Congressional District 42 Congressional District (CA) — Elections 1876–2024

California 42nd Congressional District, California: Democratic loyalist district. In 2024, voted D+33%. Republican peak: R+58 in 1924.

Key facts

2024 presidential margin: D+33MIT Election Lab
Political archetype: Democratic loyalistAkashic typology
Population: 524,4912024 5-year
Median household income: $90,1122024 5-year
White (non-Hispanic): 30.9%2024 5-year
Black: 7.7%2024 5-year
Hispanic / Latino: 48.4%2024 5-year
Peak Democratic margin: D+49 in 2016MIT Election Lab
Peak Republican margin: R+58 in 1924MIT Election Lab

2024 results by constituent county

1 counties · 1 D · 0 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	D	+32.9%	129,248	63,624	199,402
2020	D	+44.0%	161,961	61,254	229,072
2016	D	+49.3%	131,775	41,160	183,640
2012	D	+41.9%	118,543	47,341	170,098
2008	D	+40.4%	122,764	51,142	177,434
2004	D	+27.5%	102,011	57,548	161,661
2000	D	+31.1%	91,464	46,624	144,116
1996	D	+28.4%	76,499	39,919	128,922
1992	D	+23.5%	77,349	42,757	147,230
1988	D	+5.0%	73,383	66,290	141,416
1984	R	−10.1%	61,970	76,150	139,718
1980	R	−10.0%	52,394	65,478	130,482
1976	D	+1.9%	65,337	62,826	131,492
1972	R	−12.7%	63,631	82,867	151,346
1968	R	−1.6%	65,410	67,721	142,128
1964	D	+14.9%	83,860	62,085	146,028
1960	D	+0.8%	70,787	69,656	140,872
1956	R	−11.1%	53,894	67,386	121,672
1952	R	−12.6%	50,804	65,609	117,704
1948	D	+0.5%	43,456	43,004	92,458
1944	D	+14.1%	47,390	35,636	83,500
1940	D	+17.6%	43,993	30,707	75,677
1936	D	+35.4%	40,497	19,111	60,446
1932	D	+18.6%	29,649	19,985	51,846
1928	R	−41.5%	11,226	27,459	39,104
1924	R	−58.2%	1,794	16,024	24,461
1920	R	−47.5%	2,976	9,524	13,784
1916	R	−8.0%	6,100	7,248	14,326
1912	O	+33.3%	2,947	0	8,839
1908	R	−26.6%	1,180	2,218	3,908
1904	R	−46.0%	536	1,738	2,614
1900	R	−17.3%	704	1,027	1,863
1896	R	−2.5%	858	903	1,820
1892	R	−9.3%	434	547	1,218
1888	R	−14.6%	541	738	1,351
1884	R	−8.5%	250	299	579
1880	R	−0.9%	153	156	325
1876	D	+8.4%	193	163	357

Demographics

Race, ethnicity, and ancestry

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

German

4.3%

Irish

3.8%

English

3.8%

American

3.1%

Italian

2.5%

Polish

1.1%

French

1.0%

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: 38.2 in this county, 39.1 nationally

Male

Age

Female

0.7%

85+

1.2%

1.9%

75–84

2.5%

4.1%

65–74

4.8%

6.1%

55–64

6.3%

6.5%

45–54

6.6%

7.2%

35–44

6.9%

8.0%

25–34

7.8%

4.5%

18–24

4.4%

7.9%

5–17

7.5%

2.6%

2.5%

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

Median household income

2024 inflation-adjusted dollars

$90,112

Congressional District 42 ranks near the middle of US counties.

Congressional District 42$90,112

California$99,122

United States$80,734

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

Poverty rate

All persons below federal poverty line

13.7%

Children face moderate poverty.

Children under 1817.6%

Working age (18–64)12.5%

Seniors (65+)15.9%

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

Language at home

Population aged 5 and older

44.9%

speak English only

Spanish37.6%

Asian & Pacific Islander10.7%

Other Indo-European5.6%

Other languages1.2%

Source · ACS 5-year estimates, 2024.

Religious adherents

Adherents per capita by tradition

Catholic & Orthodox

31.9%

Other Christian

7.9%

Non-Christian

3.8%

Pentecostal & Holiness

3.0%

Baptist

2.3%

Mainline Protestant

1.1%

Methodist

0.9%

Source · 2020 US Religion Census. Remaining 49.1% of residents not counted as adherents by any reporting body.

California 42nd 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 42nd Congressional District reached its widest at forty-nine points in 2016. The margin in 2024 was thirty-three points — still decisive.

Its loyalty is rooted in its place. Median household income of $90,112, a 31% non-Hispanic-white share, and a population of 524,491 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 42, California — The Long Memory. Akashic Intelligence — The Long Memory. https://tiers.akashic.app/cd/0642/. Accessed May 20, 2026. License: CC BY 4.0.

License: CC BY 4.0

Frequently asked questions

How did Congressional District 42, California vote in 2024?

In 2024, Congressional District 42, California voted Democratic by 32.9 points (D+33), carried by the Democratic candidate. Out of 199,402 votes cast, 129,248 went Democratic and 63,624 went Republican.

What is Congressional District 42, California's political archetype?

Akashic classifies Congressional District 42, 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 19 times, Republican 18 times, and other 1 times.

When did Congressional District 42, California last vote Republican?

The most recent presidential election in which Congressional District 42, California voted Republican was 1984.

How many people live in Congressional District 42, California?

Congressional District 42, California has a population of 524,491 according to the 2024 American Community Survey 5-year estimates from the US Census Bureau.

What is the median household income in Congressional District 42, California?

Median household income in Congressional District 42, California is $90,112 — above the national median of $80,734. The California state median is $99,122.

What is the political history of Congressional District 42, California?

Akashic tracks 38 presidential elections in Congressional District 42, California from 1876 to 2024. Of those, 19 went Democratic and 18 went Republican. The district's archetype — "Democratic loyalist" — captures the overall trajectory of that voting record.

California 42nd Congressional District has voted Democratic in ten straight presidential cycles.

Key facts

Demographics

Frequently asked questions