Pennsylvania Primary Facts and Figures

Posted March 17, 2008

Compiled by the U.S.News & World Report library staff

Pennsylvania's primary is April 22.

Presidential Primary Winners

Democrats

1988 Michael Dukakis
1992 Bill Clinton
1996 Bill Clinton
2000 Al Gore
2004 John Kerry

Republicans

1988 George H. W. Bush
1992 George H. W. Bush
1996 Bob Dole
2000 George W. Bush
2004 George W. Bush

Sources:
Congressional Quarterly's Guide to U.S. Elections
Pennsylvania Department of State: Elections Information, 2004 General Primary, Official Returns

2008 Voter Registration Data

As of Nov. 6, 2007:

Total Registered Voters: 8,112,998
Registration by Party:
Democrat: 3,883,378 (47.9%)
Republican: 3,245,271 (40%)
Other Parties: 984,349 (12.1%)

Source:
Pennsylvania Department of State: Voter Registration Statistics, Archives, November 2007 (.pdf)

General Election Winners:

1988-2004

1988 George H. W. Bush
1992 Bill Clinton
1996 Bill Clinton
2000 Al Gore
2004 John Kerry

Sources:
Congressional Quarterly's Guide to U.S. Elections
Pennsylvania Department of State: Elections Information, 2004 General Election, Official Returns

Exit Poll Demographics

2004 Election
Sex

Male: 47%
Female: 53%

Race

White: 82%
African-American: 13%
Latino: 3%
Asian: 1%
Other: 1%

Age

18-29: 21%
30-44: 28%
45-59: 29%
60 and older: 22%

Source:
CNN.com

3 Things You Didn't Know About Pennsylvania Primaries and Elections

1. The last time the Pennsylvania primary was pivotal was in 1976. That year, Jimmy Carter's win in the Pennsylvania primary virtually locked up the Democratic nomination.

2. Pennsylvania has been described as "Philadelphia and Pittsburgh with Alabama in between." This is a sweeping generalization about the difference between the state's population in the two large cities and everyone else in the middle, which highlights the variations in their voting preferences. Pennsylvania has also been referred to as Pennsyltucky.

3. There are almost 9,000 inductees in the Pennsylvania Voter Hall of Fame. The hall honors residents who have voted in every November election for 50 or more consecutive years. The inductee list is searchable, and new members can download an application online.

Sources:
The Almanac of American Politics
Chicago Tribune
Pennsyltucky Politics Blog in the Patriot-News: About the Author
Pennsylvania Department of State: Voter Hall of Fame
Philadelphia Inquirer
Philadelphia magazine