2008 Arkansas General Elections Story

A head to head comparison of the 2008 Arkansas General Election gives us an idea of the break down of the voters.

John McCain received 638,017 (59%) votes, beating Barack Obama who gained 422,310 (39%) by 215,707 votes in Arkansas.

John McCain won 66 counties whereas Barack Obama won 9 counties in the total of the 75 counties in the State of Arkansas.

2008 General Election Barack Obama Popular Vote Count Contributed by Arkansas (AR)

Presidential General Elections

During the 2008 General elections, over 131M total number of votes were cast. Barack Obama got 69,448,278 (69.4 Million) over John McCain's 61,739,059 (61.7 Million). He won the popular vote by 7,709,219 (7.7 Million). Even though he lost to John McCain in the State of Arkansas, his 422,310 gained votes represents 0.6% of his popular vote victory. The remaining 49 states contributed to the remaining 99.4% popular votes victory.

Top 15 Counties in Primary Elections vs General Elections

All Candidates (General Elections)

These 15 counties play an important role in these Primary elections. If a candidate, can get a sizable majority in the largest counties (Pulaski, Benton, Washington, Saline), it becomes very difficult to win majorities in the smaller counties without voter outreach and increased voter participation in them.

Top 15 Counties Comparison in Primary Elections vs General Elections

General Elections
Barack Obama

General Elections
John McCain

Pulaski, the largest county, voted in favor of Barack Obama giving him a 18K vote advantage. On the other hand, Washington, Benton and Saline, another large counties, voted in favor of John McCain giving him a 55K voter advantage. However, steady marginal wins for John McCain in the less popular counties were enough to maintain that difference, making him an upper hand in the State of Arkansas.