Elections / 2012 · President · CA
California — 2012 presidential election
Recent presidential results
Akashicstate2012 presidential electionCalifornia · PresidentObamaD+23.1
How it voted
Share of the 2012 vote
| Barack Obama ✓Democratic | 60.2% | 7,854,285 |
|---|---|---|
| Mitt RomneyRepublican | 37.1% | 4,839,958 |
| OtherAll other candidates | 2.8% | 361,572 |
2012presidential margin
D+60R+60
58 counties, each filled by 2012 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+60.6 |
| Alpine County, CA | Democratic | D+23.4 |
| Amador County, CA | Republican | R+19.5 |
| Butte County, CA | Republican | R+2.0 |
| Calaveras County, CA | Republican | R+16.9 |
| Colusa County, CA | Republican | R+21.3 |
| Contra Costa County, CA | Democratic | D+35.1 |
| Del Norte County, CA | Republican | R+9.4 |
| El Dorado County, CA | Republican | R+17.8 |
| Fresno County, CA | Democratic | D+1.8 |
| Glenn County, CA | Republican | R+25.2 |
| Humboldt County, CA | Democratic | D+27.1 |
| Imperial County, CA | Democratic | D+32.0 |
| Inyo County, CA | Republican | R+11.4 |
| Kern County, CA | Republican | R+16.7 |
| Kings County, CA | Republican | R+14.9 |
| Lake County, CA | Democratic | D+16.9 |
| Lassen County, CA | Republican | R+39.6 |
| Los Angeles County, CA | Democratic | D+41.9 |
| Madera County, CA | Republican | R+17.1 |
| Marin County, CA | Democratic | D+51.2 |
| Mariposa County, CA | Republican | R+18.2 |
| Mendocino County, CA | Democratic | D+38.5 |
| Merced County, CA | Democratic | D+8.7 |
| Modoc County, CA | Republican | R+41.5 |
| Mono County, CA | Democratic | D+8.6 |
| Monterey County, CA | Democratic | D+36.9 |
| Napa County, CA | Democratic | D+28.7 |
| Nevada County, CA | Republican | R+0.6 |
| Orange County, CA | Republican | R+6.2 |
| Placer County, CA | Republican | R+19.3 |
| Plumas County, CA | Republican | R+16.8 |
| Riverside County, CA | Democratic | D+1.6 |
| Sacramento County, CA | Democratic | D+18.9 |
| San Benito County, CA | Democratic | D+20.6 |
| San Bernardino County, CA | Democratic | D+7.3 |
| San Diego County, CA | Democratic | D+7.6 |
| San Francisco County, CA | Democratic | D+70.4 |
| San Joaquin County, CA | Democratic | D+13.7 |
| San Luis Obispo County, CA | Democratic | D+1.0 |
| San Mateo County, CA | Democratic | D+46.7 |
| Santa Barbara County, CA | Democratic | D+18.0 |
| Santa Clara County, CA | Democratic | D+42.8 |
| Santa Cruz County, CA | Democratic | D+55.5 |
| Shasta County, CA | Republican | R+29.1 |
| Sierra County, CA | Republican | R+22.4 |
| Siskiyou County, CA | Republican | R+15.2 |
| Solano County, CA | Democratic | D+29.2 |
| Sonoma County, CA | Democratic | D+45.7 |
| Stanislaus County, CA | Democratic | D+2.7 |
| Sutter County, CA | Republican | R+19.1 |
| Tehama County, CA | Republican | R+27.4 |
| Trinity County, CA | Republican | R+0.7 |
| Tulare County, CA | Republican | R+15.0 |
| Tuolumne County, CA | Republican | R+15.7 |
| Ventura County, CA | Democratic | D+7.0 |
| Yolo County, CA | Democratic | D+33.9 |
| Yuba County, CA | Republican | R+18.0 |
Nominees: Barack Obama (D) · Mitt Romney (R)
California's presidential margins
1892–2024, the 2012 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 | 469,684 | 108,182 | 596,893 | |
| Alpine County | D | 389 | 236 | 654 | |
| Amador County | R | 6,830 | 10,281 | 17,693 | |
| Butte County | R | 42,669 | 44,479 | 91,021 | |
| Calaveras County | R | 8,670 | 12,365 | 21,862 | |
| Colusa County | R | 2,314 | 3,601 | 6,045 | |
| Contra Costa County | D | 290,824 | 136,517 | 439,145 | |
| Del Norte County | R | 3,791 | 4,614 | 8,770 | |
| El Dorado County | R | 35,166 | 50,973 | 88,998 | |
| Fresno County | D | 129,129 | 124,490 | 259,697 | |
| Glenn County | R | 3,301 | 5,632 | 9,238 | |
| Humboldt County | D | 34,457 | 18,825 | 57,686 | |
| Imperial County | D | 25,136 | 12,777 | 38,565 | |
| Inyo County | R | 3,422 | 4,340 | 8,036 | |
| Kern County | R | 89,495 | 126,618 | 222,189 | |
| Kings County | R | 12,979 | 17,671 | 31,418 | |
| Lake County | D | 13,163 | 9,200 | 23,391 | |
| Lassen County | R | 3,053 | 7,296 | 10,725 | |
| Los Angeles County | D | 2,216,903 | 885,333 | 3,181,067 | |
| Madera County | R | 16,018 | 22,852 | 39,933 | |
| Marin County | D | 99,896 | 30,880 | 134,731 | |
| Mariposa County | R | 3,498 | 5,140 | 9,038 | |
| Mendocino County | D | 23,193 | 9,658 | 35,137 | |
| Merced County | D | 33,005 | 27,581 | 62,222 | |
| Modoc County | R | 1,111 | 2,777 | 4,019 | |
| Mono County | D | 2,733 | 2,285 | 5,181 | |
| Monterey County | D | 82,920 | 37,390 | 123,518 | |
| Napa County | D | 35,870 | 19,526 | 56,968 | |
| Nevada County | R | 24,663 | 24,986 | 51,676 | |
| Orange County | R | 512,440 | 582,332 | 1,122,664 | |
| Placer County | R | 66,818 | 99,921 | 171,711 | |
| Plumas County | R | 4,026 | 5,721 | 10,080 | |
| Riverside County | D | 329,063 | 318,127 | 663,116 | |
| Sacramento County | D | 300,503 | 202,514 | 517,582 | |
| San Benito County | D | 11,276 | 7,343 | 19,081 | |
| San Bernardino County | D | 305,109 | 262,358 | 582,930 | |
| San Diego County | D | 626,957 | 536,726 | 1,193,949 | |
| San Francisco County | D | 301,723 | 47,076 | 361,795 | |
| San Joaquin County | D | 114,121 | 86,071 | 205,364 | |
| San Luis Obispo County | D | 61,258 | 59,967 | 125,966 | |
| San Mateo County | D | 206,085 | 72,756 | 285,720 | |
| Santa Barbara County | D | 94,129 | 64,606 | 163,885 | |
| Santa Clara County | D | 450,818 | 174,843 | 644,277 | |
| Santa Cruz County | D | 90,805 | 24,047 | 120,385 | |
| Shasta County | R | 25,819 | 48,067 | 76,501 | |
| Sierra County | R | 653 | 1,056 | 1,799 | |
| Siskiyou County | R | 8,046 | 11,077 | 19,993 | |
| Solano County | D | 96,783 | 52,092 | 152,840 | |
| Sonoma County | D | 153,942 | 54,784 | 216,865 | |
| Stanislaus County | D | 77,724 | 73,459 | 155,816 | |
| Sutter County | R | 12,192 | 18,122 | 31,083 | |
| Tehama County | R | 7,934 | 14,235 | 22,977 | |
| Trinity County | R | 2,674 | 2,716 | 5,739 | |
| Tulare County | R | 41,752 | 56,956 | 101,279 | |
| Tuolumne County | R | 9,998 | 13,880 | 24,758 | |
| Ventura County | D | 170,929 | 147,958 | 327,712 | |
| Yolo County | D | 48,715 | 23,368 | 74,671 | |
| Yuba County | R | 7,711 | 11,275 | 19,761 |
Same ballot, 2012CA
Source. MIT Election Data + Science Lab — 2012 presidential returns · official county-level results. Real returns — nothing estimated.