.9 |
| Orange County, NC | Democratic | D+20.9 |
| Pamlico County, NC | Democratic | D+18.9 |
| Pasquotank County, NC | Democratic | D+10.2 |
| Pender County, NC | Democratic | D+18.1 |
| Perquimans County, NC | Democratic | D+12.3 |
| Person County, NC | Democratic | D+11.0 |
| Pitt County, NC | Republican | R+0.9 |
| Polk County, NC | Republican | R+11.5 |
| Randolph County, NC | Republican | R+31.8 |
| Richmond County, NC | Democratic | D+30.2 |
| Robeson County, NC | Democratic | D+42.5 |
| Rockingham County, NC | Democratic | D+2.1 |
| Rowan County, NC | Republican | R+22.2 |
| Rutherford County, NC | Republican | R+0.3 |
| Sampson County, NC | Democratic | D+5.6 |
| Scotland County, NC | Democratic | D+34.1 |
| Stanly County, NC | Republican | R+10.9 |
| Stokes County, NC | Republican | R+11.4 |
| Surry County, NC | Republican | R+5.6 |
| Swain County, NC | Democratic | D+15.1 |
| Transylvania County, NC | Republican | R+8.9 |
| Tyrrell County, NC | Democratic | D+30.7 |
| Union County, NC | Democratic | D+5.4 |
| Vance County, NC | Democratic | D+12.3 |
| Wake County, NC | Republican | R+0.7 |
| Warren County, NC | Democratic | D+39.9 |
| Washington County, NC | Democratic | D+21.1 |
| Watauga County, NC | Republican | R+9.4 |
| Wayne County, NC | Republican | R+14.3 |
| Wilkes County, NC | Republican | R+27.2 |
| Wilson County, NC | Republican | R+1.7 |
| Yadkin County, NC | Republican | R+31.8 |
| Yancey County, NC | Democratic | D+8.6 |
North Carolina results by county
100 counties. Third-party and independent votes are reported by the county source as one combined figure; every named candidate is listed in the complete result below.
| Led by | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Alamance County | Reagan, Ronald+3,035 | 18,07753.1% | 15,04244.2% | 9472.8% | 34,066 |
| Alexander County | Reagan, Ronald+1,830 | 6,37657.4% | 4,54640.9% | 1871.7% | 11,109 |
| Alleghany County | Carter, Jimmy+203 | 1,99546.3% | 2,19851.0% | 1172.7% | 4,310 |
| Anson County | Carter, Jimmy+3,005 | 1,96827.8% | 4,97370.2% | 1462.1% | 7,087 |
| Ashe County | Reagan, Ronald+1,182 | 5,64354.7% | 4,46143.3% | 2082.0% | 10,312 |
| Avery County | Reagan, Ronald+1,953 | 3,48067.2% | 1,52729.5% | 1753.4% | 5,182 |
| Beaufort County | Reagan, Ronald+749 | 6,77352.0% | 6,02446.2% | 2401.8% | 13,037 |
| Bertie County | Carter, Jimmy+2,168 | 1,69530.1% | 3,86368.6% | 741.3% | 5,632 |
| Bladen County | Carter, Jimmy+3,359 | 2,74530.7% | 6,10468.3% | 921.0% | 8,941 |
| Brunswick County | Carter, Jimmy+864 | 5,89745.4% | 6,76152.0% | 3452.7% | 13,003 |
| Buncombe County | Reagan, Ronald+1,287 | 26,12448.8% | 24,83746.4% | 2,5694.8% | 53,530 |
| Burke County | Reagan, Ronald+1,276 | 12,95651.0% | 11,68046.0% | 7813.1% | 25,417 |
| Cabarrus County | Reagan, Ronald+5,375 | 15,14359.2% | 9,76838.2% | 6742.6% | 25,585 |
| Caldwell County | Reagan, Ronald+4,227 | 12,96558.1% | 8,73839.2% | 6072.7% | 22,310 |
| Camden County | Carter, Jimmy+399 | 81338.9% | 1,21258.0% | 633.0% | 2,088 |
| Carteret County | Reagan, Ronald+1,248 | 7,73352.4% | 6,48543.9% | 5493.7% | 14,767 |
| Caswell County | Carter, Jimmy+1,373 | 2,15637.3% | 3,52961.1% | 921.6% | 5,777 |
| Catawba County | Reagan, Ronald+9,000 | 22,87360.4% | 13,87336.6% | 1,1323.0% | 37,878 |
| Chatham County | Carter, Jimmy+1,730 | 5,41441.0% | 7,14454.1% | 6474.9% | 13,205 |
| Cherokee County | Reagan, Ronald+735 | 3,84954.4% | 3,11444.0% | 1161.6% | 7,079 |
| Chowan County | Carter, Jimmy+722 | 1,42438.9% | 2,14658.6% | 902.5% | 3,660 |
| Clay County | Reagan, Ronald+812 | 2,13660.2% | 1,32437.3% | 872.5% | 3,547 |
| Cleveland County | Carter, Jimmy+1,391 | 10,82846.1% | 12,21952.0% | 4511.9% | 23,498 |
| Columbus County | Carter, Jimmy+4,690 | 5,52234.6% | 10,21264.1% | 2061.3% | 15,940 |
| Craven County | Reagan, Ronald+773 | 8,55451.0% | 7,78146.4% | 4482.7% | 16,783 |
| Cumberland County | Carter, Jimmy+533 | 21,54047.6% | 22,07348.8% | 1,6153.6% | 45,228 |
| Currituck County | Carter, Jimmy+312 | 1,66844.1% | 1,98052.3% | 1383.6% | 3,786 |
| Dare County | Reagan, Ronald+297 | 2,79449.8% | 2,49744.5% | 3245.8% | 5,615 |
| Davidson County | Reagan, Ronald+8,215 | 22,79459.6% | 14,57938.1% | 8962.3% | 38,269 |
| Davie County | Reagan, Ronald+3,013 | 6,30263.8% | 3,28933.3% | 2892.9% | 9,880 |
| Duplin County | Carter, Jimmy+2,121 | 5,40341.3% | 7,52457.6% | 1421.1% | 13,069 |
| Durham County | Carter, Jimmy+5,693 | 19,27640.2% | 24,96952.1% | 3,6567.6% | 47,901 |
| Edgecombe County | Carter, Jimmy+2,029 | 5,91642.1% | 7,94556.5% | 1951.4% | 14,056 |
| Forsyth County | Reagan, Ronald+3,519 | 42,38950.0% | 38,87045.8% | 3,5394.2% | 84,798 |
| Franklin County | Carter, Jimmy+1,919 | 3,50838.6% | 5,42759.8% | 1461.6% | 9,081 |
| Gaston County | Reagan, Ronald+6,123 | 25,13955.6% | 19,01642.1% | 1,0492.3% | 45,204 |
| Gates County | Carter, Jimmy+1,478 | 95727.6% | 2,43570.2% | 752.2% | 3,467 |
| Graham County | Reagan, Ronald+353 | 1,96154.2% | 1,60844.5% | 461.3% | 3,615 |
| Granville County | Carter, Jimmy+2,043 | 3,51338.0% | 5,55660.1% | 1771.9% | 9,246 |
| Greene County | Carter, Jimmy+614 | 2,22143.4% | 2,83555.4% | 571.1% | 5,113 |
| Guilford County | Reagan, Ronald+8,775 | 53,29151.9% | 44,51643.4% | 4,8154.7% | 102,622 |
| Halifax County | Carter, Jimmy+2,331 | 6,03341.2% | 8,36457.1% | 2511.7% | 14,648 |
| Harnett County | Carter, Jimmy+1,507 | 7,28444.7% | 8,79153.9% | 2201.4% | 16,295 |
| Haywood County | Carter, Jimmy+2,597 | 7,21741.3% | 9,81456.2% | 4312.5% | 17,462 |
| Henderson County | Reagan, Ronald+5,995 | 13,57361.2% | 7,57834.2% | 1,0304.6% | 22,181 |
| Hertford County | Carter, Jimmy+2,248 | 1,85430.6% | 4,10267.7% | 1041.7% | 6,060 |
| Hoke County | Carter, Jimmy+2,208 | 1,16825.2% | 3,37672.9% | 841.8% | 4,628 |
| Hyde County | Carter, Jimmy+414 | 80738.9% | 1,22158.9% | 442.1% | 2,072 |
| Iredell County | Reagan, Ronald+2,859 | 14,92653.7% | 12,06743.4% | 8012.9% | 27,794 |
| Jackson County | Carter, Jimmy+717 | 4,14044.5% | 4,85752.2% | 3133.4% | 9,310 |
| Johnston County | Reagan, Ronald+843 | 10,44451.3% | 9,60147.1% | 3311.6% | 20,376 |
| Jones County | Carter, Jimmy+797 | 1,40138.6% | 2,19860.6% | 310.9% | 3,630 |
| Lee County | Carter, Jimmy+579 | 4,84745.8% | 5,42651.3% | 3012.8% | 10,574 |
| Lenoir County | Reagan, Ronald+2,286 | 9,83255.5% | 7,54642.6% | 3361.9% | 17,714 |
| Lincoln County | Reagan, Ronald+1,213 | 9,00952.4% | 7,79645.3% | 3912.3% | 17,196 |
| Macon County | Reagan, Ronald+622 | 4,72752.3% | 4,10545.5% | 1992.2% | 9,031 |
| Madison County | Carter, Jimmy+573 | 2,62944.0% | 3,20253.6% | 1412.4% | 5,972 |
| Martin County | Carter, Jimmy+2,186 | 2,56434.6% | 4,75064.1% | 981.3% | 7,412 |
| McDowell County | Reagan, Ronald+977 | 5,68053.6% | 4,70344.3% | 2232.1% | 10,606 |
| Mecklenburg County | Reagan, Ronald+1,389 | 68,38447.8% | 66,99546.8% | 7,6795.4% | 143,058 |
| Mitchell County | Reagan, Ronald+2,557 | 4,32268.9% | 1,76528.1% | 1832.9% | 6,270 |
| Montgomery County | Carter, Jimmy+542 | 3,58745.7% | 4,12952.7% | 1261.6% | 7,842 |
| Moore County | Reagan, Ronald+2,074 | 10,15853.7% | 8,08442.7% | 6693.5% | 18,911 |
| Nash County | Reagan, Ronald+2,859 | 11,04356.3% | 8,18441.8% | 3741.9% | 19,601 |
| New Hanover County | Reagan, Ronald+3,573 | 17,24353.5% | 13,67042.4% | 1,3314.1% | 32,244 |
| Northampton County | Carter, Jimmy+3,086 | 1,84726.9% | 4,93371.9% | 811.2% | 6,861 |
| Onslow County | Reagan, Ronald+1,490 | 8,86152.9% | 7,37144.0% | 5043.0% | 16,736 |
| Orange County | Carter, Jimmy+5,965 | 9,26132.4% | 15,22653.3% | 4,10214.3% | 28,589 |
| Pamlico County | Carter, Jimmy+720 | 1,50439.5% | 2,22458.5% | 752.0% | 3,803 |
| Pasquotank County | Carter, Jimmy+788 | 3,34043.4% | 4,12853.6% | 2303.0% | 7,698 |
| Pender County | Carter, Jimmy+1,364 | 3,01840.0% | 4,38258.1% | 1361.8% | 7,536 |
| Perquimans County | Carter, Jimmy+350 | 1,21042.4% | 1,56054.7% | 842.9% | 2,854 |
| Person County | Carter, Jimmy+830 | 3,28143.5% | 4,11154.6% | 1421.9% | 7,534 |
| Pitt County | Reagan, Ronald+226 | 12,81648.6% | 12,59047.7% | 9653.7% | 26,371 |
| Polk County | Reagan, Ronald+646 | 3,02153.9% | 2,37542.3% | 2133.8% | 5,609 |
| Randolph County | Reagan, Ronald+9,774 | 19,88164.7% | 10,10732.9% | 7292.4% | 30,717 |
| Richmond County | Carter, Jimmy+3,505 | 3,91133.7% | 7,41663.9% | 2822.4% | 11,609 |
| Robeson County | Carter, Jimmy+10,636 | 6,98227.9% | 17,61870.4% | 4301.7% | 25,030 |
| Rockingham County | Carter, Jimmy+503 | 11,20547.6% | 11,70849.8% | 6092.6% | 23,522 |
| Rowan County | Reagan, Ronald+6,895 | 18,56659.7% | 11,67137.5% | 8722.8% | 31,109 |
| Rutherford County | Reagan, Ronald+48 | 8,36349.3% | 8,31549.0% | 2881.7% | 16,966 |
| Sampson County | Carter, Jimmy+993 | 8,09746.1% | 9,09051.7% | 3912.2% | 17,578 |
| Scotland County | Carter, Jimmy+2,313 | 2,13331.5% | 4,44665.6% | 2033.0% | 6,782 |
| Stanly County | Reagan, Ronald+1,950 | 9,73454.5% | 7,78443.6% | 3281.8% | 17,846 |
| Stokes County | Reagan, Ronald+1,511 | 7,27554.9% | 5,76443.5% | 2061.6% | 13,245 |
| Surry County | Reagan, Ronald+1,078 | 10,06551.9% | 8,98746.3% | 3561.8% | 19,408 |
| Swain County | Carter, Jimmy+530 | 1,45741.4% | 1,98756.4% | 762.2% | 3,520 |
| Transylvania County | Reagan, Ronald+818 | 4,82652.6% | 4,00843.7% | 3413.7% | 9,175 |
| Tyrrell County | Carter, Jimmy+421 | 46634.0% | 88764.7% | 171.2% | 1,370 |
| Union County | Carter, Jimmy+1,061 | 9,01245.8% | 10,07351.2% | 6033.1% | 19,688 |
| Vance County | Carter, Jimmy+1,198 | 4,21743.1% | 5,41555.4% | 1421.5% | 9,774 |
| Wake County | Reagan, Ronald+765 | 49,76847.3% | 49,00346.6% | 6,4226.1% | 105,193 |
| Warren County | Carter, Jimmy+2,168 | 1,58229.1% | 3,75069.1% | 981.8% | 5,430 |
| Washington County | Carter, Jimmy+1,065 | 1,94338.6% | 3,00859.7% | 861.7% | 5,037 |
| Watauga County | Reagan, Ronald+1,127 | 6,14951.4% | 5,02242.0% | 7876.6% | 11,958 |
| Wayne County | Reagan, Ronald+3,274 | 12,86056.3% | 9,58642.0% | 3901.7% | 22,836 |
| Wilkes County | Reagan, Ronald+6,278 | 14,46262.7% | 8,18435.5% | 4031.7% | 23,049 |
| Wilson County | Reagan, Ronald+287 | 8,32949.9% | 8,04248.1% | 3332.0% | 16,704 |
| Yadkin County | Reagan, Ronald+3,680 | 7,53065.1% | 3,85033.3% | 1901.6% | 11,570 |
| Yancey County | Carter, Jimmy+647 | 3,36344.6% | 4,01053.1% | 1732.3% | 7,546 |
complete certified result
North Carolina candidate results
Top three shown first · expand for every reported candidate and write-in category
Source: MIT Election Data + Science Lab — U.S. President 1976–2024 state candidate returns
Nominees: Jimmy Carter (D) · Ronald Reagan (R)
North Carolina's presidential margins
1892–2024, the 1980 contest in context
| Year | Margin (D minus R) |
|---|---|
| 1892 | +11.6% |
| 1896 | +5.8% |
| 1900 | +8.5% |
| 1904 | +20.1% |
| 1908 | +8.7% |
| 1912 | +47.3% |
| 1916 | +16.4% |
| 1920 | +13.5% |
| 1924 | +19.4% |
| 1928 | −9.9% |
| 1932 | +40.6% |
| 1936 | +46.8% |
| 1940 | +48.1% |
| 1944 | +33.4% |
| 1948 | +25.3% |
| 1952 | +7.8% |
| 1956 | +1.3% |
| 1960 | +4.2% |
| 1964 | +12.3% |
| 1968 | −10.3% |
| 1972 | −40.6% |
| 1976 | +11.0% |
| 1980 | −2.1% |
| 1984 | −24.0% |
| 1988 | −16.3% |
| 1992 | −0.8% |
| 1996 | −4.7% |
| 2000 | −12.8% |
| 2004 | −12.4% |
| 2008 | +0.3% |
| 2012 | −2.0% |
| 2016 | −3.7% |
| 2020 | −1.3% |
| 2024 | −3.2% |
Same ballot, 1980NC
Source. MIT Election Data + Science Lab — 1980 presidential returns · official county-level results. Real returns — nothing estimated.