Tompkins County Voter Enrollment Records

Voter enrollment information shows political affiliations, and can offer insights into the civic climate of a community over time. Tompkins County, now a bastion of reliably liberal voting, used to be a more conservative community with voting leaning heavily Republican. In the 1944 election Dewey beat FDR by a margin of 2 to 1, and in 1948 13,000 voters went for Dewey while 5,500 voted for Truman. Presidential elections reflect similar disparities throughout most of the 20th century (in 1972 Nixon's almost 17,000 votes outpaced McGovern's 11,000). But in the 21st century the tide turned dramatically: Kerry won more than 63 percent of Tompkins County votes against George Bush, and in 2008 Obama won the county with 78 percent of the total vote.