Pivot Counties in Colorado
2020 Election Analysis: Pivot Counties |
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Retained • Boomerang Margins of victory Voter turnout Demographics |
Pivot Counties are the 206 counties nationwide Ballotpedia identified as having voted for Barack Obama (D) in the 2008 and 2012 presidential elections and Donald Trump (R) in 2016. Media and political observers sometimes refer to these counties as swing counties.
Following the 2016 presidential election, Colorado had four Pivot Counties.
Ballotpedia defines Pivot Counties Trump won in 2020 as Retained Pivot Counties and those Joe Biden (D) won as Boomerang Pivot Counties.
After the 2020 presidential election, the state had three Retained Pivot Counties and one Boomerang Pivot County.
List of Pivot Counties
The table below lists the Pivot Counties in Colorado. These counties accounted for 6.25 percent of the total counties in Colorado, and 0.57 percent of the state population.
Analysis of Colorado counties won by Trump in 2016 and Obama in 2012 and 2008 following the 2020 presidential election[1] | |||||||
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County | State | Winner, 2020 | Margin of Victory, 2020 | Trump Margin of Victory, 2016 | Obama Margin of Victory, 2012 | Obama Margin of Victory, 2008 | |
Conejos County | Colorado | Retained | +7.55 | +3.56 | +9.22 | +12.93 | |
Huerfano County | Colorado | Retained | +2.88 | +6.61 | +8.27 | +11.23 | |
Las Animas County | Colorado | Retained | +9.89 | +15.6 | +2.65 | +7.04 | |
Pueblo County | Colorado | Boomerang | +1.72 | +0.5 | +13.99 | +14.97 |
The map below shows Retained and Boomerang Pivot Counties in Colorado shaded bright red and blue, respectively.
2020 analysis
Voter turnout
Colorado has four Pivot Counties, 6.3% of the state's 64 total counties. Of those four Pivot Counties, the state has three Retained Pivot Counties and one Boomerang Pivot County, responsible for 0.51% and 2.71% of the statewide turnout, respectively.
Voter turnout in Colorado and its Pivot Counties | ||||||
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Votes cast | Voting age population | Turnout | Contribution to statewide turnout | |||
Übersicht | ||||||
Colorado | 3,256,980 | 3,979,310 | 81.85% | - | ||
Retained Pivot Counties | 16,700 | 22,350 | 74.72% | 0.51% | ||
Boomerang Pivot County | 88,301 | 123,880 | 71.28% | 2.71% |
County-specific | ||||||
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Votes cast | Voting age population | Turnout | Contribution to statewide turnout | |||
Conejos | 4,333 | 5,805 | 74.64% | 0.13% | ||
Huerfano | 4,406 | 5,420 | 81.29% | 0.14% | ||
Las Animas | 7,961 | 11,125 | 71.56% | 0.24% | ||
Pueblo | 88,301 | 123,880 | 71.28% | 2.71% |
Demographics
This table displays demographic data, on average, by county compared to nationwide and statewide averages with a focus on Pivot Counties. Use the arrows at the top of the table to view 2016 data and changes from 2016 to 2020. Full demographic data can be found here.
2016 analysis
Voting trends
The table below details the voting trends of the Pivot Counties in Colorado since 1960.
Presidential Elections in Colorado Pivot Counties since 1960 | ||||||
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County | Elections won by Republican Presidential candidate | Elections won by Democratic Presidential candidate | Elections matching national result | |||
Elections | Percentage of elections | Elections | Percentage of elections | Elections | Percentage of elections | |
Conejos County, Colorado | 5 | 33.33% | 10 | 66.67% | 12 | 80.00% |
Huerfano County, Colorado | 3 | 20.00% | 12 | 80.00% | 10 | 66.67% |
Las Animas County, Colorado | 2 | 13.33% | 13 | 86.67% | 9 | 60.00% |
Pueblo County, Colorado | 2 | 13.33% | 13 | 86.67% | 9 | 60.00% |
Average | 3 | 20.00% | 12 | 80.00% | 10 | 66.67% |
Median | 3 | 16.67% | 13 | 83.33% | 10 | 63.33% |
2016 election results
- See also: Presidential election in Colorado, 2016
In 2016, Colorado had nine electoral votes, which was 1.7 percent of the 538 electoral votes up for grabs and 3.3 percent of the 270 electoral votes needed to win the general election. Presidential caucuses in Colorado took place on March 1, 2016. Bernie Sanders won the Democratic caucuses with 59 percent of the vote. Republicans in Colorado did not hold a presidential preference poll in 2016, but, at the Colorado district and state GOP conventions in April, Ted Cruz won 30 delegates who pledged their support to him on their intent-to-run forms.
General election
U.S. presidential election, Colorado, 2016 | |||||
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Party | Candidate | Vote % | Votes | Electoral votes | |
Democratic | ![]() |
48.2% | 1,338,870 | 9 | |
Republican | Donald Trump/Mike Pence | 43.3% | 1,202,484 | 0 | |
American Constitution | Darrell Lane Castle/Scott Bradley | 0.4% | 11,699 | 0 | |
Libertarian | Gary Johnson/Bill Weld | 5.2% | 144,121 | 0 | |
Green | Jill Stein/Ajamu Baraka | 1.4% | 38,437 | 0 | |
Approval Voting | Frank Atwood/Blake Huber | 0% | 337 | 0 | |
American Delta | Roque De La Fuente/Michael Steinberg | 0% | 1,255 | 0 | |
Prohibition | Jim Hedges/Bill Bayes | 0% | 185 | 0 | |
America's | Tom Hoefling/Steve Schulin | 0% | 710 | 0 | |
Veterans | Chris Keniston/Deacon Taylor | 0.2% | 5,028 | 0 | |
Socialist Workers | Alyson Kennedy/Osborne Hart | 0% | 452 | 0 | |
Independent American | Kyle Kenley Kopitke/Nathan R. Sorenson | 0% | 1,096 | 0 | |
Kotlikoff for President | Laurence Kotlikoff/Edward Lea | 0% | 392 | 0 | |
Socialism and Liberation | Gloria Estela La Riva/Dennis J. Banks | 0% | 531 | 0 | |
Nonviolent Resistance/Pacifist | Bradford Lyttle/Hannah Walsh | 0% | 382 | 0 | |
Independent People of Colorado | Joseph A. Maldonado/Douglass K. Terranova | 0% | 872 | 0 | |
American Solidarity | Michael A. Maturen/Juan Munoz | 0% | 862 | 0 | |
Unaffiliated | Evan McMullin/Nathan Johnson | 1% | 28,917 | 0 | |
Unaffiliated | Ryan Alan Scott/Bruce Kendall Barnard | 0% | 749 | 0 | |
Nutrition | Rod Silva/Richard C. Silva | 0% | 751 | 0 | |
Unaffiliated | Mike Smith/Daniel White | 0.1% | 1,819 | 0 | |
Socialist Party USA | Emidio Soltysik/Angela Nicole Walker | 0% | 271 | 0 | |
- | Other/Write-in | 0% | 27 | 0 | |
Total Votes | 2,780,247 | 9 | |||
Election results via: Federal Election Commission |
Primaries
Colorado Democratic Caucus, 2016 | ||||
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Candidate | Vote % | Votes | Delegates | |
![]() |
59% | 72,846 | 41 | |
Hillary Clinton | 40.3% | 49,789 | 25 | |
Other | 0.7% | 822 | 0 | |
Totals | 123,457 | 66 | ||
Source: Colorado Democratic Party and CNN |
The Colorado GOP did not hold a presidential preference poll in 2016. Delegates to the national convention were elected at district conventions and the state convention in April. Ted Cruz won 30 delegates who pledged their support for him on their intent-to-run forms. Four other delegates verbally pledged their support for Cruz. Precinct caucuses were held on March 1, 2016.[2]
See also
- List of Pivot Counties - the 206 counties that voted Obama-Obama-Trump
- Pivot Counties by state
- Presidential election, 2016
Footnotes
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