Keep Factually independent
Whether you agree or disagree with our analysis, these conversations matter for democracy. We don't take money from political groups - even a $5 donation helps us keep it that way.
Fact check: Which Illinois counties gave the largest share of votes to Joe Biden in the 2020 presidential election?
Executive Summary
Illinois county-level sources cited in the provided dataset do not list a ranked table of which counties gave the largest vote share to Joe Biden in 2020; the materials are primarily maps and summary reports that show Biden won statewide but do not enumerate top counties by percentage. To answer the question precisely requires consulting official county tallies or interactive maps (Associated Press, state election board, New York Times) that break out vote shares; the cited items point to such maps but do not extract or summarize the top counties for Biden [1] [2].
1. Maps exist but the dataset stops short of listing the winners by percentage — what the available sources actually claim
The materials in the analysis repeatedly reference county-level election maps for Illinois and statewide totals, yet none of the provided analyses extract a ranked list of counties by Biden’s share of the vote. Several entries point readers to the Chicago Sun-Times interactive map and to county-level map compilations that display vote totals, but the summaries in the dataset note only that such maps exist rather than reporting the largest Biden vote shares numerically [1] [2]. The maps are useful for visual inspection, and the Associated Press data underlying some maps are mentioned as the primary raw feed, but the dataset stops at visualization pointers and does not convert those visualizations into a concise list of top-performing counties for Biden.
2. Multiple references converge on the same interactive maps — consistency but not extraction
Three separate summaries cite the Chicago Sun-Times county map as the go-to visualization for Illinois 2020 results; those items reaffirm that interactive county maps exist and are sourced from the Associated Press but do not include compiled top-county percentages in their narrative text [2]. Another source in the dataset, Brilliant Maps, offers a national county-level map and vote-share overlays which could be mined to determine county-level percentages, yet the provided analysis again limits itself to describing the map’s scope—Biden’s national electoral performance—rather than isolating Illinois counties where Biden’s share was highest [3]. The recurring pattern in the dataset is reliable mapping infrastructure without the extracted ranking the user requested.
3. What the dataset omits that matters for answering “largest share” precisely
The key omission across these analyses is numeric rank data: none of the supplied summaries tabulates county-level percentage shares or highlights counties where Biden exceeded specific thresholds. For a definitive answer one needs either the AP county returns behind the maps or state-certified county canvass documents that list vote totals and percentages for Biden and Trump per county. The dataset mentions that AP-sourced maps display totals as of November 5–6, 2020, which signals the raw data exist, but the summaries do not relay which counties delivered Biden his largest margins or highest vote shares [1]. Without that extraction, any claim about “largest share” would rely on third-party counting or new data pulls from official tallies.
4. Where to get the authoritative, citable county percentages that the dataset lacks
To convert the visual maps cited into a ranked list, consult the AP county results feed and the Illinois State Board of Elections county canvass files; the Chicago Sun-Times map repeatedly referenced in the dataset displays AP totals and would let researchers click counties for percentages [1] [2]. Brilliant Maps also hosts county vote-share overlays that are useful for comparative ranking if you export or read exact percentages [3]. These are precisely the sources the dataset references but does not synthesize; using them will produce a defensible ranked list of which Illinois counties gave Biden his highest vote shares, including exact percentages and vote totals for citation.
5. Likely patterns implied by map visuals and the need for rigorous extraction
The maps and summaries in the dataset imply a concentration of Biden strength in urban and suburban centers based on map shading patterns and the existence of Cook County-focused reporting, but the dataset itself avoids listing county-level percentages [2]. Visuals can mislead without numeric extraction: a highly shaded but sparsely populated county may show a high percentage with few votes, while Cook County’s large population produces many votes even if the percentage is not maximal. A correct answer requires extracting percentage figures from the AP or state canvass files and ranking counties by Biden’s vote share to distinguish between vote share and raw vote totals, exactly the distinction absent from the provided analyses [1].
6. Bottom line and next steps for a precise ranked list
The dataset provided confirms the existence of county-level maps and AP-sourced totals for Illinois 2020 but does not supply the ranked county percentages needed to state which counties gave Biden the largest shares [1] [2]. To finalize a definitive list, retrieve the AP county returns or the Illinois State Board of Elections certified county canvass for 2020 and sort counties by Biden’s percentage; the Chicago Sun-Times interactive map and Brilliant Maps are practical intermediaries cited in the dataset that point to those underlying figures [3] [1]. Once those raw percentages are extracted, they can be reported with precise vote totals and publication dates for a fully sourced answer.