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Presidential election in Massachusetts, 2020

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Massachusetts
2020 presidential election

Democratic primary: March 3, 2020
Democratic winner: Joe Biden

Republican primary: March 3, 2020
Republican winner: Donald Trump

Electoral College: 11 votes
2020 winner: Joe Biden (D)
2016 winner: Hillary Clinton (D)
2012 winner: Barack Obama (D)

Presidential election by state, 2020

Former Vice President Joe Biden (D) won the presidential election in Massachusetts on November 3, 2020. Biden won the presidential election with 306 electoral votes to President Donald Trump's (R) 232 electoral votes.

The Democratic and Republican parties held primary elections in Massachusetts on March 3, 2020. Biden won the Democratic primary.[1] Trump won the Republican primary.[2]

Massachusetts was one of four states (alongside Arizona, Indiana, and Tennessee) to have 11 votes in the Electoral College, making it tied for 14th-most. Aside from Ronald Reagan (R), who carried the state in 1980 and 1984, no Republican presidential candidate has carried Massachusetts since Dwight Eisenhower (R) in 1956. Between 1900 and 2016, Massachusetts has been carried by the Democratic presidential candidate in 56.67% of elections and the Republican candidate in 43.33%.

In the 2016 election, Hillary Clinton (D) carried the state with 60% of the vote to Trump's (R) 32.8%.

This page includes the following sections:

Candidates and election results

General election


Presidential election in Massachusetts, 2020
 
Candidate/Running mate
%
Popular votes
Electoral votes
✔
Image of
Image of
Joe Biden/Kamala D. Harris (D)
 
65.6
 
2,382,202 11
Image of
Image of
Donald Trump/Mike Pence (R)
 
32.1
 
1,167,202 0
Image of
Image of
Jo Jorgensen/Spike Cohen (L)
 
1.3
 
47,013 0
Image of
Image of
Howie Hawkins/Angela Nicole Walker (G)
 
0.5
 
18,658 0
  Other write-in votes
 
0.4
 
16,327 0

Incumbents are bolded and underlined The results have been certified.

Total votes: 3,631,402



Primary election

Massachusetts Democratic presidential primary on March 3, 2020
 
Candidate
%
Votes
Pledged delegates
Image of https://s3.amazonaws.com/ballotpedia-api4/files/thumbs/100/100/Official_portrait_of_Vice_President_Joe_Biden.jpg
Joe Biden
 
33.4
 
473,511 45
Image of https://s3.amazonaws.com/ballotpedia-api4/files/thumbs/100/100/Bernie_Sanders.jpg
Bernie Sanders
 
26.6
 
376,608 30
Image of https://s3.amazonaws.com/ballotpedia-api4/files/thumbs/100/100/Elizabeth_Warren--Official_113th_Congressional_Portrait--.jpg
Elizabeth Warren
 
21.4
 
303,770 16
Image of https://s3.amazonaws.com/ballotpedia-api4/files/thumbs/100/100/400px-Mike_Bloomberg_Headshot.jpg
Michael Bloomberg
 
11.7
 
166,068 0
Image of https://s3.amazonaws.com/ballotpedia-api4/files/thumbs/100/100/150px-Pete_buttigieg.jpg
Pete Buttigieg
 
2.7
 
38,358 0
Image of https://s3.amazonaws.com/ballotpedia-api4/files/thumbs/100/100/Amy_Klobuchar.jpg
Amy Klobuchar
 
1.2
 
17,288 0
Image of https://s3.amazonaws.com/ballotpedia-api4/files/thumbs/100/100/TulsiGabbardReplace.jpg
Tulsi Gabbard
 
0.7
 
10,542 0
Image of https://s3.amazonaws.com/ballotpedia-api4/files/thumbs/100/100/Tom_Steyer.jpg
Thomas Steyer
 
0.5
 
7,014 0
Image of https://s3.amazonaws.com/ballotpedia-api4/files/thumbs/100/100/Deval_Patrick.jpg
Deval Patrick
 
0.5
 
6,918 0
Image of https://s3.amazonaws.com/ballotpedia-api4/files/thumbs/100/100/Screen_Shot_2019-02-21_at_3.25.16_PM.png
Andrew Yang
 
0.2
 
2,713 0
Image of https://s3.amazonaws.com/ballotpedia-api4/files/thumbs/100/100/Michael_Bennet.jpg
Michael Bennet
 
0.1
 
1,284 0
Image of https://s3.amazonaws.com/ballotpedia-api4/files/thumbs/100/100/John_Delaney_113th_Congress_official_photo.jpg
John Delaney
 
0.1
 
718 0
Image of https://s3.amazonaws.com/ballotpedia-api4/files/thumbs/100/100/3HaJVw3AYyXBdF9iSRPp977CBFrGCMDhc1w2rHKAC1yEKppTQoGMxtNCjAfntRbE3vPfKMrXcV5x6tsZ7rfuCzeUq2zG7qQsmao4URt.jpeg
Marianne Williamson
 
0.0
 
616 0
Image of https://s3.amazonaws.com/ballotpedia-api4/files/thumbs/100/100/CoryBooker.jpg
Cory Booker
 
0.0
 
426 0
Image of https://s3.amazonaws.com/ballotpedia-api4/files/thumbs/100/100/JulianCastro1.jpg
Julián Castro
 
0.0
 
304 0
  Other
 
0.8
 
11,342 0

 Source

Total votes: 1,417,480 • Total pledged delegates: 91


Massachusetts Republican presidential primary on March 3, 2020
 
Candidate
%
Votes
Pledged delegates
Image of https://s3.amazonaws.com/ballotpedia-api4/files/thumbs/100/100/473px-Official_Portrait_of_President_Donald_Trump.jpg
Donald Trump
 
86.3
 
239,115 41
Image of https://s3.amazonaws.com/ballotpedia-api4/files/thumbs/100/100/Bill_Weld_campaign_portrait.jpg
Bill Weld
 
9.2
 
25,425 0
Image of https://s3.amazonaws.com/ballotpedia-api4/files/thumbs/100/100/Joe_Walsh.jpg
Joe Walsh
 
1.1
 
3,008 0
Image of https://s3.amazonaws.com/ballotpedia-api4/files/thumbs/100/100/RoqueDeLaFuente.jpg
Roque De La Fuente
 
0.2
 
675 0
  Other
 
3.2
 
8,779 0

 Source

Total votes: 277,002 • Total pledged delegates: 41


Massachusetts Green presidential primary on March 3, 2020
 
Candidate
%
Votes
Pledged delegates
Image of https://s3.amazonaws.com/ballotpedia-api4/files/thumbs/100/100/dariohunter.png
Dario David Hunter
 
13.8
 
224 0
Image of https://s3.amazonaws.com/ballotpedia-api4/files/thumbs/100/100/HowieHawkins.jpg
Howie Hawkins
 
13.4
 
217 0
Image of https://s3.amazonaws.com/ballotpedia-api4/files/thumbs/100/100/sedinam.png
Sedinam Moyowasifza-Curry
 
8.7
 
141 0
Image of https://s3.amazonaws.com/ballotpedia-api4/files/thumbs/100/100/Kent-Mesplay.jpg
Kent Mesplay
 
3.4
 
55 0
  Other
 
60.7
 
983 0

100% reporting Source

Total votes: 1,620 • Total pledged delegates: 0


Massachusetts Libertarian presidential primary on March 3, 2020
 
Candidate
%
Votes
Pledged delegates
Image of https://s3.amazonaws.com/ballotpedia-api4/files/thumbs/100/100/vs.jpg
Vermin Supreme
 
9.6
 
399 0
Image of https://s3.amazonaws.com/ballotpedia-api4/files/thumbs/100/100/Hornberger1.jpg
Jacob Hornberger
 
8.9
 
369 0
Image of https://s3.amazonaws.com/ballotpedia-api4/files/thumbs/100/100/Dan-Behrman.jpg
Daniel Behrman
 
7.1
 
294 0
Silhouette Placeholder Image.png
Kimberly Margaret Ruff
 
5.4
 
224 0
Image of https://s3.amazonaws.com/ballotpedia-api4/files/thumbs/100/100/Arvin-Vohra.jpg
Arvin Vohra
 
3.6
 
151 0
Image of https://s3.amazonaws.com/ballotpedia-api4/files/thumbs/100/100/Armstrong-600x400.jpg
Kenneth Armstrong
 
3.5
 
145 0
Image of https://s3.amazonaws.com/ballotpedia-api4/files/thumbs/100/100/JoJorgensen.png
Jo Jorgensen
 
3.4
 
141 0
Image of https://s3.amazonaws.com/ballotpedia-api4/files/thumbs/100/100/Robb-600x400.jpg
Samuel Joseph Robb
 
3.1
 
127 0
Image of https://s3.amazonaws.com/ballotpedia-api4/files/thumbs/100/100/akokesh2.jpg
Adam Kokesh
 
3.0
 
125 0
Image of https://s3.amazonaws.com/ballotpedia-api4/files/thumbs/100/100/Max_Abramson.PNG
Max Abramson
 
2.4
 
98 0
  Other
 
50.2
 
2,086 0

100% reporting Source

Total votes: 4,159 • Total pledged delegates: 0


Government response to coronavirus pandemic in Massachusetts

Summary of changes to election dates and procedures

Massachusetts modified its absentee/mail-in procedures for the November 3, 2020, general election as follows:

  • Absentee/mail-in voting: Absentee/mail-in voting eligibility was extended to all qualified voters in the general election.

For a full timeline about election modifications made in response to the COVID-19 outbreak, click here.

Frequently asked questions

See also: Ballotpedia's 2020 Election Help Desk: Presidential election

The 2020 election took place against a backdrop of uncertainty. Our readers had questions about what to expect in elections at all levels of government, from the casting of ballots to the certification of final results. Ballotpedia's 2020 Election Help Desk was designed to answer those questions. Ballotpedia is in the process of compiling and answering frequently asked questions related to the 2020 elections. Questions related to this election will be available soon.


Additional resources

Democratic primary

See also: Democratic presidential nomination, 2020
HIGHLIGHTS
  • Massachusetts held its Democratic primary election on March 3, 2020.
  • Massachusetts had an estimated 114 delegates comprised of 91 pledged delegates and 23 superdelegates. Delegate allocation was proportional.
  • The Democratic primary was semi-closed, meaning only unaffiliated voters and registered Democrats were able to vote in the election.


    • Former Vice President Joe Biden (D) was formally nominated as the Democratic presidential nominee at the 2020 Democratic National Convention on August 18, 2020.[3] The convention was originally scheduled to take place July 13-16, 2020.[4] Organizers postponed the event in response to the coronavirus pandemic.

    Prior to the national convention, individual state caucuses and primaries were held to allocate convention delegates. These delegates vote at the convention to select the nominee. In 2020, a Democratic presidential candidate needed support from 1,991 delegates to secure the nomination.

    With the plurality of pledged delegates, Biden became the presumptive Democratic nominee on April 8, 2020, after Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) suspended his presidential campaign.[5] Biden crossed the delegate threshold necessary to win the nomination on June 5, 2020.[6]

    Biden announced U.S. Sen. Kamala Harris (D) as his running mate on August 11, 2020. Harris is the first Black woman to appear on a major party's ticket in the United States.[7]

    Republican primary

    See also: Republican presidential nomination, 2020
    HIGHLIGHTS
  • Massachusetts held its Republican primary election on March 3, 2020.
  • Massachusetts had an estimated 41 delegates. Delegate allocation was proportional.
  • The Republican primary was semi-closed, meaning only unaffiliated voters and registered Republicans were able to vote in the election.


    • The Republican Party selected President Donald Trump as its presidential nominee at the 2020 Republican National Convention, which was held from August 24-27, 2020.[8]

    Prior to the national convention, individual state caucuses and primaries were held to allocate convention delegates. These delegates vote at the convention to select the nominee. Trump crossed the delegate threshold necessary to win the nomination—1,276 delegates—on March 17, 2020.

    George H.W. Bush (R) was the last incumbent to face a serious primary challenge, defeating political commentator Pat Buchanan in 1992. He was also the last president to lose his re-election campaign. Franklin Pierce (D) was the first and only elected president to lose his party's nomination in 1856.[9]

    Sixteen U.S. presidents—approximately one-third—have won two consecutive elections.



    Candidate filing requirements

    See also: Ballot access requirements for presidential candidates in Massachusetts

    The tables below detail filing requirements for presidential candidates in Massachusetts in the 2020 election cycle. For additional information on candidate ballot access requirements in Massachusetts, click here.

    Presidential primary candidates

    Filing requirements for presidential primary candidates in Massachusetts, 2020[10]
    State Party Signatures required Signature formula Filing fee Filing fee formula Filing deadline Source
    Massachusetts Qualified political parties 2,500 Fixed by statute N/A N/A 1/3/2020 Source

    Independent presidential candidates

    Filing requirements for independent candidates in Massachusetts, 2020
    State Signatures required Signature formula Filing fee Filing fee formula Filing deadline Source
    Massachusetts 10,000 Fixed by statute N/A N/A 8/25/2020[11] Source

    Historical election results

    2016

    General election

    U.S. presidential election, Massachusetts, 2016
    Party Candidate Vote % Votes Electoral votes
         Democratic Green check mark transparent.pngHillary Clinton/Tim Kaine 60% 1,995,196 11
         Republican Donald Trump/Mike Pence 32.8% 1,090,893 0
         Libertarian Gary Johnson/Bill Weld 4.2% 138,018 0
         Green Jill Stein/Ajamu Baraka 1.4% 47,661 0
         - Write-in/other 1.6% 53,278 0
    Total Votes 3,325,046 11
    Election results via: Massachusetts Secretary of State

    Primary election

    Massachusetts Democratic Primary, 2016
    Candidate Vote % Votes Delegates
    Green check mark transparent.pngHillary Clinton 49.7% 606,822 46
    Bernie Sanders 48.3% 589,803 45
    Martin O'Malley 0.4% 4,783 0
    Roque De La Fuente 0.1% 1,545 0
    Other 0.4% 4,927 0
    No preference 0.7% 8,090 0
    Blank votes 0.4% 4,326 0
    Totals 1,220,296 91
    Source: Massachusetts Elections Division and CNN


    Massachusetts Republican Primary, 2016
    Candidate Vote % Votes Delegates
    Green check mark transparent.pngDonald Trump 49% 312,425 22
    Marco Rubio 17.7% 113,170 8
    Ted Cruz 9.5% 60,592 4
    John Kasich 17.9% 114,434 8
    Ben Carson 2.6% 16,360 0
    Jeb Bush 1% 6,559 0
    Chris Christie 0.3% 1,906 0
    Rand Paul 0.3% 1,864 0
    Carly Fiorina 0.2% 1,153 0
    Jim Gilmore 0.1% 753 0
    Mike Huckabee 0.1% 709 0
    George Pataki 0.1% 500 0
    Rick Santorum 0% 293 0
    Other 0.4% 2,325 0
    No preference 0.5% 3,220 0
    Blank votes 0.2% 1,440 0
    Totals 637,703 42
    Source: Massachusetts Elections Division and CNN

    2012

    U.S. presidential election, Massachusetts, 2012
    Party Candidate Vote % Votes Electoral votes
         Democratic Green check mark transparent.pngBarack Obama/Joe Biden Incumbent 60.3% 1,921,290 11
         Republican Mitt Romney/Paul Ryan 37.3% 1,188,314 0
         Libertarian Gary Johnson/James Gray 1% 30,920 0
         Green Jill Stein/Cheri Honkala 0.6% 20,691 0
         N/A All others 0.2% 6,552 0
         N/A Blanks 0.5% 16,429 0
    Total Votes 3,184,196 11
    Election results via: Massachusetts Secretary of State

    2008

    U.S. presidential election, Massachusetts, 2008
    Party Candidate Vote % Votes Electoral votes
         Democratic Green check mark transparent.pngBarack Obama/Joe Biden 61.4% 1,904,097 11
         Republican John McCain/Sarah Palin 35.7% 1,108,854 0
         Independent Ralph Nader/Matt Gonzalez 0.9% 28,841 0
         Libertarian Bob Barr/Wayne Allyn Root 0.4% 13,189 0
         Green Cynthia McKinney/Rosa Clemente 0.2% 6,550 0
         Constitution Chuck Baldwin/Darrell Castle 0.2% 4,971 0
         N/A All others 0.5% 14,483 0
         N/A Blanks 0.7% 22,010 0
    Total Votes 3,102,995 11
    Election results via: Massachusetts Secretary of State

    Presidential statewide margins of victory of 5 percentage points or fewer, 1948-2016

    See also: Presidential statewide margins of victory of 5 percentage points or fewer, 1948-2016

    The following map shows the number of times, in presidential elections held between 1948 and 2016, that the margin of victory was 5 percentage points or fewer in each state.

    • Wisconsin was the state with the most frequently narrow margins during this time period, appearing on the list in 10 presidential elections.
    • Five states appeared eight times: Florida, Missouri, Nevada, Ohio, and Pennsylvania.
    • The state with the narrowest margin of victory was Florida in 2000 at 537 votes or one-hundredth of a percentage point.

    Historical election trends

    See also: Presidential voting history by state

    Massachusetts presidential election results (1900-2024)

    • 22 Democratic wins
    • 10 Republican wins
    Year 1900 1904 1908 1912 1916 1920 1924 1928 1932 1936 1940 1944 1948 1952 1956 1960 1964 1968 1972 1976 1980 1984 1988 1992 1996 2000 2004 2008 2012 2016 2020 2024
    Winning Party R R R D R R R D D D D D D R R D D D D D R R D D D D D D D D D D


    See also: Presidential election accuracy

    Below is an analysis of Massachusetts's voting record in presidential elections. The state's accuracy is based on the number of times a state has voted for a winning presidential candidate. The majority of statistical data is from the U.S. National Archives and Records Administration and was compiled, here, by Ballotpedia, unless otherwise noted.

    Presidential election voting record in Massachusetts, 1900-2016

    Between 1900 and 2016:

    • Massachusetts participated in 30 presidential elections.
    • Massachusetts voted for the winning presidential candidate 73.33 percent of the time. The average accuracy of voting for winning presidential candidates for all 50 states in this time frame was 72.31 percent.[12]
    • Massachusetts voted Democratic 56.67 percent of the time and Republican 43.33 percent of the time.

    Presidential election voting record in Massachusetts, 2000-2016

    *An asterisk indicates that that candidate also won the national electoral vote in that

    State profile

    See also: Massachusetts and Massachusetts elections, 2019
    USA Massachusetts location map.svg

    Partisan data

    The information in this section was current as of May 7, 2019

    Presidential voting pattern

    Congressional delegation

    State executives

    State legislature

    Massachusetts Party Control: 1992-2024
    Ten years of Democratic trifectas  •  No Republican trifectas
    Scroll left and right on the table below to view more years.

    Year 92 93 94 95 96 97 98 99 00 01 02 03 04 05 06 07 08 09 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24
    Governor R R R R R R R R R R R R R R R D D D D D D D D R R R R R R R R D D
    Senate D D D D D D D D D D D D D D D D D D D D D D D D D D D D D D D D D
    House D D D D D D D D D D D D D D D D D D D D D D D D D D D D D D D D D

    Massachusetts quick stats
    More Massachusetts coverage on Ballotpedia:


    Demographic data for Massachusetts
     MassachusettsU.S.
    Total population:6,784,240316,515,021
    Land area (sq mi):7,8003,531,905
    Race and ethnicity**
    White:79.6%73.6%
    Black/African American:7.1%12.6%
    Asian:6%5.1%
    Native American:0.2%0.8%
    Pacific Islander:0%0.2%
    Two or more:2.9%3%
    Hispanic/Latino:10.6%17.1%
    Education
    High school graduation rate:89.8%86.7%
    College graduation rate:40.5%29.8%
    Income
    Median household income:$68,563$53,889
    Persons below poverty level:13.1%11.3%
    Source: U.S. Census Bureau, "American Community Survey" (5-year estimates 2010-2015)
    Click here for more information on the 2020 census and here for more on its impact on the redistricting process in Massachusetts.
    **Note: Percentages for race and ethnicity may add up to more than 100 percent because respondents may report more than one race and the Hispanic/Latino ethnicity may be selected in conjunction with any race. Read more about race and ethnicity in the census here.


    Presidential election by state

    See also: Presidential election by state, 2020

    Click on a state below to navigate to information about the presidential election in that jurisdiction.

    https://ballotpedia.org/Presidential_election_in_STATE,_2020

    See also

    Footnotes

    1. ↑ CBS Boston, "Biden Defeats Warren In Her Home State Of Massachusetts," March 3, 2020
    2. ↑ USA Today, "Massachusetts Republican Primary Results," March 3, 2020
    3. ↑ Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, "2020 DNC in Milwaukee pushed back to week of August 17 in response to coronavirus pandemic," April 2, 2020
    4. ↑ The New York Times, "Milwaukee Picked as Site of 2020 Democratic National Convention," March 11, 2019
    5. ↑ Talking Points Memo, "Bernie Sanders Ends 2020 Bid, Making Biden Presumptive Dem Nominee," April 8, 2020
    6. ↑ AP, "Biden formally clinches Democratic presidential nomination," June 5, 2020
    7. ↑ CNBC, "Joe Biden picks Sen. Kamala Harris to be his vice presidential running mate, making her the first black woman on a major ticket," August 11, 2020
    8. ↑ Charlotte Observer, "Here’s when the 2020 Republican National Convention will be in Charlotte," October 1, 2018
    9. ↑ NPR, "When Has A President Been Denied His Party's Nomination?" July 22, 2009
    10. ↑ The secretary of the commonwealth is authorized to "place candidates on the ballot who have been generally advocated or recognized in the national news media." The chair of a political party's state committee can also select names to be printed on the primary ballot.
    11. ↑ Deadline to file petitions with registrars of voters for signature verification: 7/28/2020
    12. ↑ This average includes states like Arizona, New Mexico, and Oklahoma, which did not participate in all 30 presidential elections between 1900 and 2016. It does not include Washington, D.C., which cast votes for president for the first time in 1964, or Alaska and Hawaii, which cast votes for president for the first time in 1960.
    13. ↑ This number refers to the number of times that the state voted for the winning presidential candidate between 2000 and 2016.
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