Cook County , IL–(ENEWSPF)– Democratic presidential candidate Barack Obama won the highest number of votes (698,158) ever recorded by a presidential candidate in suburban Cook County, according to a Post-Election Report issued today by Cook County Clerk David Orr.
"Voters flocked to the polls and set many milestones during this unprecedented election season," Orr said.
Obama captured 27 townships, more than any Democratic candidate in history, and won 100 percent of the vote in seven precincts. The Illinois senator won 2,033 precincts, or 89 percent of 2,290 suburban precincts.
Republican presidential candidate John McCain won 32 percent of suburban votes and three townships — two fewer than incumbent President George W. Bush captured in 2004.
Only Barrington township voted for both McCain and Republican U.S. Senate nominee Steve Sauerberg.
The Post-Election Report illustrates several political trends in suburban Cook County, including new records for voter registration and Early Voting, as well as the continued shift from a Republican to a Democratic voter base.
Some other highlights from the report:
- More than 226,000 people voted early in suburban Cook, or 22% of all voters, shattering February’s record of about 51,000 and continuing a shift to pre-Election Day voting.
- Youth involvement surged as 550 college students applied to work as equipment managers and more than 1,700 students from 94 high schools applied to be election judges, both new records.
- Suburban voters reached a new registration record of more than 1.4 million, as the number of registered voters grew in all 30 townships.
- Participation was the second-highest in history and just below the 1992 record.
- Three townships — Oak Park, New Trier and River Forest — surpassed 80 percent turnout.
A downloadable pdf of Orr’s Nov. 4, 2008 Presidential Election Post-Election Report is available at voterinfonet.com.
