akashic
1876–2024
Gaffney, SC·South Carolina

Gaffney, SC has voted Republican in eleven straight presidential elections — R+51 in 2024.

Cherokee County's factory-floor city where textile history still shapes the ballot

1876 — 2024·38 elections
SC
LatestR+51in 2024
TypologyEvangelical Deep Southcluster typology
Population56,6472024 ACS

Gaffney, SC, South Carolina: Evangelical Deep South metro. In 2024, voted R+51%. Democratic peak: D+99 in 1936.

Key facts

2024 presidential margin
R+51MIT Election Lab
Political typology
Evangelical Deep SouthAkashic typology
Population
56,6472024 5-year
Median household income
$50,2882024 5-year
White (non-Hispanic)
70.3%2024 5-year
Black
18.8%2024 5-year
Hispanic / Latino
5.5%2024 5-year
Peak Democratic margin
D+99 in 1936MIT Election Lab
Peak Republican margin
R+56 in 1972MIT Election Lab
2024 presidential election
Gaffney, SC
TrumpR+51
—
How it voted
Share of the 2024 vote
Donald Trump ✓Republican75.3%18,697
Kamala HarrisDemocratic23.9%5,939
OtherAll other candidates0.8%203
D+60
R+60
1 counties, each filled by 2024 D-vs-R margin.
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: −51.4% in 2024.flipped R · 1984−51.4%DR18762024
Presidential margin over time
YearMargin (D minus R)
1876No data
1880No data
1884No data
1888No data
1892No data
1896No data
1900+93.1%
1904+96.0%
1908+91.6%
1912+98.2%
1916+95.4%
1920+94.7%
1924+95.6%
1928+87.9%
1932+98.4%
1936+99.0%
1940+96.6%
1944+90.2%
1948+30.0%
1952+56.8%
1956+56.7%
1960+55.0%
1964+8.0%
1968−8.1%
1972−55.7%
1976+32.7%
1980+12.2%
1984−35.6%
1988−28.3%
1992−9.9%
1996−6.4%
2000−23.0%
2004−30.1%
2008−29.3%
2012−29.3%
2016−41.7%
2020−43.8%
2024−51.4%
DemocraticRepublican
38 presidential elections
Source · MIT Election Lab · ICPSR · VEST (precinct-level 2024).
YearWonMarginDemocraticRepublicanTotal
R
−51.4%
5,93918,69724,839
R
−43.8%
6,98318,04325,270
R
−41.7%
6,09215,16721,759
R
−29.3%
7,23113,31420,773
R
−29.3%
7,21513,30520,766
R
−30.1%
6,46612,09018,714
R
−23.0%
6,1389,90016,323
R
−6.4%
5,8216,68913,639
R
−9.9%
5,4536,88714,557
R
−28.3%
4,3227,76312,151
R
−35.6%
4,1018,65512,809
D
+12.2%
6,8895,37912,418
D
+32.7%
7,7653,93111,732
R
−55.7%
2,1077,5709,800
O
−8.1%
1,9982,85310,493
D
+8.0%
4,2583,6277,885
D
+55.0%
5,3911,5656,956
D
+56.7%
3,6879074,902
D
+56.8%
5,5451,5297,074
O
+30.0%
605771,758
D
+90.2%
1,620681,721
D
+96.6%
2,069362,105
D
+99.0%
2,28002,303
D
+98.4%
2,36302,402
D
+87.9%
1,388891,477
D
+95.6%
1,186241,216
D
+94.7%
1,771481,819
D
+95.4%
1,271131,319
D
+98.2%
1,25901,282
D
+91.6%
1,506661,572
D
+96.0%
1,507311,538
D
+93.1%
1,084391,123
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Demographics

2024 ACS
Race, ethnicity, and ancestry
Click any group to see the ancestries typically reported within it.
American
13.9%
English
9.8%
Irish
8.0%
German
5.7%
Scottish
1.8%
Italian
1.6%
French
0.5%
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: 40.4 in this county, 39.1 nationally
Male
Age
Female
0.5%
85+
1.2%
2.4%
75–84
2.8%
5.1%
65–74
5.5%
6.6%
55–64
6.7%
6.4%
45–54
6.6%
5.6%
35–44
5.8%
6.3%
25–34
6.9%
4.5%
18–24
4.3%
8.7%
5–17
8.2%
3.0%
<5
2.8%
Source · American Community Survey 5-year estimates, 2024 release.
2024 ACS
Median household income
Inflation-adjusted dollars
$50,288
Gaffney, SC ranks near the middle of US counties.
Gaffney, SC$50,288
South Carolina$69,324
United States$80,734
Source · American Community Survey 5-year estimates, 2024 release.
2024 ACS
Poverty rate
All persons below federal poverty line
18.4%
Children face higher poverty than working-age adults.
Children under 1828.3%
Working age (18–64)15.3%
Seniors (65+)17.6%
Source · American Community Survey 5-year estimates, 2024 release.
2024 ACS
Language at home
Population aged 5 and older
94.7%
speak English only
Spanish4.1%
Asian & Pacific Islander0.7%
Other Indo-European0.5%
Source · ACS 5-year estimates, 2024.
2020 religion census
Religious adherents
Adherents per capita by tradition
Baptist
41.0%
Other Christian
14.0%
Methodist
2.7%
Catholic & Orthodox
2.1%
Pentecostal & Holiness
2.1%
Mainline Protestant
0.7%
Non-Christian
0.1%
Source · 2020 US Religion Census. Remaining 37.3% of residents not counted as adherents by any reporting body.

Gaffney anchors a small Upstate South Carolina metro where manufacturing employment and a predominantly working-class white electorate have driven consistent double-digit Republican margins in statewide races over the past two decades.

Across the recorded series it reached a Democratic high of ninety-nine points in 1936 and a Republican high of fifty-six points in 1972. Between 2020 and 2024 the metro moved eight points toward the Republican candidate; the 2024 margin was fifty-one points.

A population of 56,647, a 70% non-Hispanic-white share, and a median household income of $50,288 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.
Gaffney, SC, South Carolina. Akashic. https://akashic.app/cbsa/23500/. Accessed May 20, 2026. License: CC BY 4.0.
License: CC BY 4.0

Frequently asked questions

How did Gaffney, SC, South Carolina vote in 2024?
In 2024, Gaffney, SC, South Carolina voted Republican by 51.4 points (R+51), carried by the Republican candidate. Out of 24,839 votes cast, 5,939 went Democratic and 18,697 went Republican.
What is Gaffney, SC, South Carolina's political typology?
Akashic places Gaffney, SC, South Carolina in the "Evangelical Deep South" 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 18 times, Republican 12 times, and other 2 times.
When did Gaffney, SC, South Carolina last vote Democratic?
The most recent presidential election in which Gaffney, SC, South Carolina voted Democratic was 1980.
How many people live in Gaffney, SC, South Carolina?
Gaffney, SC, South Carolina has a population of 56,647 according to the 2024 American Community Survey 5-year estimates from the US Census Bureau.
What is the median household income in Gaffney, SC, South Carolina?
Median household income in Gaffney, SC, South Carolina is $50,288 — below the national median of $80,734. The South Carolina state median is $69,324.
What is the political history of Gaffney, SC, South Carolina?
Akashic tracks 38 presidential elections in Gaffney, SC, South Carolina from 1876 to 2024. Of those, 18 went Democratic and 12 went Republican. The metro's typology — "Evangelical Deep South" — captures where that record, its demographics, and its recent swing place it among American communities.