2008 Virginia Democratic presidential primary

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2008 Virginia Democratic presidential primary
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  Barack Obama Senate portrait crop.jpg Hillary Rodham Clinton-cropped.jpg
Candidate Barack Obama Hillary Clinton
Home state Illinois New York
Delegate count5429
Popular vote627,820349,766
Percentage63.66%35.46%
Virginia Democratic presidential primary election results by county margins, 2008.svg
Primary results by county and independent city
Obama:     40–50%     50–60%     60–70%     70–80%     80–90%
Clinton:     40–50%     50–60%     60–70%     70–80%     80–90%

The 2008 Virginia Democratic presidential primary took place on February 12, 2008, an election day nicknamed the "Potomac Primary" because the District of Columbia and Maryland also held Democratic primaries. [1] The Virginia Democratic primary was an open primary, and was competitive for the first time since 1988. [2] Barack Obama won the primary, as he did the other Potomac contests that day. [3]

Contents

Candidates

Six national candidates appeared on the ballot in the Virginia primary. However, all but Obama and Hillary Clinton had withdrawn prior to the primary on February 12.

Remaining

Eliminated

Background

The prior week, Barack Obama had beaten Hillary Clinton in Nebraska (68%-32%), [7] in Washington (68%-31%) [8] and in Louisiana (57%-36%) [9] by large margins.

The Clinton Campaign looked towards the primary in Virginia as well as those in Maryland and Washington, D.C. which were held on the same day. Though Hillary Clinton spent more resources in the Maryland Primary, she also campaigned in Virginia, particularly in Northern Virginia.

Strategy

The Barack Obama campaign divided Virginia into 4 regions in which to campaign: Northern Virginia, Richmond, Charlottesville, and the Tidewater region in the southeast. He was expected to do well with affluent and independent voters, as well as with African-American voters, who could total 25% of the vote on primary day. [2]

The Hillary Clinton campaign said it would focus its efforts on Prince William and Loudoun counties, especially older white professional women, and also in the unemployment plagued Southwest Virginia. [2]

Polling

Barack Obama had a significant lead over Hillary Clinton in final polling throughout the state.

Final Polling
PollsterBarack ObamaHillary Clinton
Survey USA 60%38%
Mason Dixon 53%37%
InsiderAdvantage52%37%
Rasmussen 55%37%

Results

Key:Withdrew
prior to contest
Virginia Democratic presidential primary, 2008
99.95% of precincts reporting [10]
CandidateVotesPercentageNational delegates [11]
Barack Obama 627,82063.66%54
Hillary Clinton 349,76635.46%29
John Edwards 5,2060.52%0
Dennis Kucinich 1,6250.16%0
Bill Richardson 9910.10%0
Joe Biden 7950.08%0
Totals986,203100.00%83

Analysis

2008 Virginia Democratic presidential primary [12]
Demographic subgroupObamaClinton% of total vote
White men564227
White women455435
Black men93713
Black women851517

See also

References

  1. ↑ "Up next: the Potomac Primary". NBC News. February 6, 2008. Retrieved February 6, 2008.
  2. 1 2 3 Turque, Bill; Kornblut, Anne E. (February 7, 2008). "Va. Is Next Battleground In Democrats' Long Fight". The Washington Post. Retrieved February 7, 2008.
  3. ↑ "RESULTS: Virginia". CNN. February 12, 2008. Retrieved February 12, 2008.
  4. ↑ Bosman, Julie; Zernike, Kate (January 31, 2008). "Edwards abruptly ends Presidential bid". The New York Times. Retrieved May 27, 2010.
  5. ↑ Falcone, Michael (January 24, 2008). "Kucinich to Drop out of Presidential Race". The New York Times. Retrieved May 27, 2010.
  6. ↑ Phillips, Kate (January 10, 2008). "Richardson drops out". The New York Times. Retrieved May 27, 2010.
  7. ↑ "CNN Election Center 2008: Nebraska Caucus Results" . Retrieved May 27, 2010.
  8. ↑ "CNN Election Center 2008: Washington Caucus Results" . Retrieved May 27, 2010.
  9. ↑ "Louisiana Primary Results". CNN. Retrieved May 27, 2010.
  10. ↑ "2008 Democratic Presidential Primary Unofficial Results". Virginia State Board of Elections. February 15, 2008. Archived from the original on March 13, 2008. Retrieved March 10, 2008.
  11. ↑ The Green Papers
  12. ↑ "Virginia Primary Election Results - Election Guide 2008 - Results - The New York Times". archive.nytimes.com. Retrieved May 13, 2025.
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