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Number of Texas presidential primaries decided by less than 10 percentage points:

• 2008 – Hillary Clinton 50.88%, Barack Obama 47.39% (3.49%)
• 1980 – Ronald Reagan 51.03%, George H.W. Bush 47.42% (3.61%)
• 1988 – Michael Dukakis 33%, Jesse Jackson 25%, Al Gore 20%

Only one other time has the primary winner failed to break 50%: Jimmy Carter in 1976 (48%).

Record turnout for both parties’ presidential primary occurred in 2008: 2.875 million Democrats and 1.362 million Republicans (4.237 million combined). Even so, just 33% of registered voters turned out (24% of the voting-age population).

The highest-ever vote getter in a Texas presidential primary is Hillary Clinton (1.46 million) in 2008. No Republican candidate has ever received 1 million votes. The closest was George W. Bush (986K) in 2000.

Keep in mind that Texas’ first presidential primaries were held in 1976.

 

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