The 2016 United States presidential election in California was held on Tuesday, November 8, 2016, as part of the

2016 United States presidential election United States presidential election, Presidential elections were held in the United States on November 8, 2016. The Republican Party (United States), Republican ticket of businessman Donald Trump and Indiana Governor, Indiana governor Mike P ...

in which all 50 states plus the

District of Columbia Washington, D.C., formally the District of Columbia and commonly known as Washington or D.C., is the capital city and Federal district of the United States, federal district of the United States. The city is on the Potomac River, across from ...

participated.

California California () is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States that lies on the West Coast of the United States, Pacific Coast. It borders Oregon to the north, Nevada and Arizona to the east, and shares Mexico–United States border, an ...

voters chose electors to represent them in the

Electoral College An electoral college is a body whose task is to elect a candidate to a particular office. It is mostly used in the political context for a constitutional body that appoints the head of state or government, and sometimes the upper parliament ...

via a popular vote, pitting the Republican Party's nominee, businessman

Donald Trump Donald John Trump (born June 14, 1946) is an American politician, media personality, and businessman who is the 47th president of the United States. A member of the Republican Party (United States), Republican Party, he served as the 45 ...

, and running mate Indiana Governor

Mike Pence Michael Richard Pence (born June 7, 1959) is an American politician and lawyer who served as the 48th vice president of the United States from 2017 to 2021 under President Donald Trump. A member of the Republican Party (United States), Repub ...

against Democratic Party nominee, former Secretary of State

Hillary Clinton Hillary Diane Rodham Clinton ( Rodham; born October 26, 1947) is an American politician, lawyer and diplomat. She was the 67th United States secretary of state in the administration of Barack Obama from 2009 to 2013, a U.S. senator represent ...

, and her running mate Virginia

Senator A senate is a deliberative assembly, often the upper house or Legislative chamber, chamber of a bicameral legislature. The name comes from the Ancient Rome, ancient Roman Senate (Latin: ''Senatus''), so-called as an assembly of the senior ...

Tim Kaine Timothy Michael Kaine ( ; born February 26, 1958) is an American lawyer and politician serving as the Seniority in the United States Senate, junior United States senator from Virginia since 2013. A member of the Democratic Party (United States ...

. California had 55 electoral votes in the Electoral College, the most of any state. Clinton won the state with 61.73 percent of the vote, a 30.11 percent margin, and a vote difference of 4,269,978. Despite being the largest state by population in the country, California only delivered Trump his third largest vote count, behind

Florida Florida ( ; ) is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern region of the United States. It borders the Gulf of Mexico to the west, Alabama to the northwest, Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia to the north, the Atlantic ...

and

Texas Texas ( , ; or ) is the most populous U.S. state, state in the South Central United States, South Central region of the United States. It borders Louisiana to the east, Arkansas to the northeast, Oklahoma to the north, New Mexico to the we ...

. Even though Clinton lost the presidency, her victory margin in California was the largest of any Democrat since

1936 Events January–February * January 20 – The Prince of Wales succeeds to the throne of the United Kingdom as King Edward VIII, following the death of his father, George V, at Sandringham House. * January 28 – Death and state funer ...

. This was only the fourth time in U.S. history that a Republican was elected president without carrying California. She also was the first Democrat to win Orange County since that same year, making Trump the first ever Republican to win the presidency without winning the county. Trump's 31.62% vote share remains the worst performance by a Republican presidential nominee since

1856 Events January–March * January 8 – Borax deposits are discovered in large quantities by John Veatch in California. * January 23 – The American sidewheel steamer SS ''Pacific'' leaves Liverpool (England) for a transatl ...

. The state was one of 11 (along with the District of Columbia) that shifted towards the Democrats. 2016 marked the first time since 1940 in California that a presidential candidate appeared as a candidate for more than one party as Donald Trump was nominated not only by the Republican Party but the

American Independent Party The American Independent Party (AIP) is an American political party that was established in 1967. The American Independent Party is best known for its nomination of Democratic then-former Governor George Wallace of Alabama, who carried five s ...

as well.

Primary elections

On June 7, 2016, in the

presidential primaries Each of the 50 U.S. states, the District of Columbia, and five territories of the United States holds either primary elections or caucuses to help nominate individual candidates for president of the United States. This process is designed t ...

, California voters expressed their preferences for the Democratic, Republican,

Green Green is the color between cyan and yellow on the visible spectrum. It is evoked by light which has a dominant wavelength of roughly 495570 nm. In subtractive color systems, used in painting and color printing, it is created by a com ...

, and

Libertarian Libertarianism (from ; or from ) is a political philosophy that holds freedom, personal sovereignty, and liberty as primary values. Many libertarians believe that the concept of freedom is in accord with the Non-Aggression Principle, according ...

, Peace and Freedom, and American Independent parties' respective nominees for president. Bernie Sanders at UC Davis Rally 1 Jun 2016 02

While California has had a top-two candidates open primary system since 2011, presidential primaries are still partisan races. Registered members of each party may only vote in their party's presidential primary. Unaffiliated voters may choose any one primary in which to vote, if the party allows such voters to participate. For 2016, the American Independent, Democratic, and Libertarian parties have chosen to allow voters registered with no party preference to request their respective party's presidential ballots.

Democratic primary

Seven candidates appeared on the Democratic presidential primary ballot: *

Bernie Sanders Bernard Sanders (born September8, 1941) is an American politician and activist who is the Seniority in the United States Senate, senior United States Senate, United States senator from the state of Vermont. He is the longest-serving independ ...

* Rocky De La Fuente * Henry Hewes * Keith Judd * Michael Steinberg * Willie L. Wilson

Opinion polling

Results

Republican primary

Five candidates appeared on the Republican presidential primary ballot, four of whom had suspended their campaigns prior to the primary: *

Ben Carson Ben Solomon Carson Sr. (born September 18, 1951) is an American retired neurosurgery, neurosurgeon, academic, author, and government official who served as the 17th United States secretary of housing and urban development from 2017 to 2021. A pio ...

(withdrawn) *

Ted Cruz Rafael Edward Cruz (; born December 22, 1970) is an American politician and attorney serving as the junior United States senator from Texas since 2013. A member of the Republican Party, Cruz was the solicitor general of Texas from 2003 ...

(withdrawn) *

John Kasich John Richard Kasich Jr. ( ; born May 13, 1952) is an American politician and author who was the 69th governor of Ohio from 2011 to 2019, a member of the U.S. House of Representatives from 1983 to 2001, and a Republican candidate for the pre ...

(withdrawn) * Jim Gilmore (withdrawn)

, the only candidate with an active campaign, won each Congressional district by substantial margins, as well as all the statewide delegates, to capture all 172 votes.

Libertarian primary

Twelve candidates appeared on the Libertarian presidential primary ballot: *Marc Feldman *John Hale *Cecil Ince *

Gary Johnson Gary Earl Johnson (born January 1, 1953) is an American businessman and politician who served as the 29th List of governors of New Mexico, governor of New Mexico from 1995 to 2003 as a member of the Republican Party (United States), Republica ...

*Steve Kerbel *

John McAfee John David McAfee ( ; 18 September 1945 – 23 June 2021) was a British and American computer programmer, businessman, and two-time presidential candidate who unsuccessfully sought the Libertarian Party (United States), Libertarian Party nominat ...

*Darryl Perry * Austin Petersen *Derrick M. Reid *Jack Robinson Jr. *Rhett Smith *Joy Waymire The primary took place after Gary Johnson won the Libertarian nomination at the Party's 2016 convention.

Green primary

Other parties

American Independent

The

, a

far-right Far-right politics, often termed right-wing extremism, encompasses a range of ideologies that are marked by ultraconservatism, authoritarianism, ultranationalism, and nativism. This political spectrum situates itself on the far end of the ...

and paleoconservative political party that formed when endorsing the candidacy of

George Wallace George Corley Wallace Jr. (August 25, 1919 – September 13, 1998) was an American politician who was the 45th and longest-serving governor of Alabama (1963–1967; 1971–1979; 1983–1987), and the List of longest-serving governors of U.S. s ...

1968 Events January–February * January 1968, January – The I'm Backing Britain, I'm Backing Britain campaign starts spontaneously. * January 5 – Prague Spring: Alexander Dubček is chosen as leader of the Communist Party of Cze ...

held a small presidential primary on June 7. It was won by attorney Alan Spears. The American Independent Party nullified the results of this primary when they endorsed

in August. The party indicated that Trump was a popular write-in choice during the primary, but was not allowed on the ballot because there was no evidence that Trump wanted the American Independent endorsement.

Peace and Freedom

General election

Make America Great Again outdoor banner on roadside in California

Polling

Democrat Hillary Clinton won every pre-election poll by double digits. The average of the last three pre-election polls showed Hillary Clinton leading Donald Trump 54.3% to 32%.

Predictions

Results

Below is an official list of California's Recognized Write-in Candidates. * Laurence Kotlikoff for president and Edward Leamer for vice president * Mike Maturen for president and Juan Muñoz for vice president * Evan McMullin for president and Nathan Johnson for vice president *

for president and

Tulsi Gabbard Tulsi Gabbard (; born April 12, 1981) is an American politician and military officer serving as the director of National Intelligence, director of national intelligence (DNI) since 2025. She has held the rank of Lieutenant colonel (United Stat ...

for vice president * Jerry White for president and Niles Niemuth for vice president California law only requires that 55 electors sign on to declare a person a write-in candidate, not that the persons consent, according to a statement from the Secretary of State's Office.

By county

Counties that flipped from Republican to Democratic *

Nevada Nevada ( ; ) is a landlocked state in the Western United States. It borders Oregon to the northwest, Idaho to the northeast, California to the west, Arizona to the southeast, and Utah to the east. Nevada is the seventh-most extensive, th ...

(largest town: Truckee) * Orange (largest city:

Anaheim Anaheim ( ) is a city in northern Orange County, California, United States, part of the Greater Los Angeles area. As of the 2020 census, the city had a population of 346,824, making it the most populous city in Orange County, the tenth-most ...

)

By congressional district

Clinton won 46 of the 53 congressional districts, including 7 held by Republicans.

By city

Official winners by city Cities & Unincorporated Areas that flipped from Republican to Democratic * Reedley (

Fresno Fresno (; ) is a city in the San Joaquin Valley of California, United States. It is the county seat of Fresno County, California, Fresno County and the largest city in the greater Central Valley (California), Central Valley region. It covers a ...

) *

Bishop A bishop is an ordained member of the clergy who is entrusted with a position of Episcopal polity, authority and oversight in a religious institution. In Christianity, bishops are normally responsible for the governance and administration of di ...

( Inyo) *

Hidden Hills ''Hidden Hills'' is an American sitcom television series that aired on NBC from September 24, 2002, to January 21, 2003, during the 2002 fall line-up. Based on the book ''Surviving Suburbia'', the series was created by Peter Segal and Ric Sw ...

(

Los Angeles Los Angeles, often referred to by its initials L.A., is the List of municipalities in California, most populous city in the U.S. state of California, and the commercial, Financial District, Los Angeles, financial, and Culture of Los Angeles, ...

) *

Industry Industry may refer to: Economics * Industry (economics), a generally categorized branch of economic activity * Industry (manufacturing), a specific branch of economic activity, typically in factories with machinery * The wider industrial sector ...

(

) * La Canada Flintridge (

) * Palos Verdes Estates (

) * Rancho Palos Verdes (

) * Rolling Hills Estates (

) * San Dimas (

) *

San Marino San Marino, officially the Republic of San Marino, is a landlocked country in Southern Europe, completely surrounded by Italy. Located on the northeastern slopes of the Apennine Mountains, it is the larger of two European microstates, microsta ...

(

) * Santa Clarita (

) * Westlake Village (

) * Dos Palos (

Merced Merced (; Spanish language, Spanish for "Mercy") is a city in, and the county seat of, Merced County, California, United States, in the San Joaquin Valley. As of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, the city had a population of 86,333, up ...

) * Aliso Viejo ( Orange) *

Costa Mesa Costa may refer to: Biology * Rib (Latin: ''costa''), in vertebrate anatomy * Costa (botany), the central strand of a plant leaf or thallus * Costa (coral), a stony rib, part of the skeleton of a coral * Costa (entomology), the leading edge o ...

( Orange) *

Cypress Cypress is a common name for various coniferous trees or shrubs from the ''Cupressus'' genus of the '' Cupressaceae'' family, typically found in temperate climates and subtropical regions of Asia, Europe, and North America. The word ''cypress'' ...

( Orange) * Fountain Valley ( Orange) * Fullerton ( Orange) * Laguna Woods ( Orange) * Los Alamitos ( Orange) * Orange ( Orange) * Placentia ( Orange) * Seal Beach ( Orange) * Auburn ( Placer) * Corona ( Riverside) *

Rancho Mirage Rancho Mirage is a city in Riverside County, California, United States. The city is a low-density desert community with resorts, golf courses, and country clubs within the Colorado Desert section of the Sonoran Desert. Nestled along the foothills ...

( Riverside) * Folsom (

Sacramento Sacramento ( or ; ; ) is the capital city of the U.S. state of California and the seat of Sacramento County. Located at the confluence of the Sacramento and American Rivers in Northern California's Sacramento Valley, Sacramento's 2020 p ...

) * Chino Hills ( San Bernardino) * Grand Terrace ( San Bernardino) * Rancho Cucamonga ( San Bernardino) * Redlands ( San Bernardino) * Upland ( San Bernardino) * Carlsbad (

San Diego San Diego ( , ) is a city on the Pacific coast of Southern California, adjacent to the Mexico–United States border. With a population of over 1.4 million, it is the List of United States cities by population, eighth-most populous city in t ...

) * Escondido (

) * San Marcos (

) * Vista (

) * Arroyo Grande (

San Luis Obispo ; ; ; Chumashan languages, Chumash: ''tiłhini'') is a city and county seat of San Luis Obispo County, California, United States. Located on the Central Coast (California), Central Coast of California, San Luis Obispo is roughly halfway betwee ...

) *

Pismo Beach Pismo Beach (Chumashan languages, Chumash: ''Pismuʔ'') is a city in the southern portion of San Luis Obispo County, California, San Luis Obispo County, in the Central Coast (California), Central Coast area of California, United States. Its esti ...

(

) * Unincorporated Area of

* Atherton ( San Mateo) * Hillsborough ( San Mateo) * Buellton ( Santa Barbara) * Porterville ( Tulare) * Camarillo ( Ventura) * Moorpark ( Ventura) * Thousand Oaks ( Ventura) Cities & Unincorporated Areas that flipped from Democratic to Republican * Crescent City ( Del Norte) * Blythe ( Riverside) * Barstow ( San Bernardino) * Needles ( San Bernardino) *

Sonora Sonora (), officially Estado Libre y Soberano de Sonora (), is one of the 31 states which, along with Mexico City, comprise the Administrative divisions of Mexico, Federal Entities of Mexico. The state is divided into Municipalities of Sonora, 72 ...

( Tuolumne)

Analysis

California has voted Democratic in every presidential election since Republican

George H. W. Bush George Herbert Walker BushBefore the outcome of the 2000 United States presidential election, he was usually referred to simply as "George Bush" but became more commonly known as "George H. W. Bush", "Bush Senior," "Bush 41," and even "Bush th ...

won the state in 1988. Hillary Clinton easily continued the Democratic tradition in California, winning the state with 61.7% of the vote, Clinton's second highest vote percentage of any state, behind

Hawaii Hawaii ( ; ) is an island U.S. state, state of the United States, in the Pacific Ocean about southwest of the U.S. mainland. One of the two Non-contiguous United States, non-contiguous U.S. states (along with Alaska), it is the only sta ...

. Donald Trump received 31.6% of the vote, making for a Democratic victory margin of 30.11 points. California was one of eleven states where Hillary Clinton outperformed outgoing

President President most commonly refers to: *President (corporate title) * President (education), a leader of a college or university *President (government title) President may also refer to: Arts and entertainment Film and television *'' Præsident ...

Barack Obama Barack Hussein Obama II (born August 4, 1961) is an American politician who was the 44th president of the United States from 2009 to 2017. A member of the Democratic Party, he was the first African American president in American history. O ...

2012 2012 was designated as: *International Year of Cooperatives *International Year of Sustainable Energy for All Events January *January 4 – The Cicada 3301 internet hunt begins. * January 12 – Peaceful protests begin in the R ...

, and contributed to Clinton's national popular vote victory.General Election - Statement of Vote, November 8, 2016
Final results certified by Alex Padilla, California Secretary of State. December 16, 2016. The California state result was historically one of the most successful for the Democratic Party nominee by several measures, as Hillary Clinton carried California by the largest margin of any Democratic candidate since

Franklin D. Roosevelt Franklin Delano Roosevelt (January 30, 1882April 12, 1945), also known as FDR, was the 32nd president of the United States, serving from 1933 until his death in 1945. He is the longest-serving U.S. president, and the only one to have served ...

swept the state by 35.25% in his

re-election landslide. Trump's 31.62% vote share in the state was the lowest for a major-party candidate in the state since John W. Davis's 8.2% in 1924. Trump became only the second nominee of either party to win the presidency without receiving at least a million votes in

Los Angeles County Los Angeles County, officially the County of Los Angeles and sometimes abbreviated as LA County, is the most populous county in the United States, with 9,663,345 residents estimated in 2023. Its population is greater than that of 40 individua ...

, by far the nation's largest, since the county had first given any nominee over a million votes in

1952 Events January–February * January 26 – Cairo Fire, Black Saturday in Kingdom of Egypt, Egypt: Rioters burn Cairo's central business district, targeting British and upper-class Egyptian businesses. * February 6 ** Princess Elizabeth, ...

(

George W. Bush George Walker Bush (born July 6, 1946) is an American politician and businessman who was the 43rd president of the United States from 2001 to 2009. A member of the Bush family and the Republican Party (United States), Republican Party, he i ...

2000 2000 was designated as the International Year for the Culture of Peace and the World Mathematics, Mathematical Year. Popular culture holds the year 2000 as the first year of the 21st century and the 3rd millennium, because of a tende ...

having been the first). California was the only large state (one with at least 15 electoral votes) in which Hillary Clinton lost no counties that had been carried by Barack Obama in 2012. Indeed, she herself flipped Orange County, the largest county to switch parties in either direction in 2016, into the Democratic column; no Democrat had carried Orange County since

, when Franklin Roosevelt carried every county in the state. This made Donald Trump the first Republican to win the White House without carrying Orange County since the county's founding in 1889; he also became the first Republican to win the White House without carrying

Ventura County Ventura County () is a county located in the southern part of the U.S. state of California. As of the 2020 census, the population was 843,843. The largest city is Oxnard, and the county seat is the city of Ventura. Ventura County comprises ...

since its founding in 1872, without carrying Riverside County since its founding in 1893, without carrying

San Bernardino County San Bernardino County ( ), officially the County of San Bernardino and sometimes abbreviated as S.B. County, is a county located in the southern portion of the U.S. state of California, and is located within the Inland Empire area. As of th ...

since

Ulysses Grant Ulysses S. Grant (born Hiram Ulysses Grant; April 27, 1822July 23, 1885) was the 18th president of the United States, serving from 1869 to 1877. In 1865, as commanding general, Grant led the Union Army to victory in the American Civil War ...

in 1868, without carrying

, or San Joaquin Counties since

William McKinley William McKinley (January 29, 1843September 14, 1901) was the 25th president of the United States, serving from 1897 until Assassination of William McKinley, his assassination in 1901. A member of the Republican Party (United States), Repub ...

1896 Events January * January 2 – The Jameson Raid comes to an end as Jameson surrenders to the Boers. * January 4 – Utah is admitted as the 45th U.S. state. * January 5 – An Austrian newspaper reports Wilhelm Röntgen's dis ...

, without carrying San Luis Obispo County since

1900 As of March 1 ( O.S. February 17), when the Julian calendar acknowledged a leap day and the Gregorian calendar did not, the Julian calendar fell one day further behind, bringing the difference to 13 days until February 28 ( O.S. February 15 ...

, and without carrying

, or Stanislaus Counties since

Richard Nixon Richard Milhous Nixon (January 9, 1913April 22, 1994) was the 37th president of the United States, serving from 1969 until Resignation of Richard Nixon, his resignation in 1974. A member of the Republican Party (United States), Republican ...

Notes

References

External links

RNC 2016 Republican Nominating Process

Green papers for 2016 primaries, caucuses, and conventions

California neighborhood election results
— A Los Angeles ''Times'' map of election results down to the precinct level {{California elections CA

2016 2016 was designated as: * International Year of Pulses by the sixty-eighth session of the United Nations General Assembly. * International Year of Global Understanding (IYGU) by the International Council for Science (ICSU), the Internationa ...

Presidential

Primary elections

Democratic primary

Opinion polling

Results

Republican primary

Libertarian primary

Green primary

Other parties

American Independent

Peace and Freedom

General election

Polling

Predictions

Results

By county

By congressional district

By city

Analysis

See also

Notes

References

External links