California 21st Congressional District, California: Democratic loyalist district. In 2024, voted R+10%. Democratic peak: D+49 in 1936.
Key facts
- 2024 presidential margin
- R+10MIT Election Lab
- Political archetype
- Democratic loyalistAkashic typology
- Population
- 120,4752024 5-year
- Median household income
- $73,1612024 5-year
- White (non-Hispanic)
- 36.0%2024 5-year
- Black
- 3.4%2024 5-year
- Hispanic / Latino
- 58.8%2024 5-year
- Peak Democratic margin
- D+49 in 1936MIT Election Lab
- Peak Republican margin
- R+32 in 1924MIT Election Lab
Constituent county margins for Congressional District 21, CAOne 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 | 16,328 | 19,998 | 37,259 | ||
| D | 20,637 | 19,501 | 40,992 | ||
| D | 15,038 | 14,689 | 32,116 | ||
| R | 13,583 | 14,602 | 28,879 | ||
| R | 14,329 | 15,351 | 30,308 | ||
| R | 10,773 | 16,694 | 27,731 | ||
| R | 10,204 | 13,798 | 24,891 | ||
| R | 10,127 | 11,686 | 23,586 | ||
| R | 9,839 | 10,428 | 24,649 | ||
| R | 9,813 | 11,439 | 21,531 | ||
| R | 9,094 | 12,570 | 21,879 | ||
| R | 7,230 | 10,000 | 18,660 | ||
| R | 8,003 | 8,388 | 16,736 | ||
| R | 7,490 | 9,261 | 17,340 | ||
| R | 6,954 | 7,198 | 15,514 | ||
| D | 9,859 | 5,589 | 15,464 | ||
| D | 7,731 | 7,061 | 14,860 | ||
| D | 7,223 | 6,274 | 13,531 | ||
| R | 6,095 | 6,553 | 12,748 | ||
| D | 5,406 | 3,971 | 9,744 | ||
| D | 4,563 | 3,167 | 7,783 | ||
| D | 5,531 | 2,993 | 8,623 | ||
| D | 4,968 | 1,656 | 6,718 | ||
| D | 3,883 | 1,650 | 5,793 | ||
| R | 1,882 | 2,660 | 4,602 | ||
| R | 659 | 2,044 | 4,385 | ||
| R | 1,167 | 1,936 | 3,353 | ||
| D | 1,741 | 1,507 | 3,572 | ||
| O | 1,063 | 0 | 2,489 | ||
| R | 571 | 733 | 1,470 | ||
| R | 362 | 575 | 1,084 | ||
| D | 476 | 431 | 958 | ||
| D | 529 | 331 | 884 | ||
| D | 498 | 179 | 1,180 | ||
| D | 452 | 392 | 886 | ||
| D | 282 | 214 | 523 | ||
| D | 204 | 129 | 347 | ||
| D | 197 | 115 | 312 |
Demographics
Race, ethnicity, and ancestry
Click any group to see the ancestries typically reported within it.
German
5.9%
English
4.7%
Irish
4.4%
Italian
2.0%
American
1.7%
Scottish
0.8%
French
0.7%
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: 33.0 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
$73,161
Congressional District 21 ranks near the middle of US counties.
Congressional District 21$73,161
California$99,122
United States$80,734
Source · American Community Survey 5-year estimates, 2024 release.
Poverty rate
All persons below federal poverty line
18.2%
Children face moderate poverty.
Children under 1824.6%
Working age (18–64)15.7%
Seniors (65+)14.4%
Source · American Community Survey 5-year estimates, 2024 release.
Language at home
Population aged 5 and older
54.0%
speak English only
Spanish37.9%
Asian & Pacific Islander4.5%
Other Indo-European2.8%
Other languages0.8%
Source · ACS 5-year estimates, 2024.
Religious adherents
Adherents per capita by tradition
Source · 2020 US Religion Census. Remaining 53.4% of residents not counted as adherents by any reporting body.
California 21st Congressional District sits in the Pacific Coast. Its political identity has been Democratic for as long as anyone now living can remember. 2 consecutive presidential elections in modern records have gone for the Democratic candidate, often by margins that would be considered landslide territory anywhere else.
The Democratic margin in California 21st Congressional District reached its widest at forty-nine points in 1936. The margin in 2024 was ten points — a notable narrowing.
Its loyalty is rooted in its place. Median household income of $73,161, a 36% non-Hispanic-white share, and a population of 120,475 together describe a district whose political habits are deeply settled.
Cite this page
All citations released under CC BY 4.0. Attribution: Akashic Intelligence.
Congressional District 21, California — The Long Memory. Akashic Intelligence — The Long Memory. https://tiers.akashic.app/cd/0621/. Accessed May 20, 2026. License: CC BY 4.0.
License: CC BY 4.0
Frequently asked questions
How did Congressional District 21, California vote in 2024?
In 2024, Congressional District 21, California voted Republican by 9.8 points (R+10), carried by the Republican candidate. Out of 37,259 votes cast, 16,328 went Democratic and 19,998 went Republican.
What is Congressional District 21, California's political archetype?
Akashic classifies Congressional District 21, California as a "Democratic loyalist" district based on its long-arc presidential voting pattern. Across 38 elections in the dataset, the district has voted Democratic 18 times, Republican 19 times, and other 1 times.
When did Congressional District 21, California last vote Democratic?
The most recent presidential election in which Congressional District 21, California voted Democratic was 2020.
How many people live in Congressional District 21, California?
Congressional District 21, California has a population of 120,475 according to the 2024 American Community Survey 5-year estimates from the US Census Bureau.
What is the median household income in Congressional District 21, California?
Median household income in Congressional District 21, California is $73,161 — below the national median of $80,734. The California state median is $99,122.
What is the political history of Congressional District 21, California?
Akashic tracks 38 presidential elections in Congressional District 21, California from 1876 to 2024. Of those, 18 went Democratic and 19 went Republican. The district's archetype — "Democratic loyalist" — captures the overall trajectory of that voting record.