Bloomington, IL, Illinois: Bellwether metro. In 2024, voted D+5%. Republican peak: R+40 in 1920.
Key facts
- 2024 presidential margin
- D+5MIT Election Lab
- Political archetype
- BellwetherAkashic typology
- Population
- 171,5562024 5-year
- Median household income
- $79,9052024 5-year
- White (non-Hispanic)
- 78.0%2024 5-year
- Black
- 8.5%2024 5-year
- Hispanic / Latino
- 6.4%2024 5-year
- Peak Democratic margin
- D+12 in 1936MIT Election Lab
- Peak Republican margin
- R+40 in 1920MIT Election Lab
Constituent county margins for Bloomington, IL, ILOne 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 | 44,495 | 40,290 | 86,522 | ||
| D | 43,933 | 40,502 | 87,387 | ||
| R | 36,196 | 37,237 | 81,324 | ||
| R | 31,883 | 39,947 | 73,469 | ||
| D | 37,689 | 36,767 | 75,750 | ||
| R | 29,877 | 41,276 | 71,620 | ||
| R | 24,936 | 34,008 | 60,898 | ||
| R | 22,708 | 26,428 | 53,435 | ||
| R | 23,090 | 25,726 | 59,285 | ||
| R | 18,659 | 30,572 | 49,511 | ||
| R | 15,880 | 32,221 | 48,349 | ||
| R | 13,587 | 30,096 | 49,232 | ||
| R | 16,601 | 28,493 | 45,879 | ||
| R | 14,824 | 31,060 | 45,955 | ||
| R | 12,779 | 22,284 | 37,630 | ||
| D | 19,550 | 19,120 | 38,670 | ||
| R | 13,971 | 24,758 | 38,761 | ||
| R | 12,332 | 25,758 | 38,111 | ||
| R | 13,296 | 24,494 | 37,826 | ||
| R | 12,904 | 18,430 | 31,517 | ||
| R | 14,011 | 19,366 | 33,562 | ||
| R | 18,024 | 21,865 | 40,166 | ||
| D | 21,508 | 16,826 | 39,132 | ||
| D | 19,535 | 15,450 | 35,871 | ||
| R | 10,742 | 20,780 | 31,789 | ||
| R | 6,826 | 16,550 | 29,582 | ||
| R | 6,411 | 16,680 | 25,555 | ||
| R | 11,699 | 14,988 | 28,153 | ||
| D | 5,356 | 4,624 | 15,294 | ||
| R | 5,982 | 8,953 | 16,023 | ||
| R | 4,149 | 8,772 | 14,955 | ||
| R | 6,613 | 9,487 | 16,818 | ||
| R | 6,328 | 9,964 | 16,712 | ||
| R | 6,487 | 7,445 | 14,764 | ||
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Demographics
Race, ethnicity, and ancestry
Click any group to see the ancestries typically reported within it.
German
25.6%
Irish
14.4%
English
13.1%
American
4.1%
Italian
3.7%
Polish
3.3%
Scottish
1.7%
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: 34.3 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
$79,905
Bloomington, IL ranks near the middle of US counties.
Bloomington, IL$79,905
Illinois$83,390
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 189.4%
Working age (18–64)14.2%
Seniors (65+)9.7%
Source · American Community Survey 5-year estimates, 2024 release.
Language at home
Population aged 5 and older
90.3%
speak English only
Spanish3.7%
Asian & Pacific Islander2.8%
Other Indo-European2.7%
Other languages0.5%
Source · ACS 5-year estimates, 2024.
Religious adherents
Adherents per capita by tradition
Source · 2020 US Religion Census. Remaining 55.9% of residents not counted as adherents by any reporting body.
Home to Illinois State University and a major State Farm corporate campus, the Bloomington-Normal metro votes more competitively than its downstate neighbors, reflecting a white-collar, degree-dense workforce that tempers the region's broader rural lean.
The Democratic margin in Bloomington, IL has rarely exceeded twelve points in modern history; the Republican margin has rarely exceeded forty points. 2024 delivered the metro to the Democratic candidate by five points.
Its demographics resemble the country more than they resemble most metros. A 78% non-Hispanic-white share, a 13% poverty rate, and a median household income of $79,905 — all within the broad national range.
Cite this page
All citations released under CC BY 4.0. Attribution: Akashic Intelligence.
Bloomington, IL, Illinois — The Long Memory. Akashic Intelligence — The Long Memory. https://tiers.akashic.app/cbsa/14010/. Accessed May 20, 2026. License: CC BY 4.0.
License: CC BY 4.0
Frequently asked questions
How did Bloomington, IL, Illinois vote in 2024?
In 2024, Bloomington, IL, Illinois voted Democratic by 4.9 points (D+5), carried by the Democratic candidate. Out of 86,522 votes cast, 44,495 went Democratic and 40,290 went Republican.
What is Bloomington, IL, Illinois's political archetype?
Akashic classifies Bloomington, IL, Illinois as a "Bellwether" metro based on its long-arc presidential voting pattern. Across 38 elections in the dataset, the metro has voted Democratic 7 times, Republican 27 times, and other 0 times.
When did Bloomington, IL, Illinois last vote Republican?
The most recent presidential election in which Bloomington, IL, Illinois voted Republican was 2016.
How many people live in Bloomington, IL, Illinois?
Bloomington, IL, Illinois has a population of 171,556 according to the 2024 American Community Survey 5-year estimates from the US Census Bureau.
What is the median household income in Bloomington, IL, Illinois?
Median household income in Bloomington, IL, Illinois is $79,905 — below the national median of $80,734. The Illinois state median is $83,390.
What is the political history of Bloomington, IL, Illinois?
Akashic tracks 38 presidential elections in Bloomington, IL, Illinois from 1876 to 2024. Of those, 7 went Democratic and 27 went Republican. The metro's archetype — "Bellwether" — captures the overall trajectory of that voting record.