California — 1960 presidential election
Recent presidential results
Akashicstate1960 presidential electionCalifornia · PresidentNixonR+0.5
How it voted
Share of the 1960 vote
| Richard Nixon ✓Republican | 50.1% | 3,259,722 |
|---|---|---|
| John F. KennedyDemocratic | 49.6% | 3,224,099 |
| OtherAll other candidates | 0.3% | 22,757 |
1960presidential margin
D+60R+60
58 counties, each filled by 1960 D-vs-R margin. Hover any county for its result.
California cast 32 electoral votes this cycle.
County-level results (58 counties) — table
| County | Winner | Margin |
|---|---|---|
| Alameda County, CA | Democratic | D+8.4 |
| Alpine County, CA | Republican | R+53.5 |
| Amador County, CA | Democratic | D+10.5 |
| Butte County, CA | Republican | R+15.7 |
| Calaveras County, CA | Republican | R+5.8 |
| Colusa County, CA | Republican | R+3.1 |
| Contra Costa County, CA | Democratic | D+6.0 |
| Del Norte County, CA | Democratic | D+3.2 |
| El Dorado County, CA | Democratic | D+0.9 |
| Fresno County, CA | Democratic | D+10.9 |
| Glenn County, CA | Republican | R+6.8 |
| Humboldt County, CA | Democratic | D+6.0 |
| Imperial County, CA | Republican | R+7.5 |
| Inyo County, CA | Republican | R+9.6 |
| Kern County, CA | Republican | R+1.3 |
| Kings County, CA | Democratic | D+14.8 |
| Lake County, CA | Republican | R+18.0 |
| Lassen County, CA | Democratic | D+18.8 |
| Los Angeles County, CA | Democratic | D+0.8 |
| Madera County, CA | Democratic | D+16.1 |
| Marin County, CA | Republican | R+14.8 |
| Mariposa County, CA | Republican | R+8.8 |
| Mendocino County, CA | Democratic | D+0.9 |
| Merced County, CA | Democratic | D+12.9 |
| Modoc County, CA | Republican | R+4.2 |
| Mono County, CA | Republican | R+33.1 |
| Monterey County, CA | Republican | R+12.8 |
| Napa County, CA | Republican | R+5.7 |
| Nevada County, CA | Republican | R+7.8 |
| Orange County, CA | Republican | R+21.9 |
| Placer County, CA | Democratic | D+12.0 |
| Plumas County, CA | Democratic | D+24.5 |
| Riverside County, CA | Republican | R+12.8 |
| Sacramento County, CA | Democratic | D+13.1 |
| San Benito County, CA | Republican | R+3.0 |
| San Bernardino County, CA | Republican | R+4.5 |
| San Diego County, CA | Republican | R+13.1 |
| San Francisco County, CA | Democratic | D+16.0 |
| San Joaquin County, CA | Republican | R+6.1 |
| San Luis Obispo County, CA | Republican | R+8.7 |
| San Mateo County, CA | Republican | R+3.7 |
| Santa Barbara County, CA | Republican | R+13.7 |
| Santa Clara County, CA | Republican | R+5.6 |
| Santa Cruz County, CA | Republican | R+19.7 |
| Shasta County, CA | Democratic | D+21.5 |
| Sierra County, CA | Democratic | D+5.8 |
| Siskiyou County, CA | Democratic | D+13.4 |
| Solano County, CA | Democratic | D+17.9 |
| Sonoma County, CA | Republican | R+8.6 |
| Stanislaus County, CA | Democratic | D+0.1 |
| Sutter County, CA | Republican | R+26.3 |
| Tehama County, CA | Republican | R+0.4 |
| Trinity County, CA | Democratic | D+22.8 |
| Tulare County, CA | Republican | R+8.4 |
| Tuolumne County, CA | Democratic | D+1.2 |
| Ventura County, CA | Democratic | D+0.4 |
| Yolo County, CA | Democratic | D+10.1 |
| Yuba County, CA | Republican | R+4.0 |
California results by county
58 counties. Third-party and independent votes are reported by the county source as one combined figure; every named candidate is listed in the complete result below.
| Led by | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Alameda County | John F. Kennedy+33,818 | 183,35445.6% | 217,17254.0% | 1,4740.4% | 402,000 |
| Alpine County | Richard Nixon+92 | 13276.7% | 4023.3% | 00.0% | 172 |
| Amador County | John F. Kennedy+515 | 2,17544.5% | 2,69055.0% | 220.5% | 4,887 |
| Butte County | Richard Nixon+5,675 | 20,83857.6% | 15,16341.9% | 1740.5% | 36,175 |
| Calaveras County | Richard Nixon+311 | 2,82052.6% | 2,50946.8% | 320.6% | 5,361 |
| Colusa County | Richard Nixon+149 | 2,49751.4% | 2,34848.3% | 160.3% | 4,861 |
| Contra Costa County | John F. Kennedy+10,700 | 82,92246.8% | 93,62252.9% | 5790.3% | 177,123 |
| Del Norte County | John F. Kennedy+201 | 3,02448.0% | 3,22551.2% | 450.7% | 6,294 |
| El Dorado County | John F. Kennedy+110 | 6,06549.2% | 6,17550.1% | 970.8% | 12,337 |
| Fresno County | John F. Kennedy+14,234 | 57,93044.3% | 72,16455.2% | 6080.5% | 130,702 |
| Glenn County | Richard Nixon+501 | 3,91153.2% | 3,41046.4% | 350.5% | 7,356 |
| Humboldt County | John F. Kennedy+2,317 | 18,07446.7% | 20,39152.7% | 2260.6% | 38,691 |
| Imperial County | Richard Nixon+1,487 | 10,60653.5% | 9,11946.0% | 810.4% | 19,806 |
| Inyo County | Richard Nixon+519 | 2,96254.6% | 2,44345.1% | 150.3% | 5,420 |
| Kern County | Richard Nixon+1,360 | 52,80050.4% | 51,44049.1% | 4650.4% | 104,705 |
| Kings County | John F. Kennedy+2,448 | 6,99142.3% | 9,43957.1% | 920.6% | 16,522 |
| Lake County | Richard Nixon+1,279 | 4,17658.7% | 2,89740.8% | 360.5% | 7,109 |
| Lassen County | John F. Kennedy+1,107 | 2,36540.2% | 3,47259.1% | 400.7% | 5,877 |
| Los Angeles County | John F. Kennedy+21,157 | 1,302,66149.4% | 1,323,81850.2% | 8,0200.3% | 2,634,499 |
| Madera County | John F. Kennedy+2,257 | 5,86941.8% | 8,12657.8% | 620.4% | 14,057 |
| Marin County | Richard Nixon+9,732 | 37,62057.3% | 27,88842.5% | 1570.2% | 65,665 |
| Mariposa County | Richard Nixon+261 | 1,59954.0% | 1,33845.2% | 260.9% | 2,963 |
| Mendocino County | John F. Kennedy+175 | 9,30149.3% | 9,47650.2% | 940.5% | 18,871 |
| Merced County | John F. Kennedy+3,555 | 11,99043.4% | 15,54556.2% | 1110.4% | 27,646 |
| Modoc County | Richard Nixon+148 | 1,83951.8% | 1,69147.6% | 200.6% | 3,550 |
| Mono County | Richard Nixon+455 | 91266.3% | 45733.2% | 60.4% | 1,375 |
| Monterey County | Richard Nixon+7,623 | 33,42856.3% | 25,80543.4% | 1800.3% | 59,413 |
| Napa County | Richard Nixon+1,626 | 15,12552.6% | 13,49946.9% | 1540.5% | 28,778 |
| Nevada County | Richard Nixon+786 | 5,41953.4% | 4,63345.7% | 890.9% | 10,141 |
| Orange County | Richard Nixon+62,884 | 174,89160.8% | 112,00738.9% | 7010.2% | 287,599 |
| Placer County | John F. Kennedy+2,865 | 10,43943.7% | 13,30455.8% | 1200.5% | 23,863 |
| Plumas County | John F. Kennedy+1,318 | 2,01537.5% | 3,33362.0% | 300.6% | 5,378 |
| Riverside County | Richard Nixon+14,978 | 65,85556.2% | 50,87743.4% | 5440.5% | 117,276 |
| Sacramento County | John F. Kennedy+25,443 | 84,25243.3% | 109,69556.3% | 8090.4% | 194,756 |
| San Benito County | Richard Nixon+180 | 3,05651.4% | 2,87648.4% | 130.2% | 5,945 |
| San Bernardino County | Richard Nixon+8,593 | 99,48152.0% | 90,88847.5% | 9440.5% | 191,313 |
| San Diego County | Richard Nixon+51,797 | 223,05656.4% | 171,25943.3% | 1,1060.3% | 395,421 |
| San Francisco County | John F. Kennedy+54,733 | 143,00141.8% | 197,73457.8% | 1,4840.4% | 342,219 |
| San Joaquin County | Richard Nixon+5,586 | 48,44152.9% | 42,85546.8% | 3610.4% | 91,657 |
| San Luis Obispo County | Richard Nixon+2,887 | 17,86254.0% | 14,97545.3% | 2180.7% | 33,055 |
| San Mateo County | Richard Nixon+7,416 | 104,57051.7% | 97,15448.0% | 5280.3% | 202,252 |
| Santa Barbara County | Richard Nixon+9,396 | 38,80556.7% | 29,40943.0% | 1880.3% | 68,402 |
| Santa Clara County | Richard Nixon+14,068 | 131,73552.7% | 117,66747.0% | 6900.3% | 250,092 |
| Santa Cruz County | Richard Nixon+8,199 | 24,85859.6% | 16,65939.9% | 1870.4% | 41,704 |
| Shasta County | John F. Kennedy+5,229 | 9,46238.9% | 14,69160.5% | 1480.6% | 24,301 |
| Sierra County | John F. Kennedy+71 | 57646.8% | 64752.6% | 80.6% | 1,231 |
| Siskiyou County | John F. Kennedy+1,966 | 6,27942.9% | 8,24556.4% | 960.7% | 14,620 |
| Solano County | John F. Kennedy+8,226 | 18,75140.9% | 26,97758.8% | 1410.3% | 45,869 |
| Sonoma County | Richard Nixon+5,494 | 34,64154.1% | 29,14745.5% | 2440.4% | 64,032 |
| Stanislaus County | John F. Kennedy+89 | 30,21349.6% | 30,30249.8% | 3750.6% | 60,890 |
| Sutter County | Richard Nixon+3,141 | 7,52062.9% | 4,37936.6% | 550.5% | 11,954 |
| Tehama County | Richard Nixon+39 | 5,52250.0% | 5,48349.6% | 470.4% | 11,052 |
| Trinity County | John F. Kennedy+844 | 1,41838.3% | 2,26261.2% | 180.5% | 3,698 |
| Tulare County | Richard Nixon+4,569 | 29,45654.0% | 24,88745.6% | 2390.4% | 54,582 |
| Tuolumne County | John F. Kennedy+90 | 3,69149.1% | 3,78150.3% | 440.6% | 7,516 |
| Ventura County | John F. Kennedy+260 | 35,07449.6% | 35,33450.0% | 3150.4% | 70,723 |
| Yolo County | John F. Kennedy+2,291 | 10,10444.7% | 12,39554.9% | 900.4% | 22,589 |
| Yuba County | Richard Nixon+411 | 5,29351.7% | 4,88247.7% | 580.6% | 10,233 |
Nominees: John F. Kennedy (D) · Richard Nixon (R) · Unpledged Democratic electors (Harry F. Byrd) (Unpledged)
California's presidential margins
1892–2024, the 1960 contest in context
| Year | Margin (D minus R) |
|---|---|
| 1892 | +1.2% |
| 1896 | −0.6% |
| 1900 | −13.1% |
| 1904 | −34.9% |
| 1908 | −22.5% |
| 1912 | +41.8% |
| 1916 | +0.4% |
| 1920 | −41.9% |
| 1924 | −49.0% |
| 1928 | −30.5% |
| 1932 | +21.0% |
| 1936 | +35.3% |
| 1940 | +16.1% |
| 1944 | +13.5% |
| 1948 | +0.4% |
| 1952 | −13.6% |
| 1956 | −11.1% |
| 1960 | −0.5% |
| 1964 | +18.3% |
| 1968 | −3.1% |
| 1972 | −13.5% |
| 1976 | −1.8% |
| 1980 | −16.8% |
| 1984 | −16.2% |
| 1988 | −3.6% |
| 1992 | +13.4% |
| 1996 | +12.9% |
| 2000 | +11.8% |
| 2004 | +9.9% |
| 2008 | +24.0% |
| 2012 | +23.1% |
| 2016 | +30.0% |
| 2020 | +29.1% |
| 2024 | +20.1% |
Source. Compiled historical county records — 1960 presidential returns · official county-level results. Real returns — nothing estimated.