Following is a table of United States presidential elections in Illinois, ordered by year. Since its admission to statehood in 1818, Illinois has participated in every U.S. presidential election.
From 1896 to 1996, Illinois was a bellwether state, voting for the winner of the presidential election 24 of 26 times, the exceptions being 1916 and 1976. Since 1992, Illinois has consistently backed Democratic candidates.
Winners of the state are in bold. The shading refers to the state winner, and not the national winner.
Elections from 1864 to present
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The election of 1860 was a complex realigning election in which the breakdown of the previous two-party alignment culminated in four parties each competing for influence in different parts of the country. The result of the election, with the victory of an ardent opponent of slavery, spurred the secession of eleven states and brought about the American Civil War.
The election of 1824 was a complex realigning election following the collapse of the prevailing Democratic-Republican Party, resulting in four different candidates each claiming to carry the banner of the party, and competing for influence in different parts of the country. The election was the only one in history to be decided by the House of Representatives under the provisions of the Twelfth Amendment to the United States Constitution after no candidate secured a majority of the electoral vote. It was also the only presidential election in which the candidate who received a plurality of electoral votes (Andrew Jackson) did not become president, a source of great bitterness for Jackson and his supporters, who proclaimed the election of Adams a corrupt bargain.
3 (Electoral College split, 2 for Jackson and 1 for Adams)
Election of 1820
In the election of 1820, incumbent President James Monroe ran effectively unopposed, winning all electoral votes (including the three electoral votes from Illinois) except one electoral vote in New Hampshire. The popular vote was primarily directed to filling the office of vice president.
^ abFor purposes of these lists, other national candidates are defined as those who won at least one electoral vote, or won at least ten percent of the vote in multiple states.
^Was allied with a slate of unpledged electors in Louisiana, Mississippi and South Carolina
^Three other candidates ran and received electoral votes nationally as part of the unsuccessful Whig strategy to defeat Martin Van Buren by running four candidates with local appeal in different regions of the country. The others were Hugh Lawson White, Daniel Webster, and Willie Person Mangum. None of these candidates appeared on the ballot in Illinois.
