U.S. presidential election

United States presidential elections determine who serves as President and Vice President of the United States for four-year terms, starting on Inauguration Day (January 20th of the year after the election).

Voter turnout

Voter turnout in Presidential elections has been on the decline in recent years, although it bounced back sharply during the 2004 election from the 1996 and 2000 lows. While turnout has been decreasing, registration has been increasing. Registration rates varied from 65% to 70% of the voting age population from the 1960s to the 1980s, and due in part to greater government outreach programs, registration swelled to 75% in 1996 and 2000. Despite greater registration, however, turnout in general has not greatly improved, save the sharp bounce back in 2004.

Related Topics:
Voter turnout - 1960 - 1980s - 1996 - 2000 - 2004

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Election

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Voting Age Population ¹

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Turnout

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% Turnout of VAP

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2004

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215,694,000

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122,295,345

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56.70%

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2000

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205,815,000

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105,586,274

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51.30%

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1996

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196,511,000

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96,456,345

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49.08%

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1992

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189,529,000

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104,405,155

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55.09%

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1988

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182,778,000

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91,594,693

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50.11%

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1984

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174,466,000

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92,652,680

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53.11%

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1980

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164,597,000

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86,515,221

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52.56%

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1976

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152,309,190

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81,555,789

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53.55%

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1972

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140,776,000

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77,718,554

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55.21%

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1968

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120,328,186

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73,211,875

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60.84%

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1964

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114,090,000

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70,644,592

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61.92%

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1960

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109,159,000

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68,838,204

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63.06%

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Sources: Federal Election Commission, Office of the Clerk, U.S. Census Bureau

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¹ It should be noted that the voting age population includes all persons age 18 and over as reported by the U.S. Census Bureau, which necessarily includes a significant number of persons ineligible to vote, such as non-citizens or felons. The actual number of eligible voters is somewhat lower, and the number of registered voters is lower still. The number of non-citizens in 1994 was approximately 13 million, and in 1996, felons numbered around 1.3 million, so it can be estimated that around 7-10% of the voting age population is ineligible to vote.

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Note that the large drop in turnout between 1968 and 1972 can be attributed (at least in part) to the expansion of the franchise to 18 year olds (previous restricted to those 21 and older). The total number of voters grew, but so did the pool of eligible voters- so total percentage fell.

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