2008 New Mexico General Elections Story

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

Barack Obama received 472,422 (57%) votes, beating John McCain who gained 346,832(41.8%) by 125,590 votes in New Mexico.

Barack Obama won 18 counties in the State of New Mexico whereas John McCain won 15 total of 33 counties.

2008 General Election Barack Obama Popular Vote Count Contributed by New Mexico (NM)

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 Mexico (with 472,422 votes) represents 0.7% of his popular vote victory. The remaining 49 states contributed to the remaining 99.3% 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 (Bernalillo, Santa Fe, Dona Ana, Sandoval), 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

Bernalillo, Santa Fe, Dona Ana, Sandoval, four of the larger counties, voted in favor of Barack Obama giving him a 120k vote advantage. However, John McCain's steady marginal wins in the less popular counties( like, San Juan, Otero, Chaves and more) were not enough to overcome that deficit, making Barack Obama gain an upper hand in the State of New Mexico.

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