Pivot Counties in Nebraska
| 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, Nebraska had one Pivot County.
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, that one county was a Retained Pivot County.
List of Pivot Counties
The table below displays information on the Pivot County in Nebraska. This county accounted for 1.08 percent of the total counties in Nebraska, and 0.37 percent of the state population.
| Analysis of Nebraska counties won by Trump in 2016 and Obama in 2012 and 2008 following the 2020 presidential election[1] | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| County | State | Winner, 2020 | Margin of Victory, 2020 | Trump Margin of Victory, 2016 | Obama Margin of Victory, 2012 | Obama Margin of Victory, 2008 | |
| Thurston County | Nebraska | Retained | +2.44 | +5.94 | +13.91 | +6.96 | |
The map below shows the Retained Pivot County in Nebraska shaded bright red.
2020 analysis
Voter turnout
Nebraska has one Retained Pivot County, 1.1% of the state's 93 total counties. Turnout in this county accounted for 0.25% of the statewide total turnout.
| Voter turnout in Nebraska and its Pivot Counties | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Votes cast | Voting age population | Turnout | Contribution to statewide turnout | |||
| Overview | ||||||
| Nebraska | 956,383 | 1,358,805 | 70.38% | - | ||
| Retained Pivot County | 2,379 | 4,510 | 52.75% | 0.25% | ||
| County-specific | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Votes cast | Voting age population | Turnout | Contribution to statewide turnout | |||
| Thurston | 2,379 | 4,510 | 52.75% | 0.25% | ||
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 County in Nebraska since 1960.
| Presidential Elections in Nebraska Pivot Counties since 1960 | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 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 | |
| Thurston County, Nebraska | 9 | 60.00% | 6 | 40.00% | 10 | 66.67% |
2016 election results
- See also: Presidential election in Nebraska, 2016
In 2016, Nebraska had five electoral votes, which was 0.9 percent of the 538 electoral votes up for grabs and 1.8 percent of the 270 electoral votes needed to win the general election. Nebraska is one of two states that awards its electoral votes proportionally. The other is Maine. Nebraska adopted this system in 1996. Nebraska's second congressional district was a key battleground in the 2016 presidential election. Bernie Sanders won the Nebraska Democratic caucuses on March 5, 2016, with 57.1 percent of the vote. Donald Trump won the Nebraska Republican primary on May 10, 2016, with 61.5 percent.
General election
| U.S. presidential election, Nebraska, 2016 | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Party | Candidate | Vote % | Votes | Electoral votes | |
| Democratic | Hillary Clinton/Tim Kaine | 33.7% | 284,494 | 0 | |
| Republican |  Donald Trump/Mike Pence |
58.7% | 495,961 | 4 | |
| Libertarian | Gary Johnson/Bill Weld | 4.6% | 38,946 | 0 | |
| Green | Jill Stein/Ajamu Baraka | 1% | 8,775 | 0 | |
| - | Other/Write-in | 1.9% | 16,051 | 0 | |
| Total Votes | 844,227 | 4 | |||
| Election results via: Federal Election Commission | |||||
Primary/Caucus
| Nebraska Democratic Caucus, 2016 | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Candidate | Vote % | Votes | Delegates | |
|
Bernie Sanders |
57.1% | 19,120 | 15 | |
| Hillary Clinton | 42.9% | 14,340 | 10 | |
| Totals | 33,460 | 25 | ||
| Source: The New York Times and Nebraska Caucus 2016 | ||||
| Nebraska Republican Primary, 2016 | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Candidate | Vote % | Votes | Delegates | |
|
Donald Trump |
61.5% | 122,327 | 36 | |
| Ted Cruz | 18.4% | 36,703 | 0 | |
| John Kasich | 11.4% | 22,709 | 0 | |
| Marco Rubio | 3.6% | 7,233 | 0 | |
| Ben Carson | 5% | 10,016 | 0 | |
| Totals | 198,988 | 36 | ||
| Source: The New York Times and Nebraska Secretary of State | ||||
See also
- List of Pivot Counties - the 206 counties that voted Obama-Obama-Trump
- Pivot Counties by state
- Presidential election, 2016
Footnotes
- ↑ This analysis does not include counties in Alaska and certain independent cities due to variations in vote total reporting.
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