Charleston-Mattoon, IL, Illinois: Bellwether metro. In 2024, voted R+28%. Republican peak: R+39 in 1928.
Key facts
- 2024 presidential margin
- R+28MIT Election Lab
- Political archetype
- BellwetherAkashic typology
- Population
- 46,7772024 5-year
- Median household income
- $56,4782024 5-year
- White (non-Hispanic)
- 89.7%2024 5-year
- Black
- 3.6%2024 5-year
- Hispanic / Latino
- 3.9%2024 5-year
- Peak Democratic margin
- D+20 in 1932MIT Election Lab
- Peak Republican margin
- R+39 in 1928MIT Election Lab
Constituent county margins for Charleston-Mattoon, 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| R | 7,495 | 13,606 | 21,507 | ||
| R | 8,067 | 14,037 | 22,668 | ||
| R | 7,309 | 13,003 | 21,918 | ||
| R | 9,262 | 11,631 | 21,437 | ||
| D | 11,716 | 10,978 | 23,076 | ||
| R | 9,566 | 13,015 | 22,780 | ||
| R | 8,904 | 10,495 | 20,093 | ||
| D | 8,950 | 8,038 | 19,298 | ||
| D | 9,402 | 8,098 | 22,300 | ||
| R | 8,327 | 11,043 | 19,504 | ||
| R | 7,156 | 14,044 | 21,295 | ||
| R | 6,743 | 11,994 | 20,671 | ||
| R | 8,639 | 11,021 | 20,162 | ||
| R | 7,988 | 13,681 | 21,751 | ||
| R | 7,337 | 10,449 | 19,766 | ||
| D | 11,377 | 8,878 | 20,255 | ||
| R | 8,629 | 12,166 | 20,814 | ||
| R | 7,569 | 12,436 | 20,015 | ||
| R | 7,876 | 12,660 | 20,556 | ||
| R | 8,393 | 8,638 | 17,084 | ||
| R | 8,936 | 9,473 | 18,463 | ||
| D | 11,409 | 10,528 | 22,014 | ||
| D | 11,931 | 8,800 | 20,868 | ||
| D | 11,081 | 7,313 | 18,559 | ||
| R | 5,071 | 11,479 | 16,607 | ||
| R | 5,544 | 8,342 | 15,194 | ||
| R | 5,811 | 8,563 | 14,574 | ||
| R | 7,772 | 8,314 | 16,351 | ||
| D | 3,453 | 2,263 | 8,426 | ||
| R | 3,957 | 4,388 | 8,632 | ||
| R | 3,435 | 4,901 | 8,828 | ||
| R | 3,921 | 4,706 | 8,779 | ||
| R | 3,982 | 4,534 | 8,633 | ||
| R | 3,611 | 3,693 | 7,604 | ||
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Demographics
Race, ethnicity, and ancestry
Click any group to see the ancestries typically reported within it.
German
22.1%
Irish
14.2%
English
11.4%
American
5.9%
Italian
1.8%
Scottish
1.3%
Polish
1.0%
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: 37.5 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
$56,478
Charleston-Mattoon, IL ranks near the middle of US counties.
Charleston-Mattoon, IL$56,478
Illinois$83,390
United States$80,734
Source · American Community Survey 5-year estimates, 2024 release.
Poverty rate
All persons below federal poverty line
18.7%
Children face moderate poverty.
Children under 1820.8%
Working age (18–64)19.0%
Seniors (65+)10.8%
Source · American Community Survey 5-year estimates, 2024 release.
Language at home
Population aged 5 and older
94.9%
speak English only
Spanish2.3%
Other Indo-European1.9%
Asian & Pacific Islander0.6%
Other languages0.2%
Source · ACS 5-year estimates, 2024.
Religious adherents
Adherents per capita by tradition
Source · 2020 US Religion Census. Remaining 51.0% of residents not counted as adherents by any reporting body.
Spanning Coles and Calhoun counties across central Illinois, this metro blends a regional university presence in Charleston with Mattoon's manufacturing base, producing an electorate that has shifted steadily toward Republican margins over the past two decades.
The Democratic margin in Charleston-Mattoon, IL has rarely exceeded twenty points in modern history; the Republican margin has rarely exceeded thirty-nine points. 2024 delivered the metro to the Republican candidate by twenty-eight points.
Its demographics resemble the country more than they resemble most metros. A 90% non-Hispanic-white share, a 19% poverty rate, and a median household income of $56,478 — all within the broad national range.
Cite this page
All citations released under CC BY 4.0. Attribution: Akashic Intelligence.
Charleston-Mattoon, IL, Illinois — The Long Memory. Akashic Intelligence — The Long Memory. https://tiers.akashic.app/cbsa/16660/. Accessed May 20, 2026. License: CC BY 4.0.
License: CC BY 4.0
Frequently asked questions
How did Charleston-Mattoon, IL, Illinois vote in 2024?
In 2024, Charleston-Mattoon, IL, Illinois voted Republican by 28.4 points (R+28), carried by the Republican candidate. Out of 21,507 votes cast, 7,495 went Democratic and 13,606 went Republican.
What is Charleston-Mattoon, IL, Illinois's political archetype?
Akashic classifies Charleston-Mattoon, 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 8 times, Republican 26 times, and other 0 times.
When did Charleston-Mattoon, IL, Illinois last vote Democratic?
The most recent presidential election in which Charleston-Mattoon, IL, Illinois voted Democratic was 2008.
How many people live in Charleston-Mattoon, IL, Illinois?
Charleston-Mattoon, IL, Illinois has a population of 46,777 according to the 2024 American Community Survey 5-year estimates from the US Census Bureau.
What is the median household income in Charleston-Mattoon, IL, Illinois?
Median household income in Charleston-Mattoon, IL, Illinois is $56,478 — below the national median of $80,734. The Illinois state median is $83,390.
What is the political history of Charleston-Mattoon, IL, Illinois?
Akashic tracks 38 presidential elections in Charleston-Mattoon, IL, Illinois from 1876 to 2024. Of those, 8 went Democratic and 26 went Republican. The metro's archetype — "Bellwether" — captures the overall trajectory of that voting record.