Research Guides: Election Data Resources: Go-to Resources for Election Data

Roper Center

Polling question results from the US since 1935 from all of the major polling organizations.

Roper iPoll This link opens in a new window

Elections and Presidents | Roper Center

ICPSR

Social science macro dataset repository.

ICPSR -Inter-University Consortium for Political and Social Research This link opens in a new window

Create Account | ICPSR

Election Datasets in ICPSR

American National Election Studies
The ANES series is one of the premier sources for data on voting behavior and political attitudes in the post-WWII United States.
United States Historical Election Returns Series
ICPSR's holdings of historical election data cover the years 1788-1990 and consist of several discrete datasets that contain county- and state-level returns for all elections to the offices of president, governor, United States senator, and United States representative.
Comparative Study of Electoral Systems (CSES) Series
Comparative Study of Electoral Systems (CSES) is an ongoing collaborative program of crossnational research among national election studies designed to advance the understanding of electoral behavior across polities.
Primaries, Conventions, and Campaigns Datasets
Election Studies Series
Election Returns

CQ Press

Produces a number of publications reporting primarily federal government.

CQ Press | SAGE Knowledge
Collection of academic publications and series from Congressional Quarterly.
Vital Statistics of the Presidency
Statistical compilation of data on the presidency. All the tables are available in spreadsheet format. Topics include Presidential selection, elections, public appearances, public opinion, presidential organization and the Executive Branch, Presidents in war and diplomacy, Presidential policymaking, Congressional relations, and the Presidency and the Judiciary.
Vital Statistics on American Politics
Statistics on elections and political parties, public opinion and voting, the media, the three branches of U.S. government, foreign, military, social and economic policy, and much more.
America Votes Election Returns by State
Thorough, extensive in scope, and meticulously researched, America Votes includes official, state-certified election returns and key data by county and by district for the House, Senate, and gubernatorial elections. Link goes to 2017-2018 edition. See Read next section for additional volumes.
Date Range | 2011 - present
Guide to U.S. Elections | 2016
Thoroughly revised and infused with new data, analysis, and discussion of issues relating to elections through 2015, the Guide will include chapters on: Analysis of the campaigns for presidency, from the primaries through the general election Data on the candidates, winners/losers, and election returns Details on congressional and gubernatorial contests from the primaries through the general elections supplemented with vast historical data.
Date Range | 1776 - 2015
Voter Turnout in the United States
Voter turnout statistics for general and primary elections for presidential, congressional, and state gubernatorial races.
Date Range | 1788 - 2009
The African American Electorate: A Statistical History
Electoral history of African American voters from the Colonial era to the present. Includes both essays analyzing data collections and historical context as well as numerous tables on African American voting, registration, turnout, and other measures both nationally and in various states.

Social Explorer

Visualize United States election results historically from 1912 to today. Presidential, senatorial, congressional and gubernatorial election data comes from Dave Leip's Atlas of U.S. Presidential Elections and is available for map presentation only.

Social Explorer | U.S. Election Data
Visualize United States election results historically from 1912 to today. Presidential, senatorial, congressional and gubernatorial election data comes from Dave Leip's Atlas of U.S. Presidential Elections and is available for map presentation only.

Statistical Abstract of the US

Data and statistics generated by United States research from departments and agencies.

Statistical Abstract of the United States This link opens in a new window
Historical Statistical Abstract of the United States This link opens in a new window

Election Datasets

United States Resources

Election data resources gathered and disseminated by the United States government.

U.S. Census Bureau | Voting and Registration
Election data from the Current Population Survey.
Date Range | 1960 - present
Office of the Clerk | Election Information
Election data from 1920 to the present. All statistics are in pdf.
Federal Election Commission | Campaign Finance Data
Data on candidates and committees fund raising and spending in federal elections.
National Archives | Electoral College Results
Electoral votes by state.
Date Range | 1892 - present
U.S. Election Assistance Commission
The EAC studies election administration issues. EAC datasets for selected reports are available for download

Additional Resources

MIT Election Lab
Election return data
Date Range | 1976 - 2016
Dave Leip's Atlas of U.S. Elections
Popular site of U.S. election data that provides tables, graphs, and maps for presidential (1789-present), senatorial (1990+), and gubernatorial (1990+) elections.
OpenElections
Election returns by state and precinct.
Date Range | 2000 - present
A New Nation Votes
Searchable collection of early American election returns, including elections for state House and Senate, governor, sheriffs, commissioners, city councils, mayors, and much more. Narrow by state, year, office, jurisdiction, party, and election type. Full datasets for each state can also be downloaded.
Date Range | 1787 - 1825

Election Data Resources

Journal of Democracy

Electoral Studies