More Californians voted in the 2020 presidential election than ever before amidst a global pandemic, economic upheaval and a presidential race unlike any other.

The Golden State on Friday certified the results of the Nov. 3 election, noting that both the total number of votes cast — 17,785,151 — and the number of registered voters — 22,047,448 — shattered previous state records.

Turnout of registered voters reached 80.67%, the highest since 1976, when Jimmy Carter defeated Gerald Ford. And with slightly more than 25 million residents eligible to vote, turnout as a percentage of the eligible voting age population reached 70.88%, the highest since 1952, when Dwight Eisenhower beat Adlai Stevenson.

In 2016, when outgoing President Donald Trump was elected, turnout as a percentage of eligible voters was just shy of 59%. In 2008, when former President Barack Obama won the election, it was just over 59%.

President-elect Joe Biden and Vice President-elect Kamala Harris, won 63.5% — more than 11 million votes — of the state’s presidential tally, while Trump picked up 34.3%, or roughly 6 million votes.

In parts of the reliably blue Bay Area like San Francisco and Alameda counties, Biden won north of 80% of the vote.

While California’s presidential results were never in doubt, 2020 did involve some very close races at the state and local levels. In the 25th Congressional District in Los Angeles and Ventura counties, Republican Mike Garcia edged out Democrat Christy Smith by 333 votes — 169,638 to 169,305.

Garcia’s victory is part of a trend this year that reverses gains made by Democrats in 2018, when the party successfully flipped seven Republican seats in the House of Representatives. This year, Republicans clawed four of them back.

While voting by mail has become increasingly popular in recent years, the COVID-19 pandemic among other factors prompted more Californians than ever to opt to drop their ballots in the mail rather than vote in person at a polling place. According to Secretary of State Alex Padilla’s office, more than 15.4 million state residents voted by mail.

“I am grateful to all the elections officials and poll workers who stepped up during the COVID-19 pandemic — they helped maintain the resiliency of our democracy,” Padilla said in a statement. “Voting may have looked different this year, but it was important to provide Californians safe and convenient opportunities to exercise their right to vote while protecting their health.”

Because of the pandemic, the state this year sent all active registered voters a ballot in addition to opening vote centers for those who preferred to cast their ballots more traditionally. Already, there are calls in Sacramento and beyond to make voting by mail the norm. Some rural counties, like Alpine and Mariposa, rely entirely on mail voting.

“This was an election unlike any other in modern American history,” Padilla said in a video his office released with the certification announcement.

“The overwhelming success of the general election proves the wisdom of California’s policies to increase access to the ballot, and should inform our continuing work to deliver safe, secure and inclusive elections,” he added.

Despite allegations by Trump and other top Republicans of mail voting being subject to widespread fraud, the election ran smoothly.

The 2020 election may be one of Padilla’s last major acts as California’s Secretary of State. With Harris heading to the White House in January, the Golden State will have a vacant U.S. Senate seat. Gov. Gavin Newsom has not yet announced Harris’ replacement, but Padilla has repeatedly surfaced as a top contender. If appointed, he would be the California’s first Latinx to serve in the Senate.