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 County and independent city results Congressional district results Precinct results
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The2008 United States presidential election in Virginia took place on November 4, 2008, which was part of the2008 United States presidential election. Voters chose 13 representatives, or electors to theElectoral College, who voted forpresident andvice president.
Virginia was won by Democratic nomineeBarack Obama by a 6.3% margin of victory. Prior to the election, 16 of 17 news organizations considered this a state Obama would win, or otherwise a likelyblue state, despite the fact that Virginia had not voted for a Democratic presidential nominee sinceLyndon B. Johnson's 44-state landslide in1964. The2008 financial crisis, changing demographics, and population increases in voter-richNorthern Virginia helped make the state more competitive for Obama. His victory marked a powerful shift in the political climate in Virginia, as the state would go on to vote for the Democratic presidential nominee in every election thereafter.
In contrast to Virginia,West Virginia voted for McCain. This was the first time Virginia voted Democratic and West Virginia voted Republican since1924. Starting in 2008, Virginia has always voted for the Democratic nominee and West Virginia has always voted for the Republican nominee.[2]
Despite Obama's victory, Virginia's margin was 0.97% more Republican than the national average, the most recent time Virginia has voted further to the right than the nation at-large. As of the2024 presidential election[update], this is the last election in whichKing and Queen County voted for the Democratic candidate.
Virginia was one of the firstSouthern states to break away from its traditional Democratic roots. It voted forDwight Eisenhower by a convincing margin in 1952, and voted for every Republican nominee since then save for Johnson's massive landslide in 1964.
However, the Democrats had made big gains in recent years by winning two gubernatorial races in a row, regaining control of theVirginia Senate, and electing DemocratJim Webb to theU.S. Senate over incumbent RepublicanGeorge Allen in2006. Democrats made such gains in part due to the ever-expandingNorthern Virginia, particularly the suburbs surroundingWashington, D.C. Historically, this area was strongly Republican. However, in recent years it has been dominated by whiteliberals who tend to vote Democratic.[3] It was, ultimately, this rapid demographic change that provided a huge new influx of Democratic voters to Virginia.[4]
Both presidential campaigns and the mainstream media treated Virginia as a swing state for most of the campaign. Obama campaigned extensively in Virginia and counted on the booming northern parts of the state for a Democratic victory. Victory in the presidential election for McCain would have been extremely difficult without Virginia; he would have had to win every swing state as well as at least one Democratic-leaning state.
There were 16 news organizations that made state-by-state predictions of the election. Here are their last predictions before election day:
| Source | Ranking |
|---|---|
| D.C. Political Report[5] | Lean D(flip) |
| Cook Political Report[6] | Lean D(flip) |
| The Takeaway[7] | Lean D(flip) |
| Electoral-vote.com[8] | Lean D(flip) |
| Washington Post[9] | Lean D(flip) |
| Politico[10] | Lean D(flip) |
| RealClearPolitics[11] | Toss-up |
| FiveThirtyEight[9] | Lean D(flip) |
| CQ Politics[12] | Lean D(flip) |
| The New York Times[13] | Lean D(flip) |
| CNN[14] | Lean D(flip) |
| NPR[9] | Lean D(flip) |
| MSNBC[9] | Lean D(flip) |
| Fox News[15] | Likely D(flip) |
| Associated Press[16] | Likely D(flip) |
| Rasmussen Reports[17] | Lean D(flip) |
After McCain clinched the Republican Party nomination in early March, he took a wide lead in polls against Obama, averaging almost 50%. But through the summer, polling was nearly dead even, with McCain only slightly leading Obama. After theLehman Brothers went bankrupt, Obama took a wide lead in the polls. In October, Obama won every single poll taken but one, and reached over 50% in most of them. The final three polls averaged Obama leading 51% to 46%.[18][19]
Obama raised $17,035,784. McCain raised $16,130,194.[20]
Obama spent over $26 million to McCain spending just $14 million.[21] The Obama-Biden ticket visited the state 19 times compared to just 10 times for McCain-Palin.[22]
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On Election Day, early returns showed McCain ahead.[23] This was due in large part to the fact that many of the rural areas began to report first. However, Obama swamped McCain by scoring a near-sweep in Northern Virginia, which reported its returns last.
Obama did exceptionally well throughout the most populous regions of the state. Northern Virginia overwhelmingly supported Obama.[24] InArlington County and the independent city ofAlexandria, the most traditionally Democratic jurisdictions in the region, Obama got over 70% of the vote, improving on Kerry by between 4% and 5% in both. InFairfax County (the largest county in the state, and a then-traditionally Republican county that Kerry had become the first Democrat in 40 years to carry in 2004) Obama exceeded 60%, improving on Kerry's percentage by just shy of 7%. Just beyond Fairfax, to its south and west, Obama flipped the large counties ofLoudoun andPrince William, becoming the first Democrat to carry either since 1964. He also won the independent cities of Harrisonburg for the first time since 1940, Hopewell since 1952, Manassas Park since 1976, Staunton since 1944, and Winchester since 1964.[25]
The two other major metropolitan areas in the eastern part of the state,Richmond andHampton Roads, are somewhat less Democratic than Northern Virginia. In both areas, Obama improved significantly onJohn Kerry's performance.[24] While Obama easily won Richmond itself (which is 57% African American), he also made significant inroads into Richmond's traditionally heavily Republican suburbs. He carriedHenrico County with 57% of the vote; that county last supported a Democrat withHarry S. Truman in1948.[26] InChesterfield County, Obama did almost 20 points better than Kerry.[27] Both counties had historically been strongly Republican at the national level; Chesterfield had given George W. Bush his largest raw vote margin in Virginia in both 2000 and 2004.
Obama also did very well in Hampton Roads. The four Democratic-leaning cities along the harbor -Hampton,Newport News,Norfolk, andPortsmouth - gave him margins exceeding 60%. Obama also split the Republican-leaning cities ofChesapeake andVirginia Beach; he barely won the former and barely lost the latter. Obama's strong performance in the area likely contributed to DemocratGlenn Nye unseating two-term Republican incumbentThelma Drake in the2nd Congressional District, a heavy military district which includes all of Virginia Beach and large portions of Norfolk and Hampton. Outside Virginia's three major metropolitan areas, Obama also significantly outperformed Kerry inAlbemarle andMontgomery Counties and in a series of independent cities around the state, most significantlyRoanoke. Albemarle County surroundsCharlottesville, home to theUniversity of Virginia, and Montgomery County is home toVirginia Tech.
Elsewhere in rural Virginia, however, McCain did well.[27] In theShenandoah Valley andSouthside Virginia, both traditional bases for the Republican Party in Virginia,[28] Obama ran roughly evenly with Kerry; but insouthwestern Virginia—at the time one of the more traditionally Democratic regions of the state—McCain outperformed Bush in 2004, even flipping two counties (Buchanan andDickenson), both of which last voted Republican in 1972; Obama thus became the first Democrat to win the White House without carrying the aforementioned two counties sinceWoodrow Wilson in1916. However, without the support of suburban voters in the eastern metropolitan areas of the commonwealth, McCain was ultimately unable to hold Virginia.
During the same election, former DemocraticGovernorMark Warner solidly defeated former Governor (and his predecessor) RepublicanJim Gilmore by a two-to-one margin for the openU.S. Senate seat vacated by incumbent RepublicanJohn Warner (no relation to Mark Warner). Warner received 65.03% of the vote while Gilmore took in 33.73%. Warner won all but five counties in the state. Democrats also picked up three seats in theU.S. House of Representatives. At the state level, Democrats picked up one seat in theVirginia House of Delegates.
| United States presidential election in Virginia, 2008[29] | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Party | Candidate | Running mate | Votes | Percentage | Electoral votes | |
| Democratic | Barack Obama | Joe Biden | 1,959,532 | 52.63% | 13 | |
| Republican | John McCain | Sarah Palin | 1,725,005 | 46.33% | 0 | |
| Independent | Ralph Nader | Matt Gonzalez | 11,483 | 0.31% | 0 | |
| Libertarian | Bob Barr | Wayne Allyn Root | 11,067 | 0.30% | 0 | |
| Constitution | Chuck Baldwin | Darrell Castle | 7,474 | 0.20% | 0 | |
| Green | Cynthia McKinney | Rosa Clemente | 2,344 | 0.06% | 0 | |
| Write-ins | Write-ins | 6,355 | 0.17% | 0 | ||
| Totals | 3,723,260 | 100.00% | 13 | |||
| Voter turnout (Voting age population) | 65.1% | |||||
| County/City | Barack Obama Democratic | John McCain Republican | Various candidates Other parties | Margin | Total | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| # | % | # | % | # | % | # | % | ||
| Accomack | 7,607 | 48.69% | 7,833 | 50.14% | 183 | 1.17% | -226 | -1.45% | 15,623 |
| Albemarle | 29,792 | 58.43% | 20,576 | 40.36% | 616 | 1.21% | 9,216 | 18.07% | 50,984 |
| Alexandria | 50,473 | 71.73% | 19,181 | 27.26% | 710 | 1.01% | 31,292 | 44.47% | 70,364 |
| Alleghany | 3,553 | 48.22% | 3,715 | 50.41% | 101 | 1.37% | -162 | -2.19% | 7,369 |
| Amelia | 2,488 | 38.11% | 3,970 | 60.81% | 71 | 1.08% | -1,482 | -22.70% | 6,529 |
| Amherst | 6,094 | 41.46% | 8,470 | 57.62% | 136 | 0.92% | -2,376 | -16.16% | 14,700 |
| Appomattox | 2,641 | 34.61% | 4,903 | 64.26% | 86 | 1.13% | -2,262 | -29.65% | 7,630 |
| Arlington | 78,994 | 71.71% | 29,876 | 27.12% | 1,283 | 1.17% | 49,118 | 44.59% | 110,153 |
| Augusta | 9,825 | 29.47% | 23,120 | 69.35% | 393 | 1.18% | -13,295 | -39.88% | 33,338 |
| Bath | 1,043 | 42.89% | 1,349 | 55.47% | 40 | 1.64% | -306 | -12.58% | 2,432 |
| Bedford | 11,017 | 30.75% | 24,420 | 68.16% | 393 | 1.09% | -13,403 | -37.41% | 35,830 |
| Bedford City | 1,208 | 44.18% | 1,497 | 54.75% | 29 | 1.07% | -289 | -10.57% | 2,734 |
| Bland | 864 | 29.20% | 2,031 | 68.64% | 64 | 2.16% | -1,167 | -39.44% | 2,959 |
| Botetourt | 5,693 | 32.71% | 11,471 | 65.90% | 242 | 1.39% | -5,778 | -33.19% | 17,406 |
| Bristol | 2,665 | 36.21% | 4,579 | 62.22% | 115 | 1.57% | -1,914 | -26.01% | 7,359 |
| Brunswick | 4,973 | 62.84% | 2,877 | 36.35% | 64 | 0.81% | 2,096 | 26.49% | 7,914 |
| Buchanan | 4,063 | 46.52% | 4,541 | 51.99% | 130 | 1.49% | -478 | -5.47% | 8,734 |
| Buckingham | 3,489 | 49.89% | 3,428 | 49.01% | 77 | 1.10% | 61 | 0.88% | 6,994 |
| Buena Vista | 1,108 | 45.73% | 1,282 | 52.91% | 33 | 1.36% | -174 | -7.18% | 2,423 |
| Campbell | 8,091 | 31.34% | 17,444 | 67.58% | 279 | 1.08% | -9,353 | -36.24% | 25,814 |
| Caroline | 7,163 | 55.45% | 5,617 | 43.48% | 139 | 1.07% | 1,546 | 11.97% | 12,919 |
| Carroll | 4,109 | 32.67% | 8,187 | 65.08% | 283 | 2.25% | -4,078 | -32.41% | 12,579 |
| Charles City | 2,838 | 68.34% | 1,288 | 31.01% | 27 | 0.65% | 1,550 | 37.33% | 4,153 |
| Charlotte | 2,705 | 43.93% | 3,372 | 54.77% | 80 | 1.30% | -667 | -10.84% | 6,157 |
| Charlottesville | 15,705 | 78.35% | 4,078 | 20.35% | 261 | 1.30% | 11,627 | 58.00% | 20,044 |
| Chesapeake | 53,994 | 50.22% | 52,625 | 48.94% | 902 | 0.84% | 1,369 | 1.28% | 107,521 |
| Chesterfield | 74,310 | 45.85% | 86,413 | 53.31% | 1,365 | 0.84% | -12,103 | -7.46% | 162,088 |
| Clarke | 3,457 | 46.52% | 3,840 | 51.68% | 134 | 1.80% | -383 | -5.16% | 7,431 |
| Colonial Heights | 2,562 | 28.95% | 6,161 | 69.62% | 126 | 1.43% | -3,599 | -40.67% | 8,849 |
| Covington | 1,304 | 55.40% | 1,020 | 43.33% | 30 | 1.27% | 284 | 12.07% | 2,354 |
| Craig | 877 | 33.46% | 1,695 | 64.67% | 49 | 1.87% | -818 | -31.21% | 2,621 |
| Culpeper | 8,802 | 44.59% | 10,711 | 54.26% | 228 | 1.15% | -1,909 | -9.67% | 19,741 |
| Cumberland | 2,255 | 47.73% | 2,418 | 51.19% | 51 | 1.08% | -163 | -3.46% | 4,724 |
| Danville | 12,352 | 59.13% | 8,361 | 40.02% | 177 | 0.85% | 3,991 | 19.11% | 20,890 |
| Dickenson | 3,278 | 48.54% | 3,324 | 49.22% | 151 | 2.24% | -46 | -0.68% | 6,753 |
| Dinwiddie | 6,246 | 48.45% | 6,526 | 50.62% | 120 | 0.93% | -280 | -2.17% | 12,892 |
| Emporia | 1,702 | 65.04% | 897 | 34.28% | 18 | 0.68% | 805 | 30.76% | 2,617 |
| Essex | 2,934 | 54.70% | 2,379 | 44.35% | 51 | 0.95% | 555 | 10.35% | 5,364 |
| Fairfax | 310,359 | 60.12% | 200,994 | 38.93% | 4,901 | 0.95% | 109,365 | 21.19% | 516,254 |
| Fairfax City | 6,575 | 57.69% | 4,691 | 41.16% | 132 | 1.15% | 1,884 | 16.53% | 11,398 |
| Falls Church | 4,695 | 69.56% | 1,970 | 29.19% | 85 | 1.25% | 2,725 | 40.37% | 6,750 |
| Fauquier | 14,616 | 42.71% | 19,227 | 56.19% | 376 | 1.10% | -4,611 | -13.48% | 34,219 |
| Floyd | 2,937 | 39.08% | 4,441 | 59.09% | 138 | 1.83% | -1,504 | -20.01% | 7,516 |
| Fluvanna | 6,185 | 48.57% | 6,420 | 50.41% | 130 | 1.02% | -235 | -1.84% | 12,735 |
| Franklin | 9,618 | 37.86% | 15,414 | 60.68% | 369 | 1.46% | -5,796 | -22.82% | 25,401 |
| Franklin City | 2,819 | 63.68% | 1,576 | 35.60% | 32 | 0.72% | 1,243 | 28.08% | 4,427 |
| Frederick | 12,961 | 38.56% | 20,149 | 59.95% | 502 | 1.49% | -7,188 | -21.39% | 33,612 |
| Fredericksburg | 6,155 | 63.60% | 3,413 | 35.27% | 109 | 1.13% | 2,742 | 28.33% | 9,677 |
| Galax | 1,052 | 43.80% | 1,317 | 54.83% | 33 | 1.37% | -265 | -11.03% | 2,402 |
| Giles | 3,192 | 40.95% | 4,462 | 57.24% | 141 | 1.81% | -1,270 | -16.29% | 7,795 |
| Gloucester | 6,916 | 35.98% | 12,089 | 62.89% | 217 | 1.13% | -5,173 | -26.91% | 19,222 |
| Goochland | 4,813 | 38.31% | 7,643 | 60.84% | 106 | 0.85% | -2,830 | -22.53% | 12,562 |
| Grayson | 2,480 | 34.35% | 4,540 | 62.88% | 200 | 2.77% | -2,060 | -28.53% | 7,220 |
| Greene | 3,174 | 38.43% | 4,980 | 60.29% | 106 | 1.28% | -1,806 | -21.86% | 8,260 |
| Greensville | 3,122 | 63.88% | 1,729 | 35.38% | 36 | 0.74% | 1,393 | 28.50% | 4,887 |
| Halifax | 8,126 | 48.23% | 8,600 | 51.04% | 124 | 0.73% | -474 | -2.81% | 16,850 |
| Hampton | 46,917 | 69.05% | 20,476 | 30.14% | 550 | 0.81% | 26,441 | 38.91% | 67,943 |
| Hanover | 18,447 | 32.80% | 37,344 | 66.39% | 457 | 0.81% | -18,897 | -33.59% | 56,248 |
| Harrisonburg | 8,444 | 57.54% | 6,048 | 41.21% | 183 | 1.25% | 2,396 | 16.33% | 14,675 |
| Henrico | 86,323 | 55.70% | 67,381 | 43.48% | 1,262 | 0.82% | 18,942 | 12.22% | 154,966 |
| Henry | 11,118 | 44.09% | 13,758 | 54.56% | 339 | 1.35% | -2,640 | -10.47% | 25,215 |
| Highland | 590 | 37.97% | 930 | 59.85% | 34 | 2.18% | -340 | -21.88% | 1,554 |
| Hopewell | 5,285 | 55.49% | 4,149 | 43.56% | 90 | 0.95% | 1,136 | 11.93% | 9,524 |
| Isle of Wight | 8,573 | 42.87% | 11,258 | 56.30% | 166 | 0.83% | -2,685 | -13.43% | 19,997 |
| James City | 17,352 | 44.95% | 20,912 | 54.17% | 339 | 0.88% | -3,560 | -9.22% | 38,603 |
| King and Queen | 1,918 | 51.77% | 1,763 | 47.58% | 24 | 0.65% | 155 | 4.19% | 3,705 |
| King George | 4,473 | 42.71% | 5,888 | 56.22% | 113 | 1.07% | -1,415 | -13.51% | 10,474 |
| King William | 3,344 | 39.87% | 4,966 | 59.20% | 78 | 0.93% | -1,622 | -19.33% | 8,388 |
| Lancaster | 3,235 | 46.63% | 3,647 | 52.57% | 56 | 0.80% | -412 | -5.94% | 6,938 |
| Lee | 3,219 | 34.89% | 5,825 | 63.13% | 183 | 1.98% | -2,606 | -28.24% | 9,227 |
| Lexington | 1,543 | 62.24% | 914 | 36.87% | 22 | 0.89% | 629 | 25.37% | 2,479 |
| Loudoun | 74,845 | 53.67% | 63,336 | 45.42% | 1,278 | 0.91% | 11,509 | 8.25% | 139,459 |
| Louisa | 6,978 | 45.45% | 8,182 | 53.29% | 193 | 1.26% | -1,204 | -7.84% | 15,353 |
| Lunenburg | 2,703 | 47.84% | 2,900 | 51.33% | 47 | 0.83% | -197 | -3.49% | 5,650 |
| Lynchburg | 16,269 | 47.37% | 17,638 | 51.36% | 434 | 1.27% | -1,369 | -3.99% | 34,341 |
| Madison | 2,862 | 42.72% | 3,758 | 56.10% | 79 | 1.18% | -896 | -13.38% | 6,699 |
| Manassas | 7,518 | 55.17% | 5,975 | 43.85% | 134 | 0.98% | 1,543 | 11.32% | 13,627 |
| Manassas Park | 2,463 | 59.49% | 1,634 | 39.47% | 43 | 1.04% | 829 | 20.02% | 4,140 |
| Martinsville | 4,139 | 63.48% | 2,311 | 35.44% | 70 | 1.08% | 1,828 | 28.04% | 6,520 |
| Mathews | 1,934 | 35.55% | 3,456 | 63.53% | 50 | 0.92% | -1,522 | -27.98% | 5,440 |
| Mecklenburg | 7,127 | 47.26% | 7,817 | 51.83% | 138 | 0.91% | -690 | -4.57% | 15,082 |
| Middlesex | 2,391 | 39.81% | 3,545 | 59.02% | 70 | 1.17% | -1,154 | -19.21% | 6,006 |
| Montgomery | 21,031 | 51.73% | 19,028 | 46.81% | 594 | 1.46% | 2,003 | 4.92% | 40,653 |
| Nelson | 4,391 | 53.99% | 3,647 | 44.84% | 95 | 1.17% | 744 | 9.15% | 8,133 |
| New Kent | 3,493 | 34.96% | 6,385 | 63.91% | 113 | 1.13% | -2,892 | -28.95% | 9,991 |
| Newport News | 51,972 | 63.93% | 28,667 | 35.26% | 656 | 0.81% | 23,305 | 28.67% | 81,295 |
| Norfolk | 62,819 | 71.03% | 24,814 | 28.06% | 813 | 0.91% | 38,005 | 42.97% | 88,446 |
| Northampton | 3,800 | 57.70% | 2,713 | 41.19% | 73 | 1.11% | 1,087 | 16.51% | 6,586 |
| Northumberland | 3,312 | 44.72% | 4,041 | 54.56% | 53 | 0.72% | -729 | -9.84% | 7,406 |
| Norton | 743 | 49.14% | 744 | 49.21% | 25 | 1.65% | -1 | -0.07% | 1,512 |
| Nottoway | 3,413 | 48.84% | 3,499 | 50.07% | 76 | 1.09% | -86 | -1.23% | 6,988 |
| Orange | 7,107 | 44.98% | 8,506 | 53.83% | 188 | 1.19% | -1,399 | -8.85% | 15,801 |
| Page | 4,235 | 40.76% | 6,041 | 58.15% | 113 | 1.09% | -1,806 | -17.39% | 10,389 |
| Patrick | 2,879 | 33.75% | 5,491 | 64.37% | 161 | 1.88% | -2,612 | -30.62% | 8,531 |
| Petersburg | 13,774 | 88.64% | 1,583 | 10.19% | 183 | 1.17% | 12,191 | 78.45% | 15,540 |
| Pittsylvania | 11,415 | 37.51% | 18,730 | 61.55% | 288 | 0.94% | -7,315 | -24.04% | 30,433 |
| Poquoson | 1,748 | 24.74% | 5,229 | 74.01% | 88 | 1.25% | -3,481 | -49.27% | 7,065 |
| Portsmouth | 32,327 | 69.27% | 13,984 | 29.97% | 354 | 0.76% | 18,343 | 39.30% | 46,665 |
| Powhatan | 4,237 | 29.31% | 10,088 | 69.78% | 131 | 0.91% | -5,851 | -40.47% | 14,456 |
| Prince Edward | 5,101 | 54.34% | 4,174 | 44.46% | 113 | 1.20% | 927 | 9.88% | 9,388 |
| Prince George | 7,130 | 44.55% | 8,752 | 54.68% | 124 | 0.77% | -1,622 | -10.13% | 16,006 |
| Prince William | 93,435 | 57.52% | 67,621 | 41.63% | 1,390 | 0.85% | 25,814 | 15.89% | 162,446 |
| Pulaski | 5,918 | 39.32% | 8,857 | 58.85% | 275 | 1.83% | -2,939 | -19.53% | 15,050 |
| Radford | 2,930 | 53.97% | 2,418 | 44.54% | 81 | 1.49% | 512 | 9.43% | 5,429 |
| Rappahannock | 2,105 | 47.79% | 2,227 | 50.56% | 73 | 1.65% | -122 | -2.77% | 4,405 |
| Richmond | 1,618 | 43.20% | 2,092 | 55.86% | 35 | 0.94% | -474 | -12.66% | 3,745 |
| Richmond City | 73,623 | 79.09% | 18,649 | 20.03% | 813 | 0.88% | 54,974 | 59.06% | 93,085 |
| Roanoke | 19,812 | 38.87% | 30,571 | 59.97% | 592 | 1.16% | -10,759 | -21.10% | 50,975 |
| Roanoke City | 24,934 | 61.15% | 15,394 | 37.76% | 444 | 1.09% | 9,540 | 23.39% | 40,772 |
| Rockbridge | 4,347 | 42.64% | 5,732 | 56.22% | 116 | 1.14% | -1,385 | -13.58% | 10,195 |
| Rockingham | 10,453 | 31.36% | 22,468 | 67.40% | 413 | 1.24% | -12,015 | -36.04% | 33,334 |
| Russell | 4,932 | 42.91% | 6,389 | 55.59% | 173 | 1.50% | -1,457 | -12.68% | 11,494 |
| Salem | 5,164 | 41.63% | 7,088 | 57.13% | 154 | 1.24% | -1,924 | -15.50% | 12,406 |
| Scott | 2,725 | 27.59% | 6,980 | 70.68% | 170 | 1.73% | -4,255 | -43.09% | 9,875 |
| Shenandoah | 6,912 | 35.96% | 12,005 | 62.45% | 306 | 1.59% | -5,093 | -26.49% | 19,223 |
| Smyth | 4,239 | 34.46% | 7,817 | 63.54% | 246 | 2.00% | -3,578 | -29.08% | 12,302 |
| Southampton | 4,402 | 48.55% | 4,583 | 50.55% | 82 | 0.90% | -181 | -2.00% | 9,067 |
| Spotsylvania | 24,897 | 46.05% | 28,610 | 52.91% | 562 | 1.04% | -3,713 | -6.86% | 54,069 |
| Stafford | 25,716 | 46.37% | 29,221 | 52.69% | 518 | 0.94% | -3,505 | -6.32% | 55,455 |
| Staunton | 5,569 | 50.56% | 5,330 | 48.39% | 116 | 1.05% | 239 | 2.17% | 11,015 |
| Suffolk | 22,446 | 56.24% | 17,165 | 43.01% | 297 | 0.75% | 5,281 | 13.23% | 39,908 |
| Surry | 2,626 | 60.72% | 1,663 | 38.45% | 36 | 0.83% | 963 | 22.27% | 4,325 |
| Sussex | 3,301 | 61.55% | 2,026 | 37.78% | 36 | 0.67% | 1,275 | 23.77% | 5,363 |
| Tazewell | 5,596 | 32.80% | 11,201 | 65.65% | 264 | 1.55% | -5,605 | -32.85% | 17,061 |
| Virginia Beach | 98,885 | 49.14% | 100,319 | 49.85% | 2,045 | 1.01% | -1,434 | -0.71% | 201,249 |
| Warren | 6,997 | 43.39% | 8,879 | 55.06% | 250 | 1.55% | -1,882 | -11.67% | 16,126 |
| Washington | 8,063 | 32.91% | 16,077 | 65.62% | 360 | 1.47% | -8,014 | -32.71% | 24,500 |
| Waynesboro | 3,906 | 44.09% | 4,815 | 54.35% | 139 | 1.56% | -909 | -10.26% | 8,860 |
| Westmoreland | 4,577 | 54.64% | 3,719 | 44.40% | 81 | 0.96% | 858 | 10.24% | 8,377 |
| Williamsburg | 4,328 | 63.77% | 2,353 | 34.67% | 106 | 0.95% | 1,975 | 29.10% | 6,787 |
| Winchester | 5,268 | 52.02% | 4,725 | 46.66% | 133 | 1.32% | 543 | 5.36% | 10,126 |
| Wise | 4,995 | 35.33% | 8,914 | 63.05% | 229 | 1.62% | -3,919 | -27.72% | 14,138 |
| Wythe | 4,107 | 32.88% | 8,207 | 65.70% | 177 | 1.42% | -4,100 | -32.82% | 12,491 |
| York | 13,700 | 40.42% | 19,833 | 58.51% | 364 | 1.07% | -6,133 | -18.09% | 33,897 |
| Totals | 1,959,532 | 52.63% | 1,725,005 | 46.33% | 38,723 | 1.04% | 234,527 | 6.30% | 3,723,260 |
| Democratic Hold Gain from Republican | Republican Hold Gain from Democratic |
Barack Obama carried six of the state's 11 congressional districts. Both candidates carried two districts won by the other party.
| District | McCain | Obama | Representative |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1st | 51.35% | 47.67% | Jo Ann Davis (110th Congress) |
| Rob Wittman (111th Congress) | |||
| 2nd | 48.48% | 50.45% | Thelma Drake (110th Congress) |
| Glenn Nye (111th Congress) | |||
| 3rd | 23.74% | 75.52% | Bobby Scott |
| 4th | 48.80% | 50.33% | Randy Forbes |
| 5th | 50.59% | 48.29% | Virgil Goode (110th Congress) |
| Tom Perriello (111th Congress) | |||
| 6th | 56.93% | 41.85% | Bob Goodlatte |
| 7th | 53.16% | 45.89% | Eric Cantor |
| 8th | 29.65% | 69.28% | Jim Moran |
| 9th | 58.71% | 39.60% | Rick Boucher |
| 10th | 46.06% | 52.90% | Frank Wolf |
| 11th | 42.06% | 57.01% | Thomas M. Davis (110th Congress) |
| Gerry Connolly (111th Congress) |
Technically the voters of Virginia cast their ballots for electors: representatives to theElectoral College. Virginia is allocated 13 electors because it has 11congressional districts and 2senators. All candidates who appear on the ballot or qualify to receive write-in votes must submit a list of 13 electors, who pledge to vote for their candidate and his or her running mate. Whoever wins the majority of votes in the state is awarded all 13 electoral votes. Their chosen electors then vote for president and vice president. Although electors are pledged to their candidate and running mate, they are not obligated to vote for them.[30] An elector who votes for someone other than his or her candidate is known as afaithless elector.
The electors of each state and theDistrict of Columbia met on December 15, 2008, to cast their votes for president and vice president. The Electoral College itself never meets as one body. Instead the electors from each state and the District of Columbia met in their respective capitols.
The following were themembers of the Electoral College from the state. All 13 were pledged toBarack Obama andJoe Biden:[31]
The question in Virginia is always whether the Republican Party can hold together its somewhat unwieldy three-legged coalition of historically Republican Virginians in the mountainous Appalachian western portion of the state, social conservatives in the rural areas east of the Blue Ridge Mountains, and suburbanites in Northern Virginia and in the Richmond/Hampton Roads areas. Why this coalition is having troubles recently could fill a book. For our purposes, we will oversimplify somewhat and observe the following.
State and district results of the2008 United States presidential election | ||
|---|---|---|
|  | |
