| Voter Turnout 2008 | | Print | |
 America Goes to the Polls: A Report on Voter Turnout in the 2008 ElectionNVEN - The Nonprofit Voter Engagement Network is pleased to announce the release of America Goes to the Polls: A Report on Voter Turnout in the 2008 Election. The new report provides rankings of voter turnout in the 50 states. It profiles turnout and turnout trends among constituencies such as youth and Latino and Black voters. The report has a special section looking at the potential turnout and democracy impacts of possible election reforms. National Voter Turnout Trends62% of eligible voters turned out in the last presidential election, a 40 year record. Comparable turnout has not been seen since the Eisenhower, Kennedy and Johnson elections of 1960s. Although turnout has gone up, there is still room for growth. More than one out of every three eligible voters did not participate in the 2008 Presidential Election. Increasing turnout in the future will depend upon election reforms such as expanded voter registration, better early voting and greater electoral competition (public financing, ranked choice voting, etc.). State Voter Turnout TrendsMinnesota once again led the nation in voter turnout with an impressive turnout of 78%. Minnesota and several of the other top ranking states were early adopters of Election Day Registation, which allows voters to update their registration with a new address or last name or register to vote for the first time at their polling place on Election Day. Four of the top ten states in voter turnout have some form of Election Day Registration. North Carolina, which led the nation in improvement in turnout compared to 2004 with an increase of 10.8%, combines a form of Election Day Registration with early voting, providing voters with "one stop" early voting. A record setting 57% of North Carolina's voters chose to vote early this year, no doubt cotnributing to North Carolina's improvement compared to 2004. Several States Show Impressive Gains in Voter TurnoutPrimary Source: U.S. Election Project, http://elections.gmu.edu/voter_turnout.html Download U.S. Election Project turnout data in Excel format: * in 2007, North Carolina adopted Same Day Registration during its 16 day early voting period. ** North Dakota does not have voter registration. ***EDR = State has Election Day Registration ****SS = Regarded as a "swing state" during the 2008 election
Black and Latino TurnoutBlack and Latino shared of the electorate were both up this year, with Latino share of the electorate continuing its steady increase, nearly doubling between 1996 and 2008. Black turnout meanwhile showed a marked improvement this year compared to recent election in which Black turnout had remained at around 11%. Primary Source: CNN National Exit Poll for 1996 , 2000 , 2004 and 2008 General Elections, Pew Hispanic Center , US. Election Atlas , Secretaries of State.
Youth TurnoutYouth voter turnout rose dramatically this year, continuing a trend that began in 1992. Black youth in particular increased their share of the youth electorate to 17%. Latino youth share of the electorate also rose dramatically from 8% in 1996 to 17% this year, driving up Latino voters' overall share of the electorate. Primary Source: CIRCLE (www.civicyouth.org ) |
