Help us improve in just 2 minutes—share your thoughts in our reader survey.

Presidential election in Washington, 2016

From Ballotpedia
Jump to: navigation, search
Washington
2020 →
Presidential Elections-2016-badge.png
Choose a different state
General election in Washington
  Date: November 8, 2016
2016 winner: Hillary Clinton
Electoral votes: 12
2012 winner: Barack Obama (D)
Democratic Caucuses
  Date: March 26, 2016
Winner: Bernie Sanders
Republican Primary
  Date: May 24, 2016
Winner: Donald Trump
Down ballot races in Washington
  U.S. Senate
U.S. House
Governor
Other state executives
Washington State Senate
Washington House of Representatives
Washington judicial elections
Washington local judicial elections
State ballot measures
Click here for more elections in Washington
Have you subscribed yet?

Join the hundreds of thousands of readers trusting Ballotpedia to keep them up to date with the latest political news. Sign up for the Daily Brew.
Click here to learn more.

Washington held an election for the president of the United States on November 8, 2016. Democratic caucuses took place on March 26, 2016. A Republican primary election took place on May 24, 2016.

HIGHLIGHTS
  • Hillary Clinton won Washington in the general election.
  • In 2016, Washington had 12 electoral votes, which was 2.2 percent of the 538 electoral votes up for grabs and 4.4 percent of the 270 electoral votes needed to win the general election.
  • Between 1900 and 2016, Washington cast votes for the winning presidential candidate 73.33 percent of the time. In that same time frame, Washington supported Democratic candidates for president more often than Republican candidates, 53.33 to 43.33 percent. The state, however, favored Democrats in every election between between 2000 and 2016.
  • Bernie Sanders won the Democratic caucuses in Washington with 72.7 percent of the vote. Donald Trump won the Republican primary in Washington with 75.5 percent.

    • General election candidates

    See also: Ballot access for presidential candidates

    The candidate list below is based on an official list on the Washington secretary of state website. The candidate names below appear in the order in which they were listed on the official list—not necessarily the order in which they appeared on the ballot in November. Write-in candidates were not included in the list below.

    Presidential candidates on the ballot in Washington

    ☐ Donald Trump/Mike Pence (Republican)
    ☑ Hillary Clinton/Tim Kaine (Democratic)
    ☐ Alyson Kennedy/Osborne Hart (Socialist Workers)
    ☐ Gloria Estela La Riva/Eugene Puryear (Socialism and Liberation)
    ☐ Jill Stein/Ajamu Baraka (Green)
    ☐ Darrell Lane Castle/Scott Bradley (Constitution)
    ☐ Gary Johnson/Bill Weld (Libertarian)

    Results

    U.S. presidential election, Washington, 2016
    Party Candidate Vote % Votes Electoral votes
         Democratic Green check mark transparent.pngHillary Clinton/Tim Kaine 52.5% 1,742,718 12
         Republican Donald Trump/Mike Pence 36.8% 1,221,747 0
         Libertarian Gary Johnson/Bill Weld 4.9% 160,879 0
         Green Jill Stein/Ajamu Baraka 1.8% 58,417 0
         Socialist Workers Alyson Kennedy/Osborne Hart 0.1% 4,307 0
         Socialism and Liberation Gloria Estela La Riva/Eugene Puryear 0.1% 3,523 0
         Constitution Darrell Lane Castle/Scott Bradley 0.5% 17,623 0
         - Other/Write-in 3.3% 107,805 0
    Total Votes 3,317,019 12
    Election results via: Federal Election Commission

    Pivot Counties

    See also: Pivot Counties: The counties that voted Obama-Obama-Trump from 2008-2016

    Ballotpedia identified 206 counties that voted for Donald Trump (R) in 2016 after voting for Barack Obama (D) in 2008 and 2012, in 34 states.[1] Collectively, Trump won these Pivot Counties by more than 580,000 votes, and had an average margin of victory of 11.45 percent. The political shift in these counties could have a broad impact on elections at every level of government for the next four years.

    Historical election trends

    See also: Presidential election accuracy

    Below is an analysis of Washington'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 Washington, 1900-2016

    Between 1900 and 2016:

    • Washington participated in 30 presidential elections.
    • Washington 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.[2]
    • Washington voted Democratic 53.33 percent of the time and Republican 43.33 percent of the time.

    Third party vote

    In 1912, Woodrow Wilson ran as the Democratic candidate, Theodore Roosevelt ran as a Progressive candidate, and William H. Taft ran as the Republican candidate. Taft won Utah and Vermont, while Roosevelt won 11 electoral votes (Wilson got two) from California, 15 from Michigan, 12 from Minnesota, 38 in Pennsylvania, five from South Dakota, and seven from Washington.[3]

    Presidential election voting record in Washington, 2000-2016

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

    Election results

    2012

    U.S. presidential election, Washington, 2012
    Party Candidate Vote % Votes Electoral votes
         Democratic Green check mark transparent.pngBarack Obama/Joe Biden Incumbent 55.8% 1,755,369 12
         Republican Mitt Romney/Paul Ryan 41.1% 1,290,670 0
         Libertarian Gary Johnson/Jim Gray 1.3% 42,202 0
         Green Jill Stein/Cheri Honkala 0.7% 20,928 0
         N/A Write-ins 0.6% 20,394 0
         Constitution Virgil Goode/James Clymer 0.3% 8,851 0
         Justice Ross Anderson/Luis Rodriguez 0.2% 4,946 0
    Total Votes 3,143,360 12
    Election results via: U.S. Election Atlas

    Other candidates that appeared on the ballot received less than 0.1% of the vote. Those candidates included: Peta Lindsay, James Harris, Roseanne Barr, Thomas Hoefling, Merlin Miller, Andre Barnett and Jill Ann Reed.[5]

    2008

    U.S. presidential election, Washington, 2008
    Party Candidate Vote % Votes Electoral votes
         Democratic Green check mark transparent.pngBarack Obama/Joe Biden 57.4% 1,750,848 11
         Republican John McCain/Sarah Palin 40.3% 1,229,216 0
         Independent Ralph Nader/Matt Gonzalez 1% 29,489 0
         N/A Write-ins 0.5% 14,904 0
         Libertarian Bob Barr/Wayne Allyn Root 0.4% 12,728 0
         Constitution Chuck Baldwin/Darrell Castle 0.3% 9,432 0
         Green Cynthia McKinney/Rosa Clemente 0.1% 3,819 0
    Total Votes 3,050,436 11
    Election results via: U.S. Election Atlas

    Other candidates that appeared on the ballot received less than 0.1% of the vote. Those candidates included: Ron Paul, Gloria LaRiva, Roger Calero, Alan Keyes, Brian Moore and Johnathan Allen.[6]

    Electoral votes

    See also: Electoral College

    The president of the United States is not elected by popular vote but rather by electors in the Electoral College. In fact, when Americans vote for president, they are actually voting for a slate of electors selected by members of Democratic and Republican state parties or nominated in some other fashion. Under this system, which is laid out in Article 2, Section 1, of the Constitution, each state is allocated one electoral vote for every member of their congressional delegation, meaning one for each member of the U.S. House and one for each of their two Senators.

    Washington electors

    In 2016, Washington had 12 electoral votes. Washington's share of electoral votes represented 2.2 percent of the 538 electoral votes up for grabs in the general election and 4.4 percent of the 270 votes needed to be elected president.

    "Faithless electors"

    The U.S. Constitution does not dictate how presidential electors are to cast their votes, but, in general, electors are expected to vote for the winner of the popular vote in their state or the candidates of the party that nominated them to serve as electors. Electors who choose not to vote for the winner of the popular vote or the candidates of the party that nominated them are known as "faithless electors." Faithless electors are rare. Between 1900 and 2012, there were only eight known instances of faithless electors.

    Several states have passed laws against faithless electors and require electors to vote for the winner of the popular vote in their state, for the candidate of the party that nominated them to serve as electors, or in accordance with any pledge they may have been required to make at the time of their nomination. In states with these types of laws, faithless electors can be fined or replaced, or their votes can be nullified.[7][8]

    Washington was one of 31 states in 2016—including the District of Columbia—with a law seeking to bind the votes of presidential electors.

    Down ballot races

    See also: Washington elections, 2016

    Below is a list of down ballot races in Washington covered by Ballotpedia in 2016.

    Primary election

    Quick facts

    Democrats:
    • 2016 Democratic winner: Bernie Sanders
    • 2008 Democratic winner: Barack Obama
    • Type: Caucus
    • Delegate allocation: Proportional
    • Pledged delegates at stake: 101
    		 Republicans
    • 2016 Republican winner: Donald Trump
    • 2012 Republican winner: Mitt Romney
    • Type: Closed Primary
    • Delegate allocation: Proportional
    • Pledged delegates at stake: 44

    Democrats

    Bernie Sanders won the Washington Democratic caucuses, beating Hillary Clinton by more than 40 points. Sanders carried every county in the state. He won Washington’s three largest counties by substantial margins: King, where Seattle is located, by roughly 34 points; Pierce by more than 40 points; and Snohomish by more than 50 points. In 2008, Clinton lost Washington to Barack Obama 31 to 68 percent. Like Sanders, Obama also won every county in the state.[9] One-hundred-one pledged delegates were up for grabs in the Washington Democratic caucus. They were allocated proportionally, with the lion’s share going to Sanders. Eight of Washington’s 17 superdelegates, including Governor Jay Inslee and U.S. Senator Maria Cantwell, publicly pledged to back Clinton prior to the March 26 caucus, according to The Seattle Times.[10] Two other western states also held Democratic caucuses on March 26: Hawaii and Alaska. Clinton won a non-binding Democratic primary election in Washington on May 24, 2016.[11]

    Republicans

    Donald Trump won the Washington Republican primary with more than 70 percent of the vote. Trump, the only official candidate in the race at the time of the primary, carried every county in the state. Ted Cruz came in second, followed by John Kasich and Ben Carson in third and fourth, respectively. Mitt Romney won Washington in the 2012 Republican primary.

    2016 primary results

    Democrats

    Washington Democratic Caucus, 2016
    Candidate Vote % Votes Delegates
    Green check mark transparent.pngBernie Sanders 72.7% 19,135 74
    Hillary Clinton 27.1% 7,136 27
    Other 0.2% 43 0
    Totals 26,314 101
    Source: The New York Times and Washington State Democratic Party

    Republicans

    Washington Republican Primary, 2016
    Candidate Vote % Votes Delegates
    Green check mark transparent.pngDonald Trump 75.5% 455,023 41
    Ted Cruz 10.8% 65,172 0
    John Kasich 9.8% 58,954 0
    Ben Carson 4% 23,849 0
    Totals 602,998 41
    Source: The New York Times and Washington Secretary of State

    Delegates

    Delegate selection

    See also: 2016 presidential nominations: calendar and delegate rules

    Democratic Party

    Democratic Party Logo.png

    Washington had 118 delegates at the 2016 Democratic National Convention. Of this total, 101 were pledged delegates. National party rules stipulated how Democratic delegates in all states were allocated. Pledged delegates were allocated to a candidate in proportion to the votes he or she received in a state's primary or caucus. A candidate was eligible to receive a share of the state's pledged delegates if he or she won at least 15 percent of the votes cast in the primary or caucus. There were three types of pledged Democratic delegates: congressional district delegates, at-large delegates, and party leaders and elected officials (PLEOs). Congressional district delegates were allocated proportionally based on the primary or caucus results in a given district. At-large and PLEO delegates were allocated proportionally based on statewide caucus results.[12][13]

    Seventeen party leaders and elected officials served as unpledged delegates. These delegates were not required to adhere to the results of a state's primary or caucus.[12][14]

    Washington superdelegates

    See also: Superdelegates from Washington, 2016 and Superdelegates and the 2016 Democratic National Convention

    Republican Party

    Logo-GOP.png

    Washington had 44 delegates at the 2016 Republican National Convention. Of this total, 30 were district-level delegates (three for each of the state's 10 congressional districts). Washington's district delegates were allocated proportionally; a candidate had to win at least 20 percent of the primary vote within a district in order to be eligible to receive any of that district's delegates. If a candidate won more than 50 percent of the district vote, he or she received all of that district's delegates. If only one candidates broke the 20 percent threshold, that candidate received all of the district's delegates. If two candidates each won more than 20 percent of the district vote, the first place finisher received two of the district's delegates, and the second place finisher received one. If three candidates each received more than 20 percent of the district vote, each candidate received one of the district's delegates. If four candidates each won more than 20 percent of the district vote, the top three finishers each received one delegate.[15][16]

    Of the remaining 14 delegates, 11 served at large. Washington's at-large delegates were allocated on a proportional basis; a candidate had to win at least 20 percent of the statewide primary vote in order to be eligible to receive any of the state's at-large delegates. However, the at-large delegates were allocated in proportion to all candidates who were on the ballot, meaning, if only one candidate surpassed the 20 percent threshold and there were multiple candidates on the ballot, then some delegates could be allocated as unbound delegates. In addition, three national party leaders (identified on the chart below as RNC delegates) served as bound delegates to the Republican National Convention.[15][16]

    Republican delegates

    See also: Republican delegates from Washington, 2016 and RNC delegate guidelines from Washington, 2016

    Presidential voting history

    Washington presidential election results (1900-2024)

    • 18 Democratic wins
    • 13 Republican wins
    • 1 other win
    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 P[17] D R R R D D D D D R R R D D R R R R D D D D D D D D D D

    State profile

    Demographic data for Washington
     WashingtonU.S.
    Total population:7,160,290316,515,021
    Land area (sq mi):66,4563,531,905
    Race and ethnicity**
    White:77.8%73.6%
    Black/African American:3.6%12.6%
    Asian:7.7%5.1%
    Native American:1.3%0.8%
    Pacific Islander:0.6%0.2%
    Two or more:5.2%3%
    Hispanic/Latino:12%17.1%
    Education
    High school graduation rate:90.4%86.7%
    College graduation rate:32.9%29.8%
    Income
    Median household income:$61,062$53,889
    Persons below poverty level:14.4%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 Washington.
    **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 voting pattern

    See also: Presidential voting trends in Washington

    Washington voted for the Democratic candidate in all seven presidential elections between 2000 and 2024.

    Pivot Counties (2016)

    Ballotpedia identified 206 counties that voted for Donald Trump (R) in 2016 after voting for Barack Obama (D) in 2008 and 2012. Collectively, Trump won these Pivot Counties by more than 580,000 votes. Of these 206 counties, five are located in Washington, accounting for 2.43 percent of the total pivot counties.[18]

    Pivot Counties (2020)

    In 2020, Ballotpedia re-examined the 206 Pivot Counties to view their voting patterns following that year's presidential election. Ballotpedia defined those won by Trump won as Retained Pivot Counties and those won by Joe Biden (D) as Boomerang Pivot Counties. Nationwide, there were 181 Retained Pivot Counties and 25 Boomerang Pivot Counties. Washington had four Retained Pivot Counties and one Boomerang Pivot County, accounting for 2.21 and 4.00 percent of all Retained and Boomerang Pivot Counties, respectively.

    More Washington coverage on Ballotpedia

    See also

    Footnotes

    1. ↑ The raw data for this study was provided by Dave Leip of Atlas of U.S. Presidential Elections.
    2. ↑ 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.
    3. ↑ U.S. National Archives and Records Administration, "Electoral Votes, 1904-1912," accessed June 21, 2016
    4. ↑ This number refers to the number of times that the state voted for the winning presidential candidate between 2000 and 2016.
    5. ↑ U.S. Election Atlas, "2012 Presidential Election Results," accessed December 29, 2014
    6. ↑ U.S. Election Atlas, "2008 Presidential Election Results," accessed December 29, 2014
    7. ↑ Archives.gov, "About the Electors," accessed July 28, 2016
    8. ↑ Congressional Research Service, "The Electoral College: How it works in contemporary presidential elections," April 13, 2016
    9. ↑ CNN, "2008 Washington primary," accessed March 26, 2016
    10. ↑ The Seattle Times, "Bernie Sanders backers demand Washington superdelegates feel the Bern," March 26, 2016
    11. ↑ The Seattle Times, "Trump, Clinton win Washington state primary," May 24, 2016
    12. ↑ 12.0 12.1 Democratic National Committee, "2016 Democratic National Convention Delegate/Alternate Allocation," updated February 19, 2016
    13. ↑ The Green Papers, "2016 Democratic Convention," accessed May 7, 2021
    14. ↑ Democratic National Committee's Office of Party Affairs and Delegate Selection, "Unpledged Delegates -- By State," May 27, 2016
    15. ↑ 15.0 15.1 Republican National Committee, "2016 Presidential Nominating Process," accessed October 6, 2015
    16. ↑ 16.0 16.1 CNN.com, "Republican National Convention roll call vote," accessed July 20, 2016
    17. ↑ Progressive Party
    18. ↑ The raw data for this study was provided by Dave Leip of Atlas of U.S. Presidential Elections.
    v • e
    2016 United States Presidential Election
    OverviewsPresidential Elections-2016-badge.png
    Candidate profiles
    Path to the presidency
    Policy positions
    On the campaign trail
    Ballotpedia's battleground poll • Campaign preparations • Political and leadership attributes • Presidential campaign trackers and opposition researchers
    Campaign staff
    Debates
    Analysis
    The media's coverage of Donald Trump • The media's coverage of Hillary Clinton

    Post-debate analysis overview
    Democratic: April 14, 2016 (CNN) • March 9, 2016 (Univision) • March 6, 2016 (CNN) • February 11, 2016 (PBS) • February 4, 2016 (MSNBC) • January 17, 2016 (NBC) • December 19, 2015 (ABC) • November 14, 2015 (CBS) • October 13, 2015 (CNN)
    Republican: March 10, 2016 (CNN) • March 3, 2016 (FNC) • February 25, 2016 (CNN) • February 13, 2016 (CBS) • February 6, 2016 (ABC) • January 28, 2016 (FNC) • January 14, 2016 (FBN) • December 15, 2015 (CNN) • November 10, 2015 (FBN) • October 28, 2015 (CNBC) • September 16, 2015 (CNN)

    Insiders Poll: First Democratic debate (October 13, 2015) • Presidential Nominating Index: Clinton remains choice of Democratic Insiders • Presidential Nominating Index: Bush remains choice of Republican Insiders • Insiders Poll: Winners and losers from the Fox News Republican Debate


    v • e
    2016 Presidential Primaries and Caucuses
    OverviewsPresidential Elections-2016-badge.png
    Contests by state
    Contests by territory
    Flag of Washington
    v • e
    State of Washington
    Olympia (capital)
    Elections

    What's on my ballot? | Elections in 2025 | How to vote | How to run for office | Ballot measures

    Government

    Who represents me? | U.S. President | U.S. Congress | Federal courts | State executives | State legislature | State and local courts | Counties | Cities | School districts | Public policy

    Retrieved from "https://ballotpedia.org/wiki/index.php?title=Presidential_election_in_Washington,_2016&oldid=7800325"