Pittsburgh, PA Metro Area — Elections 1876–2024

Pittsburgh, PA, Pennsylvania: Bellwether metro. In 2024, voted R+4%. Republican peak: R+48 in 1904.

Key facts

2024 presidential margin: R+4MIT Election Lab
Political archetype: BellwetherAkashic typology
Population: 2,439,9402024 5-year
Median household income: $76,3602024 5-year
White (non-Hispanic): 83.3%2024 5-year
Black: 7.9%2024 5-year
Hispanic / Latino: 2.4%2024 5-year
Peak Democratic margin: D+36 in 1964MIT Election Lab
Peak Republican margin: R+48 in 1904MIT Election Lab

2024 results by constituent county

8 counties · 1 D · 7 R

R+60

D+60

One cell per constituent county. Ordered by 2024 D-vs-R margin (bluest first). Hover for county-level numbers.

38 presidential elections

Source · MIT Election Lab · ICPSR · VEST (precinct-level 2024).
Year	Won	Margin	Democratic	Republican	Total
2024	R	−4.4%	671,128	734,418	1,422,932
2020	R	−3.2%	666,791	712,053	1,394,920
2016	R	−5.6%	563,858	633,488	1,252,500
2012	R	−1.5%	570,888	588,513	1,176,428
2008	D	+2.4%	621,470	591,836	1,226,013
2004	D	+4.0%	629,679	580,468	1,217,556
2000	D	+8.0%	570,550	483,639	1,084,721
1996	D	+11.7%	507,168	390,147	1,003,129
1992	D	+21.4%	571,546	331,645	1,119,869
1988	D	+18.7%	614,593	419,054	1,043,066
1984	D	+12.6%	656,497	508,879	1,176,169
1980	D	+5.3%	535,239	477,450	1,092,729
1976	D	+7.5%	591,353	507,030	1,123,524
1972	R	−14.0%	473,424	631,268	1,129,109
1968	D	+15.1%	628,643	446,314	1,207,849
1964	D	+35.8%	828,924	390,604	1,224,167
1960	D	+11.7%	713,480	563,936	1,279,920
1956	R	−6.0%	557,608	628,434	1,187,897
1952	D	+4.9%	638,475	578,753	1,222,307
1948	D	+12.4%	530,481	410,913	966,024
1944	D	+13.6%	565,516	429,418	999,990
1940	D	+16.0%	603,724	436,521	1,045,059
1936	D	+31.4%	632,498	324,280	982,586
1932	D	+9.9%	339,013	275,344	644,280
1928	R	−22.9%	256,924	411,644	674,810
1924	R	−46.7%	59,261	278,803	469,777
1920	R	−41.6%	89,890	245,286	373,208
1916	R	−12.9%	102,730	136,451	260,670
1912	O	+8.9%	65,667	44,650	237,032
1908	R	−25.0%	76,760	136,003	236,615
1904	R	−47.8%	50,919	157,999	224,018
1900	R	−31.8%	67,084	133,687	209,234
1896	R	−30.2%	72,858	137,901	215,046
1892	R	−12.5%	69,800	90,514	166,375
1888	—	No data	—	—	—
1884	—	No data	—	—	—
1880	—	No data	—	—	—
1876	—	No data	—	—	—

Demographics

Race, ethnicity, and ancestry

Click any group to see the ancestries typically reported within it.

German

24.3%

Irish

17.0%

Italian

15.0%

English

9.3%

Polish

7.6%

American

3.2%

Scottish

1.9%

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: 42.9 in this county, 39.1 nationally

Male

Age

Female

0.9%

85+

1.8%

2.7%

75–84

3.5%

6.0%

65–74

6.6%

6.9%

55–64

7.3%

5.9%

45–54

5.9%

6.4%

35–44

6.2%

6.6%

25–34

6.4%

4.1%

18–24

4.0%

7.2%

5–17

6.8%

2.5%

2.3%

Source · American Community Survey 5-year estimates, 2024 release.

Median household income

2024 inflation-adjusted dollars

$76,360

Pittsburgh, PA ranks near the middle of US counties.

Pittsburgh, PA$76,360

Pennsylvania$77,971

United States$80,734

Source · American Community Survey 5-year estimates, 2024 release.

Poverty rate

All persons below federal poverty line

11.1%

Child poverty is below the national average.

Children under 1814.4%

Working age (18–64)10.2%

Seniors (65+)11.0%

Source · American Community Survey 5-year estimates, 2024 release.

Language at home

Population aged 5 and older

94.1%

speak English only

Other Indo-European2.4%

Spanish1.5%

Asian & Pacific Islander1.5%

Other languages0.5%

Source · ACS 5-year estimates, 2024.

Religious adherents

Adherents per capita by tradition

Catholic & Orthodox

31.3%

Other Christian

7.4%

Mainline Protestant

5.7%

Methodist

4.4%

Non-Christian

2.4%

Baptist

1.8%

Pentecostal & Holiness

1.7%

Source · 2020 US Religion Census. Remaining 45.2% of residents not counted as adherents by any reporting body.

The Pittsburgh metro has trended Republican at the county level over two decades as its post-industrial collar communities shifted rightward, even as Allegheny County's urban core continues to anchor Democratic margins in statewide contests.

The Democratic margin in Pittsburgh, PA has rarely exceeded thirty-six points in modern history; the Republican margin has rarely exceeded forty-eight points. 2024 delivered the metro to the Republican candidate by four points.

Its demographics resemble the country more than they resemble most metros. A 83% non-Hispanic-white share, a 11% poverty rate, and a median household income of $76,360 — all within the broad national range.

Cite this page

All citations released under CC BY 4.0. Attribution: Akashic Intelligence.

Pittsburgh, PA, Pennsylvania — The Long Memory. Akashic Intelligence — The Long Memory. https://tiers.akashic.app/cbsa/38300/. Accessed May 20, 2026. License: CC BY 4.0.

License: CC BY 4.0

Frequently asked questions

How did Pittsburgh, PA, Pennsylvania vote in 2024?

In 2024, Pittsburgh, PA, Pennsylvania voted Republican by 4.4 points (R+4), carried by the Republican candidate. Out of 1,422,932 votes cast, 671,128 went Democratic and 734,418 went Republican.

What is Pittsburgh, PA, Pennsylvania's political archetype?

Akashic classifies Pittsburgh, PA, Pennsylvania as a "Bellwether" metro based on its long-arc presidential voting pattern. Across 38 elections in the dataset, the metro has voted Democratic 18 times, Republican 15 times, and other 1 times.

When did Pittsburgh, PA, Pennsylvania last vote Democratic?

The most recent presidential election in which Pittsburgh, PA, Pennsylvania voted Democratic was 2008.

How many people live in Pittsburgh, PA, Pennsylvania?

Pittsburgh, PA, Pennsylvania has a population of 2,439,940 according to the 2024 American Community Survey 5-year estimates from the US Census Bureau.

What is the median household income in Pittsburgh, PA, Pennsylvania?

Median household income in Pittsburgh, PA, Pennsylvania is $76,360 — below the national median of $80,734. The Pennsylvania state median is $77,971.

What is the political history of Pittsburgh, PA, Pennsylvania?

Akashic tracks 38 presidential elections in Pittsburgh, PA, Pennsylvania from 1876 to 2024. Of those, 18 went Democratic and 15 went Republican. The metro's archetype — "Bellwether" — captures the overall trajectory of that voting record.

Pittsburgh, PA votes the way the country votes.

Key facts

Demographics

Frequently asked questions