ELECTORAL VOTES 6

2008 ELECTION Leaning McCain

ABOUT
KANSAS

Kansas entered the Union in January 1861, a little over two months prior to the start of the Civil War and seven years after it became a territory under the aptly named Kansas-Nebraska Act. The state is strongly Republican in presidential elections; it hasn’t voted for a Democrat since 1964, when Lyndon Johnson won in a landslide. In 2004, George Bush won by 62% to 37% over John Kerry. Kansas’ population growth has been slower than the nation’s as a whole in recent decades, as population trends have been away from rural locations to more urban centers. As a result, the state has lost electoral influence: From a peak of 10 electoral votes in the early part of the 20th century, the state has been reduced to six today.