Ronald Reagan defeated Walter Mondale.
Walter Mondale (D) vs Ronald Reagan (R). Every state below links to its full contest page with county-level results.
Nominees: Walter Mondale (D) · Ronald Reagan (R)
The 1984 cycle at a glance
The popular vote in the long run
National Democratic-minus-Republican margin, 1892–1984. Blue above the line is a Democratic margin, red below Republican.
| Year | Margin (D minus R) |
|---|---|
| 1892 | +1.7% |
| 1896 | −6.1% |
| 1900 | −7.5% |
| 1904 | −19.7% |
| 1908 | −9.6% |
| 1912 | +19.5% |
| 1916 | +3.1% |
| 1920 | −26.2% |
| 1924 | −25.2% |
| 1928 | −17.5% |
| 1932 | +17.8% |
| 1936 | +24.3% |
| 1940 | +9.9% |
| 1944 | +7.5% |
| 1948 | +4.5% |
| 1952 | −10.8% |
| 1956 | −15.4% |
| 1960 | +0.2% |
| 1964 | +22.6% |
| 1968 | −0.7% |
| 1972 | −23.2% |
| 1976 | +2.1% |
| 1980 | −9.7% |
| 1984 | −18.2% |
The path to 270
Reagan's states, safest to closest — the running electoral-vote total crosses 270 at the tipping-point state.
How the country moved
Every county that voted in both cycles, placed by how its margin swung and sized by its turnout. 2,600 of 3,140 moved toward the Republicans. The median county swung R+11.5; weighted by turnout — the average voter's county — the shift was R+8.4.
The sharpest county swings
Of the counties reporting in both cycles, the biggest shifts in presidential margin since 1980. Each links to the county's full record.
| County | State | Swing | 1980 margin | 1984 margin |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Murray County | GA | R+69.3 | D+33.1 | R+36.2 |
| Habersham County | GA | R+69.2 | D+32.0 | R+37.2 |
| Banks County | GA | R+65.5 | D+46.9 | R+18.6 |
| Stephens County | GA | R+65.3 | D+37.1 | R+28.2 |
| Forsyth County | GA | R+65.2 | D+15.1 | R+50.1 |
| Paulding County | GA | R+63.4 | D+23.9 | R+39.5 |
Results by state
Every row links to the state's contest page with its county map. Electoral votes reflect the 1984 apportionment. The Swing column is the change in margin since 1980; the faint tick on each bar marks where the state stood then.
| State | Won | Electoral votes | Margin | Swing | Democratic | Republican | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Alaska | R | 3 | R+8.8 | 62,007 | 138,380 | 207,605 | |
| Alabama | R | 9 | R+21.1 | 550,899 | 873,067 | 1,440,950 | |
| Arkansas | R | 6 | R+21.6 | 338,646 | 534,774 | 884,406 | |
| Arizona | R | 7 | R+1.5 | 333,854 | 681,416 | 1,025,897 | |
| California | R | 47 | D+0.5 | 3,922,519 | 5,467,009 | 9,505,041 | |
| Colorado | R | 8 | R+4.3 | 454,975 | 821,817 | 1,295,358 | |
| Connecticut | R | 8 | R+12.3 | 569,584 | 890,851 | 1,466,635 | |
| District of Columbia | D | 3 | D+10.2 | 180,408 | 29,009 | 211,288 | |
| Delaware | R | 3 | R+17.5 | 101,656 | 152,190 | 254,572 | |
| Florida | R | 21 | R+13.6 | 1,448,816 | 2,730,350 | 4,180,051 | |
| Georgia | R | 12 | R+35.2 | 706,628 | 1,068,722 | 1,775,350 | |
| Hawaii | R | 4 | R+13.2 | 147,098 | 184,934 | 335,674 | |
| Iowa | R | 8 | D+5.3 | 605,620 | 703,088 | 1,319,805 | |
| Idaho | R | 4 | R+4.7 | 108,510 | 297,523 | 411,144 | |
| Illinois | R | 24 | R+4.9 | 2,086,499 | 2,707,103 | 4,819,088 | |
| Indiana | R | 12 | R+5.6 | 841,481 | 1,377,230 | 2,233,069 | |
| Kansas | R | 7 | R+9.1 | 333,149 | 677,296 | 1,021,991 | |
| Kentucky | R | 9 | R+19.2 | 539,589 | 822,782 | 1,370,475 | |
| Louisiana | R | 10 | R+17.1 | 651,586 | 1,037,299 | 1,706,822 | |
| Massachusetts | R | 13 | R+2.6 | 1,239,606 | 1,310,936 | 2,559,453 | |
| Maryland | R | 10 | R+8.4 | 787,935 | 879,918 | 1,675,873 | |
| Maine | R | 4 | R+18.7 | 214,515 | 336,500 | 553,144 | |
| Michigan | R | 20 | R+12.5 | 1,529,638 | 2,251,571 | 3,801,658 | |
| Minnesota | D | 10 | R+3.8 | 1,036,364 | 1,032,603 | 2,083,726 | |
| Missouri | R | 11 | R+13.2 | 848,583 | 1,274,188 | 2,122,771 | |
| Mississippi | R | 7 | R+23.1 | 352,192 | 582,377 | 941,104 | |
| Montana | R | 4 | D+2.1 | 146,742 | 232,450 | 384,377 | |
| North Carolina | R | 13 | R+21.9 | 824,287 | 1,346,481 | 2,175,361 | |
| North Dakota | R | 3 | D+6.9 | 104,429 | 200,336 | 308,971 | |
| Nebraska | R | 5 | R+2.2 | 187,866 | 460,054 | 652,090 | |
| New Hampshire | R | 4 | R+8.3 | 120,395 | 267,051 | 388,954 | |
| New Jersey | R | 16 | R+7.5 | 1,261,323 | 1,933,630 | 3,217,862 | |
| New Mexico | R | 5 | R+2.3 | 201,769 | 307,101 | 514,370 | |
| Nevada | R | 4 | D+1.8 | 91,655 | 188,770 | 286,667 | |
| New York | R | 36 | R+5.3 | 3,119,609 | 3,664,763 | 6,806,810 | |
| Ohio | R | 23 | R+8.2 | 1,825,440 | 2,678,559 | 4,547,619 | |
| Oklahoma | R | 8 | R+12.4 | 385,080 | 861,530 | 1,255,676 | |
| Oregon | R | 7 | R+2.5 | 536,479 | 685,700 | 1,226,527 | |
| Pennsylvania | R | 25 | R+0.2 | 2,228,131 | 2,584,323 | 4,844,903 | |
| Rhode Island | R | 4 | R+14.1 | 197,106 | 212,080 | 410,489 | |
| South Carolina | R | 8 | R+26.5 | 344,470 | 615,539 | 968,540 | |
| South Dakota | R | 3 | D+2.4 | 116,113 | 200,267 | 317,867 | |
| Tennessee | R | 11 | R+16.0 | 711,714 | 990,212 | 1,711,994 | |
| Texas | R | 29 | R+13.6 | 1,949,276 | 3,433,428 | 5,397,571 | |
| Utah | R | 5 | D+2.4 | 155,369 | 469,105 | 629,656 | |
| Virginia | R | 12 | R+12.5 | 796,250 | 1,337,078 | 2,146,635 | |
| Vermont | R | 3 | R+11.2 | 95,730 | 135,865 | 234,446 | |
| Washington | R | 10 | R+0.6 | 807,352 | 1,051,670 | 1,883,910 | |
| Wisconsin | R | 11 | R+4.5 | 995,843 | 1,199,585 | 2,212,091 | |
| West Virginia | R | 6 | R+15.0 | 328,125 | 405,483 | 735,742 | |
| Wyoming | R | 3 | R+7.6 | 53,370 | 133,241 | 188,968 |
Source. MIT Election Data + Science Lab — 1984 presidential returns · official state + county-level results. Real returns — nothing estimated.