2020 United States presidential election in California

Main article: 2020 United States presidential election

2020 United States presidential election in California

←  2016 November 3, 2020 2024  →
Turnout	80.67% (of registered voters) 5.40 pp 70.88% (of eligible voters) 12.14 pp [1]
Nominee Joe Biden Donald Trump Party Democratic Republican Home state Delaware Florida Running mate Kamala Harris Mike Pence Electoral vote 55 0 Popular vote 11,110,250 6,006,429 Percentage 63.48% 34.32%
County results Congressional district results Census block group results Biden   40–50%   50–60%   60–70%   70–80%   80–90%   90–100% Trump   40–50%   50–60%   60–70%   70–80%   80–90%   90–100% Tie/No Votes
President before election Donald Trump Republican Elected President Joe Biden Democratic

The 2020 United States presidential election in California was held on Tuesday, November 3, 2020, as part of the 2020 United States presidential election in which all 50 states plus the District of Columbia participated. ^[2] California voters chose electors to represent them in the Electoral College via a popular vote, pitting the Republican Party's nominee, incumbent President Donald Trump, and running mate Vice President Mike Pence against Democratic Party nominee, former Vice President Joe Biden, and his running mate Kamala Harris, the junior senator from California. California had, in the 2020 election 55 electoral votes in the Electoral College, the most of any state. California was one of six states where Trump received more percentage of the two-party vote than he did in 2016. ^{[lower-alpha 1]} This election also marked the first time since 2004 that the Republican candidate won more than one million votes in Los Angeles County, due to increased turnout statewide.

California is considered a safe blue state in presidential elections, due to significant concentrations of Democratic voters in large urban regions such as the San Francisco Bay Area, Sacramento, Los Angeles, and San Diego. As predicted, Biden easily carried California on election day, earning 63.5% of the vote and a margin of 29.2% over Trump. Biden earned the highest percentage of the vote in the state for any candidate since Franklin D. Roosevelt in 1936, although Biden's margin of victory was slightly smaller than Hillary Clinton's 30.1% in 2016, making it one of just six states in which Trump improved on his 2016 margin. Biden became the first candidate in any race for any office in U.S. history to win more than 10 million votes in a single state, while Trump also received the most votes a Republican has ever received in any state in any race since the country's founding, even narrowly besting his vote total in Texas, a state that he won. ^[3] Biden's vote margin was the largest vote margin for a presidential candidate in a singular state.

Per exit polls by Edison Research, Biden dominated key Democratic constituencies in the state including Latinos with 75%, African Americans with 82%, Asian Americans with 76%, and union households with 63%. ^[4] Post-election analysis by Cook Political Report showed Trump made inroads with some Asian American constituencies, particularly Vietnamese American and Filipino American voters. ^[5]

Biden flipped Butte County and Inyo County into the Democratic column, which had not voted Democratic since 2008 and 1964, respectively. Biden's victory in Orange County was only the second time a Democrat carried the county since 1936, as well as only the fourth time in the county's history. In contrast, while he improved his total vote share by nearly three percentage points, Trump did not flip any counties and his main regions of strength came from Republican strongholds in Gold Country, Shasta Cascade, and parts of the Central Valley. California Secretary of State Alex Padilla certified the results on December 4, and took Harris's seat in the Senate upon her resignation to become Vice President, having been appointed by Governor Gavin Newsom. ^[6]

California was one of five states in the nation in which Biden's victory margin was larger than 1 million raw votes, the others being New York, Maryland, Massachusetts and Illinois. Over 5 million votes of Biden's 7 million vote lead nationwide were Californian votes.

Primary elections

In a departure from previous election cycles, California held its primaries on Super Tuesday, March 3, 2020. ^[7] Early voting began several weeks earlier.

Donald Trump secured the Republican nomination on March 17, 2020, defeating several longshot candidates, most notably former Massachusetts Governor Bill Weld. Kamala Harris, the state's junior U.S. senator, was among the Democratic candidates declared until she dropped out on December 3, 2019. Representative Eric Swalwell from the 15th district was also a Democratic candidate but dropped out of the race on July 8, 2019. Other prominent state figures, including former Governor Jerry Brown, current Governor Gavin Newsom, and Los Angeles Mayor Eric Garcetti declined to run. ^{[8] [9] [10]}

Republican primary

Main article: 2020 California Republican presidential primary

The Republican Party's primary campaign was dominated by a lawsuit over the President's taxes. ^[11] The suit alleges that the new requirement for several years of a candidate's taxes was unconstitutional and onerous. The law was blocked in September 2019 while State Supreme court heard testimony and made a ruling. ^[12]

As a contingency, the Republican state committee changed its delegate selection process, turning the primary into a mere "beauty contest" and setting up an emergency state convention to Trump's delegate choices. ^[13] If Trump were allowed on the ballot, the convention would be canceled and the so-called "winner-take-most" rules, which require a challenger to get 20% of the vote, would apply.

Incumbent Trump was allowed on the ballot, and the contingency convention was canceled.

2020 California Republican presidential primary ^[14]

Candidate	Votes	%	Estimated delegates
Donald Trump	2,279,120	92.2%	172
Bill Weld	66,904	2.7%	0
Joe Walsh (withdrawn)	64,749	2.6%	0
Rocky De La Fuente	24,351	1.0%	0
Matthew John Matern	15,469	0.6%	0
Robert Ardini	12,857	0.5%	0
Zoltan Istvan	8,141	0.3%	0
Total	2,471,591	100%

Democratic primary

Main article: 2020 California Democratic presidential primary

Candidates began filing their paperwork on November 4, 2019, and the final list was announced on December 9.

Leading California Democrats complained that Joe Biden and Senator Elizabeth Warren were snubbing the state by refusing to attend a forum at the State's "endorsement convention". ^[15] Early voting began on February 11 and ended the day before primary day.

Popular vote share by county

  Sanders—<30%

  Sanders—30–40%

  Sanders—40–50%

  Sanders—50–60%

  Biden—<30%

  Biden—30–40%

2020 California Democratic presidential primary [16]
Candidate	Votes	%	Delegates [17]
Bernie Sanders	2,080,846	35.97	225
Joe Biden	1,613,854	27.90	172
Elizabeth Warren	762,555	13.18	11
Michael Bloomberg	701,803	12.13	7
Pete Buttigieg (withdrawn) [lower-alpha 2]	249,256	4.31
Amy Klobuchar (withdrawn) [lower-alpha 2]	126,961	2.19
Tom Steyer (withdrawn) [lower-alpha 2]	113,092	1.96
Andrew Yang (withdrawn) [lower-alpha 3]	43,571	0.75
Tulsi Gabbard	33,769	0.58
Julian Castro (withdrawn)	13,892	0.24
Michael Bennet (withdrawn) [lower-alpha 3]	7,377	0.13
Marianne Williamson (withdrawn)	7,052	0.12
Cory Booker (withdrawn)	6,000	0.10
John Delaney (withdrawn)	4,606	0.08
Joe Sestak (withdrawn)	3,270	0.06
Deval Patrick (withdrawn) [lower-alpha 3]	2,022	0.03
Other candidates / Write-in	[lower-alpha 4] 14,438	0.25
Total	5,784,364	100%	415

Bernie Sanders rally at the Los Angeles Convention Center

Senator Bernie Sanders at a campaign rally in San Jose on March 1, 2020

Joe Biden's presidential campaign in Bel Air, Los Angeles, on March 5, 2020

Votes (percentage) and delegates by district ^{[17] [18] [19]}

District	Bernie Sanders		Joe Biden		Michael Bloomberg		Elizabeth Warren		Total delegates	District region	Largest city
1st	34%	2	23.7%	2	10.3%	0	12.9%	0	4	Shasta Cascade	Chico, Redding
2nd	33.3%	3	25.3%	2	13.5%	0	15.9%	1	6	North Coast	Eureka
3rd	34.3%	3	29.3%	2	12%	0	12%	0	5	Sacramento Valley	Fairfield
4th	26.1%	2	29.6%	3	14.7%	0	11.4%	0	5	Sierras	Roseville
5th	32.7%	3	27.2%	3	14.9%	0	12.6%	0	6	Wine Country	Santa Rosa
6th	35.8%	3	28.1%	2	10.7%	0	14.3%	0	5	Sacramento Valley	Sacramento
7th	30.9%	2	31.4%	3	13%	0	11.2%	0	5	Sacramento Valley	Elk Grove
8th	35.7%	2	31.2%	2	11.8%	0	8.8%	0	4	Eastern Desert	Victorville
9th	32.9%	2	32.5%	2	15.9%	1	7%	0	5	San Joaquin Valley	Stockton
10th	35.5%	2	29.1%	1	15.3%	1	7.2%	0	4	San Joaquin Valley	Modesto
11th	29%	2	30.7%	3	15.3%	1	14.7%	0	6	Bay Area	Concord
12th	33.8%	3	23.9%	2	11%	0	23.4%	2	7	San Francisco Bay Area	San Francisco
13th	38.7%	3	22.4%	2	8.1%	0	24.7%	2	7	Bay Area	Oakland
14th	31.9%	3	26.4%	2	15.6%	1	14.8%	0	6	Bay Area	Daly City
15th	34.1%	3	29.5%	3	14.4%	0	11.5%	0	6	Bay Area	Hayward
16th	40.9%	3	26.2%	1	12.6%	0	7.2%	0	4	San Joaquin Valley	Fresno, Merced
17th	36.1%	3	25.9%	2	14.3%	0	12.5%	0	5	Bay Area	Fremont, Santa Clara
18th	26.6%	2	29%	2	15.4%	1	17.1%	1	6	Bay Area	Sunnyvale
19th	38.9%	4	25.9%	2	13.6%	0	10.7%	0	6	Bay Area	San Jose
20th	39.8%	3	25.5%	2	10.9%	0	13%	0	5	Central Coast	Salinas
21st	43.2%	3	25.3%	1	13.7%	0	5.1%	0	4	San Joaquin Valley	Kings, Kern, SW Fresno
22nd	34.4%	2	29.1%	2	13%	0	8.8%	0	4	San Joaquin Valley	Visalia
23rd	34.9%	2	30.2%	2	12.2%	0	9%	0	4	South Central California	Bakersfield
24th	35.3%	3	26.8%	2	10.5%	0	14.7%	0	5	Central Coast	Santa Maria
25th	35.6%	3	33.6%	2	10%	0	10%	0	5	LA County	Santa Clarita
26th	34.4%	3	31.1%	2	12.1%	0	11.5%	0	5	Central Coast	Oxnard
27th	35.9%	2	29.2%	2	10.2%	0	15.7%	1	5	LA County	San Gabriel Valley
28th	40%	3	22.7%	2	7.5%	0	21.7%	1	6	LA County	Glendale
29th	49.8%	3	21.5%	2	7.7%	0	11.2%	0	5	LA County	San Fernando Valley
30th	32.6%	3	31.2%	2	11.2%	0	15.4%	1	6	LA County	San Fernando Valley
31st	39.1%	3	32.3%	2	11%	0	8.3%	0	5	Southern California	San Bernardino
32nd	44.7%	3	28.2%	2	10.5%	0	7.5%	0	5	LA County	El Monte
33rd	26.2%	2	34.2%	3	14.3%	0	16.1%	1	6	LA County	Santa Monica, Coastal LA
34th	53.7%	4	16.8%	1	8.1%	0	14.7%	0	5	LA County	Downtown Los Angeles
35th	46.6%	2	28.2%	2	10.9%	0	6.2%	0	4	Southern California	Fontana
36th	27.5%	1	29.8%	2	15.4%	1	8.1%	0	4	Eastern Desert	Indio
37th	35.6%	3	31.3%	2	10.1%	0	16.2%	1	6	LA County	West LA
38th	41.7%	3	30.8%	2	10.5%	0	7.6%	0	5	LA County	Norwalk
39th	36.7%	3	30.5%	2	12.6%	0	9.6%	0	5	Southern California	Fullerton
40th	56.4%	4	20.9%	1	8.9%	0	5.4%	0	5	LA County	East Los Angeles
41st	45%	3	27.9%	2	10.7%	0	7.5%	0	5	Southern California	Riverside
42nd	37%	3	31.6%	2	12.4%	0	7.9%	0	5	Southern California	Corona
43rd	36.5%	3	34.3%	2	10%	0	10.3%	0	5	LA County	Inglewood
44th	44%	3	29.6%	2	6.2%	0	9.6%	0	5	Los Angeles County	Compton
45th	34%	3	29.1%	2	13.5%	0	12%	0	5	Southern California	Irvine
46th	53.7%	2	20%	2	10.5%	0	7.7%	0	4	Southern California	Anaheim
47th	38.5%	3	27.3%	2	10.6%	0	12.2%	0	5	Southern California	Long Beach
48th	30.4%	2	30.3%	2	16.3%	1	11%	0	5	Southern California	Huntington Beach
49th	30.6%	3	30.5%	2	14.6%	0	12.2%	0	5	Southern California	Oceanside
50th	34.9%	2	27.6%	2	13%	0	11.3%	0	4	Southern California	Escondido
51st	49.2%	3	23.7%	2	11.3%	0	6.8%	0	5	Southern California	Downtown San Diego and Border Communities
52nd	30.6%	3	30%	3	13.4%	0	14.6%	0	6	Southern California	North San Diego
53rd	37.8%	3	27.3%	3	10.1%	0	14.5%	0	6	Southern California	Eastern San Diego and suburbs
Total	36.0%	144	27.9%	109	12.1%	7	13.2%	11	271

Pledged delegates ^[18]

Delegate type	Bernie Sanders	Joe Biden	Michael Bloomberg	Elizabeth Warren
At-large	51	39	0	0
PLEO	30	24	0	0
District-level	144	109	7	11
Total	225	172	7	11

Libertarian primary

Main article: 2020 Libertarian Party presidential primaries

2020 California Libertarian presidential primary

←  2016 March 3, 2020 2024  →

←  MN MA  →

Candidate Jacob Hornberger Jo Jorgensen Vermin Supreme Home state Virginia South Carolina Massachusetts Popular vote 5,530 3,534 3,469 Percentage 19.4% 12.4% 12.2%   Candidate Ken Armstrong Kim Ruff (withdrawn) Adam Kokesh Home state Oregon Arizona Indiana Popular vote 3,011 2,330 2,161 Percentage 10.6% 8.2% 7.6%   Candidate Sam Robb Dan Behrman Max Abramson Home state Pennsylvania Nevada New Hampshire Popular vote 1,722 1,695 1,605 Percentage 6.0% 5.9% 5.6%

Election results by county   Jacob Hornberger   Vermin Supreme   Ken Armstrong   Kim Ruff   Sam Robb   Tie

The Libertarian Party of California permitted non-affiliated voters to vote in their presidential primary. ^[20]

2020 California Libertarian presidential primary [21]
Candidate	Votes	%
Jacob Hornberger	5,530	19.4
Jo Jorgensen	3,534	12.4
Vermin Supreme	3,469	12.2
Ken Armstrong	3,011	10.6
Kim Ruff(withdrawn)	2,330	8.2
Adam Kokesh	2,161	7.6
Sam Robb	1,722	6.0
Dan Behrman	1,695	5.9
Max Abramson	1,605	5.6
Souraya Faas	999	3.5
Steven A. Richey	982	3.4
Erik Gerhardt	748	2.6
Keenan Dunham	720	2.5
Sorinne Ardeleanu(write-in)	27	0.1
Geby Eva Espinosa(write-in)	2	0.0
Total	28,535	100.0

Green primary

Main article: 2020 Green Party presidential primaries

2020 California Green primary [22]
Candidate	Votes	Percentage	National delegates
Howie Hawkins	4,202	36.2%	16 estimated
Dario Hunter	2,558	22.0%	9 estimated
Sedinam Moyowasifza-Curry	2,071	17.8%	8 estimated
Dennis Lambert	1,999	17.2%	7 estimated
David Rolde	774	6.7%	3 estimated
Total	9,656	100.00%	43

American Independent primary

The American Independent Party permitted non-affiliated voters to vote in their presidential primary. ^[20]

2020 California American Independent primary ^[23]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	American Independent	Phil Collins	11,532	32.8
	American Independent	Roque "Rocky" De La Fuente	7,263	21.0
	American Independent	Don Blankenship	6,913	19.7
	American Independent	J. R. Myers	5,099	14.5
	American Independent	Charles Kraut	4,216	12.0
Total votes			35,723	100%

Peace and Freedom primary

2020 California Peace and Freedom primary ^[24]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Peace and Freedom	Gloria La Riva	2,570	66.0
	Peace and Freedom	Howie Hawkins	1,325	34.0
Total votes			3,895	100%

General election

Final predictions

Source	Ranking
The Cook Political Report [25]	Solid D
Inside Elections [26]	Solid D
Sabato's Crystal Ball [27]	Safe D
Politico [28]	Solid D
RCP [29]	Solid D
Niskanen [30]	Safe D
CNN [31]	Solid D
The Economist [32]	Safe D
CBS News [33]	Likely D
270towin [34]	Safe D
ABC News [35]	Solid D
NPR [36]	Likely D
NBC News [37]	Solid D
538 [38]	Solid D

Polling

Graphical summary

Aggregate polls

Source of poll aggregation	Dates administered	Dates updated	Joe Biden Democratic	Donald Trump Republican	Other/ Undecided [lower-alpha 5]	Margin
270 to Win	October 17–27, 2020	November 3, 2020	61.7%	32.3%	6.0%	Biden +29.4
Real Clear Politics	September 26 – October 21, 2020	October 27, 2020	60.7%	31.0%	8.3%	Biden +29.7
FiveThirtyEight	until November 2, 2020	November 3, 2020	61.6%	32.4%	6.0%	Biden +29.2
Average			61.3%	31.9%	6.8%	Biden +29.4

Polls

Poll source	Date(s) administered	Sample size [lower-alpha 6]	Margin of error	Donald Trump Republican	Joe Biden Democratic	Jo Jorgensen Libertarian	Howie Hawkins Green	Other	Undecided
SurveyMonkey/Axios	Oct 20 – Nov 2, 2020	12,370 (LV)	± 1.5%	36% [lower-alpha 7]	62%	–	–	–	–
David Binder Research	Oct 28 – Nov 1, 2020	800 (LV)	–	31%	62%	–	–	3%	4%
USC Schwarzenegger Institute	Oct 27–31, 2020	1,155 (RV)	± 3%	28%	65%	–	–	4% [lower-alpha 8]	2%
SurveyMonkey/Tableau	Sep 30 – Oct 28, 2020	22,450 (LV)	–	37% [lower-alpha 7]	61%	–	–	–	–
Swayable	Oct 23–26, 2020	635 (LV)	± 5.2%	35%	62%	2%	1%	–	–
UC Berkeley/LA Times	Oct 16–21, 2020	5,352 (LV)	± 2%	29%	65%	1%	0%	0% [lower-alpha 9] [lower-alpha 10]	3%
Public Policy Institute of California	Oct 9–18, 2020	1,185 (LV)	± 4.3%	32%	58%	3%	2%	1% [lower-alpha 11]	4%
SurveyMonkey/Tableau	Sep 1–30, 2020	20,346 (LV)	–	35%	63%	–	–	–	2%
SurveyUSA	Sep 26–28, 2020	588 (LV)	± 5.4%	34%	59%	–	–	3% [lower-alpha 12]	6%
Redfield & Wilton Strategies	Sep 19–21, 2020	1,775 (LV)	–	28%	62%	1%	1%	1% [lower-alpha 13]	8%
UC Berkeley/LA Times	Sep 9–15, 2020	5,942 (LV)	± 2%	28%	67%	1%	0%	0% [lower-alpha 9] [lower-alpha 10]	3%
Public Policy Institute of California	Sep 4–13, 2020	1,168 (LV)	± 4.3%	31%	60%	3%	2%	1% [lower-alpha 11]	2%
Spry Strategies/Women's Liberation Front Archived September 27, 2020, at the Wayback Machine [lower-alpha 14]	Aug 29 – Sep 1, 2020	600 (LV)	± 4%	39%	56%	–	–	–	5%
SurveyMonkey/Tableau	Aug 1–31, 2020	17,537 (LV)	–	35%	63%	–	–	–	2%
David Binder Research	Aug 22–24, 2020	800 (LV)	–	31%	61%	–	–	3% [lower-alpha 15]	5%
Redfield and Wilton Strategies	Aug 9, 2020	1,904 (LV)	± 2.3%	25%	61%	1%	1%	2% [lower-alpha 16]	9%
SurveyMonkey/Tableau	Jul 1–31, 2020	19,027 (LV)	–	35%	63%	–	–	–	2%
University of California Berkeley	Jul 21–27, 2020	6,756 (LV)	± 2.0%	28%	67%	–	–	–	5%
SurveyMonkey/Tableau	Jun 8–30, 2020	8,412 (LV)	–	36%	62%	–	–	–	2%
Public Policy Institute of California	May 19–26, 2020	1,048 (LV)	± 4.6%	33%	57%	–	–	6% [lower-alpha 17]	3%
SurveyUSA	May 18–19, 2020	537 (LV)	± 5.4%	30%	58%	–	–	5%	7%
Emerson College	May 8–10, 2020	800 (RV)	± 3.4%	35% [lower-alpha 18]	65%	–	–	–	–
Public Policy Polling	Mar 28–29, 2020	962 (RV)	–	29%	67%	–	–	–	3%
AtlasIntel	Feb 24 – Mar 2, 2020	1,100 (RV)	± 3.0%	26%	62%	–	–	12%	–
YouGov	Feb 26–28, 2020	1,507 (RV)	–	31%	59%	–	–	4%	4%
CNN/SSRS	Feb 22–26, 2020	951 (RV)	± 3.3%	35%	60%	–	–	3% [lower-alpha 19]	3%
University of California Berkeley	Feb 20–25, 2020	5,526 (RV)	–	31%	58%	–	–	–	11%
SurveyUSA	Feb 13–16, 2020	1,196 (RV)	± 3.1%	37%	57%	–	–	–	6%
YouGov/USC Price-Schwarzenegger Institute	Feb 1–15, 2020	1,200 (RV)	± 3.1%	30%	60%	–	–	–	4%
SurveyUSA	Jan 14–16, 2020	1,967 (RV)	± 2.8%	35%	59%	–	–	–	6%
CNN/SSRS	Dec 4–8, 2019	1,011 (RV)	± 3.4%	36%	56%	–	–	3% [lower-alpha 19]	5%
SurveyUSA	Nov 20–22, 2019	2,039 (RV)	± 2.4%	32%	59%	–	–	–	9%
SurveyUSA	Oct 15–16, 2019	1,242 (RV)	± 3.8%	32%	59%	–	–	–	9%
Emerson College	Sep 13–16, 2019	830 (RV)	± 3.3%	36%	64%	–	–	–	–
SurveyUSA	Sep 13–15, 2019	1,785 (RV)	± 3.2%	31%	57%	–	–	–	11%
SurveyUSA	Aug 1–5, 2019	2,184 (RV)	± 2.7%	27%	61%	–	–	–	12%
SurveyUSA	Mar 22–25, 2018	882 (RV)	± 3.8%	33%	56%	–	–	–	11%

Hypothetical polling

with Donald Trump and Bernie Sanders

Poll source	Date(s) administered	Sample size [lower-alpha 6]	Margin of error	Donald Trump (R)	Bernie Sanders (D)	Other	Undecided
AtlasIntel	Feb 24 – Mar 2, 2020	1,100 (RV)	± 3.0%	28%	60%	12%	–
YouGov	Feb 26–28, 2020	1,507 (RV)	–	31%	59%	6% [lower-alpha 20]	4%
CNN/SSRS	Feb 22–26, 2020	951 (RV)	± 3.3%	36%	59%	3% [lower-alpha 19]	2%
University of California Berkeley	Feb 20–25, 2020	5,526 (RV)	–	31%	59%	–	10%
SurveyUSA	Feb 13–16, 2020	1,196 (RV)	± 3.1%	37%	58%	–	6%
YouGov/USC Price-Schwarzenegger Institute	Feb 1–15, 2020	1,200 (RV)	± 3.1%	31%	61%	–	4%
SurveyUSA	Jan 14–16, 2020	1,967 (RV)	± 2.7%	36%	59%	–	5%
CNN/SSRS	Dec 4–8, 2019	1,011 (RV)	± 3.4%	38%	54%	4% [lower-alpha 21]	4%
SurveyUSA	Nov 20–22, 2019	2,039 (RV)	± 2.4%	34%	60%	–	7%
SurveyUSA	Oct 15–16, 2019	1,242 (RV)	± 3.8%	33%	59%	–	8%
Emerson College	Sep 13–16, 2019	830 (RV)	± 3.3%	38%	63%	–	–
SurveyUSA	Sep 13–15, 2019	1,785 (RV)	± 3.2%	33%	57%	–	10%
SurveyUSA	Aug 1–5, 2019	2,184 (RV)	± 2.7%	29%	62%	–	9%

with Donald Trump and Tulsi Gabbard

Poll source	Date(s) administered	Sample size [lower-alpha 6]	Margin of error	Donald Trump (R)	Tulsi Gabbard (D)	Undecided
SurveyUSA	Jan 14–16, 2020	1,967 (RV)	± 2.8%	38%	43%	19%

with Donald Trump and Elizabeth Warren

Poll source	Date(s) administered	Sample size [lower-alpha 6]	Margin of error	Donald Trump (R)	Elizabeth Warren (D)	Other	Undecided
AtlasIntel	Feb 24 – Mar 2, 2020	1,100 (RV)	± 3.0%	28%	60%	12%	–
YouGov	Feb 26–28, 2020	1,507 (RV)	–	32%	57%	5% [lower-alpha 22]	6%
CNN/SSRS	Feb 22–26, 2020	951 (RV)	± 3.3%	37%	56%	3% [lower-alpha 19]	4%
University of California Berkeley	Feb 20–25, 2020	5,526 (RV)	–	33%	58%	–	10%
SurveyUSA	Feb 13–16, 2020	1,196 (RV)	± 3.1%	38%	54%	–	8%
YouGov/USC Price-Schwarzenegger Institute	Feb 1–15, 2020	1,200 (RV)	± 3.1%	32%	59%	–	4%
SurveyUSA	Jan 14–16, 2020	1,967 (RV)	± 2.8%	39%	55%	–	7%
CNN/SSRS	Dec 4–8, 2019	1,011 (RV)	± 3.4%	37%	53%	4% [lower-alpha 21]	6%
SurveyUSA	Nov 20–22, 2019	2,039 (RV)	± 2.4%	35%	56%	–	9%
SurveyUSA	Oct 15–16, 2019	1,242 (RV)	± 3.9%	33%	55%	–	12%
SurveyUSA	Oct 15–16, 2019	1,242 (RV)	± 3.8%	35%	56%	–	8%
Emerson College	Sep 13–16, 2019	830 (RV)	± 3.3%	39%	61%	–	–
SurveyUSA	Sep 13–15, 2019	1,785 (RV)	± 3.2%	35%	53%	–	12%
SurveyUSA	Aug 1–5, 2019	2,184 (RV)	± 2.7%	30%	58%	–	12%
SurveyUSA	Jan 7–9, 2018	909 (RV)	± 3.3%	32%	53%	–	14%

with Donald Trump and Michael Bloomberg

Poll source	Date(s) administered	Sample size [lower-alpha 6]	Margin of error	Donald Trump (R)	Michael Bloomberg (D)	Other	Undecided
AtlasIntel	Feb 24 – Mar 2, 2020	1,100 (RV)	± 3.0%	25%	51%	24%	–
YouGov	Feb 26–28, 2020	1,507 (RV)	–	32%	51%	10% [lower-alpha 23]	7%
CNN/SSRS	Feb 22–26, 2020	951 (RV)	± 3.3%	35%	55%	4% [lower-alpha 24]	5%
University of California Berkeley	Feb 20–25, 2020	5,526 (RV)	–	30%	54%	–	16%
SurveyUSA	Feb 13–16, 2020	1,196 (RV)	± 3.1%	34%	59%	–	7%
YouGov/USC Price-Schwarzenegger Institute	Feb 1–15, 2020	1,200 (RV)	± 3.1%	31%	57%	–	6%
SurveyUSA	Jan 14–16, 2020	1,967 (RV)	± 2.8%	36%	56%	–	8%
SurveyUSA	Nov 20–22, 2019	2,039 (RV)	± 2.4%	34%	50%	–	16%

with Donald Trump and Amy Klobuchar

Poll source	Date(s) administered	Sample size [lower-alpha 6]	Margin of error	Donald Trump (R)	Amy Klobuchar (D)	Other	Undecided
YouGov	Feb 26–28, 2020	1,507 (RV)	–	31%	59%	7% [lower-alpha 25]	7%
CNN/SSRS	Feb 22–26, 2020	951 (RV)	± 3.3%	35%	55%	4% [lower-alpha 24]	6%
University of California Berkeley	Feb 20–25, 2020	5,526 (RV)	–	30%	57%	–	13%
SurveyUSA	Feb 13–16, 2020	1,196 (RV)	± 3.1%	37%	52%	–	11%
SurveyUSA	Jan 14–16, 2020	1,967 (RV)	± 2.8%	38%	50%	–	11%

with Donald Trump and Pete Buttigieg

Poll source	Date(s) administered	Sample size [lower-alpha 6]	Margin of error	Donald Trump (R)	Pete Buttigieg (D)	Other	Undecided
YouGov	Feb 26–28, 2020	1,507 (RV)	–	33%	54%	8% [lower-alpha 26]	6%
CNN/SSRS	Feb 22–26, 2020	951 (RV)	± 3.3%	35%	56%	4% [lower-alpha 24]	4%
University of California Berkeley	Feb 20–25, 2020	5,526 (RV)	–	30%	58%	–	12%
SurveyUSA	Feb 13–16, 2020	1,196 (RV)	± 3.1%	36%	56%	–	8%
YouGov/USC Price-Schwarzenegger Institute	Feb 1–15, 2020	1,200 (RV)	± 3.1%	31%	57%	–	6%
SurveyUSA	Jan 14–16, 2020	1,967 (RV)	± 2.8%	37%	53%	–	10%
CNN/SSRS	Dec 4–8, 2019	1,011 (RV)	± 3.4%	36%	53%	4% [lower-alpha 21]	7%
SurveyUSA	Nov 20–22, 2019	2,039 (RV)	± 2.4%	34%	52%	–	14%
SurveyUSA	Oct 15–16, 2019	1,242 (RV)	± 3.9%	32%	54%	–	13%
SurveyUSA	Aug 1–5, 2019	2,184 (RV)	± 2.8%	30%	53%	–	17%

with Donald Trump and Tom Steyer

Poll source	Date(s) administered	Sample size [lower-alpha 6]	Margin of error	Donald Trump (R)	Tom Steyer (D)	Undecided
SurveyUSA	Feb 13–16, 2020	1,196 (RV)	± 3.1%	38%	54%	9%
SurveyUSA	Jan 14–16, 2020	1,967 (RV)	± 2.8%	37%	53%	10%

with Donald Trump and Deval Patrick

Poll source	Date(s) administered	Sample size [lower-alpha 6]	Margin of error	Donald Trump (R)	Deval Patrick (D)	Undecided
SurveyUSA	Mar 22–25, 2018	882 (RV)	± 3.8%	34%	34%	32%

with Donald Trump and Andrew Yang

Poll source	Date(s) administered	Sample size [lower-alpha 6]	Margin of error	Donald Trump (R)	Andrew Yang (D)	Undecided
SurveyUSA	Jan 14–16, 2020	1,967 (RV)	± 2.8%	37%	53%	10%

with Donald Trump and Cory Booker

Poll source	Date(s) administered	Sample size [lower-alpha 6]	Margin of error	Donald Trump (R)	Cory Booker (D)	Undecided
SurveyUSA	Mar 22–25, 2018	882 (RV)	± 3.8%	35%	39%	26%

with Donald Trump and Kamala Harris

Poll source	Date(s) administered	Sample size [lower-alpha 6]	Margin of error	Donald Trump (R)	Kamala Harris (D)	Undecided
SurveyUSA	Nov 20–22, 2019	2,039 (RV)	± 2.4%	35%	56%	8%
SurveyUSA	Oct 15–16, 2019	1,242 (RV)	± 3.8%	35%	57%	8%
Emerson College	Sep 13–16, 2019	830 (RV)	± 3.3%	39%	61%	–
SurveyUSA	Sep 13–15, 2019	1,785 (RV)	± 3.2%	35%	53%	12%
SurveyUSA	Aug 1–5, 2019	2,184 (RV)	± 2.7%	30%	59%	12%
SurveyUSA	Mar 22–25, 2018	882 (RV)	± 3.8%	35%	54%	12%
SurveyUSA	Jan 7–9, 2018	909 (RV)	± 3.3%	33%	53%	13%

with Donald Trump and Beto O'Rourke

Poll source	Date(s) administered	Sample size [lower-alpha 6]	Margin of error	Donald Trump (R)	Beto O'Rourke (D)	Undecided
SurveyUSA	Sep 13–15, 2019	1,785 (RV)	± 3.2%	34%	51%	15%

with Donald Trump and Kirsten Gillibrand

Poll source	Date(s) administered	Sample size [lower-alpha 6]	Margin of error	Donald Trump (R)	Kirsten Gillibrand (D)	Undecided
SurveyUSA	Mar 22–25, 2018	882 (RV)	± 3.8%	33%	47%	19%
SurveyUSA	Jan 7–9, 2018	909 (RV)	± 3.3%	32%	46%	22%

with Donald Trump and Jerry Brown

Poll source	Date(s) administered	Sample size [lower-alpha 6]	Margin of error	Donald Trump (R)	Jerry Brown (D)	Undecided
SurveyUSA	Mar 22–25, 2018	882 (RV)	± 3.8%	35%	54%	11%

with Donald Trump and Sherrod Brown

Poll source	Date(s) administered	Sample size [lower-alpha 6]	Margin of error	Donald Trump (R)	Sherrod Brown (D)	Undecided
SurveyUSA	Mar 22–25, 2018	882 (RV)	± 3.8%	35%	36%	29%

with Donald Trump and Eric Garcetti

Poll source	Date(s) administered	Sample size [lower-alpha 6]	Margin of error	Donald Trump (R)	Eric Garcetti (D)	Undecided
SurveyUSA	Mar 22–25, 2018	882 (RV)	± 3.8%	34%	49%	17%
SurveyUSA	Jan 7–9, 2018	909 (RV)	± 3.3%	32%	46%	21%

with Donald Trump and Tom Hanks

Poll source	Date(s) administered	Sample size [lower-alpha 6]	Margin of error	Donald Trump (R)	Tom Hanks (D)	Undecided
SurveyUSA	Mar 22–25, 2018	882 (RV)	± 3.8%	34%	51%	15%
SurveyUSA	Jan 7–9, 2018	909 (RV)	± 3.3%	31%	56%	14%

with Donald Trump and Eric Holder

Poll source	Date(s) administered	Sample size [lower-alpha 6]	Margin of error	Donald Trump (R)	Eric Holder (D)	Undecided
SurveyUSA	Mar 22–25, 2018	882 (RV)	± 3.8%	35%	38%	26%

with Donald Trump and Mitch Landrieu

Poll source	Date(s) administered	Sample size [lower-alpha 6]	Margin of error	Donald Trump (R)	Mitch Landrieu (D)	Undecided
SurveyUSA	Mar 22–25, 2018	882 (RV)	± 3.8%	35%	36%	29%

with Donald Trump and Michelle Obama

Poll source	Date(s) administered	Sample size [lower-alpha 6]	Margin of error	Donald Trump (R)	Michelle Obama (D)	Undecided
SurveyUSA	Aug 1–5, 2019	2,184 (RV)	± 2.7%	28%	64%	8%
SurveyUSA	Mar 22–25, 2018	882 (RV)	± 3.8%	36%	57%	8%

with Donald Trump and Oprah Winfrey

Poll source	Date(s) administered	Sample size [lower-alpha 6]	Margin of error	Donald Trump (R)	Oprah Winfrey (D)	Undecided
SurveyUSA	Aug 1–5, 2019	2,184 (RV)	± 2.7%	28%	57%	14%
SurveyUSA	Mar 22–25, 2018	882 (RV)	± 3.8%	35%	52%	13%
SurveyUSA	Jan 7–9, 2018	909 (RV)	± 3.3%	32%	56%	12%

with Donald Trump and Mark Zuckerberg

Poll source	Date(s) administered	Sample size [lower-alpha 6]	Margin of error	Donald Trump (R)	Mark Zuckerberg (D)	Undecided
SurveyUSA	Mar 22–25, 2018	882 (RV)	± 3.8%	36%	42%	22%
SurveyUSA	Jan 7–9, 2018	909 (RV)	± 3.3%	31%	50%	19%

with Mike Pence and Joe Biden

Poll source	Date(s) administered	Sample size [lower-alpha 6]	Margin of error	Mike Pence (R)	Joe Biden (D)	Undecided
SurveyUSA	Nov 20–22, 2019	2,039 (RV)	± 2.4%	29%	59%	12%
SurveyUSA	Oct 15–16, 2019	1,242 (RV)	± 3.8%	30%	58%	13%
SurveyUSA	Sep 13–15, 2019	1,785 (RV)	± 3.2%	27%	58%	15%

with Mike Pence and Michael Bloomberg

Poll source	Date(s) administered	Sample size [lower-alpha 6]	Margin of error	Mike Pence (R)	Michael Bloomberg (D)	Undecided
SurveyUSA	Nov 20–22, 2019	2,039 (RV)	± 2.4%	32%	48%	20%

with Mike Pence and Pete Buttigieg

Poll source	Date(s) administered	Sample size [lower-alpha 6]	Margin of error	Mike Pence (R)	Pete Buttigieg (D)	Undecided
SurveyUSA	Nov 20–22, 2019	2,039 (RV)	± 2.4%	34%	48%	17%
SurveyUSA	Oct 15–16, 2019	1,242 (RV)	± 3.9%	34%	45%	21%

with Mike Pence and Bernie Sanders

Poll source	Date(s) administered	Sample size [lower-alpha 6]	Margin of error	Mike Pence (R)	Bernie Sanders (D)	Undecided
SurveyUSA	Nov 20–22, 2019	2,039 (RV)	± 2.4%	31%	59%	9%
SurveyUSA	Oct 15–16, 2019	1,242 (RV)	± 3.8%	31%	58%	10%
SurveyUSA	Sep 13–15, 2019	1,785 (RV)	± 3.2%	31%	57%	13%

with Mike Pence and Elizabeth Warren

Poll source	Date(s) administered	Sample size [lower-alpha 6]	Margin of error	Mike Pence (R)	Elizabeth Warren (D)	Undecided
SurveyUSA	Nov 20–22, 2019	2,039 (RV)	± 2.4%	34%	53%	13%
SurveyUSA	Oct 15–16, 2019	1,242 (RV)	± 3.9%	33%	55%	12%
SurveyUSA	Sep 13–15, 2019	1,785	± 3.2%	33%	50%	16%

with Nikki Haley and Joe Biden

Poll source	Date(s) administered	Sample size [lower-alpha 6]	Margin of error	Nikki Haley (R)	Joe Biden (D)	Undecided
SurveyUSA	Oct 15–16, 2019	1,242 (RV)	± 3.9%	21%	56%	23%
SurveyUSA	Sep 13–15, 2019	1,785 (RV)	± 3.2%	21%	56%	24%

with Nikki Haley and Pete Buttigieg

Poll source	Date(s) administered	Sample size [lower-alpha 6]	Margin of error	Nikki Haley (R)	Pete Buttigieg (D)	Undecided
SurveyUSA	Oct 15–16, 2019	1,242 (RV)	± 3.9%	24%	44%	32%

with Nikki Haley and Bernie Sanders

Poll source	Date(s) administered	Sample size [lower-alpha 6]	Margin of error	Nikki Haley (R)	Bernie Sanders (D)	Undecided
SurveyUSA	Oct 15–16, 2019	1,242 (RV)	± 3.8%	23%	58%	19%
SurveyUSA	Sep 13–15, 2019	1,785 (RV)	± 3.2%	24%	56%	19%

with Nikki Haley and Elizabeth Warren

Poll source	Date(s) administered	Sample size [lower-alpha 6]	Margin of error	Nikki Haley (R)	Elizabeth Warren (D)	Undecided
SurveyUSA	Oct 15–16, 2019	1,242 (RV)	± 3.9%	23%	52%	24%
SurveyUSA	Sep 13–15, 2019	1,785 (RV)	± 3.2%	25%	49%	26%

with Mike Pence and Kamala Harris

Poll source	Date(s) administered	Sample size [lower-alpha 6]	Margin of error	Mike Pence (R)	Kamala Harris (D)	Undecided
SurveyUSA	Nov 20–22, 2019	2,039 (RV)	± 2.4%	34%	54%	12%
SurveyUSA	Oct 15–16, 2019	1,242 (RV)	± 3.9%	33%	55%	12%
SurveyUSA	Sep 13–15, 2019	1,785 (RV)	± 3.2%	34%	51%	15%

with Mike Pence and Beto O'Rourke

Poll source	Date(s) administered	Sample size [lower-alpha 6]	Margin of error	Mike Pence (R)	Beto O'Rourke (D)	Undecided
SurveyUSA	Sep 13–15, 2019	1,785 (RV)	± 3.2%	34%	47%	20%

with Nikki Haley and Kamala Harris

Poll source	Date(s) administered	Sample size [lower-alpha 6]	Margin of error	Nikki Haley (R)	Kamala Harris (D)	Undecided
SurveyUSA	Oct 15–16, 2019	1,242 (RV)	± 3.9%	23%	52%	25%
SurveyUSA	Sep 13–15, 2019	1,785 (RV)	± 3.2%	24%	51%	25%

with Nikki Haley and Beto O'Rourke

Poll source	Date(s) administered	Sample size [lower-alpha 6]	Margin of error	Nikki Haley (R)	Beto O'Rourke (D)	Undecided
SurveyUSA	Sep 13–15, 2019	1,785 (RV)	± 3.2%	25%	44%	30%

Results

Biden won California with a smaller margin of victory than Hillary Clinton in 2016. Nevertheless, he performed well in most urban areas of the state. Biden is also the first candidate for any statewide race in American history to receive over ten million votes.

Swing by census block group

  Biden

•   >50%
•   40–50%
•   30–40%
•   20–30%
•   15–20%
•   10–15%
•   5–10%
•   1–5%

  Trump

•   1–5%
•   5–10%
•   10–15%
•   15–20%
•   20–30%
•   30–40%
•   40–50%
•   >50%

2020 United States presidential election in California ^{[39] [40]}

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Democratic	Joe Biden Kamala Harris	11,110,250	63.48%	+1.75%
	Republican	Donald Trump Mike Pence	6,006,429	34.32%	+2.70%
	Libertarian	Jo Jorgensen Spike Cohen	187,895	1.07%	−2.30%
	Green	Howie Hawkins Angela Walker	81,029	0.46%	−1.51%
	American Independent	Rocky De La Fuente Kanye West	60,160	0.34%	N/A
	Peace and Freedom	Gloria La Riva Sunil Freeman	51,037	0.29%	−0.18%
	American Solidarity	Brian T. Carroll Amar Patel (write-in)	2,605	0.0	-
	Independent	Jesse Ventura (write-in)	611	0.0	N/A
	Independent	Mark Charles Adrian Wallace (write-in)	559	0.0	N/A
	Independent	Brock Pierce Karla Ballard (write-in)	185	0.0	N/A
	Socialist Equality	Joseph Kishore Norissa Santa Cruz (write-in)	121	0.0	N/A
Total votes			17,500,881	100%

By county

County	Joe Biden Democratic		Donald Trump Republican		Various candidates Other parties		Margin		Total votes cast
	#	%	#	%	#	%	#	%
Alameda	617,659	79.83%	136,309	17.62%	19,785	2.55%	481,350	62.21%	773,753
Alpine	476	63.81%	244	32.71%	26	3.48%	232	31.10%	746
Amador	8,153	36.40%	13,585	60.66%	659	2.94%	−5,432	−24.26%	22,397
Butte	50,815	49.54%	48,819	47.60%	2,931	2.86%	1,996	1.94%	102,565
Calaveras	10,046	36.84%	16,518	60.57%	708	2.59%	−6,472	−23.73%	27,272
Colusa	3,239	40.69%	4,559	57.27%	163	2.04%	−1,320	−16.58%	7,961
Contra Costa	416,386	71.63%	152,877	26.30%	12,053	2.07%	263,509	45.33%	581,316
Del Norte	4,677	40.84%	6,461	56.41%	315	2.75%	−1,784	−15.57%	11,453
El Dorado	51,621	44.44%	61,838	53.24%	2,700	2.32%	−10,217	−8.80%	116,159
Fresno	193,025	52.90%	164,464	45.07%	7,428	2.03%	28,561	7.83%	364,917
Glenn	3,995	35.36%	7,063	62.52%	239	2.12%	−3,068	−27.16%	11,297
Humboldt	44,768	64.48%	21,770	31.36%	2,886	4.16%	22,998	33.12%	69,424
Imperial	34,678	61.11%	20,847	36.74%	1,218	2.15%	13,831	24.37%	56,743
Inyo	4,634	48.86%	4,620	48.71%	230	2.43%	14	0.15%	9,484
Kern	133,366	43.68%	164,484	53.88%	7,442	2.44%	−31,118	−10.20%	305,292
Kings	18,699	42.63%	24,072	54.88%	1,090	2.49%	−5,373	−12.25%	43,861
Lake	14,941	51.55%	13,123	45.27%	922	3.18%	1,818	6.28%	28,986
Lassen	2,799	23.24%	8,970	74.47%	276	2.29%	−6,171	−51.23%	12,045
Los Angeles	3,028,885	71.03%	1,145,530	26.86%	89,950	2.11%	1,883,355	44.17%	4,264,365
Madera	23,168	43.12%	29,378	54.68%	1,186	2.20%	−6,210	−11.56%	53,732
Marin	128,288	82.33%	24,612	15.79%	2,930	1.88%	103,676	66.54%	155,830
Mariposa	4,088	39.77%	5,950	57.88%	242	2.35%	−1,862	−18.11%	10,280
Mendocino	28,782	66.41%	13,267	30.61%	1,291	2.98%	15,515	35.80%	43,340
Merced	48,991	53.84%	39,397	43.30%	2,605	2.86%	9,594	10.54%	90,993
Modoc	1,150	26.33%	3,109	71.19%	108	2.48%	−1,959	−44.86%	4,367
Mono	4,013	59.56%	2,513	37.30%	212	3.14%	1,500	22.26%	6,738
Monterey	113,953	69.52%	46,299	28.24%	3,671	2.24%	67,654	41.28%	163,923
Napa	49,817	69.05%	20,676	28.66%	1,657	2.29%	29,141	40.39%	72,150
Nevada	36,359	55.76%	26,779	41.07%	2,064	3.17%	9,580	14.69%	65,202
Orange	814,009	53.48%	676,498	44.44%	31,606	2.08%	137,511	9.04%	1,522,113
Placer	106,869	45.46%	122,488	52.10%	5,727	2.44%	−15,619	−6.64%	235,084
Plumas	4,561	40.51%	6,445	57.24%	254	2.25%	−1,884	−16.73%	11,260
Riverside	528,340	52.98%	449,144	45.04%	19,672	1.98%	79,196	7.94%	997,156
Sacramento	440,808	61.36%	259,405	36.11%	18,227	2.53%	181,403	25.25%	718,440
San Benito	17,628	61.14%	10,590	36.73%	612	2.13%	7,038	24.41%	28,830
San Bernardino	455,859	54.20%	366,257	43.54%	19,014	2.26%	89,602	10.66%	841,130
San Diego	964,650	60.21%	600,094	37.46%	37,399	2.33%	364,556	22.75%	1,602,143
San Francisco	378,156	85.26%	56,417	12.72%	8,980	2.02%	321,739	72.54%	443,553
San Joaquin	161,137	55.61%	121,098	41.79%	7,546	2.60%	40,039	13.82%	289,781
San Luis Obispo	88,310	55.29%	67,436	42.22%	3,968	2.49%	20,874	13.07%	159,714
San Mateo	291,496	77.89%	75,584	20.20%	7,171	1.91%	215,912	57.69%	374,251
Santa Barbara	129,963	64.52%	65,736	32.63%	5,733	2.85%	64,227	31.89%	201,432
Santa Clara	617,967	72.64%	214,612	25.23%	18,162	2.13%	403,355	47.41%	850,741
Santa Cruz	114,246	78.44%	26,937	18.49%	4,466	3.07%	87,309	59.95%	145,649
Shasta	30,000	32.28%	60,789	65.41%	2,141	2.31%	−30,789	−33.13%	92,930
Sierra	730	37.49%	1,142	58.65%	75	3.86%	−412	−21.16%	1,947
Siskiyou	9,593	40.87%	13,290	56.62%	589	2.51%	−3,697	−15.75%	23,472
Solano	131,639	63.65%	69,306	33.51%	5,886	2.84%	62,333	30.14%	206,831
Sonoma	199,938	74.52%	61,825	23.04%	6,554	2.44%	138,113	51.48%	268,317
Stanislaus	105,841	49.00%	104,145	48.22%	6,001	2.78%	1,696	0.78%	215,987
Sutter	17,367	40.73%	24,375	57.16%	902	2.11%	−7,008	−16.43%	42,644
Tehama	8,911	31.02%	19,141	66.62%	679	2.36%	−10,230	−35.60%	28,731
Trinity	2,851	45.04%	3,188	50.36%	291	4.60%	−337	−5.32%	6,330
Tulare	66,105	45.00%	77,579	52.82%	3,201	2.18%	−11,474	−7.82%	146,885
Tuolumne	11,978	39.39%	17,689	58.17%	741	2.44%	−5,711	−18.78%	30,408
Ventura	251,388	59.45%	162,207	38.36%	9,230	2.19%	89,181	21.09%	422,825
Yolo	67,598	69.48%	27,292	28.05%	2,404	2.47%	40,306	41.43%	97,294
Yuba	11,230	37.69%	17,676	59.32%	890	2.99%	−6,446	−21.63%	29,796
Total	11,110,639	63.44%	6,006,518	34.30%	395,108	2.26%	5,104,121	29.14%	17,512,265

Swing by county

Legend

•   Democratic — +12.5−15%
•   Democratic — +10−12.5%
•   Democratic — +7.5−10%
•   Democratic — +5−7.5%
•   Democratic — +2.5−5%
•   Democratic — +0−2.5%
•   Republican — +0−2.5%
•   Republican — +2.5−5%
•   Republican — +5−7.5%
•   Republican — +>15%

Trend by county

Legend

•   Democratic — +12.5−15%
•   Democratic — +10−12.5%
•   Democratic — +7.5−10%
•   Democratic — +5−7.5%
•   Democratic — +2.5−5%
•   Democratic — +0−2.5%
•   Republican — +0−2.5%
•   Republican — +2.5−5%
•   Republican — +5−7.5%
•   Republican — +>15%

County flips

Legend

• Democratic   Hold   Gain from Republican

  Republican   Hold

Counties that flipped from Republican to Democratic

• Inyo (largest municipality: Bishop)
• Butte (largest municipality: Chico)

By congressional district

Biden won 46 of the 53 congressional districts in California, including four that were flipped or held by Republicans in Congress. ^[41]

District	Trump	Biden	Representative
1st	56.4%	41.1%	Doug LaMalfa
2nd	23.9%	73.6%	Jared Huffman
3rd	42.7%	54.9%	John Garamendi
4th	53.7%	43.9%	Tom McClintock
5th	25.3%	72.5%	Mike Thompson
6th	27.2%	70.3%	Doris Matsui
7th	41.9%	55.7%	Ami Bera
8th	54.1%	43.6%	Paul Cook
			Jay Obernolte
9th	39.9%	57.9%	Jerry McNerney
10th	47.4%	50.3%	Josh Harder
11th	23.6%	74.3%	Mark DeSaulnier
12th	11.9%	86.1%	Nancy Pelosi
13th	9%	89%	Barbara Lee
14th	20.5%	77.7%	Jackie Speier
15th	26.4%	71.5%	Eric Swalwell
16th	38.9%	58.8%	Jim Costa
17th	25.6%	72.5%	Ro Khanna
18th	21.5%	76.2%	Anna Eshoo
19th	27.9%	70%	Zoe Lofgren
20th	25%	72.7%	Jimmy Panetta
21st	43.5%	54.4%	TJ Cox
			David Valadao
22nd	51.7%	46.2%	Devin Nunes
23rd	57.2%	40.5%	Kevin McCarthy
24th	36.9%	60.7%	Salud Carbajal
25th	43.9%	54%	Mike Garcia
26th	36.5%	61.4%	Julia Brownley
27th	30.8%	67.2%	Judy Chu
28th	27.2%	70.9%	Adam Schiff
29th	23.7%	74.1%	Tony Cárdenas
30th	29.4%	68.7%	Brad Sherman
31st	38.9%	58.8%	Pete Aguilar
32nd	32.8%	65.2%	Grace Napolitano
33rd	29%	69%	Ted Lieu
34th	16.9%	80.8%	Jimmy Gomez
35th	32.6%	65.1%	Norma Torres
36th	42.3%	55.9%	Raul Ruiz
37th	13.8%	84.3%	Karen Bass
38th	32.3%	65.6%	Linda Sánchez
39th	44%	54.1%	Gil Cisneros
			Young Kim
40th	20.6%	77.1%	Lucille Roybal-Allard
41st	36.1%	61.7%	Mark Takano
42nd	52.7%	45.4%	Ken Calvert
43rd	20.9%	76.9%	Maxine Waters
44th	19.2%	78.4%	Nanette Barragán
45th	43.3%	54.6%	Katie Porter
46th	33.8%	64.1%	Lou Correa
47th	35.3%	62.5%	Alan Lowenthal
48th	48.3%	49.7%	Harley Rouda
			Michelle Steel
49th	42.6%	55.2%	Mike Levin
50th	52.7%	45%	Darrell Issa
51st	30.9%	66.9%	Juan Vargas
52nd	34.2%	63.7%	Scott Peters
53rd	30.9%	67%	Susan Davis
			Sara Jacobs

Analysis

Despite Biden's overall victory closely mirroring Clinton's, under a point behind her margin, there were large swings underneath the statewide margins. Biden lost ground in large diverse counties while improving in mostly whiter and more suburban counties. ^[42] While Trump yet again lost Los Angeles County by a landslide, he improved his standing in Los Angeles County, thanks to growth in mainly Latino neighborhoods in the Gateway Cities and the San Fernando Valley, alongside improvements in mainly Asian communities in the San Gabriel Valley. Trump also managed to gain in white neighborhoods as well, with visible gains made in Beverly Hills and other Westside communities, mainly because of the region’s high Jewish population, Burbank and Glendale in the eastern San Fernando Valley, and the Valley's southern wealthy neighborhoods such as Encino and Tarzana. ^{[43] [44]} California is also one of the six states (along with Arkansas, Nevada, Utah, Florida, and Hawaii) as well as the District of Columbia in which Trump’s margin increased from 2016.

While Biden won Santa Clara County by a landslide margin of 72%, his margins shrank below that of Hillary Clinton's 2016 margins in the county. His margins slightly shrank in the more suburban communities of Santa Clara and Sunnyvale, even improving in very wealthy cities like Los Altos Hills and Saratoga, but his margins dramatically collapsed in the heavily Asian parts of San Jose, and Milpitas, which Biden won by a landslide, as Trump's comparison of Biden's proposed policies to socialism and communism drove Vietnamese American voters towards him. The issue over China in the South China Sea helped swing Vietnamese Americans, as well as Filipino American voters to the Republican Party. Nonetheless, Trump still received a small 25% of the vote in Santa Clara County, underperforming President Bush in 2004, John McCain in 2008 and Mitt Romney in 2012. ^[45] Trump also gained in Alameda and San Francisco County, but his improvements were smaller than Santa Clara County and Los Angeles County. ^[42] Meanwhile, Biden gained in the more white and suburban San Diego County and Riverside County. ^[46] In the former, Biden's improvements in wealthy suburban areas, like Carlsbad and Encinitas, alongside gains in more working-class Escondido and Oceanside, ^[47] helped overcome Trump's growth in the more Hispanic neighborhoods in southern San Diego County. In Riverside County, Trump lost ground in whiter more Republican territory in the southern part of the county like Menifee and Temecula, and in very liberal communities like Palm Springs in the Coachella Valley, which overcame Biden's decline in Hispanic communities towards the county's northwest, including Moreno Valley and Perris. ^[44] Trump also gained grounds in certain areas like West Covina and Carson. ^[44]

Outside the large population centers and the Inland Empire, both parties largely ran in line with their 2016 performances. In the Central Valley, Biden's margin was roughly unchanged, though he lost some support in the northern counties like Merced and Stanislaus while gaining in the more Republican southern counties around Kern (Bakersfield). ^[48] Biden improved by a point in Sacramento County but saw visible growth in suburban Placer County. However, Trump overwhelmingly outperformed his 2016 performance in rural and heavily Hispanic Imperial County, gaining 17 points. ^[48]

Edison exit polls

2020 presidential election in California by demographic subgroup (Edison exit polling) [49] [50]
Demographic subgroup	Biden	Trump	% of total vote
Total vote	63.48	34.32	100
Ideology
Liberals	90	9	29
Moderates	70	28	41
Conservatives	28	70	30
Party
Democrats	97	2	50
Republicans	10	89	30
Independents	57	35	20
Gender
Men	63	34	47
Women	63	35	53
Race/ethnicity
White	51	47	49
Black	82	15	9
Latino	75	23	31
Asian	76	22	6
Other	59	35	5
Age
18–24 years old	73	27	9
25–29 years old	78	21	5
30–39 years old	63	32	20
40–49 years old	58	41	17
50–64 years old	62	36	31
65 and older	61	37	19
Sexual orientation
LGBT	–	–	7
Not LGBT	62	37	93
Education
High school or less	54	45	14
Some college education	59	37	26
Associate's degree	63	36	16
Bachelor's degree	65	34	29
Postgraduate degree	74	24	15
Income
Under $50,000	61	37	36
$50,000–$99,999	61	37	36
Over $100,000	65	34	29
Issue regarded as most important
Racial inequality	93	6	18
Coronavirus	90	9	23
Economy	27	72	21
Crime and safety	–	–	17
Health care	–	–	17
Region
Coastal	65	34	10
Inland	52	45	30
Bay Area	75	23	18
Los Angeles County	71	27	24
Southern coast	58	39	18
Area type
Urban	68	30	43
Suburban	60	37	52
Rural	–	–	5
Family's financial situation today
Better than four years ago	43	55	37
Worse than four years ago	80	14	25
About the same	67	31	38

See also

• United States presidential elections in California
• 2020 California elections
• 2020 United States presidential election
• 2020 Democratic Party presidential primaries
• 2020 Republican Party presidential primaries
• 2020 Libertarian Party presidential primaries
• 2020 Green Party presidential primaries
• 2020 United States elections

Notes

1. The other five states were Arkansas, Florida, Hawaii, Nevada, and Utah, as well as Washington DC.
2. Candidate withdrew shortly before the primary, when all-mail voting had already begun.
3. Candidate withdrew following the New Hampshire primary, when all-mail voting had already begun.
4. Including 34 write-in votes
5. Calculated by taking the difference of 100% and all other candidates combined.
6. Key:
   A – all adults
   RV – registered voters
   LV – likely voters
   V – unclear
7. Overlapping sample with the previous SurveyMonkey/Axios poll, but more information available regarding sample size
8. "Someone else" with 4%
9. De La Fuente (A) and De La Riva (PSOL) with 0%
10. De La Fuente listed as Guerra
11. Would not vote with 1%; "Someone else" with no voters
12. "Another candidate" with 3%
13. "Another Third Party/Write-in" with 1%
14. Archived September 27, 2020, at the Wayback Machine
15. "Someone else" with 3%
16. "Another Third Party/Write-in" with 2%
17. "Someone else" with 4%; would not vote with 2%
18. Including voters who lean towards a given candidate
19. Other with 0%; neither with 3%
20. "Other" with 3%; would not vote with 3%
21. Other with 1%; neither with 3%
22. "Other" with 3%; would not vote with 2%
23. "Other" with 6%; would not vote with 4%
24. Other with 0%; neither with 4%
25. "Other" with 5%; would not vote with 2%
26. "Other" with 5%; would not vote with 3%

References

1. "Historical Voter Registration and Participation" (PDF). elections.cdn.sos.ca.gov. Retrieved March 7, 2023.
2. Kelly, Ben (August 13, 2018). "US elections key dates: When are the 2018 midterms and the 2020 presidential campaign?". The Independent . Archived from the original on January 3, 2019. Retrieved January 3, 2019.
3. "Texas Presidential Election Results". The New York Times. January 5, 2021. ISSN   0362-4331 . Retrieved January 8, 2021.
4. "California 2020 President exit polls". www.cnn.com. Retrieved August 8, 2021.
5. Damon 🗳 [@DamonMag] (December 13, 2020). "Trump lost Orange County by 8.6 points in 2016 and by 9 points this year. On the surface, that's not a sizable shift, but underneath a LOT changed. This is how #OrangeCounty voted in 2020 compared to 2016. There is an undeniable realignment in many parts of the county. https://t.co/SOyncFCKcv" (Tweet). Archived from the original on August 22, 2021. Retrieved August 23, 2021– via Twitter.
6. "Biden officially secures enough electors to become president". AP NEWS. December 5, 2020.
7. Dezenski, Lauren (December 19, 2018). "Why California leapfrogged the 2020 primary schedule". Archived from the original on January 22, 2019. Retrieved March 4, 2019.
8. Richards, Sam (March 30, 2017). "Jerry Brown for president? 'Don't rule it out!'". Contra Costa Times . Archived from the original on May 10, 2017. Retrieved May 10, 2017.
9. Steinmetz, Katy (September 9, 2017). "The Philosopher King". Time . Archived from the original on November 10, 2017. Retrieved November 7, 2017.
10. Desk, Washington (March 4, 2019). "Former AG Eric Holder rules out 2020 run". Archived from the original on March 6, 2019. Retrieved March 4, 2019.
11. "California justices skeptical of requiring Trump tax returns". KCRA. November 6, 2019. Archived from the original on November 11, 2019. Retrieved November 11, 2019.
12. Augie Martin and Paul LeBlanc (September 19, 2019). "Federal judge halts California law forcing Trump to release tax returns to qualify for ballot". CNN. Archived from the original on December 5, 2019. Retrieved December 10, 2019.
13. "California GOP opens alternative pathway for 2020 delegates". AP NEWS. September 8, 2019. Archived from the original on November 11, 2019. Retrieved November 11, 2019.
14. "California Republican Primary Results". electionresults.sos.ca.gov. Retrieved March 20, 2020.
15. "Joe Biden, Elizabeth Warren snubbing the Golden State, says California Democratic Party chair". November 6, 2019.
16. "Statement of Vote: Presidential Primary Election, March 3, 2020" (PDF). Secretary of State of California. May 1, 2020. Retrieved July 12, 2020.
17. "California Democratic Delegation 2020". The Green Papers. June 21, 2019. Retrieved June 22, 2019.
18. "Presidential Primary Election - Statement of Vote, March 3, 2020 :: California Secretary of State". www.sos.ca.gov.
19. Delegate and Alternate Allocation per Congressional District California Democratic Party.
20. Myers, John (October 21, 2019). "California independents can cast ballots for Democrats — but not Trump — in March primary". Los Angeles Times . Archived from the original on November 16, 2019. Retrieved November 17, 2019.
21. "Statement of Vote: Presidential Primary Election, March 3, 2020" (PDF). Secretary of State of California. May 1, 2020. Retrieved July 12, 2020.
22. "California Green Party Primary". er.ncsbe.gov. Archived from the original on March 5, 2020. Retrieved March 4, 2020.
23. "Generally Recognized Presidential Candidates – March 3, 2020, Presidential Primary Election". Archived (PDF) from the original on December 7, 2019. Retrieved December 7, 2019.
24. "2020 California Presidential Primary Election Results". Election Results. Archived from the original on March 4, 2020. Retrieved March 4, 2020.
25. "2020 POTUS Race ratings" (PDF). The Cook Political Report. Archived from the original on March 23, 2020. Retrieved May 21, 2019.
26. "POTUS Ratings | Inside Elections". insideelections.com. Archived from the original on May 27, 2020. Retrieved May 21, 2019.
27. "Larry J. Sabato's Crystal Ball » 2020 President". crystalball.centerforpolitics.org. Archived from the original on April 4, 2020. Retrieved May 21, 2019.
28. "2020 Election Forecast". Politico. November 19, 2019. Archived from the original on June 14, 2020. Retrieved April 8, 2020.
29. "Battle for White House". RCP. April 19, 2019. Archived from the original on May 3, 2020. Retrieved April 27, 2020.
30. 2020 Bitecofer Model Electoral College Predictions Archived April 23, 2020, at the Wayback Machine , Niskanen Center, March 24, 2020, retrieved: April 19, 2020.
31. David Chalian; Terence Burlij (June 11, 2020). "Road to 270: CNN's debut Electoral College map for 2020". CNN. Archived from the original on June 16, 2020. Retrieved June 16, 2020.
32. "Forecasting the US elections". The Economist. Archived from the original on July 5, 2020. Retrieved July 7, 2020.
33. "2020 Election Battleground Tracker". CBS News. July 12, 2020. Archived from the original on July 12, 2020. Retrieved July 13, 2020.
34. "2020 Presidential Election Interactive Map". 270 to Win. Archived from the original on April 15, 2020. Retrieved April 15, 2020.
35. "ABC News Race Ratings". CBS News. July 24, 2020. Archived from the original on July 24, 2020. Retrieved July 24, 2020.
36. Montanaro, Domenico (August 3, 2020). "2020 Electoral Map Ratings: Trump Slides, Biden Advantage Expands Over 270 Votes". NPR.org. Archived from the original on August 4, 2020. Retrieved August 3, 2020.
37. "Biden dominates the electoral map, but here's how the race could tighten". NBC News. August 6, 2020. Archived from the original on August 7, 2020. Retrieved August 6, 2020.
38. "2020 Election Forecast". FiveThirtyEight. August 12, 2020. Archived from the original on August 14, 2020. Retrieved August 14, 2020.
39. "Certificate of Ascertainment" (PDF). archives.gov. December 5, 2020. Retrieved December 9, 2020.
40. "Statement of Vote, General Election, November 3, 2020" (PDF). California Secretary of State. December 11, 2020. Retrieved December 19, 2020.
41. "Daily Kos Elections' presidential results by congressional district for 2020, 2016, and 2012". Daily Kos.
42. 2020 General election cdn.sos.ca.gov
43. "DRA 2020". Daves Redistricting. Retrieved February 14, 2023.
44. Park, Alice; Smart, Charlie; Taylor, Rumsey; Watkins, Miles (February 2, 2021). "An Extremely Detailed Map of the 2020 Election". The New York Times. ISSN   0362-4331 . Retrieved February 14, 2023.
45. Cai, Weiyi; Fessenden, Ford (December 21, 2020). "Immigrant Neighborhoods Shifted Red as the Country Chose Blue". The New York Times. ISSN   0362-4331 . Retrieved February 14, 2023.
46. Dotinga, Randy (December 17, 2020). "How San Diego Got So Blue in a Relatively Short Amount of Time". Voice of San Diego. Retrieved February 14, 2023.
47. Supplement to Statement of Vote
48. "Flourish | Data Visualisation & Storytelling". Flourish. Retrieved February 14, 2023.
49. "California 2020 President exit polls". www.cnn.com. Retrieved December 28, 2020.
50. "California Exit Polls: How Different Groups Voted". www.nytimes.com. Retrieved December 28, 2020.

Further reading

• Summary: State Laws on Presidential Electors (PDF), Washington DC: National Association of Secretaries of State, August 2020, California