Niles, MI, Michigan: Populist metro. In 2024, voted R+8%. Republican peak: R+51 in 1920.
Key facts
- 2024 presidential margin
- R+8MIT Election Lab
- Political archetype
- PopulistAkashic typology
- Population
- 153,2882024 5-year
- Median household income
- $65,4252024 5-year
- White (non-Hispanic)
- 73.9%2024 5-year
- Black
- 13.2%2024 5-year
- Hispanic / Latino
- 6.3%2024 5-year
- Peak Democratic margin
- D+15 in 1936MIT Election Lab
- Peak Republican margin
- R+51 in 1920MIT Election Lab
Constituent county margins for Niles, MI, MIOne 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 | 38,323 | 44,975 | 84,668 | ||
| R | 37,438 | 43,519 | 82,391 | ||
| R | 29,495 | 38,647 | 72,031 | ||
| R | 33,465 | 38,209 | 72,762 | ||
| D | 40,381 | 36,130 | 77,666 | ||
| R | 32,846 | 41,076 | 74,671 | ||
| R | 28,152 | 35,689 | 65,241 | ||
| R | 24,614 | 28,254 | 59,295 | ||
| R | 25,840 | 29,252 | 69,615 | ||
| R | 21,948 | 37,799 | 60,183 | ||
| R | 21,228 | 43,160 | 64,824 | ||
| R | 22,152 | 41,458 | 67,978 | ||
| R | 25,163 | 40,835 | 66,798 | ||
| R | 18,597 | 43,047 | 63,060 | ||
| R | 21,266 | 32,136 | 62,916 | ||
| D | 33,653 | 26,387 | 60,162 | ||
| R | 23,837 | 37,425 | 61,506 | ||
| R | 18,454 | 35,397 | 54,045 | ||
| R | 19,088 | 32,932 | 52,320 | ||
| R | 14,516 | 22,003 | 37,361 | ||
| R | 15,886 | 24,832 | 40,934 | ||
| R | 16,961 | 22,778 | 39,947 | ||
| D | 20,822 | 15,321 | 37,125 | ||
| D | 18,447 | 14,123 | 33,264 | ||
| R | 8,555 | 19,064 | 27,791 | ||
| R | 4,445 | 15,612 | 24,497 | ||
| R | 4,855 | 15,748 | 21,265 | ||
| R | 6,054 | 7,511 | 13,991 | ||
| O | 4,225 | 2,752 | 11,935 | ||
| R | 4,598 | 7,260 | 12,503 | ||
| R | 3,819 | 7,309 | 11,604 | ||
| R | 4,960 | 6,595 | 11,889 | ||
| R | 4,792 | 6,672 | 11,888 | ||
| R | 4,716 | 4,979 | 10,256 | ||
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Demographics
Race, ethnicity, and ancestry
Click any group to see the ancestries typically reported within it.
German
22.5%
English
10.9%
Irish
10.3%
Polish
4.4%
Italian
4.0%
American
3.2%
French
2.0%
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: 42.7 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
$65,425
Niles, MI ranks near the middle of US counties.
Niles, MI$65,425
Michigan$72,875
United States$80,734
Source · American Community Survey 5-year estimates, 2024 release.
Poverty rate
All persons below federal poverty line
15.1%
Children face moderate poverty.
Children under 1822.1%
Working age (18–64)13.6%
Seniors (65+)10.0%
Source · American Community Survey 5-year estimates, 2024 release.
Language at home
Population aged 5 and older
92.1%
speak English only
Spanish4.0%
Other Indo-European2.2%
Asian & Pacific Islander1.1%
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.
Niles anchors a compact southwest Michigan metro straddling the Indiana border, where a legacy of automotive and light-industrial employment has kept working-class voter blocs competitive across recent election cycles.
The Democratic margin in Niles, MI peaked at fifteen points in 1936. By 2012 the metro had flipped, voting Republican for the first time in many years. The 2024 margin was eight points, the most Republican-leaning result in the metro's modern history.
The economic context is the key. The median household income of $65,425 sits well below state and national norms, and 15% of residents live below the federal poverty line. The shift here is part of a broader realignment of working-class places across the country.
Cite this page
All citations released under CC BY 4.0. Attribution: Akashic Intelligence.
Niles, MI, Michigan — The Long Memory. Akashic Intelligence — The Long Memory. https://tiers.akashic.app/cbsa/35660/. Accessed May 20, 2026. License: CC BY 4.0.
License: CC BY 4.0
Frequently asked questions
How did Niles, MI, Michigan vote in 2024?
In 2024, Niles, MI, Michigan voted Republican by 7.9 points (R+8), carried by the Republican candidate. Out of 84,668 votes cast, 38,323 went Democratic and 44,975 went Republican.
What is Niles, MI, Michigan's political archetype?
Akashic classifies Niles, MI, Michigan as a "Populist" metro based on its long-arc presidential voting pattern. Across 38 elections in the dataset, the metro has voted Democratic 4 times, Republican 29 times, and other 1 times.
When did Niles, MI, Michigan last vote Democratic?
The most recent presidential election in which Niles, MI, Michigan voted Democratic was 2008.
How many people live in Niles, MI, Michigan?
Niles, MI, Michigan has a population of 153,288 according to the 2024 American Community Survey 5-year estimates from the US Census Bureau.
What is the median household income in Niles, MI, Michigan?
Median household income in Niles, MI, Michigan is $65,425 — below the national median of $80,734. The Michigan state median is $72,875.
What is the political history of Niles, MI, Michigan?
Akashic tracks 38 presidential elections in Niles, MI, Michigan from 1876 to 2024. Of those, 4 went Democratic and 29 went Republican. The metro's archetype — "Populist" — captures the overall trajectory of that voting record.