2020 United States presidential election in Massachusetts

The 2020 United States presidential election in Massachusetts was held on Tuesday, November 3, 2020, as part of the 2020 United States presidential election in which all 50 states plus the District of Columbia participated.[2] Massachusetts voters chose electors to represent them in the Electoral College via a popular vote, pitting the Republican Party's nominee, incumbent President Donald Trump, and running mate Vice President Mike Pence against Democratic Party nominee, former Vice President Joe Biden, and his running mate California Senator Kamala Harris. Massachusetts has 11 electoral votes in the Electoral College.[3]

2020 United States presidential election in Massachusetts

November 3, 2020
Turnout	76%[1]
Nominee Joe Biden Donald Trump Party Democratic Republican Home state Delaware Florida Running mate Kamala Harris Mike Pence Electoral vote 11 0 Popular vote 2,382,202 1,167,202 Percentage 65.60% 32.14%
County results Biden   50–60%   60–70%   70–80%   80–90%
Municipal results
President before election Donald Trump Republican Elected President Joe Biden Democratic

Biden carried Massachusetts with a 33-point margin, the largest margin whereby any nominee had carried the state since 1964. Massachusetts was one of three states where Biden won every county, the other two being Rhode Island and Hawaii. It was the eighth election in a row that the Democratic candidate carried every single county in the state. It is also the highest percentage of the popular vote that a winning presidential candidate has received in the state since Lyndon B. Johnson won the state with over 70% of the vote back in 1964. It is also the second time that a presidential candidate has won Suffolk County with over 80% of the vote in presidential history after Lyndon B. Johnson won the county with over 80% of the vote back in 1964.[4] In addition, Biden won the following counties with the highest percentage of the popular vote that was seen for a Democratic presidential candidate in history: Barnstable County, Dukes County, and Nantucket County.

Massachusetts has consistently been amongst the bluest states in the nation since 1960, and this remained true in 2020, with Massachusetts being one of six states (along with Hawaii, Vermont, Maryland, California, and New York) that gave Biden over 60% of the vote. Massachusetts is ethnically diverse, highly urbanized, highly educated, and less religious. Per exit polls by the Associated Press, Biden's strength in Massachusetts came from college-educated voters, which he won with 74% of the vote, which carries particular weight in Massachusetts, as the state contains the highest proportion of graduates in the country.[5] Trump's slip among suburban voters led Biden to carry almost every municipality in the Greater Boston area by at least 60% or more, while Trump carried only several towns on the South Shore and in Central Massachusetts. Biden won 301 of the 351 municipalities.[6] Biden swept all demographic groups, garnering 61% with whites, 84% with Latinos, 58% with Catholics, and 86% with Jewish voters.[5] Trump had the worst vote share in Massachusetts of any Republican nominee since 1996, and slightly underperformed George W. Bush's 32.5% vote share in 2000.

Massachusetts was one of sixteen states where President Trump received less percentage of the vote than he did in the 2016 election.[lower-alpha 1]

Primary elections

Presidential preference primaries were scheduled for March 3, 2020, for each of the political parties with state ballot access.

Democratic primary

Bernie Sanders and Joe Biden were among the declared major Democratic candidates. Elizabeth Warren, one of the two current senators from Massachusetts, formed an exploratory committee in December 2018 and declared her intention to run in February 2019.[7][8]

2020 Massachusetts Democratic presidential primary[9]

Candidate	Votes	%	Delegates[10]
Joe Biden	473,861	33.41	45
Bernie Sanders	376,990	26.58	30
Elizabeth Warren	303,864	21.43	16
Michael Bloomberg	166,200	11.72
Pete Buttigieg (withdrawn†)	38,400	2.71
Amy Klobuchar (withdrawn†)	17,297	1.22
Tulsi Gabbard	10,548	0.74
Deval Patrick (withdrawn)	6,923	0.49
Tom Steyer (withdrawn†)	6,762	0.48
Andrew Yang (withdrawn)	2,708	0.19
Michael Bennet (withdrawn)	1,257	0.09
John Delaney (withdrawn)	675	0.05
Marianne Williamson (withdrawn)	617	0.04
Cory Booker (withdrawn)	426	0.03
Julian Castro (withdrawn)	305	0.02
No Preference	5,345	0.38
Blank ballots	4,061	0.29
All Others	1,941	0.14
Total	1,418,180	100%	91

†Candidate withdrew after early voting started.

Republican primary

Massachusetts governor Charlie Baker declined to run, as did former Massachusetts governor and Utah senator Mitt Romney.[11][12][13][14]

2020 Massachusetts Republican presidential primary[15]
Candidate	Popular vote		Delegates
	Count	Percentage
Donald Trump	239,115	86.32	41
Bill Weld	25,425	9.18	0
Joe Walsh (withdrawn)	3,008	1.09	0
Rocky De La Fuente	675	0.24	0
No Preference	4,385	1.58	0
Blank ballots	2,242	0.81	0
All Others	2,152	0.78	0
Total	277,002	100%	41

Libertarian primary

A number of Libertarian candidates declared for the race, including New Hampshire State Representative Max Abramson, Adam Kokesh, Vermin Supreme and former Libertarian National Committee vice-chair Arvin Vohra.[16][17][18]

County results of the Massachusetts Libertarian presidential primary, 2020.

  Vermin Supreme

  Jacob Hornberger

  Tie

  Dan Behrman

Massachusetts Libertarian presidential primary, March 3, 2020 [19]
Candidate	Votes	Percentage
Vermin Supreme	398	10.4%
Jacob Hornberger	369	9.6%
Blank	324	7.8%
Dan Behrman	294	7.7%
Kim Ruff (withdrawn)	224	5.8%
Arvin Vohra	151	3.9%
Ken Armstrong	145	3.8%
Jo Jorgensen	141	3.4%
Sam Robb	127	3.1%
Adam Kokesh	125	3%
Max Abramson	98	2.4%
All others	958	23%
No Preference	804	21%
Total	4,158	100%

Green primary

Massachusetts Green Party presidential primary, March 3, 2020 [20]
Candidate	Votes	Percentage	National delegates
Dario Hunter	224	16.9	2
Howie Hawkins	217	16.4	1
Sedinam Kinamo Christin Moyowasifza-Curry	141	10.6	1
Kent Mesplay	55	4.1	0
David Rolde	4	0.3	0
Write-In	369	27.8	0
No Preference	316	23.8	7
Total	1326	100.00%	11

General election

Predictions

Source	Ranking	As of
The Cook Political Report[21]	Safe D	September 10, 2020
Inside Elections[22]	Safe D	September 4, 2020
Sabato's Crystal Ball[23]	Safe D	July 14, 2020
Politico[24]	Safe D	September 8, 2020
RCP[25]	Safe D	August 3, 2020
Niskanen[26]	Safe D	July 26, 2020
CNN[27]	Safe D	August 3, 2020
The Economist[28]	Safe D	September 2, 2020
270towin[29]	Safe D	August 2, 2020
ABC News[30]	Safe D	July 31, 2020
NBC News[31]	Safe D	August 6, 2020
538[32]	Safe D	September 9, 2020

Graphical summary

Aggregate polls

Source of poll aggregation	Dates administered	Dates updated	Joe Biden Democratic	Donald Trump Republican	Other/ Undecided [lower-alpha 2]	Margin
270 to Win	September 20 – October 21, 2020	October 28, 2020	66.5%	29.0%	4.5%	Biden +37.5
RealClearPolitics	July 31 – August 27, 2020	September 15, 2020	64.0%	28.3%	7.7%	Biden +35.7
FiveThirtyEight	until October 27, 2020	October 28, 2020	65.7%	29.1%	5.2%	Biden +36.6
Average			65.4%	28.8%	5.8%	Biden +36.6

Polls

Poll source	Date(s) administered	Sample size[lower-alpha 3]	Margin of error	Donald Trump Republican	Joe Biden Democratic	Jo Jorgensen Libertarian	Howie Hawkins Green	Other	Undecided
MassInc	Oct 23–30, 2020	929 (LV)	–	28%	62%	-	-	8%[lower-alpha 4]	2%
SurveyMonkey/Axios	Oct 1–28, 2020	5,848 (LV)	–	28%	70%	-	-	–	–
YouGov/UMass Amherst	Oct 14–21, 2020	713 (LV)	–	29%	64%	-	-	3%[lower-alpha 5]	3%
SurveyMonkey/Axios	Sep 1–30, 2020	2,655 (LV)	–	32%	66%	-	-	–	2%
SurveyMonkey/Axios	Aug 1–31, 2020	2,286 (LV)	–	29%	69%	-	-	–	2%
Emerson College/WHDH	Aug 25–27, 2020	763 (LV)	± 3.5%	31%	69%	-	-	–	–
MassINC/WBUR	Aug 6–9, 2020	501 (LV)	± 4.4%	27%	63%	-	-	5%[lower-alpha 6]	4%
UMass/YouGov	Jul 31 – Aug 7, 2020	500 (RV)	± 5.9%	28%	61%	-	-	–	–
SurveyMonkey/Axios	Jul 1–31, 2020	2,509 (LV)	–	26%	72%	-	-	–	2%
MassINC	Jul 17–20, 2020	797 (RV)	–	23%	55%	-	-	10%[lower-alpha 7]	12%
SurveyMonkey/Axios	Jun 8–30, 2020	1,091 (LV)	–	27%	71%	-	-	–	2%
Emerson College/7 News	May 4–5, 2020	740 (RV)	± 3.5%	33%[lower-alpha 8]	67%	-	-	–	–
University of Massachusetts Lowell/YouGov	Apr 27 – May 1, 2020	1,000 (RV)	± 3.6%	30%	58%	-	-	7%[lower-alpha 9]	4%
Emerson College	Apr 4–7, 2019	761 (RV)	± 3.5%	31%	69%	-	-	–	–

Former candidates

with Donald Trump and Bernie Sanders Poll source Date(s) administered Sample size[lower-alpha 3] Margin of error Donald Trump (R) Bernie Sanders (D) Undecided Emerson College Apr 4–7, 2019 761 (RV) ± 3.5% 36% 64% – with Donald Trump and Elizabeth Warren Poll source Date(s) administered Sample size[lower-alpha 3] Margin of error Donald Trump (R) Elizabeth Warren (D) Undecided Emerson College Apr 4–7, 2019 761 (RV) ± 3.5% 37% 63% –

Results

2020 United States presidential election in Massachusetts[33]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Democratic	Joe Biden Kamala Harris	2,382,202	65.60%	+4.62%
	Republican	Donald Trump Mike Pence	1,167,202	32.14%	-1.20%
	Libertarian	Jo Jorgensen Spike Cohen	47,013	1.29%	-2.93%
	Green	Howie Hawkins Angela Walker	18,658	0.51%	-0.95%
	Write-in		16,327	0.45%
Total votes			3,631,402	100.00%	1.49%

By county

County	Joseph R. Biden Democratic		Donald J. Trump Republican		Jo Jorgensen Libertarian	Howie Hawkins Green	Total votes cast
	#	%	#	%	#	#
Barnstable	91,994	60.72%	55,311	36.50%	1,856	638	151,512
Berkshire	51,705	72.04%	18,064	25.17%	927	465	71,771
Bristol	153,377	54.51%	119,872	42.60%	3,667	1,427	281,364
Dukes	9,914	77.04%	2,631	20.44%	138	82	12,873
Essex	267,198	62.93%	144,837	34.11%	5,356	1,899	424,599
Franklin	30,030	69.83%	11,201	26.05%	692	380	43,003
Hampden	125,948	57.04%	87,318	39.54%	2,971	1,166	220,793
Hampshire	63,362	71.73%	22,281	25.22%	1,086	768	88,332
Middlesex	617,196	71.00%	226,956	26.11%	10,649	4,484	869,347
Nantucket	5,241	71.42%	1,914	26.08%	81	41	7,338
Norfolk	273,312	66.49%	125,294	30.48%	5,191	1,753	411,042
Plymouth	173,630	57.14%	121,227	39.89%	4,310	1,324	303,870
Suffolk	270,522	80.22%	58,613	17.38%	2,959	1,695	337,240
Worcester	248,773	57.20%	171,683	39.47%	7,130	2,536	434,921

By congressional district

District	Trump	Biden	Representative
1st	37%	61%	Richard Neal
2nd	36%	62%	Jim McGovern
3rd	35%	63%	Lori Trahan
4th	34%	65%	Joe Kennedy III
			Jake Auchincloss
5th	24%	75%	Katherine Clark
6th	36%	63%	Seth Moulton
7th	13%	85%	Ayanna Pressley
8th	32%	66%	Stephen Lynch
9th	40%	58%	Bill Keating

See also

• 2020 Massachusetts general election
• United States presidential elections in Massachusetts
• 2020 United States presidential election
  • 2020 Democratic Party presidential primaries
  • 2020 Republican Party presidential primaries
  • 2020 Libertarian Party presidential primaries
  • 2020 Green Party presidential primaries
• 2020 United States elections

Notes

1. The other fifteen states were Alabama, Connecticut, Delaware, Georgia, Kentucky, Maine, Maryland, Mississippi, Nebraska, New Hampshire, New Jersey, Rhode Island, Tennessee, Texas and Virginia.
2. Calculated by taking the difference of 100% and all other candidates combined.
3. Key:
   A – all adults
   RV – registered voters
   LV – likely voters
   V – unclear
4. "Some other candidate" with 5%; "Refused" with 3%; would not vote with no voters
5. "Other" with 3%; would not vote with 0%
6. "Another candidate" with 2%; "Refused" with 3%
7. "Some other candidate" with 7%; would not vote with 3%
8. Including voters who lean towards a given candidate
9. "Another candidate" with 7%

References

1. "MA SOC Voter Turnout Statistics".
2. Kelly, Ben (August 13, 2018). "US elections key dates: When are the 2018 midterms and the 2020 presidential campaign?". The Independent. Retrieved January 3, 2019.
3. "Distribution of Electoral Votes". National Archives and Records Administration. Retrieved January 3, 2019.
4. "Massachusetts Election Results 2020". Politico. November 21, 2020.
5. "Massachusetts Voter Surveys: How Different Groups Voted". The New York Times. November 3, 2020. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved November 9, 2020.
6. "Map: See How Your Town Or City Voted In The 2020 Election". www.wbur.org. Retrieved November 15, 2020.
7. Taylor, Kate (February 9, 2019). "Elizabeth Warren Formally Announces 2020 Presidential Bid in Lawrence, Mass". The New York Times. Retrieved February 10, 2019.
8. Herndon, Astead W.; Burns, Alexander. "Elizabeth Warren Announces Iowa Trip as She Starts Running for President in 2020".
9. "2020 President Democratic Primary". Mass.gov. Secretary of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts. Archived from the original on April 9, 2020. Retrieved April 9, 2020.
10. "2020 Presidential Primaries, Caucuses, and Conventions: Massachusetts Democrat". Retrieved July 4, 2020.
11. Markos, Mary (November 8, 2018). "Charlie Baker 'absolutely' staying put". Boston Herald. Retrieved November 9, 2018.
12. Burr, Thomas (February 16, 2018). "Mitt Romney: On school shootings, immigration and when he'll challenge Trump. A Q&A with Utah's new Senate candidate". The Salt Lake Tribune. Retrieved February 18, 2018.
13. Heilbrunn, Jacob (January 2, 2018). "Donald Trump's Biggest Fear: A Romney 2020 Primary Challenge". The National Interest. Retrieved January 2, 2018.
14. Keller, Jon (January 2, 2018). "Keller @ Large: Could Romney Be Trump's Worst Nightmare?". WBZ-TV. Retrieved January 2, 2018.
15. "2020 President Republican Primary". Mass.gov. Secretary of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts. Archived from the original on April 9, 2020. Retrieved April 9, 2020.
16. Sullivan, Max (July 28, 2019). "Seabrook's Abramson seeks Libertarian presidential nomination". The Portsmouth Herald. Retrieved December 22, 2019.
17. Limitone, Julia (June 18, 2019). "Presidential candidate vows to abolish federal government on day 1, then resign". Fox Business. Retrieved December 22, 2019.
18. Clark, Bob (November 12, 2019). "Libertarians Offer Voters Nothing New". Olean Times Herald. Retrieved December 22, 2019.
19. "Massachusetts Election Statistics: 2020 Libertarian Primary". Massachusetts Secretary of State. March 3, 2020.
20. https://electionstats.state.ma.us/elections/view/135904/
21. "2020 POTUS Race ratings" (PDF). The Cook Political Report. Retrieved May 21, 2019.
22. "POTUS Ratings | Inside Elections". insideelections.com. Retrieved May 21, 2019.
23. "Larry J. Sabato's Crystal Ball » 2020 President". crystalball.centerforpolitics.org. Retrieved May 21, 2019.
24. "2020 Election Forecast". Politico. November 19, 2019.
25. "Battle for White House". RCP. April 19, 2019.
26. 2020 Bitecofer Model Electoral College Predictions, Niskanen Center, March 24, 2020, retrieved: April 19, 2020.
27. David Chalian; Terence Burlij. "Road to 270: CNN's debut Electoral College map for 2020". CNN. Retrieved June 16, 2020.
28. "Forecasting the US elections". The Economist. Retrieved July 7, 2020.
29. "2020 Presidential Election Interactive Map". 270 to Win.
30. "ABC News Race Ratings". CBS News. July 24, 2020. Retrieved July 24, 2020.
31. "Biden dominates the electoral map, but here's how the race could tighten". NBC News. Retrieved August 6, 2020.
32. "2020 Election Forecast". FiveThirtyEight. Retrieved August 14, 2020.
33. "2020 President General Election". Massachusetts Secretary of State. Retrieved November 24, 2020.

Further reading

• Summary: State Laws on Presidential Electors (PDF), Washington DC: National Association of Secretaries of State, August 2020, Massachusetts
• "A farmer made a giant Biden-Harris sign out of hay bales. It was set on fire the next day", Washingtonpost.com, October 12, 2020. (About incident in Dalton, Massachusetts)

External links

• Government Documents Round Table of the American Library Association, "Massachusetts", Voting & Elections Toolkits
• "Massachusetts: Election Tools, Deadlines, Dates, Rules, and Links", Vote.org, Oakland, CA
• "League of Women Voters of Massachusetts". (state affiliate of the U.S. League of Women Voters)
• Massachusetts at Ballotpedia