Clinton

Clinton has so far received the third highest total ever recorded in the popular vote, but a clear enthusiasm gap left her vulnerable in swing states, contributing to her Election Day loss.

(Associated Press)

The record for most votes ever won in a presidential election belongs to President Obama, who in 2008 captured more than 69 million votes in his landslide victory against Republican John McCain.



Democrat Hillary Clinton will likely overtake President Obama's 2012 popular vote total of 65.9 million, as New York's Election Day absentee ballots continue to roll in.



So far, Clinton has received more votes than any other presidential candidate in history except Obama in his 2008 and 2012 victories.



Clinton's tally -- 65,477,624, as of the most recent count Tuesday afternoon, according to the nonpartisan Cook Political Report -- bests the number of ballots cast for President-elect Donald Trump by more than 2.6 million.

Obama got 65.9 million votes in '12. Clinton now at 65.4 million. She could get really close w/ NYC absentees: https://t.co/j58GaxfPmH — Dave Wasserman (@Redistrict) December 5, 2016

Wasserman updated his prediction on Tuesday, saying the prospect now looked "quite possible."

It now looks quite possible Clinton will end up w/ more votes than Obama 65.9 million in '12. Now ~400k behind: https://t.co/j58GaxfPmH — Dave Wasserman (@Redistrict) December 6, 2016



Still, Clinton failed to turnout key parts of Obama's coalition. A clear enthusiasm gap resulted in Clinton receiving fewer votes than Obama did in 46 states, notably by double-digit margins in key swing states like Michigan.



On the other side, Trump outperformed 2012 Republican presidential candidate Mitt Romney in 28 states -- sometimes by wide margins, the Washington Post reported.



Trump's main success came in flipping traditionally blue-leaning swing states like Wisconsin, Michigan and Pennsylvania. In all, Trump carried the 13 swing states by more than 800,000 votes, Wasserman reported -- some by razor-thin margins.



Trump's electoral college success notwithstanding, his popular vote loss has been growing ever since Election Day.



The 2016 election marked the fifth time the winner of the popular vote lost the U.S. presidential election in the nation's history. It was unique for being -- by far -- the widest margin of victory in the popular vote by a loser of the presidency.



In 2000, Democrat Al Gore won the popular vote by 543,816, the previous record.

Other presidential hopefuls who won the popular vote but lost the election include Democratic-Republican Andrew Jackson in 1824, Democrat Samuel Tilden in 1876 and Democrat Grover Cleveland in 1888.