Iowa City, IA, Iowa: Bellwether metro. In 2024, voted D+30%. Democratic peak: D+36 in 2008.
Key facts
- 2024 presidential margin
- D+30MIT Election Lab
- Political archetype
- BellwetherAkashic typology
- Population
- 179,2002024 5-year
- Median household income
- $75,0252024 5-year
- White (non-Hispanic)
- 78.1%2024 5-year
- Black
- 6.9%2024 5-year
- Hispanic / Latino
- 6.8%2024 5-year
- Peak Democratic margin
- D+36 in 2008MIT Election Lab
- Peak Republican margin
- R+26 in 1952MIT Election Lab
Constituent county margins for Iowa City, IA, IAOne 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 | 63,143 | 33,206 | 98,232 | ||
| D | 63,738 | 29,896 | 95,616 | ||
| D | 54,143 | 27,217 | 88,568 | ||
| D | 55,781 | 29,260 | 86,981 | ||
| D | 56,197 | 25,979 | 83,601 | ||
| D | 46,442 | 28,692 | 76,061 | ||
| D | 35,106 | 22,726 | 61,863 | ||
| D | 31,716 | 17,002 | 53,905 | ||
| D | 32,040 | 17,617 | 60,792 | ||
| D | 32,535 | 19,194 | 52,263 | ||
| D | 29,079 | 23,290 | 52,814 | ||
| D | 22,999 | 17,609 | 50,624 | ||
| D | 23,656 | 20,308 | 46,517 | ||
| D | 23,706 | 20,010 | 44,325 | ||
| R | 16,220 | 16,283 | 33,887 | ||
| D | 19,304 | 10,175 | 29,537 | ||
| R | 13,785 | 16,788 | 30,597 | ||
| R | 11,789 | 17,142 | 28,952 | ||
| R | 10,671 | 18,177 | 28,935 | ||
| D | 12,096 | 11,819 | 24,548 | ||
| D | 11,857 | 11,704 | 23,660 | ||
| D | 13,047 | 12,855 | 25,999 | ||
| D | 13,173 | 10,248 | 23,861 | ||
| D | 13,318 | 9,373 | 23,078 | ||
| R | 9,935 | 13,236 | 23,240 | ||
| R | 6,438 | 10,794 | 21,269 | ||
| R | 7,289 | 11,509 | 19,100 | ||
| D | 5,789 | 5,449 | 11,366 | ||
| D | 5,330 | 2,909 | 10,683 | ||
| D | 5,433 | 5,389 | 11,040 | ||
| R | 4,857 | 5,838 | 10,992 | ||
| R | 5,416 | 5,854 | 11,499 | ||
| R | 5,462 | 5,792 | 11,480 | ||
| D | 5,361 | 4,697 | 10,375 | ||
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Demographics
Race, ethnicity, and ancestry
Click any group to see the ancestries typically reported within it.
German
28.1%
Irish
14.2%
English
11.5%
American
3.3%
Italian
2.7%
Polish
2.0%
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: 32.2 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
$75,025
Iowa City, IA ranks near the middle of US counties.
Iowa City, IA$75,025
Iowa$75,059
United States$80,734
Source · American Community Survey 5-year estimates, 2024 release.
Poverty rate
All persons below federal poverty line
16.0%
Child poverty is below the national average.
Children under 1811.0%
Working age (18–64)18.0%
Seniors (65+)5.8%
Source · American Community Survey 5-year estimates, 2024 release.
Language at home
Population aged 5 and older
86.2%
speak English only
Spanish4.3%
Other Indo-European3.7%
Asian & Pacific Islander3.2%
Other languages2.7%
Source · ACS 5-year estimates, 2024.
Religious adherents
Adherents per capita by tradition
Source · 2020 US Religion Census. Remaining 68.7% of residents not counted as adherents by any reporting body.
Home to the University of Iowa, Iowa City's metro turns out among the highest shares of college-degree holders in the state, a demographic pattern that has increasingly tilted its margins toward Democratic candidates in recent election cycles.
The Democratic margin in Iowa City, IA has rarely exceeded thirty-six points in modern history; the Republican margin has rarely exceeded twenty-six points. 2024 delivered the metro to the Democratic candidate by thirty points.
Its demographics resemble the country more than they resemble most metros. A 78% non-Hispanic-white share, a 16% poverty rate, and a median household income of $75,025 — all within the broad national range.
Cite this page
All citations released under CC BY 4.0. Attribution: Akashic Intelligence.
Iowa City, IA, Iowa — The Long Memory. Akashic Intelligence — The Long Memory. https://tiers.akashic.app/cbsa/26980/. Accessed May 20, 2026. License: CC BY 4.0.
License: CC BY 4.0
Frequently asked questions
How did Iowa City, IA, Iowa vote in 2024?
In 2024, Iowa City, IA, Iowa voted Democratic by 30.5 points (D+30), carried by the Democratic candidate. Out of 98,232 votes cast, 63,143 went Democratic and 33,206 went Republican.
What is Iowa City, IA, Iowa's political archetype?
Akashic classifies Iowa City, IA, Iowa as a "Bellwether" metro based on its long-arc presidential voting pattern. Across 38 elections in the dataset, the metro has voted Democratic 24 times, Republican 10 times, and other 0 times.
When did Iowa City, IA, Iowa last vote Republican?
The most recent presidential election in which Iowa City, IA, Iowa voted Republican was 1968.
How many people live in Iowa City, IA, Iowa?
Iowa City, IA, Iowa has a population of 179,200 according to the 2024 American Community Survey 5-year estimates from the US Census Bureau.
What is the median household income in Iowa City, IA, Iowa?
Median household income in Iowa City, IA, Iowa is $75,025 — below the national median of $80,734. The Iowa state median is $75,059.
What is the political history of Iowa City, IA, Iowa?
Akashic tracks 38 presidential elections in Iowa City, IA, Iowa from 1876 to 2024. Of those, 24 went Democratic and 10 went Republican. The metro's archetype — "Bellwether" — captures the overall trajectory of that voting record.