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The 2000 United States presidential election in Connecticut took place on November 7, 2000, and was part of the 2000 United States presidential election. Voters chose eight representatives, or electors to the Electoral College, who voted for president and vice president.
Connecticut was won by Vice President Al Gore by a 17.5% margin of victory. Gore's vice presidential running mate, Joe Lieberman, had been a U.S. Senator from Connecticut since 1989. Connecticut had also been the birth state of Republican nominee George W. Bush, however as a presidential candidate Bush identified his home state as Texas, where he was governor, and he did not attempt to compete in Connecticut. Connecticut is considered a safe Democratic state, having not been won by a Republican presidential candidate since Bush's father George H. W. Bushin1988. Connecticut is also the birth state of Bush and major Green Party candidate Ralph Nader.
Bush became the first Republican to win the White House without Fairfield County since James A. Garfieldin1880, and the first since 1876 to win without Litchfield County. This was also the first election since 1976 when Connecticut failed to support the overall winner of the electoral college, and presidency. Bush became the first Republican to win without Connecticut since 1968.
As of 2023, this was the most recent presidential election in which the Democratic nominee carried the towns of Beacon Falls, Canterbury, Seymour, Sterling, and Wolcott, as well as the most recent presidential election in which the Republican nominee carried the towns of Essex, Lyme, Redding, Roxbury, and Simsbury. This is the most recent occasion where Connecticut voted more Democratic than Vermont and Maryland.
Connecticut was one of ten states that backed George H. W. Bush for President in 1988 that didn't backed George W. Bush in either 2000 or 2004.
| 2000 United States presidential election in Connecticut | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Party | Candidate | Votes | Percentage | Electoral votes | |
| Democratic | Al Gore | 816,015 | 55.91% | 8 | |
| Republican | George W. Bush | 561,094 | 38.44% | 0 | |
| Green | Ralph Nader | 64,452 | 4.42% | 0 | |
| Concerned Citizens | Howard Phillips | 9,695 | 0.66% | 0 | |
| Reform | Patrick Buchanan | 4,731 | 0.32% | 0 | |
| Libertarian | Harry Browne | 3,484 | 0.24% | 0 | |
| Natural Law | John Hagelin | 40 | 0.00% | 0 | |
| Independent | Write Ins | 14 | 0.00% | 0 | |
| Totals | 1,459,525 | 100.00% | 8 | ||
| Voter turnout (Voting age) | 57% | ||||
| County | Al Gore Democratic |
George W. Bush Republican |
Various candidates Other parties |
Margin | Total votes cast | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| # | % | # | % | # | % | # | % | ||
| Fairfield | 193,769 | 52.33% | 159,659 | 43.12% | 16,861 | 4.55% | 34,110 | 9.21% | 370,289 |
| Hartford | 221,167 | 60.17% | 127,468 | 34.68% | 18,921 | 5.15% | 93,699 | 25.49% | 367,556 |
| Litchfield | 41,806 | 47.87% | 39,172 | 44.85% | 6,360 | 7.28% | 2,634 | 3.02% | 87,338 |
| Middlesex | 43,319 | 55.94% | 29,295 | 37.83% | 4,819 | 6.22% | 14,024 | 18.11% | 77,433 |
| New Haven | 197,928 | 58.03% | 122,919 | 36.04% | 20,252 | 5.94% | 75,009 | 21.99% | 341,099 |
| New London | 60,449 | 55.38% | 41,168 | 37.72% | 7,530 | 6.90% | 19,281 | 17.66% | 109,147 |
| Tolland | 33,554 | 53.52% | 24,705 | 39.40% | 4,441 | 7.08% | 8,849 | 14.12% | 62,700 |
| Windham | 24,023 | 54.64% | 16,708 | 38.00% | 3,232 | 7.35% | 7,315 | 16.64% | 43,963 |
| Totals | 816,015 | 55.91% | 561,094 | 38.44% | 82,416 | 5.65% | 254,921 | 17.47% | 1,459,525 |
Gore won all 6 congressional districts, including three that elected Republicans.
| District | Bush | Gore | Representative |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1st | 32% | 62% | John Larson |
| 2nd | 38% | 56% | Sam Gejdenson |
| Rob Simmons | |||
| 3rd | 34% | 60% | Rosa DeLauro |
| 4th | 41% | 55% | Chris Shays |
| 5th | 44% | 51% | Jim Maloney |
| 6th | 42% | 52% | Nancy Johnson |
Technically the voters of Connecticut cast their ballots for electors: representatives to the Electoral College. Connecticut is allocated 8 electors because it has 6 congressional districts and 2 senators. All candidates who appear on the ballot or qualify to receive write-in votes must submit a list of 8 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 8 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 18, 2000[1] 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 Gore and Lieberman:[2]
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See also: Political party strength in Connecticut | |
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State and district results of the 2000 United States presidential election
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