United States presidential election in Georgia, 2004

Main article: United States presidential election, 2004

United States presidential election in Georgia, 2004

November 2, 2004

Nominee George W. Bush John Kerry Party Republican Democratic Home state Texas Massachusetts Running mate Dick Cheney John Edwards Electoral vote 15 0 Popular vote 1,914,254 1,366,149 Percentage 58.0% 41.4%

350px County Results   Kerry—70-80%   Kerry—60-70%   Kerry—50-60%   Kerry—<50%   Bush—<50%   Bush—50-60%   Bush—60-70%   Bush—70-80%   Bush—80-90%

President before election George W. Bush Republican Elected President George W. Bush Republican

The 2004 United States presidential election in Georgia took place on November 2, 2004 throughout all 50 states and D.C., which was part of the 2004 United States presidential election. Voters chose 15 representatives, or electors to the Electoral College, who voted for President and Vice President.

Georgia was won by incumbent President George W. Bush by a 16.6% margin of victory. Prior to the election, all 12 news organizations considered this a state Bush would win, or otherwise considered as a safe red state. Bush performed almost five points better than he did in 2000. He also won a wide majority of the counties and congressional districts. The results of the state were similar to other states in the Deep south, such as Alabama and Louisiana. Like those states, the exit polling showed racial polarization as Bush dominated among white voters, which make up almost 70% of the vote, and Kerry dominated among African American voters, which made up 30% of the state's population. Software engineer and talk show host Michael Badnarik (L-TX) would finish third in the popular vote in Georgia, getting 0.6% of the vote, which is one of his best statewide performances in the nation.

Primaries

• Georgia Democratic primary, 2004

Campaign

Predictions

There were 12 news organizations who made state by state predictions of the election. Here are their last predictions before election day.

1. D.C. Political Report: Solid Republican
2. Associated Press: Solid Bush
3. CNN: Bush
4. Cook Political Report: Solid Republican
5. Newsweek: Solid Bush
6. New York Times: Solid Bush
7. Rasmussen Reports: Bush
8. Research 2000: Solid Bush
9. Washington Post: Bush
10. Washington Times: Solid Bush
11. Zogby International: Bush
12. Washington Dispatch: Bush

Polling

Main article: Statewide opinion polling for the United States presidential election, 2004: Georgia

Bush won every single pre-election poll, and won each by a double digit margin of victory and with over 50% of the vote. The final 3 poll averaged Bush leading 56% to 41%.

Fundraising

Bush raised $6,656,076. Kerry raised $2,282,977.

Advertising and visits

Neither campaign advertised or visited this state during the fall election.

Analysis

Like most of the rest of the southern states during the 2004 election, the political demographics of Georgia was based more around the racial majority in each county, with whites voting more Republican and blacks voting more Democratic. Democratic dominance in the state occurred in mostly black majority counties in the Black Belt region as well the urban center of the city of Atlanta (located mostly in central Fulton County) along with its core southern suburbs (Clayton and DeKalb County). Athens-Clarke County, home of the University of Georgia, also supported Kerry's bid, largely as a consequence of being a college town with traditionally left-leaning political views. Since just about every other part of Georgia had a majority white population, Republican dominance occurred in just about every other part of the state including suburban Atlanta where most of Georgia's population resides. Suburban Atlanta also includes northern Fulton county (the former Milton County area) which despite being part of heavily urban,and majority black central Fulton county, is predominately white, suburban, and perhaps the most affluent area in the state of Georgia. This area also voted heavily in favor of Republican presidential incumbent George W. Bush.

In other down ballot races, Republicans gained Georgia's Class III U.S. Senate seat which was then held by Zell Miller (D) with Johnny Isakson's (R) victory in the open seat race to succeed him and also gained control of the Georgia House of Representatives, and thus control of both houses of the Georgia General Assembly (having already gained control of the Georgia State Senate in 2002), for the first time since reconstruction. However, despite these achievements, Democrats gained one of Georgia's U.S. House seats with John Barrow's (D) victory over incumbent Representative Max Burns (R).

Results

United States presidential election in Georgia, 2004
Party		Candidate	Running mate	Votes	Percentage	Electoral votes
	Republican	George W. Bush	Dick Cheney	1,914,254	58.0%	15
	Democratic	John Kerry	John Edwards	1,366,149	41.4%	0
	Libertarian	Michael Badnarik	Richard Campagna	18,387	0.6%	0
	Independent	Ralph Nader (write-in)	Peter Camejo	2,231	0.1%	0
	Constitution	Michael Peroutka (write-in)	Chuck Baldwin	580	0.0%	0
	Green	David Cobb (write-in)	Pat LaMarche	228	0.0%	0
	Republican	Tom Tancredo* (Write In)	N/A	26	0.0%	0
	Write In	John J. Kennedy	N/A	8	0.0%	0
	Write In	David C. Byrne	N/A	7	0.0%	0
	Write In	James Alexander-Pace	N/A	5	0.0%	0
Totals				3,301,875	100.00%	15
Voter turnout (Voting Age population)					51.7%

(*Tancredo was not the Republican Party's nominee in 2004)

Results breakdown

By county

County	Kerry%	Kerry#	Bush%	Bush#	Others%	Others#
Appling	29.0%	1,848	70.5%	4,494	0.4%	28
Atkinson	32.3%	799	67.4%	1,666	0.2%	5
Bacon	24.5%	930	75.2%	2,853	0.2%	9
Baker	53.1%	936	46.5%	821	0.4%	7
Baldwin	46.5%	6,775	52.9%	7,709	0.5%	76
Banks	20.5%	1,149	78.9%	4,410	0.6%	33
Barrow	23.1%	4,095	76.2%	13,520	0.7%	129
Bartow	25.6%	7,741	73.7%	22,311	0.7%	225
Ben Hill	39.4%	2,180	60.1%	3,331	0.5%	29
Berrien	29.3%	1,638	70.0%	3,917	0.8%	44
Bibb	50.8%	29,322	48.7%	28,107	0.6%	325
Bleckley	28.7%	1,281	70.9%	3,167	0.4%	20
Brantley	22.4%	1,258	77.1%	4,333	0.5%	30
Brooks	42.9%	2,193	56.9%	2,912	0.2%	11
Bryan	25.9%	2,590	73.8%	7,363	0.3%	30
Bulloch	35.6%	6,840	63.8%	12,252	0.5%	103
Burke	49.7%	4,213	49.9%	4,232	0.4%	37
Butts	33.3%	2,572	66.2%	5,119	0.6%	44
Calhoun	55.4%	1,119	44.1%	890	0.5%	10
Camden	32.7%	4,637	66.9%	9,488	0.4%	50
Candler	34.8%	1,096	65.0%	2,048	0.2%	7
Carroll	28.9%	10,224	70.3%	24,837	0.7%	256
Catoosa	26.0%	5,807	73.5%	16,406	0.5%	115
Charlton	31.4%	1,064	68.2%	2,311	0.4%	12
Chatham	49.8%	45,630	49.7%	45,484	0.5%	493
Chattahoochee	45.8%	773	53.6%	905	0.7%	11
Chattooga	35.8%	2,809	63.6%	4,992	0.7%	52
Cherokee	20.1%	14,824	79.0%	58,238	0.8%	624
Clarke	58.1%	21,718	40.3%	15,052	1.7%	618
Clay	61.0%	798	38.9%	509	0.2%	2
Clayton	70.5%	56,113	29.0%	23,106	0.5%	381
Clinch	33.1%	750	66.2%	1,501	0.7%	15
Cobb	37.1%	103,955	62.0%	173,467	0.9%	2,444
Coffee	32.3%	3,979	67.4%	8,306	0.4%	47
Colquitt	28.8%	3,378	70.6%	8,296	0.6%	71
Columbia	24.3%	11,442	75.4%	35,549	0.4%	179
Cook	36.0%	1,733	63.6%	3,065	0.5%	22
Coweta	25.0%	10,647	74.5%	31,682	0.5%	216
Crawford	35.2%	1,552	64.2%	2,830	0.5%	24
Crisp	37.7%	2,357	61.8%	3,865	0.5%	29
Dade	29.2%	1,823	69.9%	4,368	0.9%	56
Dawson	17.3%	1,407	81.9%	6,649	0.8%	61
Decatur	40.0%	3,577	59.7%	5,348	0.3%	26
DeKalb	72.6%	200,787	26.6%	73,570	0.8%	2,152
Dodge	34.1%	2,384	65.5%	4,584	0.4%	27
Dooly	51.3%	1,973	48.2%	1,853	0.5%	18
Dougherty	58.8%	19,805	40.7%	13,711	0.4%	146
Douglas	38.0%	15,997	61.4%	25,846	0.6%	261
Early	40.4%	1,701	59.2%	2,495	0.4%	17
Echols	23.3%	231	76.4%	757	0.3%	3
Effingham	22.3%	3,613	77.3%	12,503	0.3%	51
Elbert	39.0%	2,984	60.4%	4,626	0.6%	49
Emanuel	37.1%	2,774	62.5%	4,666	0.4%	30
Evans	34.5%	1,213	65.2%	2,291	0.3%	10
Fannin	28.2%	2,727	71.0%	6,862	0.8%	77
Fayette	28.3%	14,887	71.0%	37,346	0.7%	354
Floyd	31.7%	10,038	67.7%	21,400	0.6%	187
Forsyth	16.2%	9,201	83.1%	47,267	0.8%	436
Franklin	29.9%	2,245	69.6%	5,218	0.5%	39
Fulton	59.3%	199,436	39.9%	134,372	0.8%	2,599
Gilmer	25.1%	2,510	74.0%	7,414	0.9%	90
Glascock	19.7%	250	80.1%	1,016	0.2%	3
Glynn	32.4%	8,962	67.2%	18,608	0.5%	126
Gordon	25.5%	4,028	73.9%	11,671	0.6%	93
Grady	37.7%	3,092	61.9%	5,068	0.4%	34
Greene	40.4%	2,774	59.2%	4,069	0.5%	31
Gwinnett	33.5%	81,708	65.7%	160,445	0.8%	2,026
Habersham	20.7%	2,750	78.6%	10,434	0.6%	85
Hall	21.1%	10,514	78.2%	38,883	0.7%	347
Hancock	76.5%	2,715	23.2%	822	0.4%	13
Haralson	23.9%	2,434	75.6%	7,703	0.5%	56
Harris	27.5%	3,400	71.9%	8,878	0.6%	72
Hart	38.5%	3,479	60.9%	5,500	0.6%	50
Heard	29.0%	1,148	70.5%	2,788	0.5%	20
Henry	32.9%	21,096	66.7%	42,759	0.5%	298
Houston	33.3%	15,054	66.1%	29,862	0.6%	282
Irwin	30.8%	1,051	68.7%	2,347	0.5%	16
Jackson	21.4%	3,468	78.0%	12,611	0.6%	94
Jasper	32.9%	1,558	66.6%	3,157	0.6%	27
Jeff Davis	26.4%	1,277	73.3%	3,549	0.4%	19
Jefferson	52.7%	3,447	46.9%	3,066	0.4%	24
Jenkins	43.9%	1,494	55.8%	1,898	0.4%	12
Johnson	35.5%	1,263	64.1%	2,279	0.3%	11
Jones	35.5%	3,855	63.9%	6,939	0.5%	59
Lamar	37.4%	2,432	62.0%	4,027	0.6%	39
Lanier	36.0%	931	63.4%	1,641	0.6%	15
Laurens	36.4%	6,281	63.1%	10,883	0.4%	73
Lee	20.9%	2,182	78.7%	8,201	0.4%	38
Liberty	51.7%	6,619	47.9%	6,131	0.4%	55
Lincoln	36.6%	1,337	63.1%	2,309	0.3%	11
Long	34.0%	1,033	65.6%	1,994	0.4%	12
Lowndes	39.5%	12,516	60.0%	18,981	0.5%	157
Lumpkin	23.5%	2,091	75.3%	6,690	1.2%	105
McDuffie	37.3%	2,899	62.3%	4,846	0.4%	28
McIntosh	46.9%	2,523	52.7%	2,837	0.4%	19
Macon	60.8%	2,906	38.7%	1,851	0.4%	20
Madison	25.7%	2,527	73.7%	7,254	0.6%	62
Marion	43.1%	1,275	56.5%	1,670	0.3%	10
Meriwether	45.5%	3,709	54.0%	4,402	0.5%	44
Miller	30.1%	736	69.4%	1,694	0.5%	12
Mitchell	46.2%	3,360	53.5%	3,885	0.3%	22
Monroe	32.9%	3,216	66.6%	6,522	0.5%	51
Montgomery	31.8%	1,007	67.8%	2,150	0.4%	12
Morgan	31.8%	2,304	67.7%	4,902	0.5%	37
Murray	27.1%	2,899	72.5%	7,745	0.4%	45
Muscogee	51.3%	32,867	48.2%	30,850	0.5%	289
Newton	37.5%	10,939	62.0%	18,095	0.5%	145
Oconee	26.7%	3,789	72.5%	10,276	0.8%	117
Oglethorpe	33.7%	1,899	65.5%	3,688	0.8%	44
Paulding	23.3%	9,420	76.2%	30,843	0.6%	233
Peach	46.3%	3,961	53.3%	4,554	0.4%	34
Pickens	23.0%	2,444	76.3%	8,115	0.7%	71
Pierce	20.8%	1,234	79.0%	4,680	0.2%	10
Pike	22.3%	1,506	77.0%	5,193	0.7%	46
Polk	31.2%	3,868	68.2%	8,467	0.6%	79
Pulaski	36.8%	1,294	62.6%	2,202	0.6%	20
Putnam	35.5%	2,880	64.0%	5,188	0.5%	43
Quitman	56.3%	543	42.4%	409	1.3%	13
Rabun	28.9%	1,918	70.1%	4,650	1.1%	70
Randolph	52.9%	1,612	46.5%	1,418	0.6%	17
Richmond	56.6%	39,262	42.9%	29,764	0.5%	323
Rockdale	38.9%	12,136	60.5%	18,856	0.6%	189
Schley	30.3%	464	69.5%	1,063	0.2%	3
Screven	42.8%	2,534	56.7%	3,360	0.5%	29
Seminole	39.0%	1,278	60.4%	1,977	0.6%	20
Spalding	35.5%	7,460	64.0%	13,461	0.5%	105
Stephens	28.1%	2,714	71.4%	6,904	0.5%	52
Stewart	60.1%	1,220	39.2%	797	0.7%	14
Sumter	49.3%	5,562	50.4%	5,688	0.4%	41
Talbot	62.1%	1,830	37.5%	1,103	0.4%	12
Taliaferro	64.4%	612	35.2%	335	0.4%	4
Tattnall	27.6%	1,787	72.1%	4,657	0.3%	19
Taylor	43.1%	1,458	56.6%	1,912	0.3%	11
Telfair	42.1%	1,590	57.5%	2,171	0.4%	14
Terrell	51.0%	1,951	48.6%	1,859	0.4%	14
Thomas	38.2%	5,997	61.5%	9,659	0.3%	51
Tift	30.8%	3,864	68.8%	8,619	0.4%	46
Toombs	29.1%	2,567	70.3%	6,196	0.6%	51
Towns	27.1%	1,430	72.4%	3,823	0.5%	27
Treutlen	38.1%	1,052	61.3%	1,691	0.5%	15
Troup	34.8%	7,630	64.7%	14,183	0.5%	114
Turner	38.3%	1,135	61.2%	1,815	0.5%	14
Twiggs	50.9%	2,220	48.4%	2,112	0.8%	33
Union	25.2%	2,327	74.2%	6,847	0.6%	54
Upson	33.9%	3,424	65.7%	6,634	0.3%	33
Walker	27.9%	5,986	71.5%	15,340	0.6%	127
Walton	21.3%	5,887	78.2%	21,594	0.5%	143
Ware	30.6%	3,449	69.1%	7,790	0.4%	42
Warren	54.6%	1,360	45.0%	1,121	0.3%	8
Washington	47.6%	3,733	52.0%	4,081	0.4%	33
Wayne	28.1%	2,683	71.4%	6,819	0.6%	53
Webster	51.1%	515	48.1%	485	0.8%	8
Wheeler	41.3%	847	58.2%	1,192	0.5%	10
White	21.2%	2,016	77.9%	7,403	0.8%	79
Whitfield	26.3%	6,933	73.2%	19,297	0.6%	148
Wilcox	34.4%	902	65.1%	1,705	0.5%	12
Wilkes	44.6%	2,028	54.8%	2,490	0.6%	26
Wilkinson	49.5%	2,235	50.1%	2,261	0.4%	18
Worth	30.2%	2,219	69.4%	5,105	0.4%	29

By congressional district

Bush won 10 of 13 congressional districts.

District	Bush	Kerry	Representative
1st	66%	34%	Jack Kingston
2nd	50%	50%	Sanford D. Bishop, Jr.
3rd	70%	29%	Jim Marshall
4th	28%	71%	Denise Majette
			Cynthia McKinney
5th	26%	74%	John Lewis
6th	70%	29%	Johnny Isakson
			Tom Price
7th	70%	30%	John Linder
8th	61%	39%	Lynn Westmoreland
9th	77%	23%	Charlie Norwood
10th	65%	35%	Nathan Deal
11th	71%	29%	Phil Gingrey
12th	50%	49%	Max Burns
			John Barrow
13th	40%	60%	David Scott

Electors

Main article: List of United States presidential electors, 2004

Technically the voters of Georgia cast their ballots for electors: representatives to the Electoral College. Georgia is allocated 15 electors because it has 13 congressional districts and 2 senators. All candidates who appear on the ballot or qualify to receive write-in votes must submit a list of 15 electors, who pledge to vote for their candidate and his or her running mate. Whoever wins the majority of votes in the state is awarded all 15 electoral votes. Their chosen electors then vote for President and Vice President. Although electors are pledged to their candidate and running mate, they are not obligated to vote for them. An elector who votes for someone other than his or her candidate is known as a faithless elector.

The electors of each state and the District of Columbia met on December 13, 2004 to cast their votes for President and Vice President. The Electoral College itself never meets as one body. Instead the electors from each state and the District of Columbia met in their respective capitols.

The following were the members of the Electoral College from the state. All were pledged to and voted for George W. Bush and Dick Cheney.

1. Anna R. Cablik
2. Fred Cooper
3. Nancy N. Coverdell
4. James C. Edenfield
5. Karen Handel
6. Donald F. Layfield
7. Carolyn Dodgen Meadows
8. Sunny K. Park
9. Alec Poitevint
10. Joan Ransom
11. Nardender G. Reddy
12. Jame Raynolds
13. Norma Mountain Rogers
14. Eric Tanenblatt
15. Virgil Williams