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United States presidential election in West Virginia, 2008

← 2004 November 4, 2008 2012 →

Nominee John McCain Barack Obama Party Republican Democratic Home state Arizona Illinois Running mate Sarah Palin Joe Biden Electoral vote 5 0 Popular vote 397,466 303,857 Percentage 55.60% 42.51%

County Results   Obama—50-60%   Obama—<50%   McCain—<50%   McCain—50-60%   McCain—60-70%   McCain—70-80%

President before election George W. Bush Republican Elected President Barack Obama Democratic

The 2008 United States presidential election in West Virginia took place on November 4, 2008 throughout all 50 states and D.C., which was part of the 2008 United States presidential election. Voters chose 5 representatives, or electors to the Electoral College, who voted for President and Vice President.

West Virginia was won by Republican nominee John McCain by a 13.1% margin of victory. Prior to the election, all 17 news organizations considered this a state McCain would win, or otherwise considered as a safe red state. Despite its past voting record of heavily favoring Democratic presidential nominees, the state has lately been trending more Republican in presidential elections. As expected, McCain defeated Obama in the Mountain State, even improving upon George W. Bush's performance in 2004. West Virginia was one of five states in which McCain did better than Bush. Obama was also the first Democratic presidential nominee since Woodrow Wilson in 1916 to win the nationwide presidential election without carrying West Virginia.

Primaries

• West Virginia Democratic primary, 2008
• West Virginia Republican caucuses, 2008

Campaign

Predictions

Elections in West Virginia
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Local government Charleston (mayoral elections) 2022 Huntington (municipal elections) 2020 2024 Wheeling (municipal elections) 2020 2024
v t e

There were 17 news organizations who made state by state predictions of the election. Here are their last predictions before election day:

1. D.C. Political Report: Republican
2. Cook Political Report: Leaning Republican
3. Takeaway: Leaning McCain
4. Election Projection: Leaning McCain
5. Electoral-vote.com: Leaning Republican
6. Washington Post: Leaning McCain
7. Politico: Solid McCain
8. Real Clear Politics: Leaning McCain
9. FiveThirtyEight.com: Leaning McCain
10. CQ Politics: Leaning Republican
11. New York Times: Leaning Republican
12. CNN: Leaning Republican
13. NPR: Leaning McCain
14. MSNBC: Leaning McCain
15. Fox News: Republican
16. Associated Press: Republican
17. Rasmussen Reports: Solid Republican

Polling

McCain won 16 of 17 pre-election polls. The final 3 polls averaged McCain leading 53% to 41%.

Fundraising

John McCain raised a total of $291,184 in the state. Barack Obama raised $713,231.

Advertising and visits

Obama and his interest groups spent $1,437,178. McCain and his interest groups spent $1,920,720. Each ticket visited the state once.

Analysis

More than any other state, West Virginia highlighted Obama's trouble in Appalachian America. It swung heavily to the Democrats during the days of Franklin D. Roosevelt and remained reliably Democratic for most of the next 68 years. It often voted for Democrats (such as Jimmy Carter and Mike Dukakis) who went on to big national defeats. This was largely due to its blue-collar, heavily unionized workers, especially coal miners, who favored Democratic economic policy.

Starting in the days with Al Gore, however, the state's voters turned away from the Democrats because of environmental issues and the perception that Democrats are hostile to the coal industry.

Advancing into the general election, McCain was largely expected to receive the state's five electoral votes. Since polling in the state prior to the election showed a nearly double-digit lead in favor of McCain, neither presidential nominee campaigned heavily in the state. Not surprisingly, though, every poll out of West Virginia showed Hillary Clinton defeating McCain in West Virginia, sometimes by double digits.

On Election Day, McCain won West Virginia by 13.09 points while losing nationwide. McCain did well throughout the state, losing only a handful of counties. While his margins were best in the more conservative northern part of the state, he also improved significantly in Southern West Virginia. This coal-mining, union-heavy region was one of the most heavily Democratic places in the nation; Logan County, for example, cast 72 percent of its ballot for Bill Clinton. In 2008, however, John McCain won the county by double-digits.

On the other hand, Barack Obama did make gains in the area between Maryland and Virginia, counties which are a part of the Washington Metropolitan Area. Obama also ran close in Central West Virginia (the counties around the capital Charleston).

Despite the recent Republican success nationally, Democrats still dominate at the state and local level. After Election 2008, Democrats hold the governorship and every statewide office, two out of the state's three congressional districts in the U.S. House of Representatives and both U.S. Senate seats. They also hold supermajorities in both chambers of the state legislature.

During the same election, popular incumbent Democratic Governor Joe Manchin III was soundly reelected to a second term with 69.79% of the vote over Republican Russ Weeks who took in 25.75% while Jesse Johnson of the Mountain Party received 4.46%. Incumbent Democratic U.S. Senator Jay Rockefeller IV was also soundly reelected with 63.71% of the vote over Republican Jay Wolfe who took in 36.27%. At the state level, Democrats picked up three seats in the West Virginia Senate while Republicans picked up one seat in the West Virginia House of Delegates.

Results

Results breakdown

By county

By congressional District

John McCain swept all three of the state’s three congressional districts, including the two districts held by Democrats.

Electors

Technically the voters of West Virginia cast their ballots for electors: representatives to the Electoral College. West Virginia is allocated 5 electors because it has 3 congressional districts and 2 senators. All candidates who appear on the ballot or qualify to receive write-in votes must submit a list of 5 electors, who pledge to vote for their candidate and his or her running mate. Whoever wins the majority of votes in the state is awarded all 5 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. An elector who votes for someone other than his or her candidate is known as a faithless elector.

The electors of each state and the District of Columbia met 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.

All 5 were pledged to John McCain and Sarah Palin:

1. Robert Fish
2. Zane Lawhorn
3. Catherine Sue McKinney
4. Marti Riggall
5. Theresa Waxman

References

1. http://www.dcpoliticalreport.com/Predictions.html
2. http://www.cookpolitical.com/presidential#belowMap
3. http://vote2008.thetakeaway.org/2008/09/20/track-the-electoral-college-vote-predictions/
4. http://www.electionprojection.com/2008elections/president08.shtml
5. http://electoral-vote.com/evp2008/Pres/Maps/Dec31.html
6. Based on Takeaway
7. http://www.politico.com/convention/swingstate.html
8. http://www.realclearpolitics.com/epolls/maps/obama_vs_mccain/?map=5
9. Based on Takeaway
10. http://innovation.cq.com/prezMap08/
11. The New York Times http://elections.nytimes.com/2008/president/whos-ahead/key-states/map.html?scp=1&sq=electoral%20college%20map&st=cse. Retrieved May 26, 2010. {{cite news}}: Missing or empty |title= (help)
12. "October – 2008 – CNN Political Ticker - CNN.com Blogs". CNN. October 31, 2008. Retrieved May 26, 2010.
13. Based on Takeaway
14. Based on Takeaway
15. "Winning The Electoral College". Fox News. April 27, 2010.
16. http://hosted.ap.org/specials/interactives/campaign_plus/roadto270/
17. http://www.rasmussenreports.com/public_content/politics/elections2/election_20082/2008_presidential_election/election_2008_electoral_college_update
18. http://uselectionatlas.org/POLLS/PRESIDENT/2008/pollsa.php?fips=54
19. "Map: Campaign Ad Spending - Election Center 2008 from CNN.com". CNN. Retrieved May 26, 2010.
20. "Map: Campaign Candidate Visits - Election Center 2008 from CNN.com". CNN. Retrieved May 26, 2010.
21. "Election Results 2008". New York Times. Retrieved 6-8-09. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |accessdate= (help)
22. "Electoral College". California Secretary of State. Retrieved 2008-11-01.
23. http://www.archives.gov/federal-register/electoral-college/2008-certificates/index.html#wv

See also

v t e State and district results of the 2008 United States presidential election
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• 2008 United States presidential election by state
• West Virginia elections, 2008
• United States presidential elections in West Virginia