akashic
1876–2024
Congressional District 1·Illinois

Congressional District 1 is one of the bluest places in America.

18762024·38 elections
IL
Latest
D+22
in 2024
Archetype
Urban anchor
since the recent cycles
Population
857,663
2024 ACS
4 counties · 2 D · 2 R
R+60
D+60
One cell per constituent county. Ordered by 2024 D-vs-R margin (bluest first). Hover for county-level numbers.
YearWonMarginDemocraticRepublicanTotal
2024D
+22.2%
221,064139,192368,432
2020D
+30.5%
258,051135,531401,301
2016D
+32.0%
230,851113,789365,856
2012D
+29.8%
215,765115,530336,836
2008D
+35.8%
237,600111,453352,838
2004D
+21.8%
197,132126,159325,356
2000D
+24.1%
168,715101,763277,883
1996D
+28.2%
145,47677,123241,990
1992D
+21.5%
149,53588,513283,808
1988D
+4.2%
133,061122,274257,419
1984R
−4.8%
129,090142,121272,733
1980D
+3.6%
128,469118,757269,343
1976D
+4.4%
138,920127,004270,832
1972R
−12.5%
118,309152,300272,096
1968D
+5.1%
128,414114,769268,667
1964D
+23.9%
171,767105,605277,371
1960D
+10.3%
152,023123,516276,267
1956R
−16.3%
105,683147,111253,393
1952R
−2.7%
126,394133,510260,581
1948D
+7.0%
128,629111,624241,842
1944D
+12.8%
134,449103,804239,000
1940D
+8.4%
125,987106,339233,219
1936D
+24.3%
133,17279,774219,530
1932D
+11.9%
100,87778,807185,516
1928R
−6.9%
78,95890,792171,099
1924R
−43.2%
23,85877,696124,678
1920R
−50.5%
21,59472,205100,186
1916R
−10.5%
42,08452,32097,941
1912O
+11.7%
14,9669,13649,867
1908R
−20.8%
17,53527,64448,614
1904R
−34.9%
11,54727,43245,532
1900R
−8.1%
21,15524,97547,329
1896R
−18.2%
18,04726,20144,862
1892D
+8.8%
17,17414,32432,257
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
12.3%
Irish
10.3%
Polish
8.4%
Italian
6.4%
English
4.4%
American
2.3%
French
1.1%
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.
Language at home
Population aged 5 and older
70.2%
speak English only
Spanish17.5%
Other Indo-European7.0%
Asian & Pacific Islander3.6%
Other languages1.6%
Source · ACS 5-year estimates, 2024.
Religious adherents
Adherents per capita by tradition
Catholic & Orthodox
27.6%
Other Christian
6.2%
Non-Christian
5.6%
Baptist
3.2%
Mainline Protestant
3.0%
Pentecostal & Holiness
2.8%
Methodist
1.1%
Source · 2020 US Religion Census. Remaining 50.5% of residents not counted as adherents by any reporting body.

Congressional District 1 is a political anchor of the Upper Midwest. Its population of 857,663 and its concentration of urban, diverse, and college-educated voters have made it a Democratic stronghold for decades running.

The Democratic margin in Congressional District 1 has been steady. It reached its modern peak at thirty-six points in 2008; the 2024 margin was twenty-two points, still in line with the county's long pattern.

Congressional District 1's political identity is inseparable from its demographic profile: a 52% non-Hispanic-white share, a median household income of $94,376, and the full diversity of a major metropolitan center.