Elections / 2008 · President · CA
California — 2008 presidential election
Recent presidential results
Akashicstate2008 presidential electionCalifornia · PresidentObamaD+24.0
How it voted
Share of the 2008 vote
| Barack Obama ✓Democratic | 60.9% | 8,274,473 |
|---|---|---|
| John McCainRepublican | 36.9% | 5,011,781 |
| OtherAll other candidates | 2.2% | 296,829 |
2008presidential margin
D+60R+60
58 counties, each filled by 2008 D-vs-R margin. Hover any county for its result.
California cast 55 electoral votes this cycle.
County-level results (58 counties) — table
| County | Winner | Margin |
|---|---|---|
| Alameda County, CA | Democratic | D+59.3 |
| Alpine County, CA | Democratic | D+24.5 |
| Amador County, CA | Republican | R+14.6 |
| Butte County, CA | Democratic | D+2.3 |
| Calaveras County, CA | Republican | R+12.9 |
| Colusa County, CA | Republican | R+18.1 |
| Contra Costa County, CA | Democratic | D+37.6 |
| Del Norte County, CA | Republican | R+6.8 |
| El Dorado County, CA | Republican | R+10.5 |
| Fresno County, CA | Democratic | D+2.1 |
| Glenn County, CA | Republican | R+22.0 |
| Humboldt County, CA | Democratic | D+28.1 |
| Imperial County, CA | Democratic | D+26.2 |
| Inyo County, CA | Republican | R+9.1 |
| Kern County, CA | Republican | R+17.7 |
| Kings County, CA | Republican | R+14.1 |
| Lake County, CA | Democratic | D+19.2 |
| Lassen County, CA | Republican | R+34.1 |
| Los Angeles County, CA | Democratic | D+40.4 |
| Madera County, CA | Republican | R+13.3 |
| Marin County, CA | Democratic | D+57.6 |
| Mariposa County, CA | Republican | R+12.4 |
| Mendocino County, CA | Democratic | D+42.6 |
| Merced County, CA | Democratic | D+8.3 |
| Modoc County, CA | Republican | R+37.7 |
| Mono County, CA | Democratic | D+13.3 |
| Monterey County, CA | Democratic | D+38.3 |
| Napa County, CA | Democratic | D+32.5 |
| Nevada County, CA | Democratic | D+5.3 |
| Orange County, CA | Republican | R+2.6 |
| Placer County, CA | Republican | R+11.2 |
| Plumas County, CA | Republican | R+12.0 |
| Riverside County, CA | Democratic | D+2.3 |
| Sacramento County, CA | Democratic | D+19.0 |
| San Benito County, CA | Democratic | D+22.7 |
| San Bernardino County, CA | Democratic | D+6.3 |
| San Diego County, CA | Democratic | D+10.2 |
| San Francisco County, CA | Democratic | D+70.3 |
| San Joaquin County, CA | Democratic | D+10.6 |
| San Luis Obispo County, CA | Democratic | D+5.3 |
| San Mateo County, CA | Democratic | D+48.7 |
| Santa Barbara County, CA | Democratic | D+22.8 |
| Santa Clara County, CA | Democratic | D+40.9 |
| Santa Cruz County, CA | Democratic | D+57.5 |
| Shasta County, CA | Republican | R+25.8 |
| Sierra County, CA | Republican | R+20.8 |
| Siskiyou County, CA | Republican | R+10.3 |
| Solano County, CA | Democratic | D+28.5 |
| Sonoma County, CA | Democratic | D+49.6 |
| Stanislaus County, CA | Democratic | D+1.7 |
| Sutter County, CA | Republican | R+16.7 |
| Tehama County, CA | Republican | R+24.0 |
| Trinity County, CA | Democratic | D+4.6 |
| Tulare County, CA | Republican | R+15.3 |
| Tuolumne County, CA | Republican | R+12.7 |
| Ventura County, CA | Democratic | D+12.2 |
| Yolo County, CA | Democratic | D+36.2 |
| Yuba County, CA | Republican | R+14.7 |
Nominees: Barack Obama (D) · John McCain (R)
California's presidential margins
1892–2024, the 2008 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 | 489,106 | 119,555 | 622,913 | |
| Alpine County | D | 422 | 252 | 694 | |
| Amador County | R | 7,813 | 10,561 | 18,879 | |
| Butte County | D | 49,013 | 46,706 | 98,707 | |
| Calaveras County | R | 9,813 | 12,835 | 23,421 | |
| Colusa County | R | 2,569 | 3,733 | 6,448 | |
| Contra Costa County | D | 306,983 | 136,436 | 453,244 | |
| Del Norte County | R | 4,323 | 4,967 | 9,531 | |
| El Dorado County | R | 40,529 | 50,314 | 93,309 | |
| Fresno County | D | 136,706 | 131,015 | 273,452 | |
| Glenn County | R | 3,734 | 5,910 | 9,879 | |
| Humboldt County | D | 39,692 | 21,713 | 63,968 | |
| Imperial County | D | 24,162 | 14,008 | 38,820 | |
| Inyo County | R | 3,743 | 4,523 | 8,554 | |
| Kern County | R | 93,457 | 134,793 | 233,808 | |
| Kings County | R | 14,747 | 19,710 | 35,108 | |
| Lake County | D | 14,854 | 9,935 | 25,629 | |
| Lassen County | R | 3,586 | 7,483 | 11,433 | |
| Los Angeles County | D | 2,295,853 | 956,425 | 3,318,248 | |
| Madera County | R | 17,952 | 23,583 | 42,474 | |
| Marin County | D | 109,320 | 28,384 | 140,570 | |
| Mariposa County | R | 4,100 | 5,298 | 9,677 | |
| Mendocino County | D | 27,843 | 10,721 | 40,184 | |
| Merced County | D | 34,031 | 28,704 | 64,051 | |
| Modoc County | R | 1,313 | 2,981 | 4,420 | |
| Mono County | D | 3,093 | 2,354 | 5,571 | |
| Monterey County | D | 88,453 | 38,797 | 129,783 | |
| Napa County | D | 38,849 | 19,484 | 59,642 | |
| Nevada County | D | 28,617 | 25,663 | 55,647 | |
| Orange County | R | 549,558 | 579,064 | 1,153,687 | |
| Placer County | R | 75,112 | 94,647 | 173,812 | |
| Plumas County | R | 4,715 | 6,035 | 11,028 | |
| Riverside County | D | 325,017 | 310,041 | 647,299 | |
| Sacramento County | D | 316,506 | 213,583 | 542,859 | |
| San Benito County | D | 11,917 | 7,425 | 19,788 | |
| San Bernardino County | D | 315,720 | 277,408 | 606,334 | |
| San Diego County | D | 666,581 | 541,032 | 1,235,503 | |
| San Francisco County | D | 322,220 | 52,292 | 383,796 | |
| San Joaquin County | D | 113,974 | 91,607 | 210,308 | |
| San Luis Obispo County | D | 68,176 | 61,055 | 133,155 | |
| San Mateo County | D | 222,826 | 75,057 | 303,292 | |
| Santa Barbara County | D | 105,614 | 65,585 | 175,407 | |
| Santa Clara County | D | 462,241 | 190,039 | 665,589 | |
| Santa Cruz County | D | 98,745 | 25,244 | 127,736 | |
| Shasta County | R | 28,867 | 49,588 | 80,390 | |
| Sierra County | R | 743 | 1,158 | 1,991 | |
| Siskiyou County | R | 9,292 | 11,520 | 21,564 | |
| Solano County | D | 102,095 | 56,035 | 161,588 | |
| Sonoma County | D | 168,888 | 55,127 | 229,351 | |
| Stanislaus County | D | 80,279 | 77,497 | 161,512 | |
| Sutter County | R | 13,412 | 18,911 | 33,021 | |
| Tehama County | R | 8,945 | 14,843 | 24,560 | |
| Trinity County | D | 3,233 | 2,940 | 6,430 | |
| Tulare County | R | 43,634 | 59,765 | 105,525 | |
| Tuolumne County | R | 11,532 | 14,988 | 27,303 | |
| Ventura County | D | 187,601 | 145,853 | 341,041 | |
| Yolo County | D | 53,488 | 24,592 | 79,749 | |
| Yuba County | R | 8,866 | 12,007 | 21,401 |
Same ballot, 2008CA
Source. MIT Election Data + Science Lab — 2008 presidential returns · official county-level results. Real returns — nothing estimated.