SantaBarbra-SanMar-SanLuOb, California: Urban anchor market. In 2024, voted D+20%. Republican peak: R+50 in 1924.
Key facts
- 2024 presidential margin
- D+20MIT Election Lab
- Political archetype
- Urban anchorAkashic typology
- Population
- 725,2562024 5-year
- Median household income
- $97,8832024 5-year
- White (non-Hispanic)
- 56.3%2024 5-year
- Black
- 1.5%2024 5-year
- Hispanic / Latino
- 39.2%2024 5-year
- Peak Democratic margin
- D+40 in 1912MIT Election Lab
- Peak Republican margin
- R+50 in 1924MIT Election Lab
| Year | Won | Margin | Democratic | Republican | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| D | 195,463 | 129,802 | 336,501 | ||
| D | 218,273 | 133,172 | 361,146 | ||
| D | 174,249 | 112,529 | 316,080 | ||
| D | 155,387 | 124,573 | 289,851 | ||
| D | 173,790 | 126,640 | 308,562 | ||
| D | 149,056 | 144,801 | 298,911 | ||
| R | 117,937 | 128,352 | 263,860 | ||
| D | 111,045 | 110,648 | 251,245 | ||
| D | 109,351 | 93,759 | 267,375 | ||
| R | 99,253 | 124,137 | 226,407 | ||
| R | 78,189 | 138,349 | 219,270 | ||
| R | 61,158 | 108,260 | 198,522 | ||
| R | 79,944 | 88,707 | 174,142 | ||
| R | 71,388 | 95,641 | 172,574 | ||
| R | 53,393 | 69,488 | 131,301 | ||
| D | 70,633 | 52,926 | 123,672 | ||
| R | 44,384 | 56,667 | 101,457 | ||
| R | 28,332 | 47,517 | 76,232 | ||
| R | 23,554 | 46,717 | 70,634 | ||
| R | 21,220 | 30,323 | 53,704 | ||
| D | 23,789 | 21,440 | 45,393 | ||
| D | 25,736 | 21,311 | 47,598 | ||
| D | 23,812 | 14,540 | 38,951 | ||
| D | 21,306 | 12,313 | 35,353 | ||
| R | 8,290 | 17,091 | 25,719 | ||
| R | 1,973 | 12,419 | 21,079 | ||
| R | 4,192 | 11,093 | 17,054 | ||
| D | 8,737 | 7,307 | 17,568 | ||
| O | 5,067 | 0 | 12,811 | ||
| R | 3,021 | 4,721 | 8,872 | ||
| R | 2,319 | 4,691 | 7,925 | ||
| R | 3,312 | 3,552 | 7,195 | ||
| D | 3,972 | 3,675 | 7,870 | ||
| R | 2,427 | 2,916 | 7,282 | ||
| R | 3,150 | 3,373 | 6,823 | ||
| R | 2,119 | 2,476 | 4,838 | ||
| R | 1,446 | 1,737 | 3,654 | ||
| R | 1,687 | 1,946 | 3,635 |
Demographics
Spanning three Central Coast counties, this media market blends UC Santa Barbara's student electorate with agricultural inland communities, producing countywide margins that routinely diverge from statewide Democratic baselines by 8–12 points depending on the cycle.
The Democratic margin in SantaBarbra-SanMar-SanLuOb has been steady. It reached its modern peak at forty points in 1912; the 2024 margin was twenty points, still in line with the market's long pattern.
Its political identity is inseparable from its demographic profile: a 56% non-Hispanic-white share, a median household income of $97,883, and the full diversity of a major metropolitan center.
SantaBarbra-SanMar-SanLuOb, California — The Long Memory. Akashic Intelligence — The Long Memory. https://tiers.akashic.app/dma/855/. Accessed May 20, 2026. License: CC BY 4.0.