akashic
1876–2024
Winston-Salem, NC·North Carolina

Winston-Salem, NC has voted Republican in six straight presidential elections — R+16 in 2024.

Forsyth County anchor where suburban realignment meets a majority-minority city core

1876 — 2024·38 elections
NC
LatestR+16in 2024
TypologyDiversifying Metrocluster typology
Population689,7662024 ACS

Winston-Salem, NC, North Carolina: Diversifying Metro metro. In 2024, voted R+16%. Republican peak: R+43 in 1972.

Key facts

2024 presidential margin
R+16MIT Election Lab
Political typology
Diversifying MetroAkashic typology
Population
689,7662024 5-year
Median household income
$66,4142024 5-year
White (non-Hispanic)
66.7%2024 5-year
Black
17.2%2024 5-year
Hispanic / Latino
12.2%2024 5-year
Peak Democratic margin
D+29 in 1940MIT Election Lab
Peak Republican margin
R+43 in 1972MIT Election Lab
2024 presidential election
Winston-Salem, NC
TrumpR+16
—
2024 presidential margin by county for Winston-Salem, NC, NCA map of the constituent counties of Winston-Salem, NC, NC, each outlined and filled by its 2024 presidential margin from deep red (Republican) through neutral to deep blue (Democratic).Yadkin County, NC · R+62Davie County, NC · R+46Davidson County, NC · R+47Forsyth County, NC · D+13Stokes County, NC · R+59
How it voted
Share of the 2024 vote
Donald Trump ✓Republican57.1%212,636
Kamala HarrisDemocratic41.4%154,402
OtherAll other candidates1.5%5,562
D+60
R+60
5 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: −15.6% in 2024.flipped R · 2004−15.6%DR18762024
Presidential margin over time
YearMargin (D minus R)
1876No data
1880No data
1884No data
1888No data
1892−2.1%
1896−15.2%
1900−12.5%
1904−9.1%
1908−16.0%
1912+10.6%
1916−4.9%
1920−9.3%
1924−0.5%
1928−35.3%
1932+22.5%
1936+26.8%
1940+29.0%
1944+6.5%
1948+0.6%
1952−9.0%
1956−27.3%
1960−19.1%
1964−4.7%
1968−22.5%
1972−43.4%
1976−1.5%
1980−12.6%
1984−32.5%
1988−26.2%
1992−9.7%
1996−19.9%
2000+25.4%
2004−24.5%
2008−9.8%
2012−14.1%
2016−16.3%
2020−14.6%
2024−15.6%
DemocraticRepublican
38 presidential elections
Source · MIT Election Lab · ICPSR · VEST (precinct-level 2024).
YearWonMarginDemocraticRepublicanTotal
R
−15.6%
154,402212,636372,600
R
−14.6%
151,431204,027360,721
R
−16.3%
125,668176,890315,098
R
−14.1%
128,657171,653304,106
R
−9.8%
131,098159,971293,972
R
−24.5%
93,982155,140250,028
D
+25.4%
135,73480,464217,851
R
−19.9%
71,357110,008194,493
R
−9.7%
79,51999,742208,020
R
−26.2%
64,621110,629175,738
R
−32.5%
59,219116,371175,905
R
−12.6%
66,35286,290157,762
R
−1.5%
72,19974,416147,304
R
−43.4%
35,04390,845128,514
R
−22.5%
33,19462,833131,574
R
−4.7%
56,97262,552119,524
R
−19.1%
46,89669,099115,995
R
−27.3%
34,22559,95594,180
R
−9.0%
45,16254,07799,239
D
+0.6%
28,62328,28760,823
D
+6.5%
34,69130,47165,162
D
+29.0%
42,57823,42466,002
D
+26.8%
39,64722,87362,520
D
+22.5%
32,19920,25053,070
R
−35.3%
15,67532,81448,489
R
−0.5%
19,39619,58539,564
R
−9.3%
17,89321,57039,463
R
−4.9%
10,14811,20421,629
D
+10.6%
8,2066,24918,388
R
−16.0%
7,0369,75616,996
R
−9.1%
6,8528,24615,258
R
−12.5%
7,5299,69917,350
R
−15.2%
8,28411,28419,679
R
−2.1%
7,7968,17017,665
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Demographics

2024 ACS
Race, ethnicity, and ancestry
Click any group to see the ancestries typically reported within it.
English
14.0%
German
11.2%
Irish
8.5%
American
7.3%
Italian
2.5%
Scottish
2.2%
Polish
0.8%
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: 40.7 in this county, 39.1 nationally
Male
Age
Female
0.7%
85+
1.4%
2.5%
75–84
3.1%
5.0%
65–74
5.9%
6.7%
55–64
7.0%
6.1%
45–54
6.6%
5.7%
35–44
6.1%
6.1%
25–34
6.4%
4.3%
18–24
4.5%
8.4%
5–17
8.1%
2.8%
<5
2.6%
Source · American Community Survey 5-year estimates, 2024 release.
2024 ACS
Median household income
Inflation-adjusted dollars
$66,414
Winston-Salem, NC ranks near the middle of US counties.
Winston-Salem, NC$66,414
North Carolina$72,388
United States$80,734
Source · American Community Survey 5-year estimates, 2024 release.
2024 ACS
Poverty rate
All persons below federal poverty line
13.5%
Children face moderate poverty.
Children under 1819.7%
Working age (18–64)11.8%
Seniors (65+)11.4%
Source · American Community Survey 5-year estimates, 2024 release.
2024 ACS
Language at home
Population aged 5 and older
87.2%
speak English only
Spanish9.8%
Other Indo-European1.3%
Asian & Pacific Islander1.2%
Other languages0.5%
Source · ACS 5-year estimates, 2024.
2020 religion census
Religious adherents
Adherents per capita by tradition
Other Christian
20.6%
Baptist
12.8%
Methodist
9.8%
Catholic & Orthodox
9.6%
Mainline Protestant
4.5%
Pentecostal & Holiness
2.2%
Non-Christian
1.0%
Source · 2020 US Religion Census. Remaining 39.4% of residents not counted as adherents by any reporting body.

Winston-Salem's metro has trended toward competitive margins as college-educated suburban voters shifted in recent cycles, while the city proper—nearly 40% Black—anchors strong Democratic turnout that rural Forsyth precincts partially offset.

Across the recorded series it reached a Democratic high of twenty-nine points in 1940 and a Republican high of forty-three points in 1972. Between 2020 and 2024 the metro moved one point toward the Republican candidate; the 2024 margin was sixteen points.

A population of 689,766, a 67% non-Hispanic-white share, and a median household income of $66,414 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.
Winston-Salem, NC, North Carolina. Akashic. https://akashic.app/cbsa/49180/. Accessed May 20, 2026. License: CC BY 4.0.
License: CC BY 4.0

Frequently asked questions

How did Winston-Salem, NC, North Carolina vote in 2024?
In 2024, Winston-Salem, NC, North Carolina voted Republican by 15.6 points (R+16), carried by the Republican candidate. Out of 372,600 votes cast, 154,402 went Democratic and 212,636 went Republican.
What is Winston-Salem, NC, North Carolina's political typology?
Akashic places Winston-Salem, NC, North Carolina 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 7 times, Republican 27 times, and other 0 times.
When did Winston-Salem, NC, North Carolina last vote Democratic?
The most recent presidential election in which Winston-Salem, NC, North Carolina voted Democratic was 2000.
How many people live in Winston-Salem, NC, North Carolina?
Winston-Salem, NC, North Carolina has a population of 689,766 according to the 2024 American Community Survey 5-year estimates from the US Census Bureau.
What is the median household income in Winston-Salem, NC, North Carolina?
Median household income in Winston-Salem, NC, North Carolina is $66,414 — below the national median of $80,734. The North Carolina state median is $72,388.
What is the political history of Winston-Salem, NC, North Carolina?
Akashic tracks 38 presidential elections in Winston-Salem, NC, North Carolina from 1876 to 2024. Of those, 7 went Democratic and 27 went Republican. The metro's typology — "Diversifying Metro" — captures where that record, its demographics, and its recent swing place it among American communities.