FILM · 2016
The Purge: Election Year
25 archived facts 5 topics 1 source Last reviewed Oct 2026
All facts (25)
- #001
Initially, the third installment was intended to be a prequel telling the story of the first Purge Night. That idea was dropped when Frank Grillo accepted James DeMonaco's offer to reprise the character of Sergeant Leo Barnes. The prequel concept was used for the series' next film, The First Purge (2018).
- #002
With this film, each Purge installment has earned more at the box office than the one before it, a rare achievement for a horror/thriller series.
- #003
The senator's house is the same house as Frank Underwood's in House of Cards (2013).
- #004
Edwin Hodge's character appears in three of the Purge films. In the first two he was credited as the Bloody Stranger. In this film it is revealed that his name is Dante Bishop.
- #005
The Purge: Election Year is the first film in the Purge series in which the siren marking the end of the Purge is not heard.
- #006
The Purge expanded its universe with each film. The first film takes place in a single house, the second in the streets, and the third in the government. Each film also views the Purge from a different perspective: the first is told from the wealthy, the second from the poor, and the third from the political side.
- #007
Dante Bishop takes over the role played by Carmelo Johns in The Purge: Anarchy (2014).
- #008
Everyone depicted on this film's posters dies.
- #009
When Leo says he is starting to lock down, the Sandin Security system is clearly visible. James Sandin (played by Ethan Hawke) was the manufacturer of these systems in The Purge (2013).
- #010
This is the first Purge film not set in the Los Angeles area, followed by The First Purge (2018), which is set in Staten Island, New York.
- #011
This was the first Purge film that was a direct continuation of the story, as Frank Grillo continued to explore the life of Sergeant Leo Barnes.
- #012
It was filmed in Woonsocket, Rhode Island.
- #013
James DeMonaco wrote and directed every film in the series, a rare achievement for a horror film franchise.
- #014
In three unrelated films — Forrest Gump (1994), Con Air (1997) and this film — Mykelti Williamson's character befriends the hero, is shot in the stomach, and has a final conversation with the hero before dying or being taken away by ambulance.
- #015
Carmen Ejogo was asked whether she wanted to reprise the role of Eva Sanchez from The Purge: Anarchy (2014), but she declined because she wanted to move on to new things.
- #016
(About 1 hour 40 minutes) At the end it is revealed that the senator has won and is trying to end the Purge, but a news reporter says that NFFA supporters are staging violent protests. This is a possible reference to a fourth Purge film.
- #017
Raymond J. Barry (leader Caleb Warrens) and Elizabeth Mitchell (Senator Roan) played characters in the series Lost (2004). At the start of this film there is a subtle nod to Lost (2004) with the appearance of the Apollo candy bar that Kimmy tries to steal from Joe's store.
- #018
It is the only Purge film that includes scenes not set on March 21 or 22.
- #019
The weapon Frank Grillo's character uses to punch holes in victims' necks is called an "urban pal".
- #020
Because the film jumps 18 years from the opening scene, many fans believed it takes place 18 years after The Purge: Anarchy (2014). However, Leo (Frank Grillo) has clearly not aged 18 years since he appeared in The Purge: Anarchy. In his conversation with Senator Roan (Elizabeth Mitchell), he actually confirms that his son died a few years earlier, meaning The Purge: Anarchy could have taken place at most 1 or 2 years before. Since the Purge is now in its 25th year, the opening scene took place during the 7th Purge, and The Purge: Anarchy probably took place in the 23rd or 24th year.
- #021
The candy bar that Joe stops the girl from stealing from his store is the "Apollo Bar", a fictional candy bar supplied by the Dharma Initiative in Lost (2004). Elizabeth Mitchell starred in Lost.
- #022
The weapon Laney keeps in the triage van is a Serbu Super Shorty 12-gauge. It is technically not a shotgun but is classified as an 'Any Other Weapon'.
- #023
According to data from the YouTube channel Dead Meat, there are a total of 116 kills over the runtime. The kill rate is one kill every 56 seconds. As of June 29 at 17:40, the video had been taken down and the re-upload process was ongoing. The film ranks second in the series for the most kills, surpassed only by The First Purge (2018).
- #024
In Spain, all the films in the trilogy have different titles but share the same subtitle that defines them: * The Purge: La noche de las bestias (The Purge: Night of the Beasts) (2013). * Anarchy: La noche de las bestias (Anarchy: Night of the Beasts) (2014). * Election: La noche de las bestias (Election: Night of the Beasts) (2016). * The First Purge: La noche de las bestias (The First Purge: Night of the Beasts) (2018).
- #025
The film features Caleb Warrens, the leader of the NFFA.
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