Iowa City, IA: Diversifying Metro metro. In 2024, voted D+30%. Democratic peak: D+36 in 2008.
Key facts
- 2024 presidential margin
- D+30MIT Election Lab
- Political typology
- Diversifying MetroAkashic typology
- Population
- 179,2002024 5-year
- Median household income
- $75,0252024 5-year
- White (non-Hispanic)
- 78.1%2024 5-year
- Black
- 6.9%2024 5-year
- Hispanic / Latino
- 6.8%2024 5-year
- Peak Democratic margin
- D+36 in 2008MIT Election Lab
- Peak Republican margin
- R+26 in 1952MIT Election Lab
2024 presidential election
Iowa City, IA
HarrisD+30
How it voted
Share of the 2024 vote
| Kamala Harris ✓Democratic | 64.3% | 63,143 |
|---|---|---|
| Donald TrumpRepublican | 33.8% | 33,206 |
| OtherAll other candidates | 1.9% | 1,883 |
D+60R+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
| Year | Margin (D minus R) |
|---|---|
| 1876 | No data |
| 1880 | No data |
| 1884 | No data |
| 1888 | No data |
| 1892 | +6.4% |
| 1896 | −2.9% |
| 1900 | −3.8% |
| 1904 | −8.9% |
| 1908 | +0.4% |
| 1912 | +22.7% |
| 1916 | +3.0% |
| 1920 | −22.1% |
| 1924 | −20.5% |
| 1928 | −14.2% |
| 1932 | +17.1% |
| 1936 | +12.3% |
| 1940 | +0.7% |
| 1944 | +0.6% |
| 1948 | +1.1% |
| 1952 | −25.9% |
| 1956 | −18.5% |
| 1960 | −9.8% |
| 1964 | +30.9% |
| 1968 | −0.2% |
| 1972 | +8.3% |
| 1976 | +7.2% |
| 1980 | +10.6% |
| 1984 | +11.0% |
| 1988 | +25.5% |
| 1992 | +23.7% |
| 1996 | +27.3% |
| 2000 | +20.0% |
| 2004 | +23.3% |
| 2008 | +36.1% |
| 2012 | +30.5% |
| 2016 | +30.4% |
| 2020 | +35.4% |
| 2024 | +30.5% |
DemocraticRepublican
38 presidential elections
| Year | Won | Margin | Democratic | Republican | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| D | 63,143 | 33,206 | 98,232 | ||
| D | 63,738 | 29,896 | 95,616 | ||
| D | 54,143 | 27,217 | 88,568 | ||
| D | 55,781 | 29,260 | 86,981 | ||
| D | 56,197 | 25,979 | 83,601 | ||
| D | 46,442 | 28,692 | 76,061 | ||
| D | 35,106 | 22,726 | 61,863 | ||
| D | 31,716 | 17,002 | 53,905 | ||
| D | 32,040 | 17,617 | 60,792 | ||
| D | 32,535 | 19,194 | 52,263 | ||
| D | 29,079 | 23,290 | 52,814 | ||
| D | 22,999 | 17,609 | 50,624 | ||
| D | 23,656 | 20,308 | 46,517 | ||
| D | 23,706 | 20,010 | 44,325 | ||
| R | 16,220 | 16,283 | 33,887 | ||
| D | 19,304 | 10,175 | 29,537 | ||
| R | 13,785 | 16,788 | 30,597 | ||
| R | 11,789 | 17,142 | 28,952 | ||
| R | 10,671 | 18,177 | 28,935 | ||
| D | 12,096 | 11,819 | 24,548 | ||
| D | 11,857 | 11,704 | 23,660 | ||
| D | 13,047 | 12,855 | 25,999 | ||
| D | 13,173 | 10,248 | 23,861 | ||
| D | 13,318 | 9,373 | 23,078 | ||
| R | 9,935 | 13,236 | 23,240 | ||
| R | 6,438 | 10,794 | 21,269 | ||
| R | 7,289 | 11,509 | 19,100 | ||
| D | 5,789 | 5,449 | 11,366 | ||
| D | 5,330 | 2,909 | 10,683 | ||
| D | 5,433 | 5,389 | 11,040 | ||
| R | 4,857 | 5,838 | 10,992 | ||
| R | 5,416 | 5,854 | 11,499 | ||
| R | 5,462 | 5,792 | 11,480 | ||
| D | 5,361 | 4,697 | 10,375 | ||
| — | — | — | — | ||
| — | — | — | — | ||
| — | — | — | — | ||
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Demographics
2024 ACS
Race, ethnicity, and ancestry
Click any group to see the ancestries typically reported within it.
German
28.1%
Irish
14.2%
English
11.5%
American
3.3%
Italian
2.7%
Polish
2.0%
Scottish
1.7%
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: 32.2 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.
2024 ACS
Median household income
Inflation-adjusted dollars
$75,025
Iowa City, IA ranks near the middle of US counties.
Iowa City, IA$75,025
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
16.0%
Child poverty is below the national average.
Children under 1811.0%
Working age (18–64)18.0%
Seniors (65+)5.8%
Source · American Community Survey 5-year estimates, 2024 release.
2024 ACS
Language at home
Population aged 5 and older
86.2%
speak English only
Spanish4.3%
Other Indo-European3.7%
Asian & Pacific Islander3.2%
Other languages2.7%
Source · ACS 5-year estimates, 2024.
2020 religion census
Religious adherents
Adherents per capita by tradition
Source · 2020 US Religion Census. Remaining 68.7% of residents not counted as adherents by any reporting body.
Home to the University of Iowa, Iowa City's metro turns out among the highest shares of college-degree holders in the state, a demographic pattern that has increasingly tilted its margins toward Democratic candidates in recent election cycles.
Across the recorded series it reached a Democratic high of thirty-six points in 2008 and a Republican high of twenty-six points in 1952. Between 2020 and 2024 the metro moved five points toward the Republican candidate; the 2024 margin was thirty points.
A population of 179,200, a 78% non-Hispanic-white share, and a median household income of $75,025 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.
Iowa City, IA. Akashic. https://akashic.app/cbsa/26980/. Accessed May 20, 2026. License: CC BY 4.0.
License: CC BY 4.0
Frequently asked questions
How did Iowa City, IA vote in 2024?
In 2024, Iowa City, IA voted Democratic by 30.5 points (D+30), carried by the Democratic candidate. Out of 98,232 votes cast, 63,143 went Democratic and 33,206 went Republican.
What is Iowa City, IA's political typology?
Akashic places Iowa City, IA in the "Diversifying 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 24 times, Republican 10 times, and other 0 times.
When did Iowa City, IA last vote Republican?
The most recent presidential election in which Iowa City, IA voted Republican was 1968.
How many people live in Iowa City, IA?
Iowa City, IA has a population of 179,200 according to the 2024 American Community Survey 5-year estimates from the US Census Bureau.
What is the median household income in Iowa City, IA?
Median household income in Iowa City, IA is $75,025 — below the national median of $80,734. The Iowa state median is $75,059.
What is the political history of Iowa City, IA?
Akashic tracks 38 presidential elections in Iowa City, IA from 1876 to 2024. Of those, 24 went Democratic and 10 went Republican. The metro's typology — "Diversifying Metro" — captures where that record, its demographics, and its recent swing place it among American communities.