Bellingham, WA, Washington: Democratic loyalist metro. In 2024, voted D+25%. Republican peak: R+55 in 1928.
Key facts
- 2024 presidential margin
- D+25MIT Election Lab
- Political archetype
- Democratic loyalistAkashic typology
- Population
- 230,5032024 5-year
- Median household income
- $81,7842024 5-year
- White (non-Hispanic)
- 78.0%2024 5-year
- Black
- 1.0%2024 5-year
- Hispanic / Latino
- 10.6%2024 5-year
- Peak Democratic margin
- D+30 in 1964MIT Election Lab
- Peak Republican margin
- R+55 in 1904MIT Election Lab
Constituent county margins for Bellingham, WA, WAOne cell per constituent county, colored by 2024 presidential margin from deep red (Republican) through neutral to deep blue (Democratic), ordered bluest first.
R+60D+60
One cell per constituent county. Ordered by 2024 D-vs-R margin (bluest first). Hover for county-level numbers.
38 presidential elections
| Year | Won | Margin | Democratic | Republican | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| D | 83,295 | 49,213 | 137,868 | ||
| D | 83,660 | 50,489 | 138,620 | ||
| D | 60,340 | 40,599 | 113,339 | ||
| D | 57,089 | 42,703 | 103,788 | ||
| D | 58,236 | 40,205 | 100,339 | ||
| D | 48,268 | 40,296 | 90,394 | ||
| R | 34,033 | 34,287 | 73,757 | ||
| D | 29,074 | 27,153 | 64,510 | ||
| D | 26,619 | 23,801 | 63,679 | ||
| D | 25,571 | 23,820 | 50,094 | ||
| R | 22,670 | 27,228 | 50,686 | ||
| R | 18,430 | 21,371 | 46,057 | ||
| R | 19,739 | 20,007 | 41,679 | ||
| R | 15,027 | 22,585 | 38,801 | ||
| R | 14,003 | 14,695 | 31,199 | ||
| D | 20,297 | 10,900 | 31,422 | ||
| R | 14,298 | 16,651 | 31,526 | ||
| R | 14,533 | 17,414 | 32,191 | ||
| R | 12,877 | 17,590 | 30,828 | ||
| R | 12,736 | 12,850 | 27,451 | ||
| D | 14,787 | 12,890 | 28,098 | ||
| D | 14,877 | 13,351 | 28,834 | ||
| D | 15,428 | 9,035 | 25,756 | ||
| D | 11,355 | 9,254 | 22,511 | ||
| R | 4,100 | 14,621 | 19,021 | ||
| R | 927 | 9,214 | 16,110 | ||
| R | 2,288 | 9,157 | 15,920 | ||
| R | 5,629 | 7,632 | 15,842 | ||
| O | 2,773 | 4,187 | 15,005 | ||
| R | 2,398 | 4,955 | 8,621 | ||
| R | 1,174 | 5,410 | 7,684 | ||
| R | 1,700 | 2,952 | 5,214 | ||
| D | 2,227 | 1,971 | 4,270 | ||
| R | 1,161 | 1,709 | 4,118 | ||
| — | — | — | — | ||
| — | — | — | — | ||
| — | — | — | — | ||
| — | — | — | — |
Demographics
Race, ethnicity, and ancestry
Click any group to see the ancestries typically reported within it.
German
15.5%
English
14.0%
Irish
10.0%
Scottish
3.7%
Italian
3.4%
American
3.2%
French
2.6%
Source · American Community Survey 5-year estimates, 2024 release. Hispanic/Latino is an ethnicity that overlaps the race categories, so these shares can total more than 100%. Ancestry is a self-reported, multiple-response item; ancestry percentages do not sum to the parent race percentage.
Age distribution by sex
Median age: 38.4 in this county, 39.1 nationally
Male
Age
Female
85+
75–84
65–74
55–64
45–54
35–44
25–34
18–24
5–17
<5
Source · American Community Survey 5-year estimates, 2024 release.
Median household income
2024 inflation-adjusted dollars
$81,784
Bellingham, WA ranks near the middle of US counties.
Bellingham, WA$81,784
Washington$98,141
United States$80,734
Source · American Community Survey 5-year estimates, 2024 release.
Poverty rate
All persons below federal poverty line
12.9%
Child poverty is below the national average.
Children under 1813.6%
Working age (18–64)13.2%
Seniors (65+)8.3%
Source · American Community Survey 5-year estimates, 2024 release.
Language at home
Population aged 5 and older
87.5%
speak English only
Spanish6.1%
Other Indo-European3.5%
Asian & Pacific Islander2.3%
Other languages0.6%
Source · ACS 5-year estimates, 2024.
Religious adherents
Adherents per capita by tradition
Source · 2020 US Religion Census. Remaining 56.3% of residents not counted as adherents by any reporting body.
Bellingham anchors Whatcom County at the Canadian border, where Western Washington University's enrollment and a growing exurban population create a consistent Democratic lean tempered by competitive rural precincts to the east.
The Democratic margin in Bellingham, WA reached its widest at thirty points in 1964. The margin in 2024 was twenty-five points — still decisive.
Its loyalty is rooted in its place. Median household income of $81,784, a 78% non-Hispanic-white share, and a population of 230,503 together describe a metro whose political habits are deeply settled.
Cite this page
All citations released under CC BY 4.0. Attribution: Akashic Intelligence.
Bellingham, WA, Washington — The Long Memory. Akashic Intelligence — The Long Memory. https://tiers.akashic.app/cbsa/13380/. Accessed May 20, 2026. License: CC BY 4.0.
License: CC BY 4.0
Frequently asked questions
How did Bellingham, WA, Washington vote in 2024?
In 2024, Bellingham, WA, Washington voted Democratic by 24.7 points (D+25), carried by the Democratic candidate. Out of 137,868 votes cast, 83,295 went Democratic and 49,213 went Republican.
What is Bellingham, WA, Washington's political archetype?
Akashic classifies Bellingham, WA, Washington as a "Democratic loyalist" metro based on its long-arc presidential voting pattern. Across 38 elections in the dataset, the metro has voted Democratic 15 times, Republican 18 times, and other 1 times.
When did Bellingham, WA, Washington last vote Republican?
The most recent presidential election in which Bellingham, WA, Washington voted Republican was 2000.
How many people live in Bellingham, WA, Washington?
Bellingham, WA, Washington has a population of 230,503 according to the 2024 American Community Survey 5-year estimates from the US Census Bureau.
What is the median household income in Bellingham, WA, Washington?
Median household income in Bellingham, WA, Washington is $81,784 — above the national median of $80,734. The Washington state median is $98,141.
What is the political history of Bellingham, WA, Washington?
Akashic tracks 38 presidential elections in Bellingham, WA, Washington from 1876 to 2024. Of those, 15 went Democratic and 18 went Republican. The metro's archetype — "Democratic loyalist" — captures the overall trajectory of that voting record.