Bill Clinton defeated Bob Dole.
Bill Clinton (D) vs Bob Dole (R), with Ross Perot (Reform) carrying counties. Every state below links to its full contest page with county-level results.
Nominees: Bill Clinton (D) · Bob Dole (R) · Ross Perot (Reform)
The 1996 cycle at a glance
The popular vote in the long run
National Democratic-minus-Republican margin, 1892–1996. 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% |
| 1988 | −7.7% |
| 1992 | +5.6% |
| 1996 | +8.5% |
The path to 270
Clinton'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. 1,621 of 3,142 moved toward the Republicans. The median county swung R+0.5; weighted by turnout — the average voter's county — the shift was D+3.4.
The sharpest county swings
Of the counties reporting in both cycles, the biggest shifts in presidential margin since 1992. Each links to the county's full record.
| County | State | Swing | 1992 margin | 1996 margin |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Russell County | KS | R+56.0 | R+6.4 | R+62.3 |
| Ketchikan Gateway Borough | AK | R+34.8 | R+6.2 | R+41.0 |
| Stewart County | GA | D+33.5 | D+12.2 | D+45.6 |
| Osborne County | KS | R+32.1 | R+8.6 | R+40.7 |
| Rush County | KS | R+31.6 | R+3.2 | R+34.8 |
| Sheridan County | KS | R+31.6 | R+24.0 | R+55.6 |
Results by state
Every row links to the state's contest page with its county map. Electoral votes reflect the 1996 apportionment. The Swing column is the change in margin since 1992; 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+8.4 | 80,377 | 122,743 | 241,617 | |
| Alabama | R | 9 | R+0.2 | 662,165 | 769,044 | 1,534,349 | |
| Arkansas | D | 6 | R+0.8 | 475,171 | 325,416 | 884,262 | |
| Arizona | D | 8 | D+4.2 | 653,288 | 622,073 | 1,404,405 | |
| California | D | 54 | R+0.5 | 5,119,835 | 3,828,380 | 10,019,484 | |
| Colorado | R | 8 | R+5.6 | 671,152 | 691,848 | 1,510,704 | |
| Connecticut | D | 8 | D+11.7 | 735,725 | 483,094 | 1,392,579 | |
| District of Columbia | D | 3 | D+0.3 | 158,220 | 17,339 | 185,726 | |
| Delaware | D | 3 | D+7.1 | 140,355 | 99,062 | 270,810 | |
| Florida | D | 25 | D+7.6 | 2,546,870 | 2,244,536 | 5,303,794 | |
| Georgia | R | 13 | R+1.8 | 1,053,849 | 1,080,843 | 2,298,899 | |
| Hawaii | D | 4 | D+13.9 | 205,012 | 113,943 | 360,120 | |
| Iowa | D | 7 | D+4.3 | 620,258 | 492,644 | 1,234,075 | |
| Idaho | R | 4 | R+4.9 | 165,443 | 256,595 | 491,711 | |
| Illinois | D | 22 | D+3.3 | 2,341,744 | 1,587,021 | 4,311,391 | |
| Indiana | R | 12 | D+0.5 | 887,424 | 1,006,693 | 2,135,842 | |
| Kansas | R | 6 | R+13.1 | 387,659 | 583,245 | 1,074,300 | |
| Kentucky | D | 8 | R+2.3 | 636,614 | 623,283 | 1,388,708 | |
| Louisiana | D | 9 | D+7.5 | 927,837 | 712,586 | 1,783,959 | |
| Massachusetts | D | 12 | D+14.9 | 1,571,763 | 718,107 | 2,556,785 | |
| Maryland | D | 10 | D+1.8 | 966,207 | 681,530 | 1,780,870 | |
| Maine | D | 4 | D+12.5 | 312,788 | 186,378 | 605,897 | |
| Michigan | D | 18 | D+5.8 | 1,989,653 | 1,481,212 | 3,848,844 | |
| Minnesota | D | 10 | D+4.5 | 1,120,438 | 766,476 | 2,192,640 | |
| Missouri | D | 11 | R+3.9 | 1,025,935 | 890,016 | 2,158,065 | |
| Mississippi | R | 7 | D+3.8 | 394,022 | 439,838 | 893,857 | |
| Montana | R | 3 | R+5.4 | 167,922 | 179,652 | 407,083 | |
| North Carolina | R | 14 | R+3.9 | 1,107,849 | 1,225,938 | 2,515,807 | |
| North Dakota | R | 3 | D+5.2 | 106,905 | 125,050 | 266,411 | |
| Nebraska | R | 5 | R+1.5 | 236,761 | 363,467 | 677,415 | |
| New Hampshire | D | 4 | D+9.1 | 248,234 | 196,532 | 501,195 | |
| New Jersey | D | 15 | D+15.5 | 1,652,329 | 1,103,078 | 3,075,807 | |
| New Mexico | D | 5 | R+1.2 | 273,495 | 232,751 | 556,074 | |
| Nevada | D | 4 | R+1.6 | 203,974 | 199,244 | 464,279 | |
| New York | D | 33 | D+13.0 | 3,756,177 | 1,933,492 | 6,316,129 | |
| Ohio | D | 21 | D+4.5 | 2,148,222 | 1,859,883 | 4,534,434 | |
| Oklahoma | R | 8 | D+0.8 | 488,105 | 582,315 | 1,206,713 | |
| Oregon | D | 7 | R+1.9 | 649,641 | 538,152 | 1,377,760 | |
| Pennsylvania | D | 23 | D+0.2 | 2,215,819 | 1,801,169 | 4,501,307 | |
| Rhode Island | D | 4 | D+14.9 | 233,050 | 104,683 | 390,247 | |
| South Carolina | R | 8 | D+2.1 | 504,051 | 573,458 | 1,149,457 | |
| South Dakota | R | 3 | D+0.1 | 139,333 | 150,543 | 323,737 | |
| Tennessee | D | 11 | R+2.2 | 909,146 | 863,530 | 1,894,105 | |
| Texas | R | 32 | R+1.4 | 2,459,683 | 2,736,167 | 5,611,644 | |
| Utah | R | 5 | R+2.4 | 221,633 | 361,911 | 665,629 | |
| Virginia | R | 13 | D+2.4 | 1,089,021 | 1,136,874 | 2,413,127 | |
| Vermont | D | 3 | D+6.6 | 137,894 | 80,352 | 258,449 | |
| Washington | D | 11 | D+1.1 | 1,123,323 | 840,712 | 2,254,560 | |
| Wisconsin | D | 11 | D+6.0 | 1,071,971 | 845,029 | 2,196,169 | |
| West Virginia | D | 5 | D+1.7 | 327,812 | 233,946 | 636,459 | |
| Wyoming | R | 3 | R+7.4 | 77,934 | 105,388 | 211,571 |
Source. MIT Election Data + Science Lab — 1996 presidential returns · official state + county-level results. Real returns — nothing estimated.