United States presidential elections in Pennsylvania occur when voters in the U.S. Commonwealth of Pennsylvania cast ballots for electors to the Electoral College as part of a national election to elect the President and Vice President of the United States. Regularly scheduled general elections occur on Election Day, coinciding with elections in the other 49 states and the District of Columbia.
As in other states in the U.S., presidential elections are indirect elections. Voters do not cast ballots directly for a presidential candidate, but rather a slate of electors pledged to support that candidate, with the victorious slate of electors casting their ballots directly for President and Vice President of the United States as part of the Electoral College. During the first presidential election in 1789, Pennsylvania was allotted 15 electoral votes. In 2024, the most recent election, the state was allotted 19. This number, proportional to the state's population and decided every 10 years after a census, peaked at 38 from the 1912 election through the 1928 election. The next presidential election in Pennsylvania, coinciding with the national election, is scheduled for November 7, 2028.
The list below contains election returns from all 60 quadrennial presidential elections in Pennsylvania, beginning with the first in 1789 and ending with the most recent in 2024. Incumbent Presidents are listed as well as presidential candidates who carried Pennsylvania and runner(s)-up in the state, including major third-party candidates (garnering 5% or more of the popular vote). Bold indicates the candidate who won the election nationally. Parties are color-coded to the left of a President's or candidate's name according to the key below. The popular vote and percentage margins listed in the "Margin" column are the differences between the total votes received and percentage of the popular vote received by the top two finishers in the corresponding election (i.e. the margin-of-victory of a candidate who carried Pennsylvania over the nearest competitor). The "E.V." section denotes the number of electoral votes cast in favor of the candidate who carried the state, which has been unanimous except for two occasions—1796 and 1800—in which the number in parentheses represents the number of votes cast for the runner-up.
In all, the Republican Party has carried Pennsylvania in 27 presidential elections, the Democratic Party in 20, the Democratic-Republican Party in 8, the Whig Party in 2, and the Progressive Party in 1 (1912). A nonpartisan candidate, George Washington, carried the state twice (in 1789 and 1792). Pennsylvania has voted for the overall victor in 49 of 60 elections (81.7% of the time) and is tied with Michigan and Wisconsin for the longest active streak of voting for the winning candidate since 2008, last voting for a losing candidate in 2004 when they backed John Kerry.
List of elections
Parties
Election Incumbent president Pennsylvania winner Votes E.V. PA runner(s)-up Votes Margin TurnoutPercentage of voting age population (VAP) unless otherwise noted. Notes 1789 Office established George Washington 7,383 (100.00%) 15 None — — 1792 George Washington George Washington 4,576 (100.00%) 15 None — — 1796 George Washington Thomas Jefferson 12,516 (50.58%) 14 (1) John Adams 12,229 (49.42%) 289 (1.16%) One electoral vote was cast for John Adams. 1800 John Adams Thomas Jefferson 60 (64.52%) 8 (7) John Adams 33 (35.48%) 27 (29.04%) — Electors in 1800 were chosen by the state legislature. In addition to eight electoral votes for Jefferson, Pennsylvania cast seven for Adams. 1804 Thomas Jefferson Thomas Jefferson 22,081 (94.69%) 20 Charles Pinckney 1,239 (5.31%) 20,842 (89.38%) 1808 Thomas Jefferson James Madison 42,508 (78.37%) 20 Charles Pinckney 11,735 (21.63%) 30,733 (56.74%) 1812 James Madison James Madison 48,816 (62.60%) 25 DeWitt Clinton 29,162 (37.40%) 19,654 (25.20%) 1816 James Madison James Monroe 25,653 (59.33%) 25 Rufus King 17,588 (40.67%) 8,065 (18.66%) 1820 James Monroe James Monroe 30,313 (94.12%) 24 DeWitt Clinton 1,893 (5.88%) 28,420 (88.24%) 1824 rowspan="2" James Monroe rowspan="2" Andrew Jackson 35,929 (76.04%) 28 John Q. Adams 5,436 (11.50%) 30,493 (64.54%) William H. Crawford 4,182 (8.85%) 1828 John Q. Adams Andrew Jackson 101,652 (66.66%) 28 John Q. Adams 50,848 (33.34%) 50,804 (33.32%) 1832 Andrew Jackson Andrew Jackson 91,949 (57.96%) 30 William Wirt 66,689 (42.04%) 25,260 (15.92%) 1836 Andrew Jackson Martin Van Buren 91,457 (51.18%) 30 William H. Harrison 87,235 (48.82%) 4,222 (2.36%) 1840 Martin Van Buren William H. Harrison 144,010 (50.00%) 30 Martin Van Buren 143,676 (49.88%) 334 (0.12%) 1844 John Tyler James K. Polk 167,447 (50.50%) 26 Henry Clay 161,125 (48.59%) 6,322 (1.91%) 1848 James K. Polk Zachary Taylor 185,313 (50.28%) 26 Lewis Cass 171,976 (46.66%) 13,337 (1.91%) 1852 Millard Fillmore Franklin Pierce 198,562 (51.20%) 27 Winfield Scott 179,104 (46.18%) 19,458 (5.02%) Zachary Taylor died in July 1850. Millard Fillmore served the remainder of the unexpired term and did not seek election to a full term. 1856 rowspan="2" Franklin Pierce rowspan="2" James Buchanan 230,686 (50.13%) 27 John C. Frémont 147,286 (32.01%) 83,400 (18.12%) Millard Fillmore 82,189 (17.86%) 1860 James Buchanan Abraham Lincoln 268,030 (56.26%) 27 John C. Breckinridge 178,871 (37.54%) 89,159 (18.72%) 1864 Abraham Lincoln Abraham Lincoln 296,391 (51.75%) 26 George B. McClellan 276,316 (48.25%) 20,075 (3.50%) Abraham Lincoln sought re-election on the National Union ticket in 1864. 1868 Andrew Johnson Ulysses S. Grant 342,280 (52.20%) 26 Horatio Seymour 313,382 (47.80%) 28,898 (4.40%) Abraham Lincoln was assassinated in April 1865. Andrew Johnson served the remainder of the unexpired term and did not seek election to a full term. 1872 Ulysses S. Grant Ulysses S. Grant 349,589 (62.07%) 29 Horace Greeley 212,041 (37.65%) 137,548 (24.42%) 1876 Ulysses S. Grant Rutherford B. Hayes 384,184 (50.62%) 29 Samuel J. Tilden 366,204 (48.25%) 17,980 (2.37%) 1880 Rutherford B. Hayes James A. Garfield 444,704 (50.84%) 29 Winfield Scott Hancock 407,428 (46.57%) 37,276 (4.27%) 1884 Chester A. Arthur James G. Blaine 478,804 (52.97%) 30 Grover Cleveland 392,785 (43.46%) 86,019 (9.51%) James Garfield was assassinated in 1881. Chester Arthur served the remainder of the unexpired term and did not seek election to a full term. 1888 Grover Cleveland Benjamin Harrison 526,091 (52.74%) 30 Grover Cleveland 446,633 (44.77%) 79,458 (7.97%) 1892 Benjamin Harrison Benjamin Harrison 516,011 (51.45%) 32 Grover Cleveland 452,264 (45.09%) 63,747 (6.36%) 1896 Grover Cleveland William McKinley 728,300 (60.98%) 32 William Jennings Bryan 433,228 (36.27%) 295,072 (24.71%) 1900 William McKinley William McKinley 712,665 (60.74%) 32 William Jennings Bryan 424,232 (36.16%) 288,433 (24.58%) 1904 Theodore Roosevelt Theodore Roosevelt 840,949 (68.00%) 34 Alton B. Parker 337,998 (27.33%) 502,951 (40.67%) William McKinley was assassinated in September 1901. Theodore Roosevelt served the remainder of the unexpired term and sought and won election to a full term. 1908 Theodore Roosevelt William Howard Taft 745,779 (58.84%) 34 William Jennings Bryan 448,782 (35.41%) 296,997 (23.43%) 1912 rowspan="3" William Howard Taft rowspan="3" Theodore Roosevelt 444,894 (36.53%) 38 Woodrow Wilson 395,637 (32.49%) 49,257 (4.04%) William Howard Taft 273,360 (22.45%) Eugene V. Debs 83,614 (6.87%) 1916 Woodrow Wilson Charles Evans Hughes 703,823 (54.26%) 38 Woodrow Wilson 521,784 (40.22%) 406,826 (14.04%) 1920 Woodrow Wilson Warren G. Harding 1,218,216 (65.76%) 38 James M. Cox 503,843 (27.20%) 714,373 (38.56%) 1924 rowspan="2" Calvin Coolidge rowspan="2" Calvin Coolidge 1,401,481 (65.34%) 38 John W. Davis 409,192 (19.08%) 992,289 (46.26%) Warren Harding died in August 1923. Calvin Coolidge served the remainder of the unexpired term and sought and won election to a full term. Robert M. La Follette 307,567 (14.34%) 1928 Calvin Coolidge Herbert Hoover 2,055,382 (65.24%) 38 Al Smith 1,067,586 (33.89%) 987,796 (31.35%) 1932 Herbert Hoover Herbert Hoover 1,453,540 (50.84%) 36 Franklin D. Roosevelt 1,295,948 (45.33%) 157,592 (5.51%) 1936 Franklin D. Roosevelt Franklin D. Roosevelt 2,353,987 (56.88%) 36 Alf Landon 1,690,200 (40.84%) 663,787 (16.04%) 1940 Franklin D. Roosevelt Franklin D. Roosevelt 2,171,035 (53.23%) 36 Wendell Willkie 1,889,848 (46.33%) 281,187 (6.90%) 1944 Franklin D. Roosevelt Franklin D. Roosevelt 1,940,479 (51.14%) 35 Thomas E. Dewey 1,835,054 (48.36%) 105,425 (2.78%) 1948 Harry S. Truman Thomas E. Dewey 1,902,197 (50.93%) 35 Harry S. Truman 1,752,426 (46.92%) 149,771 (4.01%) Franklin D. Roosevelt died in April 1945. Harry S. Truman served the remainder of the unexpired term and sought and won election to a full term. 1952 Harry S. Truman Dwight D. Eisenhower 2,415,789 (52.74%) 32 Adlai Stevenson II 2,146,269 (46.85%) 269,520 (5.89%) 1956 Dwight D. Eisenhower Dwight D. Eisenhower 2,585,252 (56.49%) 32 Adlai Stevenson II 1,981,769 (43.30%) 603,483 (5.89%) 1960 Dwight D. Eisenhower John F. Kennedy 2,556,282 (51.06%) 32 Richard Nixon 2,439,956 (48.74%) 116,326 (2.32%) 70.3% 1964 Lyndon B. Johnson Lyndon B. Johnson 3,130,954 (64.92%) 29 Barry Goldwater 1,673,657 (34.70%) 1,457,297 (30.22%) 67.9% John F. Kennedy was assassinated in November 1963. Lyndon B. Johnson served the remainder of the unexpired term and sought and won election to a full term. 1968 rowspan="2" Lyndon B. Johnson rowspan="2" Hubert Humphrey 2,259,405 (47.59%) 29 Richard Nixon 2,090,017 (44.02%) 169,388 (3.57%) 65.3% George Wallace 378,582 (7.97%) 1972 Richard Nixon Richard Nixon 2,714,521 (59.11%) 27 George McGovern 1,796,951 (39.13%) 917,570 (19.98%) 56.0% 1976 Gerald Ford Jimmy Carter 2,328,677 (50.40%) 27 Gerald Ford 2,205,604 (47.73%) 123,073 (2.67%) 54.2% Richard Nixon resigned in August 1974. Gerald Ford served the remainder of the unexpired term and sought election to a full term. 1980 rowspan="2" Jimmy Carter rowspan="2" Ronald Reagan 2,261,872 (49.59%) 27 Jimmy Carter 1,937,540 (42.48%) 324,332 (7.11%) 51.9% John B. Anderson 292,921 (6.42%) 1984 Ronald Reagan Ronald Reagan 2,584,323 (53.34%) 25 Walter Mondale 2,228,131 (45.99%) 356,202 (7.35%) 54.0% 1988 Ronald Reagan George H. W. Bush 2,300,087 (50.70%) 25 Michael Dukakis 2,194,944 (48.39%) 105,143 (2.31%) 50.1% 1992 rowspan="2" George H. W. Bush rowspan="2" Bill Clinton 2,239,164 (45.15%) 23 George H. W. Bush 1,791,841 (36.12%) 447,323 (9.03%) 54.3% Ross Perot 902,667 (18.20%) 1996 rowspan="2" Bill Clinton rowspan="2" Bill Clinton 2,215,819 (49.17%) 23 Bob Dole 1,801,169 (39.97%) 414,650 (9.20%) 48.9% Ross Perot 430,984 (9.56%) 2000 Bill Clinton Al Gore 2,485,967 (50.61%) 23 George W. Bush 2,281,127 (46.44%) 204,840 (4.17%) 52.4% 2004 George W. Bush John Kerry 2,938,095 (50.96%) 21 George W. Bush 2,793,847 (48.46%) 144,248 (2.50%) 60.0% 2008 George W. Bush Barack Obama 3,276,363 (54.65%) 21 John McCain 2,655,885 (44.30%) 620,478 (10.35%) 62.1% 2012 Barack Obama Barack Obama 2,990,274 (52.08%) 20 Mitt Romney 2,680,434 (46.68%) 309,840 (5.40%) 58.1% 2016 Barack Obama Donald Trump 2,970,733 (48.17%) 20 Hillary Clinton 2,926,441 (47.46%) 44,292 (0.72%) 60.27% 2020 Donald Trump Joe Biden 3,458,229 (49.85%) 20 Donald Trump 3,377,674 (48.84%) 80,555 (1.16%) 70.93% 2024 Joe Biden Donald Trump 3,543,308 (50.37%) 19 Kamala Harris 3,423,042 (48.66%) 120,266 (1.71%) 76.60% Note: Bold candidate indicates president elected nationally.
See also Elections in Pennsylvania List of United States Senate elections in Pennsylvania