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Presidential preference primary
From Ballotpedia
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A presidential preference primary is a primary election in which a voter indicates a preference for a particular candidate to be a party's nominee for the presidency. Caucuses may also be conducted as part of the presidential nominating process. In general, a state's presidential preference primary or caucus is not a direct election; that is, voters do not select the party's nominee directly. They vote for a particular candidate, and based on the results of the vote, state parties award delegates according to the party's system of delegate allocation. These delegates then vote to formally select a candidate as the presidential nominee at the party's national convention. Presidential preference primaries are conducted by the state in accordance with state laws; caucuses, by contrast, are conducted by the parties themselves.[1][2]
Presidential preference primaries, 2020-2024
The sections below display the dates and types of nominating events each state held in the 2020 and 2024 presidential primaries.
2024
2020
| Democratic and Republican presidential primary calendar, 2020 | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jurisdiction |  Democratic
|
Type |  Republican
|
Type |
| Iowa | February 3 | Caucus | February 3 | Caucus |
| New Hampshire | February 11 | Primary | February 11 | Primary |
| Nevada | February 22 | Caucus | Canceled | N/A |
| South Carolina | February 29 | Primary | Canceled | N/A |
| Alabama | March 3 | Primary | March 3 | Primary |
| American Samoa | March 3 | Caucus | March 18 | Caucus |
| Arkansas | March 3 | Primary | March 3 | Primary |
| California | March 3 | Primary | March 3 | Primary |
| Colorado | March 3 | Primary | March 3 | Primary |
| Democrats Abroad | March 3-10[6] | Primary | N/A | N/A |
| Maine | March 3 | Primary | March 3 | Primary |
| Massachusetts | March 3 | Primary | March 3 | Primary |
| Minnesota | March 3 | Primary | March 3 | Primary |
| North Carolina | March 3 | Primary | March 3 | Primary |
| Oklahoma | March 3 | Primary | March 3 | Primary |
| Tennessee | March 3 | Primary | March 3 | Primary |
| Texas | March 3 | Primary | March 3 | Primary |
| Utah | March 3 | Primary | March 3 | Primary |
| Vermont | March 3 | Primary | March 3 | Primary |
| Virginia | March 3 | Primary | Canceled | N/A |
| Idaho | March 10 | Primary | March 10 | Primary |
| Michigan | March 10 | Primary | March 10 | Primary |
| Mississippi | March 10 | Primary | March 10 | Primary |
| Missouri | March 10 | Primary | March 10 | Primary |
| North Dakota | March 10 | Caucus | April 18[7] | Convention |
| Washington | March 10 | Primary | March 10 | Primary |
| Northern Marianas | March 14 | Caucus | March 15 | Caucus |
| Arizona | March 17 | Primary | Canceled | N/A |
| Florida | March 17 | Primary | March 17 | Primary |
| Illinois | March 17 | Primary | March 17 | Primary |
| Wisconsin | April 7 | Primary | April 7 | Primary |
| Alaska | April 10[8][9] | Primary | Canceled | N/A |
| Wyoming | April 17[10][11] | Caucus | May 7-9 | Convention |
| Ohio | April 28[12][13] | Primary | April 28[12][13] | Primary |
| Kansas | May 2 | Primary | Canceled | N/A |
| Nebraska | May 12 | Primary | May 12 | Primary |
| Oregon | May 19 | Primary | May 19 | Primary |
| Hawaii | May 22[14][15] | Primary | Canceled | N/A |
| District of Columbia | June 2 | Primary | June 2 | Primary |
| Indiana | June 2[16][17] | Primary | June 2[16][18] | Primary |
| Maryland | June 2[19][20] | Primary | June 2[19][20] | Primary |
| Montana | June 2 | Primary | June 2 | Primary |
| New Mexico | June 2 | Primary | June 2 | Primary |
| Pennsylvania | June 2[21][22] | Primary | June 2 | Primary |
| Rhode Island | June 2[23][24] | Primary | June 2 | Primary |
| South Dakota | June 2 | Primary | June 2 | Primary |
| Guam | June 6[25][26][27] | Caucus | March 14 | Caucus |
| Virgin Islands | June 6 | Caucus | May 30 | Caucus |
| Georgia | June 9[28][29] | Primary | June 9[28][29] | Primary |
| West Virginia | June 9[30][31] | Primary | June 9[30][31] | Primary |
| Kentucky | June 23[32][33] | Primary | June 23[32][33] | Primary |
| New York | June 23[34][35] | Primary | Canceled | Primary |
| Delaware | July 7[36][37] | Primary | July 7 | Primary |
| New Jersey | July 7[38][39] | Primary | July 7[38][39] | Primary |
| Louisiana | July 11[40][41][42] | Primary | July 11[40][41][43] | Primary |
| Puerto Rico | July 12[44][45][46][47] | Primary | June 5[48][49] | Primary |
| Connecticut | August 11[50][51] | Primary | August 11[50][51] | Primary |
Presidential nominating events by type, 2016-2024
The charts below display presidential nominating events by type in the 2016, 2020, and 2024 presidential elections.
See also
Click the links below to read more about the 2024 Democratic and Republican presidential nominations.
- Democratic presidential nomination
- Democratic National Convention
- Democratic delegate rules
- Prediction markets in the 2024 Democratic presidential primary
- Democratic Party officials on Joe Biden's 2024 presidential election campaign
- What happens if Joe Biden drops out or is replaced as the 2024 Democratic Party presidential nominee
- Withdrawal of Joe Biden from the 2024 presidential election
Click the links below to read more of Ballotpedia's 2024 election coverage.
Click the links below to read about how to cast your ballot in 2024.
Footnotes
- ↑ VoteSmart, "Government 101: United States Presidential Primary," accessed September 13, 2017
- ↑ Florida Department of Elections, "Quick Facts - Presidential Preference Primary Election," accessed September 13, 2017
- ↑ New Hampshire Democrats held two primaries. The state-run New Hampshire Democratic primary was not compliant with DNC rules, and the DNC said no delegates would be awarded according to the results. New Hampshire Democrats also held a party-run primary on April 27, 2024, which the DNC found to be compliant.
- ↑ 16 delegates will be allocated at the primary, and 39 delegates will be allocated at the convention.
- ↑ Democrats Abroad is the Democratic political party affiliate for American citizens living outside of the United States. The group functions as a state-level political party within the Democratic National Committee.
- ↑ Democrats Abroad is the Democratic political party affiliate for American citizens living outside of the United States. The group functions as a state-level political party within the Democratic National Committee.The Democrats Abroad primary begins March 3 and ends March 10. In-person voting dates vary by country.
- ↑ Republican caucuses were held on March 10, 2020, with Donald Trump as the only candidate on the ballot. Delegates to the Republican National Convention were originally scheduled to be elected on March 28, 2020, at the state convention. However, the convention was canceled. Delegates will be chosen by mail-in ballot.
- ↑ In response to the coronavirus outbreak, in-person voting was canceled and the vote-by-mail deadline was extended to April 10, 2020.
- ↑ Twitter, "Andrew S. Kitchenman: March 23, 2020: 1:39 PM," accessed March 25, 2020
- ↑ The Wyoming Democratic Party canceled in-person caucus events as a result of the coronavirus outbreak. The Democratic Party encouraged voters to participate by mail. The deadline for receiving completed ballots was set for April 17, 2020.
- ↑ Wyoming Democratic Party, "Caucus Information," accessed March 13, 2020
- ↑ 12.0 12.1 On March 16, 2020, Ohio Governor Mike DeWine announced that polls would be closed on March 17, 2020, by the order of the state department of health in response to the coronavirus outbreak. The state legislature subsequently passed a bill, which the governor signed into law, rescheduling the primary for April 28, 2020.
- ↑ 13.0 13.1 Ohio Secretary of State, "2020 PRIMARY FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS," accessed March 27, 2020
- ↑ On March 20, 2020, the Democratic Party of Hawaii announced that it would not conduct in-person voting in its party-administered presidential preference primary. Instead, all voting would take place by mail, April 4, 2020, was set as the deadline for registration/enrollment.
- ↑ West Hawaii Today, "Hawaii Democrats scrap in-person voting plan for primary," March 20, 2020
- ↑ 16.0 16.1 Gov. Eric Holcomb announced on March 20, 2020, that Indiana was postponing its primary from May 5 to June 2.
- ↑ Politico, "Indiana becomes seventh state to postpone presidential primary," March 20, 2020
- ↑ Cite error: Invalid
<ref>tag; no text was provided for refs namedPostponeIN2 - ↑ 19.0 19.1 Gov. Larry Hogan announced on March 17, 2020, that Maryland was postponing its primary to June 2 from April 28.
- ↑ 20.0 20.1 CBS Baltimore, "Coronavirus Latest: Gov. Larry Hogan Postpones Maryland April 28 Primary, Special Election Will Still Be Held By Mailing Vote," March 17, 2020
- ↑ Pennsylvania's primary election was postponed to June 2, 2020, in response to the coronavirus pandemic.
- ↑ Office of the Governor of Pennsylvania, "Gov. Wolf Signs COVID-19 Response Bills to Bolster Health Care System, Workers, and Education and Reschedule the Primary Election," March 27, 2020
- ↑ Governor Gina Raimondo (D) postponed the primary, originally scheduled for April 28, 2020, to June 2, 2020, in response to the coronavirus outbreak.
- ↑ Providence Journal, "Raimondo to order R.I. primary postponement," March 23, 2020
- ↑ Guam's Democratic presidential caucus, originally scheduled for May 2, 2020, was postponed indefinitely and then rescheduled for June 6, 2020.
- ↑ Twitter, "Josh Putnam on May 2, 2020," accessed May 2, 2020
- ↑ Facebook, "Democratic Party of Guam on June 5, 2020," accessed June 5, 2020
- ↑ 28.0 28.1 On March 14, 2020, Georgia election officials announced the primary would be postponed from March 24 due to concerns with the coronavirus pandemic. The primary was postponed a second time on April 9 to June 9.
- ↑ 29.0 29.1 Atlanta Journal-Constitution, "Georgia delays presidential primary due to coronavirus pandemic," March 14, 2020
- ↑ 30.0 30.1 West Virginia's presidential primaries were originally scheduled for May 12, 2020. They were postponed until June 9, 2020, in response to the coronavirus pandemic. Gov. Jim Justice made the announcement on April 1, 2020.
- ↑ 31.0 31.1 Governor of West Virginia, "Gov. Justice signs executive order to move Primary Election to June 9 after consultation with Attorney General, Secretary of State," April 1, 2020
- ↑ 32.0 32.1 On March 16, 2020, Secretary of State Michael Adams announced the state would postpone its primary from May 19 to June 23.
- ↑ 33.0 33.1 Lexington Herald-Leader, "Secretary of State recommends delaying Kentucky’s primary election until June amid COVID-19," March 16, 2020
- ↑ A judge ordered the New York State Board of Elections to reinstate the June 23 Democratic primary, which state officials had canceled. The primary was originally scheduled for April 28 but was postponed in response to the coronavirus pandemic.
- ↑ United States District Court for the Southern District of New York, "Yang v. Kellner: Opinion and Order," May 5, 2020
- ↑ Delaware's presidential preference primary election, originally scheduled for April 28, 2020, was postponed to July 7, 2020, in response to the coronavirus outbreak. The primary was first postponed to June 2.
- ↑ Office of the Governor of Delaware, "Governor Carney Reschedules Presidential Primary for July 7," May 7, 2020
- ↑ 38.0 38.1 Gov. Phil Murphy issued an executive order on April 8, 2020, that postponed the statewide primary from June 2 to July 7.
- ↑ 39.0 39.1 New Jersey, "Governor Murphy Announces Postponement of June 2nd Primary Elections until July 7th," April 8, 2020
- ↑ 40.0 40.1 Louisiana's presidential primaries were originally scheduled for April 4, 2020. On March 13, 2020, Secretary of State Kyle Ardoin announced the state would postpone its primary until June 20, 2020, as a result of the coronavirus outbreak. It was postponed a second time to July 11.
- ↑ 41.0 41.1 MSN, "Louisiana presidential primary pushed back again, to July 11," April 15, 2020
- ↑ Politico, "Louisiana postpones primary as states scramble to adjust to coronavirus," March 13, 2020
- ↑ Politico, "Louisiana postpones primary as states scramble to adjust to coronavirus," March 13, 2020
- ↑ On March 21, Puerto Rico's Democratic Party first postponed its primary from March 29 to April 26. On April 2, the party announced it was postponing the event a second time to an unspecified date. On May 21, the party announced that the primary would take place on July 12, 2020.
- ↑ Politico, "Puerto Rico postpones presidential primary," March 21, 2020
- ↑ The Hill, "Puerto Rico delays its primary a second time," April 2, 2020
- ↑ The Hill, "Puerto Rico Democrats set 2020 primary: 'We have no alternative but to comply with the law,'" May 21, 2020
- ↑ Due to the coronavirus pandemic, the Republican Party used an alternative method for conducting their nomination than the originally scheduled primary. An electronic referendum was conducted on June 5 among party leaders, surveying around 1,000 people, according to a party representative.
- ↑ Ballotpedia staff, "Phone call with Puerto Rico Republican Party representative," June 5, 2020
- ↑ 50.0 50.1 Gov. Ned Lamont announced on March 19, 2020, that Connecticut would postpone its primary from April 28 to June 2. On April 17, 2020, Lamont postponed the primary a second time, this time to August 11.
- ↑ 51.0 51.1 CNBC, "Connecticut becomes latest state to postpone 2020 primary as coronavirus spreads," March 19, 2020
