akashic
1876–2024
Ames, IA·Iowa

Ames, IA has voted Democratic in ten straight presidential elections — D+3 in 2024.

College town anchoring Story County's swing-county volatility

1876 — 2024·38 elections
IA
LatestD+3in 2024
TypologyIndustrial Catholic Metrocluster typology
Population127,1342024 ACS

Ames, IA, Iowa: Industrial Catholic Metro metro. In 2024, voted D+3%. Republican peak: R+56 in 1920.

Key facts

2024 presidential margin
D+3MIT Election Lab
Political typology
Industrial Catholic MetroAkashic typology
Population
127,1342024 5-year
Median household income
$72,5892024 5-year
White (non-Hispanic)
84.9%2024 5-year
Black
2.5%2024 5-year
Hispanic / Latino
4.7%2024 5-year
Peak Democratic margin
D+26 in 1964MIT Election Lab
Peak Republican margin
R+56 in 1920MIT Election Lab
2024 presidential election
Ames, IA
HarrisD+3
—
2024 presidential margin by county for Ames, IA, IAA map of the constituent counties of Ames, IA, IA, each outlined and filled by its 2024 presidential margin from deep red (Republican) through neutral to deep blue (Democratic).Story County, IA · D+10Boone County, IA · R+21
How it voted
Share of the 2024 vote
Kamala Harris ✓Democratic50.3%32,660
Donald TrumpRepublican47.5%30,864
OtherAll other candidates2.2%1,405
D+60
R+60
2 counties, each filled by 2024 D-vs-R margin. Hover any county for its result.
presidential history
Presidential margin, 1876–2024
Democratic minus Republican, by election
Presidential margin over timeDemocratic-minus-Republican presidential margin from 1876 to 2024. Most recent: +2.8% in 2024.flipped D · 1988+2.8%DR18762024
Presidential margin over time
YearMargin (D minus R)
1876No data
1880No data
1884No data
1888No data
1892−26.4%
1896−25.0%
1900−37.1%
1904−54.1%
1908−35.9%
1912+7.0%
1916−22.8%
1920−56.1%
1924−45.1%
1928−47.6%
1932+2.2%
1936+14.1%
1940+4.5%
1944+2.4%
1948−3.1%
1952−35.9%
1956−24.3%
1960−22.2%
1964+26.0%
1968−11.3%
1972−9.1%
1976−3.1%
1980−5.9%
1984−1.6%
1988+18.1%
1992+12.7%
1996+15.5%
2000+4.0%
2004+4.5%
2008+14.2%
2012+12.2%
2016+6.6%
2020+9.7%
2024+2.8%
DemocraticRepublican
38 presidential elections
Source · MIT Election Lab · ICPSR · VEST (precinct-level 2024).
YearWonMarginDemocraticRepublicanTotal
D
+2.8%
32,66030,86464,929
D
+9.7%
35,47829,03566,378
D
+6.6%
31,25026,94265,284
D
+12.2%
33,70426,22461,538
D
+14.2%
33,90425,28860,504
D
+4.5%
30,32327,68958,661
D
+4.0%
23,74821,85347,613
D
+15.5%
23,68016,76144,530
D
+12.7%
23,03116,85048,530
D
+18.1%
26,28318,16344,791
R
−1.6%
24,76225,55050,687
R
−5.9%
18,65521,56149,458
R
−3.1%
22,31223,80747,739
R
−9.1%
19,02922,88842,576
R
−11.3%
14,67518,58734,771
D
+26.0%
20,02811,73131,945
R
−22.2%
13,04020,46933,531
R
−24.3%
12,16720,00432,204
R
−35.9%
10,19521,75832,243
R
−3.1%
11,69312,49025,473
D
+2.4%
12,61612,03124,821
D
+4.5%
14,32013,08027,539
D
+14.1%
14,01310,46825,217
D
+2.2%
10,93110,42922,714
R
−47.6%
5,76316,55622,674
R
−45.1%
2,01211,89621,896
R
−56.1%
4,14915,80620,764
R
−22.8%
4,1106,67711,262
O
+7.0%
2,8252,04911,114
R
−35.9%
3,1537,15811,170
R
−54.1%
1,9007,74910,810
R
−37.1%
3,6078,18312,348
R
−25.0%
4,3907,37111,912
R
−26.4%
3,2465,7569,499
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Demographics

2024 ACS
Race, ethnicity, and ancestry
Click any group to see the ancestries typically reported within it.
German
29.9%
Irish
11.1%
English
10.8%
American
3.2%
Italian
2.2%
Scottish
1.7%
Polish
1.3%
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.
2024 ACS
Age distribution by sex
Median age: 30.2 in this county, 39.1 nationally
Male
Age
Female
0.7%
85+
1.0%
1.7%
75–84
2.3%
4.3%
65–74
4.5%
4.9%
55–64
5.0%
4.6%
45–54
4.3%
5.6%
35–44
5.1%
7.0%
25–34
5.6%
14.3%
18–24
11.7%
6.6%
5–17
6.3%
2.3%
<5
2.1%
Source · American Community Survey 5-year estimates, 2024 release.
2024 ACS
Median household income
Inflation-adjusted dollars
$72,589
Ames, IA ranks near the middle of US counties.
Ames, IA$72,589
Iowa$75,059
United States$80,734
Source · American Community Survey 5-year estimates, 2024 release.
2024 ACS
Poverty rate
All persons below federal poverty line
15.7%
Child poverty is below the national average.
Children under 189.2%
Working age (18–64)17.9%
Seniors (65+)7.3%
Source · American Community Survey 5-year estimates, 2024 release.
2024 ACS
Language at home
Population aged 5 and older
90.7%
speak English only
Asian & Pacific Islander3.2%
Other Indo-European2.8%
Spanish2.4%
Other languages0.9%
Source · ACS 5-year estimates, 2024.
2020 religion census
Religious adherents
Adherents per capita by tradition
Mainline Protestant
11.6%
Catholic & Orthodox
9.4%
Other Christian
6.2%
Methodist
5.8%
Baptist
2.2%
Non-Christian
1.0%
Pentecostal & Holiness
0.6%
Source · 2020 US Religion Census. Remaining 63.1% of residents not counted as adherents by any reporting body.

Home to Iowa State University, Ames pulls its metro's median age down and its college-educated share up, producing a voting coalition that has swung between parties by double digits in recent presidential cycles.

Across the recorded series it reached a Democratic high of twenty-six points in 1964 and a Republican high of fifty-six points in 1920. Between 2020 and 2024 the metro moved seven points toward the Republican candidate; the 2024 margin was three points.

A population of 127,134, a 85% non-Hispanic-white share, and a median household income of $72,589 describe the metro.

Compare two places, side by side

Twelve curated comparisons line up election history, demographics, and the divergence story for two places at a glance. Browse all comparisons →

Cite this page
All citations released under CC BY 4.0. Attribution: Akashic Intelligence.
Ames, IA, Iowa. Akashic. https://akashic.app/cbsa/11180/. Accessed May 20, 2026. License: CC BY 4.0.
License: CC BY 4.0

Frequently asked questions

How did Ames, IA, Iowa vote in 2024?
In 2024, Ames, IA, Iowa voted Democratic by 2.8 points (D+3), carried by the Democratic candidate. Out of 64,929 votes cast, 32,660 went Democratic and 30,864 went Republican.
What is Ames, IA, Iowa's political typology?
Akashic places Ames, IA, Iowa in the "Industrial Catholic Metro" typology. The typology is a data-driven cluster built from vote share, vote swing, race and ethnicity, income, language spoken at home, religion, and ancestry. Across 38 elections in the dataset, the metro has voted Democratic 15 times, Republican 18 times, and other 1 times.
When did Ames, IA, Iowa last vote Republican?
The most recent presidential election in which Ames, IA, Iowa voted Republican was 1984.
How many people live in Ames, IA, Iowa?
Ames, IA, Iowa has a population of 127,134 according to the 2024 American Community Survey 5-year estimates from the US Census Bureau.
What is the median household income in Ames, IA, Iowa?
Median household income in Ames, IA, Iowa is $72,589 — below the national median of $80,734. The Iowa state median is $75,059.
What is the political history of Ames, IA, Iowa?
Akashic tracks 38 presidential elections in Ames, IA, Iowa from 1876 to 2024. Of those, 15 went Democratic and 18 went Republican. The metro's typology — "Industrial Catholic Metro" — captures where that record, its demographics, and its recent swing place it among American communities.