ELECTORAL VOTES 20

2012 ELECTION Swing State New! 2012 Pennsylvania Polls >>

ABOUT
PENNSYLVANIA

2010 Census Reapportionment: Pennsylvania will lose one electoral vote, giving it 20 for the 2012, 2016 and 2020 presidential elections. Prior to this Census, the state had lost at least two electoral votes in every Census since 1960.



Pennsylvania, where the U.S. Constitution was written, was the second state admitted to the Union, officially becoming a state in December 1787. The Keystone State has participated in all 56 presidential elections through 2008. Pennsylvania is generally considered a swing state, although it has voted Democratic in the last five elections. In 2008, Barack Obama won over John McCain by about 11%. While still an important prize, with 20 electoral votes, Pennsylvania, like many industrial northern states, has seen population migrate away in recent decades. Peaking at 38 electoral votes in the 1910s and 1920s (second only to New York), the state has lost 45 percent of its electoral clout in 80 years.