2004 United States presidential election in Kentucky

none June 2025 September 2023 2004 United States presidential election 2004 United States presidential election in Kentucky Kentucky presidential no 2000 United States presidential election in Kentucky 2000 2008 United States presidential election in Kentucky 2008 November 2, 2004 File:George-W-Bush (cropped).jpeg x200px George W. Bush Republican Party (United States) Texas Dick Cheney 8 1,069,439 59.55% John F. Kerry (wide crop).jpg John Kerry Democratic Party (United States) Massachusetts John Edwards 0 712,733 39.69% 380px County results 380px Congressional district results Bush #e27f90 50–60% #cc2f4a 60–70% #d40000 70–80% #aa0000 80–90% Kerry #b9d7ff 40–50% #86b6f2 50–60% #4389e3 60–70% President George W. Bush Republican Party (United States) George W. Bush Republican Party (United States) 64.74%Voter turnout report for the 11/02/04 General Election https://elect.ky.gov/SiteCollectionDocuments/Election%20Statistics/turnout/2001-2005/04gen.pdf Commonwealth of Kentucky - State Board of Elections The 2004 United States presidential election in Kentucky took place on November 2, 2004, and was part of the 2004 United States presidential election. Voters chose eight representatives, or electors, to the Electoral College, who voted for president and vice president. Kentucky was won by incumbent President George W. Bush by a 19.86% margin of victory. Prior to the election, all 12 news organizations considered this a state Bush would win, or otherwise a red state. Bush widened his margin of victory since his victory in 2000 against Al Gore, the former senator of neighboring Tennessee, by 4.73%. He made his strongest progress in the eastern part of the state and at the border with Virginia. As of 2024, this is the last election in which Fayette County home of Lexington, Kentucky has voted for the Republican candidate, and the last in which Knott County, Floyd County, Breathitt County, Bath County, Pike County, Carter County, and Magoffin County voted for the Democratic candidate. This was the first time that a Republican won a majority in Ballard County. This victory coincided with a U.S. Senate election, where controversial Republican incumbent Jim Bunning was narrowly reelected over Daniel Mongiardo, most likely due to Bush's landslide victory. Primaries 2004 Kentucky Democratic presidential primary 2004 Kentucky Republican presidential primary Campaign Predictions There were 12 news organizations who made state-by-state predictions of the election. Here are their last predictions before election day.Article title +SourceRankingD.C. Political ReportSolid RCook Political ReportSolid RResearch 2000Solid RZogby InternationalLikely RWashington PostLikely RWashington DispatchLikely RWashington TimesSolid RThe New York TimesSolid RCNNLikely RNewsweekSolid RAssociated PressSolid RRasmussen ReportsLikely R Polling Bush won every single pre-election poll, and won each by a double-digit margin of victory and with at least 52% of the vote. The final three polls averaged Bush leading 57% to 38%.2004 Presidential Election Polls http://uselectionatlas.org/USPRESIDENT/GENERAL/CAMPAIGN/2004/polls.php?fips=21 Dave Leip's Atlas of U.S. Elections Fundraising Bush raised $2,398,982.http://www.campaignmoney.com/political/campaigns/george_w_bush.asp?cycle=04 George W Bush - $374,659,453 raised, '04 election cycle, Republican Party, President Kerry raised $1,433,748.http://www.campaignmoney.com/political/campaigns/john_f_kerry.asp?cycle=04 John F Kerry - $345,826,176 raised, '04 election cycle, Democrat Party, President Advertising and visits Neither campaign advertised or visited this state during the fall campaign.http://www.cnn.com/ELECTION/2004/special/president/campaign.ads/ America votes 2004: Campaign ad buys CNN 2022-05-27 2021-04-22 https://web.archive.org/web/20210422073439/http://www.cnn.com/ELECTION/2004/special/president/campaign.ads/ live http://www.cnn.com/ELECTION/2004/special/president/tracking/10.25.html America votes 2004: Candidate tracker CNN 2022-05-27 Results President George W. Bush easily defeated Massachusetts Senator John F. Kerry in Kentucky, capturing the state's 8 electoral votes. Bush did well throughout the state. Kerry only won a handful of counties. Kerry performed decently in coal country in east Kentucky but fared poorly in other rural parts of the state. Kerry did win Jefferson County, the most populous county in the state and home of Louisville. However this was not enough to overcome Bush's lead. This race was not close, whereas the concurrent senate race was very tight. United States presidential election in Kentucky, 2004PartyCandidateVotesPercentageElectoral votes Republican George W. Bush (incumbent) 1,069,439 59.55%8 Democratic John Kerry 712,733 39.69% 0 Reform Ralph Nader 8,856 0.49% 0 Libertarian Michael Badnarik 2,619 0.15% 0ConstitutionMichael Peroutka 2,213 0.12% 0 Totals 1,795,860 100.00% 8 Voter turnout (voting age population) 57.5% By county CountyGeorge W. BushRepublicanJohn KerryDemocraticVarious candidatesOther partiesMarginTotal#%#%#%#%Adair5,62875.57%1,76423.69%550.74%3,86451.88%7,447Allen5,20272.62%1,92326.85%380.53%3,27945.77%7,163Anderson6,36366.34%3,14132.75%870.91%3,22233.59%9,591Ballard2,38957.19%1,75942.11%290.70%63015.08%4,177Barren10,82267.05%5,21632.32%1020.63%5,60634.73%16,140Bath2,26946.13%2,60853.02%420.85%-339-6.89%4,919Bell6,72261.10%4,21038.27%700.64%2,51222.83%11,002Boone32,32971.71%12,39127.49%3620.80%19,93844.22%45,082Bourbon4,95360.28%3,19838.92%660.80%1,75521.36%8,217Boyd11,50152.81%10,13246.53%1440.66%1,3696.28%21,777Boyle7,76462.16%4,64637.20%800.64%3,11824.96%12,490Bracken2,36365.46%1,21333.60%340.95%1,15031.86%3,610Breathitt2,54242.77%3,32755.97%751.26%-785-13.20%5,944Breckinridge5,58065.49%2,88433.85%560.66%2,69631.64%8,520Bullitt19,43367.88%9,04331.59%1510.53%10,39036.29%28,627Butler4,10973.66%1,43625.74%330.59%2,67347.92%5,578Caldwell4,06664.04%2,24535.36%380.60%1,82128.68%6,349Calloway9,29361.36%5,72837.82%1240.81%3,56523.54%15,145Campbell25,54063.57%14,25335.48%3820.96%11,28728.09%40,175Carlisle1,73460.95%1,10238.73%90.32%63222.22%2,845Carroll2,17555.81%1,68843.32%340.87%48712.49%3,897Carter5,42248.77%5,57750.17%1181.06%-155-1.40%11,117Casey5,10980.83%1,17418.57%380.60%3,93562.26%6,321Christian13,93566.31%6,97033.17%1100.52%6,96533.14%21,015Clark9,54062.28%5,66136.96%1160.76%3,87925.32%15,317Clay5,72674.49%1,90124.73%600.77%3,82549.76%7,687Clinton3,36977.41%95221.88%310.72%2,41755.53%4,352Crittenden2,72665.06%1,43834.32%260.62%1,28830.74%4,190Cumberland2,35672.74%84826.18%351.09%1,50846.56%3,239Daviess25,37261.16%15,78838.06%3230.78%9,58423.10%41,483Edmonson3,59565.59%1,85633.86%300.55%1,73931.73%5,481Elliott87129.46%2,06469.80%220.75%-1,193-40.34%2,957Estill3,63365.17%1,90734.21%350.63%1,72630.96%5,575Fayette66,40652.88%57,99446.18%1,1760.94%8,4126.70%125,576Fleming3,74960.44%2,40638.79%480.78%1,34321.65%6,203Floyd6,61236.97%11,13262.24%1410.79%-4,520-25.27%17,885Franklin12,28150.89%11,62048.15%2320.96%6612.74%24,133Fulton1,52752.84%1,34046.37%230.80%1876.47%2,890Gallatin1,86960.82%1,18838.66%160.52%68122.16%3,073Garrard4,78471.85%1,84127.65%330.50%2,94344.20%6,658Grant5,95167.44%2,81831.94%550.62%3,13335.50%8,824Graves9,90361.02%6,20638.24%1200.74%3,69722.78%16,229Grayson7,17070.69%2,90528.64%680.67%4,26542.05%10,143Green3,86674.26%1,31225.20%280.54%2,55449.06%5,206Greenup8,69652.91%7,63046.43%1090.67%1,0666.48%16,435Hancock2,28656.74%1,70942.42%340.84%57714.32%4,029Hardin24,62767.58%11,50731.58%3070.84%13,12036.00%36,441Harlan6,65960.15%4,33239.13%790.71%2,32721.02%11,070Harrison4,85562.80%2,80736.31%690.89%2,04826.49%7,731Hart4,26962.93%2,47036.41%450.67%1,79926.52%6,784Henderson10,46755.97%8,10143.32%1330.72%2,36612.65%18,701Henry4,09462.99%2,36636.41%390.60%1,72826.58%6,499Hickman1,39559.56%92639.54%210.90%46920.02%2,342Hopkins12,31465.35%6,42034.07%1090.58%5,89431.28%18,843Jackson4,36984.38%76914.85%400.78%3,60069.53%5,178Jefferson164,56648.75%170,15850.41%2,8450.84%-5,592-1.66%337,569Jessamine12,97269.82%5,47629.47%1320.71%7,49640.35%18,580Johnson5,94063.84%3,28835.34%760.81%2,65228.50%9,304Kenton43,66465.05%22,83434.02%6250.93%20,83031.03%67,123Knott2,64835.81%4,68563.36%610.83%-2,037-27.55%7,394Knox8,10867.41%3,82231.78%980.82%4,28635.63%12,028LaRue4,11168.88%1,82330.55%340.57%2,28838.33%5,968Laurel16,81975.54%5,29723.79%1480.66%11,52251.75%22,264Lawrence3,75557.65%2,70541.53%530.81%1,05016.12%6,513Lee2,01869.11%87830.07%240.82%1,14039.04%2,920Leslie3,66173.75%1,26625.50%370.74%2,39548.25%4,964Letcher4,80152.96%4,19246.24%720.79%6096.72%9,065Lewis3,77868.89%1,66730.40%390.71%2,11138.49%5,484Lincoln5,99667.65%2,79631.55%710.80%3,20036.10%8,863Livingston2,67556.84%2,00742.65%240.51%66814.19%4,706Logan6,81564.03%3,76835.40%610.57%3,04728.63%10,644Lyon2,13254.32%1,76945.07%240.61%3639.25%3,925McCracken18,21861.14%11,36138.13%2180.73%6,85723.01%29,797McCreary4,12172.39%1,53026.88%420.74%2,59145.51%5,693McLean2,58458.26%1,82341.10%280.64%76117.16%4,435Madison18,92261.62%11,52537.53%2600.85%7,39724.09%30,707Magoffin2,83649.60%2,84349.72%390.68%-7-0.12%5,718Marion3,90553.10%3,39946.22%500.68%5066.88%7,354Marshall9,04958.30%6,38341.12%890.58%2,66617.18%15,521Martin2,99666.01%1,50433.14%390.86%1,49232.87%4,539Mason4,38161.89%2,64437.35%540.76%1,73724.54%7,079Meade7,15265.31%3,72434.01%750.69%3,42831.30%10,951Menifee1,21548.06%1,28450.79%291.15%-69-2.73%2,528Mercer6,74567.26%3,22432.15%590.59%3,52135.11%10,028Metcalfe2,64563.63%1,47235.41%400.96%1,17328.22%4,157Monroe4,65779.70%1,15819.82%280.48%3,49959.88%5,843Montgomery5,64755.20%4,50644.05%770.76%1,14111.15%10,230Morgan2,68250.87%2,53248.03%581.10%1502.84%5,272Muhlenberg6,74950.07%6,63649.23%940.70%1130.84%13,479Nelson10,16160.32%6,52438.73%1590.94%3,63721.59%16,844Nicholas1,70055.57%1,33243.54%270.88%36812.03%3,059Ohio6,31162.93%3,62736.17%800.80%2,68426.76%10,028Oldham18,80169.29%8,08029.78%2510.93%10,72139.51%27,132Owen3,08465.05%1,61534.06%420.89%1,46930.99%4,741Owsley1,55877.94%43021.51%110.55%1,12856.43%1,999Pendleton4,04567.14%1,94032.20%400.67%2,10534.94%6,025Perry6,18753.08%5,40046.33%680.58%7876.75%11,655Pike12,61147.11%14,00252.30%1570.59%-1,391-5.21%26,770Powell2,68754.17%2,24945.34%240.48%4388.83%4,960Pulaski19,53576.56%5,82922.84%1520.60%13,70653.72%25,516Robertson67061.47%41337.89%70.64%25723.58%1,090Rockcastle4,80477.91%1,32021.41%420.68%3,48456.50%6,166Rowan4,06346.67%4,55652.33%871.00%-493-5.66%8,706Russell6,00976.83%1,77222.66%400.51%4,23754.17%7,821Scott10,60062.17%6,32537.10%1250.73%4,27525.07%17,050Shelby10,90966.87%5,27732.35%1270.78%5,63234.52%16,313Simpson4,27360.67%2,73038.76%400.57%1,54321.91%7,043Spencer4,81670.60%1,97028.88%360.53%2,84641.72%6,822Taylor7,24770.39%2,97928.94%690.67%4,26841.45%10,295Todd3,24268.20%1,49131.36%210.44%1,75136.84%4,754Trigg4,02365.83%2,04633.48%420.69%1,97732.35%6,111Trimble2,33261.53%1,42837.68%300.79%90423.85%3,790Union3,53459.13%2,39840.12%450.75%1,13619.01%5,977Warren25,10063.21%14,32636.08%2850.72%10,77427.13%39,711Washington3,47966.44%1,72432.93%330.63%1,75533.51%5,236Wayne5,02765.41%2,61634.04%420.54%2,41131.37%7,685Webster3,20757.82%2,30441.54%360.65%90316.28%5,547Whitley9,55970.14%3,98529.24%850.62%5,57440.90%13,629Wolfe1,38543.90%1,74455.28%260.82%-359-11.38%3,155Woodford6,93760.31%4,48038.95%850.74%2,45721.36%11,502Totals1,069,43959.54%712,73339.68%13,9070.77%356,70619.86%1,796,079 right 300px Swing by county Legend #00a1c8 Democratic — +>15% #09ceff Democratic — +10-12.5% #4bdbff Democratic — +7.5-10% #77e3ff Democratic — +5-7.5% #aaeeff Democratic — +2.5-5% #d5f6ff Democratic — +0-2.5% #ffd5d5 Republican — +0-2.5% #ffaaaa Republican — +2.5-5% #ff8080 Republican — +5-7.5% #ff5555 Republican — +7.5-10% #ff2a2a Republican — +10-12.5% #ff0000 Republican — +12.5-15% #d40000 Republican — +>15% 300px Trend by county Legend #00a1c8 Democratic — +>15% #00bdec Democratic — +12.5-15% #09ceff Democratic — +10-12.5% #4bdbff Democratic — +7.5-10% #77e3ff Democratic — +5-7.5% #aaeeff Democratic — +2.5-5% #d5f6ff Democratic — +0-2.5% #ffd5d5 Republican — +0-2.5% #ffaaaa Republican — +2.5-5% #ff8080 Republican — +5-7.5% #ff5555 Republican — +7.5-10% #ff2a2a Republican — +10-12.5% #d40000 Republican — +>15% 300px County flips Legend Democratic #92c5de Hold #0671b0 Flip Republican #f48882 Hold #ca0120 Flip Counties that flipped from Democratic to Republican 22em Ballard (largest city: LaCenter) Boyd (largest city: Ashland) Franklin (largest city: Frankfort) Fulton (largest city: Fulton) Harlan (largest city: Cumberland) Henderson (largest city: Henderson) Letcher (largest city: Jenkins) Muhlenberg (largest city: Central City) Perry (largest city: Hazard) Counties that flipped from Republican to Democratic Bath (largest city: Owingsville) Carter (largest city: Grayson) Magoffin (largest city: Salyersville) Menifee (largest city: Frenchburg) Rowan (largest city: Morehead) Wolfe (largest city: Campton) By congressional district Bush won five of six congressional districts. Both candidates won a district held by the other party. District Bush Kerry RepresentativeKentucky 1 1st 63% 36%Ed WhitfieldKentucky 2 2nd 65% 34%Ron LewisKentucky 3 3rd 49% 51%Anne NorthupKentucky 4 4th 63% 36%Geoff DavisKentucky 5 5th 61% 39%Hal RogersKentucky 6 6th 58% 41%Ben Chandler Electors List of 2004 United States presidential electors Technically the voters of Kentucky cast their ballots for electors: representatives to the Electoral College. Kentucky is allocated eight electors because it has six congressional districts and two senators. All candidates who appear on the ballot or qualify to receive write-in votes must submit a list of eight 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 eight 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 eight were pledged to Bush/Cheney: Rachel N. McCubbin Keith A. Hall Carolyn Cole Martha G. Prewitt Donald E. Girdler Constance M. Gray Frank Schwendeman Carla T. Bartleman References Kentucky 2004 Presidential