2008 New Jersey General Elections Story

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

Barack Obama received 2,215,422 (57.7%) votes, beating John McCain who gained 1,613,207 (42%) by 602,215 votes in New Jersey.

Barack Obama won 14 counties whereas John McCain won 7 counties in the total of the 21 counties in the State of New Jersey.

2008 General Election Barack Obama Popular Vote Count Contributed by New Jersey (NJ)

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). His victory in the State of New Jersey (with 2,215,422 votes) represents 3.1% of his popular vote victory. The remaining 49 states contributed to the remaining 96.9% popular votes victory.

Top 15 Counties in Primary Elections vs 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 (Bergen, Middlesex, Essex, Monmouth), 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

Bergen, Middlesex, Essex, Monmouth, three of the larger counties, voted in favor of Barack Obama giving him a 275k vote advantage. Monmouth, Ocean another larger county, voted in favor of John McCain giving him a 62k vote advantage. However, John McCain's steady marginal wins in the less popular counties were not enough to overcome that deficit, making Barack Obama gain an upper hand in the State of New Jersey.

---

Related References: 2016 New Jersey Primary Election Story, 2016 New Jersey General Election Story, 2020 New Jersey Primary Election Story, 2020 New Jersey General Election Story, 2012 New Jersey General Election Story