 |
|---|
| Year | Republican / Whig | Democratic | Third party(ies) | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| No. | % | No. | % | No. | % | |
| 2024 | 6,110,125 | 55.87% | 4,683,038 | 42.82% | 142,302 | 1.30% |
| 2020 | 5,668,731 | 51.11% | 5,297,045 | 47.76% | 125,982 | 1.14% |
| 2016 | 4,617,886 | 48.60% | 4,504,975 | 47.41% | 379,886 | 4.00% |
| 2012 | 4,163,447 | 49.03% | 4,237,756 | 49.90% | 90,972 | 1.07% |
| 2008 | 4,046,219 | 48.10% | 4,282,367 | 50.91% | 83,662 | 0.99% |
| 2004 | 3,964,522 | 52.10% | 3,583,544 | 47.09% | 61,744 | 0.81% |
| 2000 | 2,912,790 | 48.85% | 2,912,253 | 48.84% | 138,067 | 2.32% |
| 1996 | 2,244,536 | 42.32% | 2,546,870 | 48.02% | 512,388 | 9.66% |
| 1992 | 2,173,310 | 40.89% | 2,072,698 | 39.00% | 1,068,384 | 20.10% |
| 1988 | 2,618,885 | 60.87% | 1,656,701 | 38.51% | 26,727 | 0.62% |
| 1984 | 2,730,350 | 65.32% | 1,448,816 | 34.66% | 885 | 0.02% |
| 1980 | 2,046,951 | 55.52% | 1,419,475 | 38.50% | 220,600 | 5.98% |
| 1976 | 1,469,531 | 46.64% | 1,636,000 | 51.93% | 45,100 | 1.43% |
| 1972 | 1,857,759 | 71.91% | 718,117 | 27.80% | 7,407 | 0.29% |
| 1968 | 886,804 | 40.53% | 676,794 | 30.93% | 624,207 | 28.53% |
| 1964 | 905,941 | 48.85% | 948,540 | 51.15% | 0 | 0.00% |
| 1960 | 795,476 | 51.51% | 748,700 | 48.49% | 0 | 0.00% |
| 1956 | 643,849 | 57.27% | 480,371 | 42.73% | 0 | 0.00% |
| 1952 | 544,036 | 54.99% | 444,950 | 44.97% | 351 | 0.04% |
| 1948 | 194,280 | 33.63% | 281,988 | 48.82% | 101,375 | 17.55% |
| 1944 | 143,215 | 29.68% | 339,377 | 70.32% | 0 | 0.00% |
| 1940 | 126,158 | 25.99% | 359,334 | 74.01% | 0 | 0.00% |
| 1936 | 78,248 | 23.90% | 249,117 | 76.08% | 67 | 0.02% |
| 1932 | 69,170 | 25.04% | 206,307 | 74.68% | 775 | 0.28% |
| 1928 | 144,168 | 56.83% | 101,764 | 40.12% | 7,742 | 3.05% |
| 1924 | 30,633 | 28.06% | 62,083 | 56.88% | 16,438 | 15.06% |
| 1920 | 44,853 | 30.79% | 90,515 | 62.13% | 10,313 | 7.08% |
| 1916 | 14,611 | 18.10% | 55,984 | 69.34% | 10,139 | 12.56% |
| 1912 | 4,279 | 8.42% | 35,343 | 69.52% | 11,215 | 22.06% |
| 1908 | 10,654 | 21.58% | 31,104 | 63.01% | 7,602 | 15.40% |
| 1904 | 8,314 | 21.15% | 27,046 | 68.80% | 3,949 | 10.05% |
| 1900 | 7,355 | 18.55% | 28,273 | 71.31% | 4,021 | 10.14% |
| 1896 | 11,298 | 24.30% | 32,756 | 70.46% | 2,434 | 5.24% |
| 1892 | 0 | 0.00% | 30,153 | 85.01% | 5,318 | 14.99% |
| 1888 | 26,529 | 39.89% | 39,557 | 59.48% | 414 | 0.62% |
| 1884 | 28,031 | 46.73% | 31,769 | 52.96% | 190 | 0.32% |
| 1880 | 23,654 | 45.83% | 27,964 | 54.17% | 0 | 0.00% |
| 1876 | 23,849 | 50.99% | 22,927 | 49.01% | 0 | 0.00% |
| 1872 | 17,763 | 53.52% | 15,427 | 46.48% | 0 | 0.00% |
| 1860 | 0 | 0.00% | 223 | 1.68% | 13,078 | 98.32% |
| 1856 | 0 | 0.00% | 6,358 | 56.81% | 4,833 | 43.19% |
| 1852 | 2,875 | 39.97% | 4,318 | 60.03% | 0 | 0.00% |
| 1848 | 4,120 | 57.20% | 3,083 | 42.80% | 0 | 0.00% |
Politics of Florida reflect a state that has experienced conflict between its liberal southern region and its traditionally conservative northern region. Politics often revolve around budgeting and how money for budgets should be raised.
Florida was originally part of the Solid South, as Democrats overwhelmingly won state and federal elections during the hundred years following the Civil War.[1] However, in 1937, the requirement to pay a poll tax was repealed by the state legislature, allowing poorer Floridians to vote. This coupled with industrialization, urbanization, and a growing tourist industry in the mid-20th century that attracted Northern retirees, contributed to the state becaming electorally competitive earlier than the rest of the South.[1] Since 1928, the state has only voted for the losing presidential candidate three times, all for losing Republicans in 1960, 1992, and 2020.[2] In 1966, Claude Kirk was elected the first Republican governor of Florida since Reconstruction.[3] This was followed in 1968, with Republicans winning a Senate seat in the state for the first time since Reconstruction.
The Florida Elections Commission was established in 1973. In 2005, Jeb Bush signed a bill to abolish primary runoff elections,[4] resulting in all primary and general elections being determined by plurality rather than majority.
The state is dominated by Republicans on the state level, as Democrats have not held the governorship or either house of the legislature since 1999. Republicans currently have veto-proof majorities in both houses of the Florida legislature.[5] However, the state has become increasingly red since the late 2010s, as in 2018, Republicans captured both Senate seats in the state for the first time since Reconstruction.[6] In 2020, Florida voted 7.8 points right of the nation as a whole, the furthest it has voted from the nation since 1988, and it was the first election since 1992 that Florida backed the losing candidate. In 2022, Republicans won their largest statewide victories since Reconstruction and neared 60% of the vote. In 2021, registered Republicans surpassed Democrats for the first time in state history.[7] Florida approved its lottery by amending the constitution in 1984. It approved slot machines in Broward and Miami-Dade County in 2004. It has disapproved casinos (outside of sovereign Seminole and Miccosukee tribal areas) three times: 1978, 1986, and 1994.[8]
- ^ a b Parsons, Malcolm B. (1962). "Quasi-Partisan Conflict in a One-Party Legislative System: The Florida Senate, 1947–1961". American Political Science Review. 56 (3): 605–614. doi:10.2307/1952493. ISSN 1537-5943.
- ^ "Florida Presidential Election Voting History - 270toWin".
- ^ Florida:Timeline Archived 2007-04-04 at the Wayback Machine
- ^ Runoff primary election is history now, Orlando Sentinel
- ^ "Republicans win big in Florida, flipping long Democratic Miami-Dade". 9 November 2022.
- ^ "Florida to have 2 Republican senators for the first time since the Reconstruction era". 10NEWS. November 18, 2018. Retrieved 2019-06-25.
- ^ "Voter Registration - By Party Affiliation - Division of Elections - Florida Department of State". dos.myflorida.com. Archived from the original on 2021-09-17. Retrieved 2022-02-14.
- ^ Haridopolos, Mike (March 11, 2014). "Legislature aims to rewrite gaming rules. 'Complex' issue affects billions of dollars in state revenue". Florida Today. Melbourne, Florida. pp. 1A. Archived from the original on April 2, 2015. Retrieved March 11, 2014.