2008 United States presidential election in Illinois
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The2008 United States presidential election in Illinoistook place on November 4, 2008, and was part of the2008 United States presidential election.Voters chose 21 representatives, or electors to theElectoral College,who voted forpresidentandvice president.
DemocraticnomineeBarack Obamawon his home state by a 25.1 percentage point margin over Republican nomineeJohn McCain.Prior to the election, every major news organization consideredIllinoisa state Obama would win, or otherwise a safeblue state.One of the most reliably blue states in the nation, Illinois has not voted for a Republican presidential nominee since1988,whenGeorge H. W. Bushnarrowly carried the state. In 2008, continuing that trend, it appeared that a generic Democratic presidential nominee could have easily won Illinois; it was no surprise then that Obama, who represented Illinois in theU.S. Senate,won the state in a landslide victory, clinching near 62 percent of the total vote.
As of the2020 presidential election[update],this is the last time a Democrat won the following counties:Boone,Bureau,Cass,Calhoun,Coles,Gallatin,Grundy,Kankakee,LaSalle,Macon,Macoupin,Madison,Mason,McDonough,McHenry,Montgomery,Pulaski,Sangamon,Schuyler,Stephenson,andVermillion.
As of2020,Obama is the only presidential candidate of either party to win the state with more than 60% of the vote sinceWarren G. Hardingin1920,and the only Democrat to do so sinceAndrew Jackson,the Democratic Party's first presidential nominee, in1828and1832.McCain's 36.78% of the vote is the second-lowest of any major-party nominee since1924,only surpassingGeorge H. W. Bushin1992,when a substantial amount of the vote went toRoss Perot’s candidacy as an independent.
Illinois was one of three states where Obama outperformedFranklin D. Rooseveltin allfour of his runs,as well asLyndon Johnsonin his1964landslide. The others were rapidly Democratic-trending Vermont and Delaware, the latter being the home state of Joe Biden, Obama's running mate.
Primaries
[edit]Turnout
[edit]For the state-run primaries (Democratic, Republican, and Green), turnout was 40.26%, with 2,940,708 votes cast.[1][2]For the general election, turnout was 70.90%, with 5,522,371 votes cast.[1][2]
State-run primaries were held for both major parties, as well as the Green Party, on February 5.
Democratic
[edit]The2008 Illinois Democratic presidential primarytook place onSuper Tuesday,February 5, 2008, with 153 delegates at stake. The winner in each ofIllinois's 19 congressional districtswas awarded all of that district's delegates, totaling 100. Another 53 delegates were awarded to the statewide winner,Barack Obama.The 153 delegates represented Illinois at theDemocratic National ConventioninDenver, Colorado.Thirty-two other unpledged delegates, known assuperdelegates,also attended the convention and cast their votes as well.
Polls
[edit]Polls indicated that then-U.S. SenatorBarack Obamawas leading then-U.S. SenatorHillary Clintonby double digits in the days before the contest in his home state of Illinois.[3]
Results
[edit]| 2008 Illinois Democratic Presidential Primary Results | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Party | Candidate | Votes | Percentage | Delegates | ||
| Democratic | Barack Obama | 1,318,234 | 64.66% | 104 | ||
| Democratic | Hillary Clinton | 667,930 | 32.76% | 49 | ||
| Democratic | John Edwards | 39,719 | 1.95% | 0 | ||
| Democratic | Dennis Kucinich | 4,234 | 0.21% | 0 | ||
| Democratic | Joe Biden | 3,788 | 0.19% | 0 | ||
| Democratic | Bill Richardson | 3,538 | 0.17% | 0 | ||
| Democratic | Christopher Dodd | 1,171 | 0.06% | 0 | ||
| Totals | 2,038,614 | 100.00% | 153 | |||
| Voter turnout | % | — | ||||
Chicago Public Radio reported on March 13, 2008, that the delegate counts were recalculated and Obama won 106 delegates to 47 for Clinton.[4]
During the state by state roll-call at the Democratic National Convention, the Illinois delegation declined to cast their votes.[5]
Analysis
[edit]It was no surprise that Barack Obama cruised to a landslide victory in Illinois, the state he had represented in theU.S. Senatesince 2005. He enjoyed massive support in his state among all demographics. According to exit polls, 57% of voters in the Illinois Democratic Primary werewhiteand they opted for Obama 57–41; 24% of voters wereAfrican Americanand they, too, backed Obama 93–5; and 17 percent of voters in the primary wereHispanic/Latinoand they narrowly backed Obama 50–49. Obama won all age groups but tied Clinton amongsenior citizensaged 65 and over. He won all voters in the state of all educational attainment levels as well as income/socioeconomic classes. He won all ideological groups and voters from both parties as well as self-identifiedIndependents.Regarding religion, Obama won every major denomination exceptRoman Catholics,who narrowly backed Clinton 50-48%. Obama wonProtestantsby a margin of 58–38, other Christians 79–19, other religions 82–17, andatheists/agnostics78–21.
Obama performed extremely well statewide and racked up massive victories in his home city ofChicagoas well as its suburbs and the metropolitan area. He also won Northern Illinois as well as thecollar countiesby substantial victories. Clinton's best performance was in Southern Illinois among the moreruralandconservativecounties that are majority white, although Obama still won the region as a whole.
Republican
[edit]The2008 Illinois Republican presidential primarywas held on February 5, 2008 in the U.S. state of Illinois as one of theRepublican Party's state primariesahead of the 2008 presidential election. Illinois was one of 24 States holding a primary or caucus onSuper Tuesday.Delegates from each of Illinois' 19 congressional districts are selected by direct election. In addition, the primary ballot also contains a preference poll that lists the presidential candidates.
| Candidate | Votes | Percentage | Delegates |
|---|---|---|---|
| John McCain | 426,777 | 47.45% | 54 |
| Mitt Romney | 257,265 | 28.60% | 3 |
| Mike Huckabee | 148,053 | 16.46% | 0 |
| Ron Paul | 45,055 | 5.01% | 0 |
| Rudy Giuliani* | 11,837 | 1.32% | 0 |
| Fred Thompson* | 7,259 | 0.81% | 0 |
| Alan Keyes | 2,318 | 0.26% | 0 |
| Jim Mitchell, Jr. | 483 | 0.05% | 0 |
| Tom Tancredo* | 375 | 0.04% | 0 |
| Total | 899,422 | 100% | 57 |
*Candidate withdrew prior to the primary
Green
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44Green National Conventiondelegates | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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The2008 Illinois Green Party presidential primarywas held on February 5, 2008 in the U.S. state of Illinois as one of theGreen Party's state primariesahead of the 2008 presidential election.
By virtue of Green Party candidate Rich Whitney's performance in the2006 Illinois gubernatorial election,the party had earned the right to have a state-run primary in 2008.
| Candidate | Votes | Percentage | National delegates |
|---|---|---|---|
| Cynthia McKinney | 1,513 | 56.62% | 25 |
| Howie Hawkins | 464 | 17.37% | 8 |
| Kent Mesplay | 384 | 14.37% | 6 |
| Jared A. Ball | 311 | 11.64% | 5 |
| Total | 2,672 | 100% | 44 |
Campaign
[edit]Predictions
[edit]There were 16 news organizations who made state-by-state predictions of the election. Here are their last predictions before election day:
| Source | Ranking |
|---|---|
| D.C. Political Report[13] | Likely D |
| Cook Political Report[14] | Solid D |
| The Takeaway[15] | Solid D |
| Electoral-vote[16] | Solid D |
| Washington Post[17] | Solid D |
| Politico[18] | Solid D |
| RealClearPolitics[19] | Solid D |
| FiveThirtyEight[17] | Solid D |
| CQ Politics[20] | Solid D |
| The New York Times[21] | Solid D |
| CNN[22] | Safe D |
| NPR[17] | Solid D |
| MSNBC[17] | Solid D |
| Fox News[23] | Likely D |
| Associated Press[24] | Likely D |
| Rasmussen Reports[25] | Safe D |
Polling
[edit]Obama won every single pre-election poll, and each by a double-digit margin and with at least 52% (with the exception of anARGpoll). The final 3 polls averaged Obama leading 60% to 35%.[26]
Fundraising
[edit]Obama raised $35,307,625. McCain raised $7,207,428.[27]
Advertising and visits
[edit]Obama spent $23,319. McCain and interest groups spent $52,865.[28]The Democratic ticket visited the state 13 times. McCain's ticket visited the state twice.[29]
Analysis
[edit]For most of the second half of the 20th century,Illinoiswas reckoned as a Republican-leaning swing state. It voted Republican in every election from1952to 1988, save for1960and1964.However,George H. W. Bushjust barely won the state in 1988, and it swung heavily toBill Clintonand the Democrats in1992.Since then, Democrats have won the state by fairly comfortable margins, and it is now reckoned as the most solidly Democratic state in the Midwest.
The Democratic trend in Illinois can be largely attributed toCook County,home toChicago,which makes up about 41.2% of the state's total population.[30]While Chicago has been a Democratic stronghold for decades, the suburban areas of Cook County have historically tilted Republican. However, the brand of Republicanism in the suburbs has historically been moderate, and these areas swung Democratic as the national party moved more to the right. Democrats also do very well in the Illinois portions of theQuad CitiesandSt. Louisareas. Additionally, the historically Republicancollar countiesnear Chicago –DuPage,Lake,McHenry,Kane,andWill– have become friendlier to Democrats at the national level.
Barack Obama,the juniorU.S. senatorfrom Illinois at the time of the election, carried the state handily, defeatingJohn McCainof Arizona by a margin of 1.38 million votes. Obama carried his home county, Cook County, with roughly 76% of the vote, the highest percentage of any Democratic presidential candidate since its incorporation in 1831. He also swept all five collar counties, becoming the first Democratic candidate sinceFranklin Piercein1852to do so, with DuPage, Kendall, Lake, and Will giving him double-digit margins. Notably, DuPage, Kane, Kendall, and McHenry had not supported a Democrat for president since that election.[31]Obama improved on Kerry's performance enough that he would have prevailed in the state even if the Democratic stronghold of Cook County had its votes excluded, albeit by a narrower margin of 1,790,324 votes to McCain's 1,543,443 or 53.7% - 46.3% of the two-party vote. This is the only time in the 21st century that the Democratic candidate has done so.
Obama also did very well in several rural counties that historically voted Republican. He became the first Democrat to winCarroll Countysince that county was created in 1839, in the process breaking the last remaining Republican streak stretching from initial GOP candidateJohn C. Frémontin1856,and the first Democrat to winBoone CountysinceJames K. Polkin1844.McCain did, however, win several of the more rural counties inSouthern Illinois;Obama thus became the first-ever Democrat to win the White House without carryingChristian County.It was not nearly enough, however, to put a serious dent in Obama's 25-point margin in the state.[32]As of the2020 presidential election,this is the last presidential election that a Democrat won all of Chicago's collar counties.
During the same election, seniorU.S. SenatorandSenate Majority WhipDick Durbin,a Democrat, was reelected to theU.S. Senatewith 67.84% of the vote over Republican Dr. Steve Sauerberg who received 28.53%. At the state level, Democrats picked up three seats in theIllinois House of Representatives.
Results
[edit]| 2008 United States presidential election in Illinois[2] | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Party | Candidate | Running mate | Votes | Percentage | Electoral votes | |
| Democratic | Barack Obama | Joe Biden | 3,419,348 | 61.92% | 21 | |
| Republican | John McCain | Sarah Palin | 2,031,179 | 36.78% | 0 | |
| Independent | Ralph Nader | Matt Gonzalez | 31,152 | 0.56% | 0 | |
| Libertarian | Bob Barr | Wayne Allyn Root | 19,642 | 0.36% | 0 | |
| Green | Cynthia McKinney | Rosa Clemente | 11,838 | 0.21% | 0 | |
| Constitution | Chuck Baldwin | Darrell Castle | 8,256 | 0.15% | 0 | |
| New Party | John Joseph Polachek | 1,149 | 0.02% | 0 | ||
| Write-Ins | Write-ins | 11 | 0.00% | 0 | ||
| Totals | 5,522,371 | 100.00% | 21 | |||
| Voter turnout | 58.1% | |||||
Results by county
[edit]| County | Barack Obama Democratic |
John McCain Republican |
Various candidates Other parties |
Margin | Total votes cast | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| # | % | # | % | # | % | # | % | ||
| Adams | 11,794 | 38.17% | 18,711 | 60.55% | 397 | 1.29% | -6,917 | -22.38% | 30,902 |
| Alexander | 2,189 | 55.46% | 1,692 | 42.87% | 66 | 1.67% | 497 | 12.59% | 3,947 |
| Bond | 3,843 | 48.28% | 3,947 | 49.59% | 170 | 2.58% | -104 | -1.31% | 7,960 |
| Boone | 11,333 | 50.96% | 10,403 | 46.78% | 502 | 2.25% | 930 | 4.18% | 22,238 |
| Brown | 986 | 38.26% | 1,544 | 59.91% | 47 | 1.82% | -558 | -21.65% | 2,577 |
| Bureau | 8,889 | 51.82% | 7,911 | 46.12% | 353 | 2.05% | 978 | 5.70% | 17,153 |
| Calhoun | 1,423 | 52.59% | 1,221 | 45.12% | 62 | 2.29% | 202 | 7.47% | 2,706 |
| Carroll | 3,965 | 51.54% | 3,596 | 46.74% | 132 | 1.72% | 369 | 4.80% | 7,693 |
| Cass | 2,690 | 49.52% | 2,617 | 48.18% | 125 | 2.31% | 73 | 1.34% | 5,432 |
| Champaign | 48,597 | 57.57% | 33,871 | 40.13% | 1,940 | 2.29% | 14,726 | 17.44% | 84,408 |
| Christian | 6,918 | 45.65% | 7,872 | 51.94% | 365 | 2.41% | -954 | -6.29% | 15,155 |
| Clark | 3,742 | 45.02% | 4,409 | 53.04% | 161 | 1.94% | -667 | -8.02% | 8,312 |
| Clay | 2,425 | 37.50% | 3,926 | 60.72% | 115 | 1.79% | -1,501 | -23.22% | 6,466 |
| Clinton | 7,657 | 44.22% | 9,357 | 54.04% | 300 | 1.74% | -1,700 | -9.82% | 17,314 |
| Coles | 11,716 | 50.60% | 10,978 | 47.42% | 459 | 1.98% | 738 | 3.18% | 23,153 |
| Cook | 1,629,024 | 76.21% | 487,736 | 22.82% | 20,706 | 0.97% | 1,141,288 | 53.39% | 2,137,466 |
| Crawford | 3,883 | 42.42% | 5,070 | 55.39% | 200 | 2.19% | -1,187 | -12.97% | 9,153 |
| Cumberland | 2,055 | 38.49% | 3,156 | 59.11% | 128 | 2.40% | -1,101 | -20.62% | 5,339 |
| DeKalb | 25,784 | 57.33% | 18,266 | 40.61% | 924 | 2.05% | 7,518 | 16.72% | 44,974 |
| DeWitt | 3,308 | 42.24% | 4,348 | 55.52% | 175 | 2.23% | -1,040 | -13.28% | 7,831 |
| Douglas | 3,228 | 38.52% | 5,005 | 59.73% | 146 | 1.74% | -1,777 | -21.21% | 8,379 |
| DuPage | 228,698 | 54.72% | 183,626 | 43.93% | 5,649 | 1.35% | 45,072 | 10.79% | 417,973 |
| Edgar | 3,743 | 45.18% | 4,398 | 53.09% | 143 | 1.73% | -655 | -7.91% | 8,284 |
| Edwards | 1,140 | 33.91% | 2,137 | 63.56% | 85 | 2.53% | -997 | -29.65% | 3,362 |
| Effingham | 5,262 | 31.17% | 11,323 | 67.08% | 295 | 1.75% | -6,061 | -35.91% | 16,880 |
| Fayette | 3,967 | 40.86% | 5,499 | 56.64% | 242 | 2.49% | -1,532 | -15.78% | 9,708 |
| Ford | 2,227 | 34.80% | 4,079 | 63.73% | 94 | 1.47% | -1,852 | -28.93% | 6,400 |
| Franklin | 8,880 | 47.45% | 9,404 | 50.25% | 430 | 2.30% | -524 | -2.80% | 18,714 |
| Fulton | 9,732 | 59.45% | 6,251 | 38.19% | 386 | 2.36% | 3,481 | 21.26% | 16,369 |
| Gallatin | 1,587 | 55.26% | 1,212 | 42.20% | 73 | 2.54% | 375 | 13.06% | 2,872 |
| Greene | 2,619 | 44.95% | 3,053 | 52.40% | 154 | 2.64% | -434 | -7.45% | 5,826 |
| Grundy | 11,063 | 49.76% | 10,687 | 48.07% | 482 | 2.17% | 376 | 1.69% | 22,232 |
| Hamilton | 1,796 | 41.92% | 2,353 | 54.93% | 135 | 3.15% | -557 | -13.01% | 4,284 |
| Hancock | 4,141 | 43.73% | 5,161 | 54.50% | 167 | 1.76% | -1,020 | -10.77% | 9,469 |
| Hardin | 892 | 39.43% | 1,330 | 58.80% | 40 | 1.77% | -438 | -19.37% | 2,262 |
| Henderson | 2,215 | 57.85% | 1,541 | 40.25% | 73 | 1.91% | 674 | 17.60% | 3,829 |
| Henry | 13,181 | 53.04% | 11,263 | 45.33% | 405 | 1.63% | 1,918 | 7.71% | 24,849 |
| Iroquois | 4,643 | 34.08% | 8,695 | 63.82% | 286 | 2.10% | -4,052 | -29.74% | 13,624 |
| Jackson | 15,248 | 59.52% | 9,687 | 37.81% | 682 | 2.66% | 5,561 | 21.71% | 25,617 |
| Jasper | 2,063 | 40.12% | 2,964 | 57.64% | 115 | 2.24% | -901 | -17.52% | 5,142 |
| Jefferson | 7,462 | 43.33% | 9,302 | 54.02% | 457 | 2.65% | -1,840 | -10.69% | 17,221 |
| Jersey | 5,042 | 47.50% | 5,329 | 50.20% | 244 | 2.30% | -287 | -2.70% | 10,615 |
| Jo Daviess | 6,403 | 54.49% | 5,170 | 44.00% | 177 | 1.51% | 1,233 | 10.49% | 11,750 |
| Johnson | 1,871 | 31.64% | 3,912 | 66.15% | 131 | 2.22% | -2,041 | -34.51% | 5,914 |
| Kane | 106,756 | 55.21% | 83,963 | 43.42% | 2,644 | 1.37% | 22,793 | 11.79% | 193,363 |
| Kankakee | 24,750 | 51.41% | 22,527 | 46.80% | 861 | 1.79% | 2,223 | 4.61% | 48,138 |
| Kendall | 24,742 | 52.95% | 21,380 | 45.75% | 609 | 1.30% | 3,362 | 7.20% | 46,731 |
| Knox | 14,191 | 58.89% | 9,419 | 39.09% | 488 | 2.03% | 4,772 | 19.80% | 24,098 |
| Lake | 177,242 | 59.10% | 118,545 | 39.53% | 4,113 | 1.37% | 58,697 | 19.57% | 299,900 |
| LaSalle | 27,443 | 54.55% | 21,872 | 43.47% | 995 | 1.98% | 5,571 | 11.08% | 50,310 |
| Lawrence | 3,016 | 45.99% | 3,403 | 51.89% | 139 | 2.12% | -387 | -5.90% | 6,558 |
| Lee | 7,765 | 47.47% | 8,258 | 50.49% | 334 | 2.04% | -493 | -3.02% | 16,357 |
| Livingston | 6,189 | 39.50% | 9,191 | 58.66% | 289 | 1.84% | -3,002 | -19.16% | 15,669 |
| Logan | 5,250 | 40.57% | 7,429 | 57.41% | 262 | 2.02% | -2,179 | -16.84% | 12,941 |
| Macon | 25,487 | 49.60% | 24,948 | 48.55% | 954 | 1.86% | 539 | 1.05% | 51,389 |
| Macoupin | 12,090 | 53.87% | 9,891 | 44.07% | 462 | 2.06% | 2,199 | 9.80% | 22,443 |
| Madison | 68,979 | 53.60% | 57,177 | 44.43% | 2,534 | 1.97% | 11,802 | 9.17% | 128,690 |
| Marion | 8,345 | 47.93% | 8,691 | 49.92% | 374 | 2.15% | -346 | -1.99% | 17,410 |
| Marshall | 3,081 | 48.53% | 3,145 | 49.54% | 122 | 1.92% | -64 | -1.01% | 6,348 |
| Mason | 3,542 | 51.85% | 3,141 | 45.98% | 148 | 2.17% | 401 | 5.87% | 6,831 |
| Massac | 2,693 | 37.36% | 4,371 | 60.63% | 145 | 2.01% | -1,678 | -23.27% | 7,209 |
| McDonough | 6,783 | 51.89% | 6,055 | 46.32% | 234 | 1.79% | 728 | 5.57% | 13,072 |
| McHenry | 72,288 | 51.77% | 64,845 | 46.44% | 2,499 | 1.79% | 7,443 | 5.33% | 139,632 |
| McLean | 37,689 | 49.67% | 36,767 | 48.46% | 1,422 | 1.87% | 922 | 1.21% | 75,878 |
| Menard | 2,706 | 41.78% | 3,672 | 56.69% | 99 | 1.53% | -966 | -14.91% | 6,477 |
| Mercer | 4,887 | 55.10% | 3,833 | 43.21% | 150 | 1.69% | 1,054 | 11.89% | 8,870 |
| Monroe | 7,953 | 43.87% | 9,881 | 54.50% | 295 | 1.63% | -1,928 | -10.63% | 18,129 |
| Montgomery | 6,491 | 50.28% | 6,150 | 47.64% | 268 | 2.08% | 341 | 2.64% | 12,909 |
| Morgan | 7,467 | 48.51% | 7,591 | 49.31% | 336 | 2.18% | -124 | -0.80% | 15,394 |
| Moultrie | 2,668 | 42.53% | 3,471 | 55.33% | 134 | 2.14% | -803 | -12.80% | 6,273 |
| Ogle | 11,253 | 45.13% | 13,144 | 52.72% | 537 | 2.15% | -1,891 | -7.59% | 24,934 |
| Peoria | 45,906 | 56.19% | 34,579 | 42.32% | 1,219 | 1.49% | 11,327 | 13.87% | 81,704 |
| Perry | 4,701 | 47.03% | 5,086 | 50.89% | 208 | 2.08% | -385 | -3.86% | 9,995 |
| Piatt | 3,859 | 42.79% | 4,991 | 55.34% | 168 | 1.86% | -1,132 | -12.55% | 9,018 |
| Pike | 3,024 | 39.57% | 4,457 | 58.31% | 162 | 2.12% | -1,433 | -18.74% | 7,643 |
| Pope | 845 | 37.88% | 1,343 | 60.20% | 43 | 1.93% | -498 | -22.32% | 2,231 |
| Pulaski | 1,638 | 50.09% | 1,593 | 48.72% | 39 | 1.19% | 45 | 1.37% | 3,270 |
| Putnam | 1,900 | 56.85% | 1,378 | 41.23% | 64 | 1.92% | 522 | 15.62% | 3,342 |
| Randolph | 7,395 | 48.64% | 7,538 | 49.59% | 269 | 1.77% | -143 | -0.95% | 15,202 |
| Richland | 3,181 | 41.46% | 4,329 | 56.42% | 163 | 2.12% | -1,148 | -14.96% | 7,673 |
| Rock Island | 42,210 | 61.52% | 25,364 | 36.97% | 1,034 | 1.51% | 16,846 | 24.55% | 68,608 |
| Saline | 5,083 | 44.29% | 6,099 | 53.15% | 294 | 2.56% | -1,016 | -8.86% | 11,476 |
| Sangamon | 51,300 | 51.25% | 46,945 | 46.90% | 1,861 | 1.86% | 4,355 | 4.35% | 100,106 |
| Schuyler | 1,900 | 49.49% | 1,833 | 47.75% | 106 | 2.76% | 67 | 1.74% | 3,839 |
| Scott | 1,090 | 41.81% | 1,455 | 55.81% | 62 | 2.38% | -365 | -14.00% | 2,607 |
| Shelby | 4,245 | 38.94% | 6,396 | 58.67% | 261 | 2.39% | -2,151 | -19.73% | 10,902 |
| St. Clair | 76,160 | 60.42% | 47,958 | 38.05% | 1,936 | 1.54% | 28,202 | 22.37% | 126,054 |
| Stark | 1,357 | 46.49% | 1,513 | 51.83% | 49 | 1.68% | -156 | -5.34% | 2,919 |
| Stephenson | 11,349 | 52.40% | 9,909 | 45.75% | 399 | 1.84% | 1,440 | 6.65% | 21,657 |
| Tazewell | 29,384 | 45.87% | 33,247 | 51.90% | 1,429 | 2.23% | -3,863 | -6.03% | 64,060 |
| Union | 3,918 | 42.80% | 5,003 | 54.65% | 233 | 2.55% | -1,085 | -11.85% | 9,154 |
| Vermilion | 16,246 | 49.21% | 16,054 | 48.62% | 716 | 2.17% | 192 | 0.59% | 33,016 |
| Wabash | 2,462 | 42.49% | 3,254 | 56.16% | 78 | 1.35% | -792 | -13.67% | 5,794 |
| Warren | 4,286 | 53.17% | 3,637 | 45.12% | 138 | 1.71% | 649 | 8.05% | 8,061 |
| Washington | 3,342 | 42.13% | 4,473 | 56.39% | 117 | 1.48% | -1,131 | -14.26% | 7,932 |
| Wayne | 2,547 | 31.56% | 5,390 | 66.78% | 134 | 1.66% | -2,843 | -35.22% | 8,071 |
| White | 3,315 | 44.48% | 3,987 | 53.50% | 151 | 2.03% | -672 | -9.02% | 7,453 |
| Whiteside | 15,607 | 57.82% | 10,883 | 40.32% | 504 | 1.87% | 4,724 | 17.50% | 26,994 |
| Will | 160,406 | 55.86% | 122,597 | 42.69% | 4,178 | 1.45% | 37,809 | 13.17% | 287,181 |
| Williamson | 12,589 | 41.59% | 17,039 | 56.30% | 638 | 2.11% | -4,450 | -14.71% | 30,266 |
| Winnebago | 70,034 | 55.27% | 53,886 | 42.53% | 2,784 | 2.20% | 16,148 | 12.74% | 126,704 |
| Woodford | 6,999 | 35.82% | 12,191 | 62.39% | 350 | 1.79% | -5,192 | -26.57% | 19,540 |
| Totals | 3,419,348 | 61.83% | 2,031,179 | 36.73% | 79,652 | 1.44% | 1,388,169 | 25.10% | 5,530,179 |
| Democratic Hold Gain from Republican | Republican Hold |
Counties that flipped from Republican to Democratic
[edit]- Boone(largest city:Belvidere)
- Bureau(largest city:Princeton)
- Carroll(largest city:Savanna)
- Cass(largest city:Beardstown)
- Coles(largest city:Charleston)
- DeKalb(largest city:DeKalb)
- DuPage(largest city:Aurora)
- Gallatin(largest city:Shawneetown)
- Grundy(largest city:Morris)
- Henry(largest city:Kewanee)
- Kane(largest city:Aurora)
- Jo Daviess(largest city:Galena)
- Kankakee(largest city:Kankakee)
- Kendall(largest village:Oswego)
- Lake(largest city:Waukegan)
- LaSalle(largest city:Ottawa)
- Macon(largest city:Decatur)
- Macoupin(largest city:Carlinville)
- Mason(largest city:Havana)
- McDonough(largest city:Macomb)
- McHenry(largest city:Crystal Lake)
- McLean(largest city:Bloomington)
- Montgomery(largest city:Litchfield)
- Pulaski(largest city:Mounds)
- Sangamon(largest city:Springfield)
- Schuyler(largest city:Rushville)
- Stephenson(largest city:Freeport)
- Vermilion(Largest city:Danville)
- Warren(largest city:Monmouth)
- Will(largest city:Joliet)
- Winnebago(largest city:Rockford)
By congressional district
[edit]Barack Obama won 16 of the state's 19 congressional districts, including four districts held by Republicans.
| District | Obama | McCain | Representative |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1st | 86.53% | 12.93% | Bobby Rush |
| 2nd | 89.68% | 9.86% | Jesse Jackson Jr. |
| 3rd | 63.60% | 35.08% | Dan Lipinski |
| 4th | 85.44% | 13.22% | Luis Gutierrez |
| 5th | 72.82% | 26.22% | Rahm Emanuel(110th Congress) |
| Mike Quigley(111th Congress) | |||
| 6th | 55.91% | 42.76% | Peter Roskam |
| 7th | 87.77% | 11.57% | Danny K. Davis |
| 8th | 55.74% | 42.86% | Melissa Bean |
| 9th | 72.34% | 26.43% | Jan Schakowsky |
| 10th | 60.92% | 38.13% | Mark Kirk |
| 11th | 53.32% | 45.14% | Jerry Weller(110th Congress) |
| Debbie Halvorson(111th Congress) | |||
| 12th | 55.49% | 42.89% | Jerry Costello |
| 13th | 54.21% | 44.60% | Judy Biggert |
| 14th | 54.83% | 43.77% | Dennis Hastert(110th Congress) |
| Bill Foster(111th Congress) | |||
| 15th | 47.82% | 50.43% | Timothy V. Johnson |
| 16th | 52.78% | 45.52% | Donald Manzullo |
| 17th | 56.39% | 42.15% | Philip Hare |
| 18th | 48.32% | 50.03% | Ray LaHood(110th Congress) |
| Aaron Schock(111th Congress) | |||
| 19th | 43.98% | 54.25% | John Shimkus |
Electors
[edit]Technically the voters of Illinois cast their ballots for electors: representatives to theElectoral College.Illinois is allocated 21 electors because it has 19congressional districtsand 2senators.All candidates who appear on the ballot or qualify to receive write-in votes must submit a list of 21 electors, who pledge to vote for their candidate and the candidate's running mate. Whoever wins the majority of votes in the state is awarded all 21 electoral votes. Their chosen electors then vote for president and vice president. Although electors are pledged to their candidate and running mate, they are not obligated to vote for them.[33]An elector who votes for someone other than their candidate is known as afaithless elector.
The electors of each state and theDistrict of Columbiamet on December 15, 2008, to cast their votes for president and vice president. The Electoral College itself never meets as one body. Instead the electors from each state and the District of Columbia met in their respective capitols.
The following were the members of the Electoral College from the state. All 21 were pledged toBarack ObamaandJoe Biden:[34]
- Constance A. Howard
- Carrie Austin
- Shirley R. Madigan
- Ricardo Muñoz
- James DeLeo
- Marge Friedman
- Vera Davis
- Nancy Shepardson
- William Marovitz
- Lauren Beth Gash
- Debbie Halvorson
- Molly McKenzie
- Julia Kennedy Beckman
- Mark Guethle
- Lynn Foster
- John M. Nelson
- Mary Boland
- Shirley McCombs
- Don Johnston
- Barbara Flynn Currie
- John P. Daley
See also
[edit]- United States presidential elections in Illinois
- 2008 Republican Party presidential primaries
- 2008 Democratic Party presidential primaries
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