Lake, California — Presidential Election Results

Lake, California has voted Democratic in 6 of the last 7 presidential elections on record (2000–2024). It most recently flipped to Republican in 2024. In 2024, it was 22.2 pts more Rep. than California overall.

Jump to year: 2000 · 2004 · 2008 · 2012 · 2016 · 2020 · 2024

Full Election History, 2000–2024

Year Winner Party Votes Vote Share Margin Total Votes Cast Swing Vs. California
2000 Al Gore Democratic 10,717 51.2% 9.6 pts (2,018 votes) 20,919 — 2.0 pts more Rep.
2004 John Kerry Democratic 9,679 53.3% 8.2 pts (1,494 votes) 18,166 -2.0 pts 1.7 pts more Rep.
2008 Barack Obama Democratic 14,854 58.2% 19.3 pts (4,919 votes) 25,542 +11.5 pts 4.7 pts more Rep.
2012 Barack Obama Democratic 13,163 56.3% 16.9 pts (3,963 votes) 23,391 -2.1 pts 6.0 pts more Rep.
2016 Hillary Clinton Democratic 11,496 46.9% 3.7 pts (897 votes) 24,496 -13.7 pts 28.2 pts more Rep.
2020 Joseph R Biden Jr Democratic 14,941 51.9% 6.3 pts (1,818 votes) 28,812 +2.4 pts 23.3 pts more Rep.
2024 Donald J Trump Republican 13,161 49.2% 1.4 pts (367 votes) 26,759 -7.9 pts 22.2 pts more Rep.

Population Context

Total Census Bureau population estimate for the county that year, and recorded votes as a share of that total population. This is a population-based figure, not a turnout rate against eligible or registered voters, which this site does not calculate.

Year County Population Votes Cast (% of Population)
2000 58,538 35.7% of population
2004 63,116 28.8% of population
2008 64,392 39.7% of population
2012 63,954 36.6% of population
2016 63,903 38.3% of population
2020 68,200 42.2% of population
2024 67,764 39.5% of population

Trend

Between 2000 and 2024, the two-party presidential margin in Lake shifted 11.8 points toward the Republican candidate, based on recorded county returns. This reflects the vote totals in this dataset only; no claim is made here about the causes of that shift.

Margin Over Time

Democratic candidate's margin (percentage points, two-party vote share). Positive values favor the Democratic candidate; negative values favor the Republican candidate.

2000: D+10.4 pts 2004: D+8.4 pts 2008: D+19.8 pts 2012: D+17.7 pts 2016: D+4.1 pts 2020: D+6.5 pts 2024: R+1.4 pts 2000 2004 2008 2012 2016 2020 2024

Bellwether Status

Lake has matched the national popular winner in 4 of the last 7 presidential elections (57%), and California's own statewide winner in 6 of 7 (86%). Compare every county on the bellwether counties page.

Related Pages

Other California Counties

Frequently Asked Questions

How has Lake voted in presidential elections since 2000?

Since 2000, Lake has voted Democratic in 6 of 7 recorded presidential elections and Republican in 1 of 7, based on county-level returns through 2024.

What was the closest presidential election in Lake?

Lake's closest recorded margin was in 2024, when Donald J Trump (Republican) won by 1.4 points (367 votes) out of 26,759 total votes cast.

Has Lake ever flipped between parties?

Yes. Lake changed which party won the county in: 2024, based on the 2000-2024 record on this page.

What is the largest presidential election margin recorded in Lake?

The widest margin on record for Lake was in 2008, when Barack Obama (Democratic) won by 19.8 points.

How many votes were cast in Lake relative to its population?

In 2024, 26,759 votes were recorded in Lake against a total population of 67,764 (39.5% of the total population). This is a population-based figure, not a turnout rate against eligible or registered voters, which this site does not calculate.

Is Lake a presidential bellwether county?

Lake has matched the national popular winner in 4 of the last 7 presidential elections (57%), and California's own statewide winner in 6 of 7 (86%).