Title: 2008 Voter Turnout - FactCheck.org
Headings: 2008 Voter Turnout
Ask FactCheck
2008 Voter Turnout
What Happened to All That Record-Turnout Hype?
Sources

Content: Hawaii and West Virginia are tied for the lowest turnout, with 50.6 percent each. McDonald’s figures are also quite similar to early projections released two days after the election by American University’s Center for the Study of the American Electorate. CSAE’s report, based on tabulated votes by the Associated Press and some estimates, said that voter turnout was between 60.7 percent and 61.7 percent of eligible voters. The methodology used by McDonald and CSAE is not the same. For instance, they use different estimates for eligible voters, with CSAE employing a number that excludes non-citizens from the over-18 population in the U.S. and McDonald calculating a figure that also adjusts for felons who can’t vote and Americans living abroad. CSAE says those other factors wouldn’t significantly alter the eligible-voter figure. Regardless, it’s worth noting that the two entities published very similar results. What Happened to All That Record-Turnout Hype? Before Americans went to the polls on November 4, much was made in media reports about record levels of voter registration and high enthusiasm levels among the electorate. And while the 61.6 percent turnout number doesn’t seem that impressive – in 2004, after all, 60.1 percent of eligible voters cast a ballot for the highest office – it is the highest turnout in the U.S. in decades.