Who Votes Where

Today, as you might have heard, is Election Day. For some holidays, it’s difficult to map exactly where people celebrate it. There’s no national data on turkey or Christmas tree purchases. But for Election Day, we know exactly where it’s observed most heavily, because we have voter turnout data from the last two presidential elections.

In 2008, Minnesota led the nation in voter turnout with 73% of Minnesotans going to the polls. Maine was a close second at 70%. Bringing up the rear were Arizona, Texas, and Hawaii, with only between 45% and 48% of eligible voters showing up.


2008 also showed some major changes in voting patterns. States across the south increased voter turnout. North Carolina saw a 7% increase. Virginia, South Carolina, Mississippi, and Georgia also showed substantial increases.

The 2012 data will be available on PolicyMap soon. That data will be directly determined by what happens today.