Lexington, Kentucky: Industrial Catholic Metro market. In 2024, voted R+32%. Republican peak: R+34 in 1972.
Key facts
- 2024 presidential margin
- R+32MIT Election Lab
- Political typology
- Industrial Catholic MetroAkashic typology
- Population
- 1,328,1942024 5-year
- Median household income
- $60,4202024 5-year
- White (non-Hispanic)
- 85.6%2024 5-year
- Black
- 5.6%2024 5-year
- Hispanic / Latino
- 4.8%2024 5-year
- Peak Democratic margin
- D+21 in 1964MIT Election Lab
- Peak Republican margin
- R+34 in 1972MIT Election Lab
2024 presidential election
Lexington
TrumpR+32
How it voted
Share of the 2024 vote
| Donald Trump ✓Republican | 65.2% | 397,044 |
|---|---|---|
| Kamala HarrisDemocratic | 33.0% | 201,068 |
| OtherAll other candidates | 1.7% | 10,511 |
D+60R+60
40 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 | +4.8% |
| 1896 | −8.7% |
| 1900 | −6.3% |
| 1904 | −2.7% |
| 1908 | −6.0% |
| 1912 | +17.2% |
| 1916 | −0.6% |
| 1920 | −4.0% |
| 1924 | −4.5% |
| 1928 | −26.4% |
| 1932 | +13.2% |
| 1936 | +5.3% |
| 1940 | +6.3% |
| 1944 | +0.0% |
| 1948 | +8.8% |
| 1952 | −5.0% |
| 1956 | −14.8% |
| 1960 | −18.1% |
| 1964 | +21.5% |
| 1968 | −14.9% |
| 1972 | −33.6% |
| 1976 | +1.5% |
| 1980 | −4.9% |
| 1984 | −27.9% |
| 1988 | −18.3% |
| 1992 | −3.9% |
| 1996 | −3.3% |
| 2000 | −19.1% |
| 2004 | −22.5% |
| 2008 | −21.8% |
| 2012 | −28.8% |
| 2016 | −32.6% |
| 2020 | −28.1% |
| 2024 | −32.2% |
DemocraticRepublican
38 presidential elections
| Year | Won | Margin | Democratic | Republican | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| R | 201,068 | 397,044 | 608,623 | ||
| R | 217,264 | 391,108 | 619,635 | ||
| R | 171,755 | 351,048 | 550,084 | ||
| R | 176,043 | 322,089 | 507,622 | ||
| R | 196,676 | 308,590 | 512,788 | ||
| R | 195,906 | 311,002 | 510,975 | ||
| R | 169,738 | 252,418 | 432,125 | ||
| R | 164,842 | 177,122 | 375,982 | ||
| R | 162,824 | 178,467 | 400,233 | ||
| R | 142,101 | 206,457 | 351,280 | ||
| R | 128,135 | 227,995 | 358,535 | ||
| R | 156,179 | 172,894 | 341,898 | ||
| D | 148,239 | 143,676 | 296,470 | ||
| R | 90,288 | 183,692 | 278,061 | ||
| R | 89,684 | 128,754 | 261,409 | ||
| D | 153,943 | 99,359 | 254,253 | ||
| R | 111,591 | 160,900 | 272,491 | ||
| R | 111,325 | 150,307 | 262,794 | ||
| R | 117,428 | 129,771 | 247,783 | ||
| D | 114,564 | 95,831 | 213,914 | ||
| D | 112,280 | 112,179 | 225,301 | ||
| D | 136,134 | 119,970 | 256,722 | ||
| D | 129,316 | 116,313 | 246,399 | ||
| D | 147,074 | 112,562 | 260,920 | ||
| R | 86,949 | 149,342 | 236,550 | ||
| R | 99,410 | 109,105 | 213,676 | ||
| R | 115,683 | 125,474 | 242,577 | ||
| R | 69,494 | 70,365 | 141,193 | ||
| D | 60,419 | 39,206 | 123,325 | ||
| R | 62,968 | 71,142 | 136,330 | ||
| R | 57,829 | 61,113 | 121,298 | ||
| R | 60,889 | 69,185 | 131,321 | ||
| R | 54,517 | 65,225 | 122,506 | ||
| D | 46,917 | 42,396 | 94,166 | ||
| — | — | — | — | ||
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Demographics
2024 ACS
Race, ethnicity, and ancestry
Click any group to see the ancestries typically reported within it.
American
15.4%
English
15.1%
Irish
10.0%
German
9.7%
Scottish
2.0%
Italian
1.6%
French
1.0%
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: 38.8 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
$60,420
Lexington ranks near the middle of US counties.
Lexington$60,420
Kentucky$63,726
United States$80,734
Source · American Community Survey 5-year estimates, 2024 release.
2024 ACS
Poverty rate
All persons below federal poverty line
18.0%
Children face moderate poverty.
Children under 1821.8%
Working age (18–64)17.1%
Seniors (65+)14.9%
Source · American Community Survey 5-year estimates, 2024 release.
2024 ACS
Language at home
Population aged 5 and older
93.6%
speak English only
Spanish3.3%
Other Indo-European1.5%
Asian & Pacific Islander1.0%
Other languages0.7%
Source · ACS 5-year estimates, 2024.
2020 religion census
Religious adherents
Adherents per capita by tradition
Source · 2020 US Religion Census. Remaining 53.8% of residents not counted as adherents by any reporting body.
The Lexington DMA blends a large university population with surrounding rural counties, producing a media audience that swings measurably younger and more educated than Kentucky's statewide average.
Across the recorded series it reached a Democratic high of twenty-one points in 1964 and a Republican high of thirty-four points in 1972. Between 2020 and 2024 the market moved four points toward the Republican candidate; the 2024 margin was thirty-two points.
A population of 1,328,194, a 86% non-Hispanic-white share, and a median household income of $60,420 describe the market.
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.
Lexington, Kentucky. Akashic. https://akashic.app/dma/541/. Accessed May 20, 2026. License: CC BY 4.0.
License: CC BY 4.0
Frequently asked questions
How did Lexington, Kentucky vote in 2024?
In 2024, Lexington, Kentucky voted Republican by 32.2 points (R+32), carried by the Republican candidate. Out of 608,623 votes cast, 201,068 went Democratic and 397,044 went Republican.
What is Lexington, Kentucky's political typology?
Akashic places Lexington, Kentucky 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 market has voted Democratic 9 times, Republican 25 times, and other 0 times.
When did Lexington, Kentucky last vote Democratic?
The most recent presidential election in which Lexington, Kentucky voted Democratic was 1976.
How many people live in Lexington, Kentucky?
Lexington, Kentucky has a population of 1,328,194 according to the 2024 American Community Survey 5-year estimates from the US Census Bureau.
What is the median household income in Lexington, Kentucky?
Median household income in Lexington, Kentucky is $60,420 — below the national median of $80,734. The Kentucky state median is $63,726.
What is the political history of Lexington, Kentucky?
Akashic tracks 38 presidential elections in Lexington, Kentucky from 1876 to 2024. Of those, 9 went Democratic and 25 went Republican. The market's typology — "Industrial Catholic Metro" — captures where that record, its demographics, and its recent swing place it among American communities.