Bakersfield, California: Republican loyalist market. In 2024, voted R+21%. Democratic peak: D+52 in 1912.
Key facts
- 2024 presidential margin
- R+21MIT Election Lab
- Political archetype
- Republican loyalistAkashic typology
- Population
- 915,0752024 5-year
- Median household income
- $70,2102024 5-year
- White (non-Hispanic)
- 43.9%2024 5-year
- Black
- 5.1%2024 5-year
- Hispanic / Latino
- 56.5%2024 5-year
- Peak Democratic margin
- D+52 in 1912MIT Election Lab
- Peak Republican margin
- R+34 in 2004MIT Election Lab
Constituent county margins for Bakersfield, 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 | 108,241 | 167,879 | 283,246 | ||
| R | 133,366 | 164,484 | 305,292 | ||
| R | 98,689 | 129,584 | 244,163 | ||
| R | 89,495 | 126,618 | 222,189 | ||
| R | 93,457 | 134,793 | 233,808 | ||
| R | 68,603 | 140,417 | 211,174 | ||
| R | 66,003 | 110,663 | 182,308 | ||
| R | 62,658 | 92,151 | 171,391 | ||
| R | 60,510 | 80,762 | 179,263 | ||
| R | 55,083 | 90,550 | 147,293 | ||
| R | 49,567 | 94,776 | 145,744 | ||
| R | 41,097 | 72,842 | 122,121 | ||
| R | 50,567 | 58,023 | 110,961 | ||
| R | 41,937 | 71,686 | 119,193 | ||
| R | 49,284 | 53,990 | 115,832 | ||
| D | 64,174 | 45,014 | 109,308 | ||
| R | 51,440 | 52,800 | 104,705 | ||
| R | 43,533 | 46,220 | 90,075 | ||
| R | 36,151 | 44,600 | 81,332 | ||
| D | 33,029 | 24,464 | 58,811 | ||
| D | 26,205 | 20,730 | 47,161 | ||
| D | 32,202 | 19,445 | 52,126 | ||
| D | 25,726 | 8,345 | 34,479 | ||
| D | 19,634 | 7,011 | 27,920 | ||
| R | 8,541 | 14,692 | 23,445 | ||
| R | 3,159 | 8,646 | 18,763 | ||
| R | 6,095 | 7,079 | 14,444 | ||
| D | 9,566 | 5,611 | 15,981 | ||
| D | 5,569 | 0 | 10,765 | ||
| R | 2,215 | 2,270 | 4,978 | ||
| R | 1,724 | 2,359 | 4,571 | ||
| D | 1,960 | 1,692 | 3,746 | ||
| D | 1,763 | 1,430 | 3,265 | ||
| D | 1,266 | 992 | 2,513 | ||
| D | 1,229 | 910 | 2,195 | ||
| D | 798 | 598 | 1,423 | ||
| D | 661 | 463 | 1,131 | ||
| D | 844 | 556 | 1,400 |
Demographics
Race, ethnicity, and ancestry
Click any group to see the ancestries typically reported within it.
German
5.7%
English
5.6%
Irish
4.8%
American
3.5%
Italian
1.9%
French
1.0%
Scottish
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: 32.7 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
$70,210
Bakersfield ranks near the middle of US counties.
Bakersfield$70,210
California$99,122
United States$80,734
Source · American Community Survey 5-year estimates, 2024 release.
Poverty rate
All persons below federal poverty line
19.1%
Children face higher poverty than working-age adults.
Children under 1825.6%
Working age (18–64)16.4%
Seniors (65+)17.1%
Source · American Community Survey 5-year estimates, 2024 release.
Language at home
Population aged 5 and older
54.3%
speak English only
Spanish40.1%
Asian & Pacific Islander2.8%
Other Indo-European2.0%
Other languages0.7%
Source · ACS 5-year estimates, 2024.
Religious adherents
Adherents per capita by tradition
Source · 2020 US Religion Census. Remaining 54.5% of residents not counted as adherents by any reporting body.
Anchored by Kern County's oil-and-agriculture economy, the Bakersfield media market consistently returns some of the widest Republican margins of any media market in California, making it a structural outlier in an otherwise Democratic-dominant state.
The Republican margin in Bakersfield reached its widest at thirty-four points in 2004. The margin in 2024 was twenty-one points, in line with the market's deep historical pattern.
Its loyalty is rooted in its place. Median household income of $70,210, a 44% non-Hispanic-white share, and a population of 915,075 together describe a market whose political habits are deeply settled.
Cite this page
All citations released under CC BY 4.0. Attribution: Akashic Intelligence.
Bakersfield, California — The Long Memory. Akashic Intelligence — The Long Memory. https://tiers.akashic.app/dma/800/. Accessed May 20, 2026. License: CC BY 4.0.
License: CC BY 4.0
Frequently asked questions
How did Bakersfield, California vote in 2024?
In 2024, Bakersfield, California voted Republican by 21.1 points (R+21), carried by the Republican candidate. Out of 283,246 votes cast, 108,241 went Democratic and 167,879 went Republican.
What is Bakersfield, California's political archetype?
Akashic classifies Bakersfield, California as a "Republican loyalist" market based on its long-arc presidential voting pattern. Across 38 elections in the dataset, the market has voted Democratic 15 times, Republican 23 times, and other 0 times.
When did Bakersfield, California last vote Democratic?
The most recent presidential election in which Bakersfield, California voted Democratic was 1964.
How many people live in Bakersfield, California?
Bakersfield, California has a population of 915,075 according to the 2024 American Community Survey 5-year estimates from the US Census Bureau.
What is the median household income in Bakersfield, California?
Median household income in Bakersfield, California is $70,210 — below the national median of $80,734. The California state median is $99,122.
What is the political history of Bakersfield, California?
Akashic tracks 38 presidential elections in Bakersfield, California from 1876 to 2024. Of those, 15 went Democratic and 23 went Republican. The market's archetype — "Republican loyalist" — captures the overall trajectory of that voting record.