FACT SHEET Voting in the General Election | November 10, 2020
75% OF SILICON VALLEY VOTES FOR BIDEN 23% of Silicon Valley voters supported Trump Eligible voter turnout similar to 2016 General Election
The 2020 election is over. Joseph R. Biden will in January be sworn in as the 46th president of the United States. How did Silicon Valley voters respond to the election during the pandemic? Preliminary results are compiled here, using a combination of county-level reporting and data from the Secretary of State.
The Institute’s analysis shows that even though there were large increases in the share of eligible voters who registered in Silicon Valley and statewide (up 11 and 10 percentage points, respectively), the eligible voter turnout was fairly similar to that of the 2016 General Election (60% in Santa Clara and San Mateo Counties compared to 62% in 2016, and 58% statewide compared to 59% in 2016).
Unsurprisingly, the majority of Silicon Valley voters supported Biden. Of the 1.01 million votes counted in Silicon Valley (including Santa Clara and San Mateo Counties), 75% were cast for Joe Biden; 23% were cast for Donald Trump.
Votes by Presidential Candidate
• Of the 1.01 million votes counted in Silicon Valley (including Santa Clara and San Mateo Counties) thus far, 75% were for Joe Biden; 23% were for Donald Trump. • The share of voters that cast ballots for Donald Trump was slightly higher in Silicon Valley (23%) compared to the Bay Area overall (21%), and much higher than in San Francisco (13%). Statewide, 33% of voters cast ballots for Trump. • Among Bay Area Counties, those with the highest share of Biden voters were San Francisco (85%), Marin (83%), Alameda (81%), and San Mateo (79%).
Comparing 2020 to the 2016 Presidential General Election
• In 2016, 74% of Silicon Valley (Santa Clara and San Mateo County) voters cast ballots for Hillary Clinton and 20% for Donald Trump, representing slightly lower shares than in 2020 for both the Democratic and Republican candidate. In 2016, a larger share of votes went to a third party candidate (6.4%, compared to only 0.8% in 2020). • In San Francisco, the share of voters who cast ballots for the Democratic candidate was the same in 2020 as in 2016 (85%). • While there were large increases in the share of eligible voters who registered in Silicon Valley and statewide (up 11 and 10 percentage points, respectively), the eligible voter turnout was fairly similar to that of the 2016 General Election (60% in Santa Clara and San Mateo Counties compared to 62% in 2016, and 58% statewide compared to 59% in 2016.
Absentee Voting
• As would be expected given the pandemic, absentee voting rates were much higher in this election than they were in 2016. • More than 90% of Silicon Valley voters cast their ballots absentee in the 2020 General Election; this compares to 93% in San Francisco and 83% statewide.
Data Sources: California Secretary of State, Elections Division; Individual County Elections Websites
Analysis: Silicon Valley Institute for Regional Studies
Note: Data are from the California Secretary of State Elections Division and individual Bay Area county websites (accessed November 9, 2020) and include unofficial results for the 2020 General Election. Silicon Valley includes Santa Clara and San Mateo Counties. The Bay Area includes the 9-County region. Other includes Howie Hawkins, Jo Jorgensen, Roque "Rocky" De La Fuente Guerra, Gloria La Riva, Brian Carroll, Jesse Ventura, Mark Charles, Joseph Kishore, Brock Pierce, or other write-ins. Eligible voter data were from the 15-day Report of Registration.
Silicon Valley Institute for Regional Studies The Silicon Valley Institute for Regional Studies provides research and analysis on a host of issues facing Silicon Valley’s economy and society. The Institute is housed within Joint Venture Silicon Valley.
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