Macomb, IL, Illinois: Bellwether metro. In 2024, voted R+19%. Republican peak: R+44 in 1952.
Key facts
- 2024 presidential margin
- R+19MIT Election Lab
- Political archetype
- BellwetherAkashic typology
- Population
- 26,9202024 5-year
- Median household income
- $52,7952024 5-year
- White (non-Hispanic)
- 86.4%2024 5-year
- Black
- 5.8%2024 5-year
- Hispanic / Latino
- 3.5%2024 5-year
- Peak Democratic margin
- D+16 in 1912MIT Election Lab
- Peak Republican margin
- R+44 in 1952MIT Election Lab
Constituent county margins for Macomb, 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 | 4,736 | 6,987 | 11,972 | ||
| R | 4,992 | 7,027 | 12,327 | ||
| R | 5,288 | 6,795 | 13,144 | ||
| R | 5,967 | 6,147 | 12,454 | ||
| D | 6,783 | 6,055 | 13,042 | ||
| R | 7,119 | 7,656 | 14,929 | ||
| R | 6,080 | 6,465 | 13,012 | ||
| D | 5,632 | 5,049 | 12,035 | ||
| D | 5,814 | 5,297 | 13,922 | ||
| R | 5,247 | 7,173 | 12,493 | ||
| R | 4,561 | 9,383 | 14,001 | ||
| R | 4,093 | 8,995 | 14,589 | ||
| R | 5,464 | 9,683 | 15,534 | ||
| R | 5,143 | 10,573 | 15,738 | ||
| R | 3,785 | 8,496 | 12,924 | ||
| R | 6,144 | 6,907 | 13,051 | ||
| R | 4,520 | 9,363 | 13,893 | ||
| R | 3,872 | 9,725 | 13,605 | ||
| R | 3,922 | 10,126 | 14,053 | ||
| R | 4,206 | 8,058 | 12,373 | ||
| R | 4,497 | 9,028 | 13,616 | ||
| R | 5,783 | 10,326 | 16,217 | ||
| R | 7,138 | 8,723 | 16,012 | ||
| D | 7,608 | 6,329 | 14,105 | ||
| R | 4,104 | 8,953 | 13,138 | ||
| R | 4,016 | 7,505 | 12,306 | ||
| R | 3,930 | 7,221 | 11,430 | ||
| R | 5,740 | 7,192 | 13,546 | ||
| D | 2,959 | 1,876 | 6,973 | ||
| R | 3,112 | 3,733 | 7,312 | ||
| R | 2,730 | 4,041 | 7,299 | ||
| R | 3,444 | 4,076 | 7,733 | ||
| R | 3,684 | 4,036 | 7,889 | ||
| R | 3,237 | 3,319 | 7,103 | ||
| — | — | — | — | ||
| — | — | — | — | ||
| — | — | — | — | ||
| — | — | — | — |
Demographics
Race, ethnicity, and ancestry
Click any group to see the ancestries typically reported within it.
German
19.9%
English
13.3%
Irish
12.2%
American
6.2%
Italian
2.8%
Polish
2.4%
Scottish
2.3%
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: 34.9 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
$52,795
Macomb, IL ranks near the middle of US counties.
Macomb, IL$52,795
Illinois$83,390
United States$80,734
Source · American Community Survey 5-year estimates, 2024 release.
Poverty rate
All persons below federal poverty line
17.2%
Child poverty is below the national average.
Children under 1813.5%
Working age (18–64)19.1%
Seniors (65+)9.3%
Source · American Community Survey 5-year estimates, 2024 release.
Language at home
Population aged 5 and older
95.2%
speak English only
Other Indo-European1.9%
Spanish1.6%
Asian & Pacific Islander0.9%
Other languages0.4%
Source · ACS 5-year estimates, 2024.
Religious adherents
Adherents per capita by tradition
Source · 2020 US Religion Census. Remaining 66.4% of residents not counted as adherents by any reporting body.
Macomb's electorate is shaped by Western Illinois University's enrollment, which introduces a younger, more transient voting bloc into an otherwise rural McDonough County that has trended toward wide Republican margins in recent cycles.
The Democratic margin in Macomb, IL has rarely exceeded sixteen points in modern history; the Republican margin has rarely exceeded forty-four points. 2024 delivered the metro to the Republican candidate by nineteen points.
Its demographics resemble the country more than they resemble most metros. A 86% non-Hispanic-white share, a 17% poverty rate, and a median household income of $52,795 — all within the broad national range.
Cite this page
All citations released under CC BY 4.0. Attribution: Akashic Intelligence.
Macomb, IL, Illinois — The Long Memory. Akashic Intelligence — The Long Memory. https://tiers.akashic.app/cbsa/31380/. Accessed May 20, 2026. License: CC BY 4.0.
License: CC BY 4.0
Frequently asked questions
How did Macomb, IL, Illinois vote in 2024?
In 2024, Macomb, IL, Illinois voted Republican by 18.8 points (R+19), carried by the Republican candidate. Out of 11,972 votes cast, 4,736 went Democratic and 6,987 went Republican.
What is Macomb, IL, Illinois's political archetype?
Akashic classifies Macomb, 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 5 times, Republican 29 times, and other 0 times.
When did Macomb, IL, Illinois last vote Democratic?
The most recent presidential election in which Macomb, IL, Illinois voted Democratic was 2008.
How many people live in Macomb, IL, Illinois?
Macomb, IL, Illinois has a population of 26,920 according to the 2024 American Community Survey 5-year estimates from the US Census Bureau.
What is the median household income in Macomb, IL, Illinois?
Median household income in Macomb, IL, Illinois is $52,795 — below the national median of $80,734. The Illinois state median is $83,390.
What is the political history of Macomb, IL, Illinois?
Akashic tracks 38 presidential elections in Macomb, IL, Illinois from 1876 to 2024. Of those, 5 went Democratic and 29 went Republican. The metro's archetype — "Bellwether" — captures the overall trajectory of that voting record.