akashic
1876–2024
South Bend-Elkhart·Indiana

South Bend-Elkhart has voted Republican in fifteen straight presidential elections — R+22 in 2024.

Where Rust Belt manufacturing meets a Big Ten college city

1876 — 2024·38 elections
IN
LatestR+22in 2024
TypologySunbelt Conservativecluster typology
Population908,6292024 ACS

South Bend-Elkhart, Indiana: Sunbelt Conservative market. In 2024, voted R+22%. Republican peak: R+35 in 1972.

Key facts

2024 presidential margin
R+22MIT Election Lab
Political typology
Sunbelt ConservativeAkashic typology
Population
908,6292024 5-year
Median household income
$68,7502024 5-year
White (non-Hispanic)
77.4%2024 5-year
Black
7.4%2024 5-year
Hispanic / Latino
11.0%2024 5-year
Peak Democratic margin
D+17 in 1912MIT Election Lab
Peak Republican margin
R+35 in 1972MIT Election Lab
2024 presidential election
South Bend-Elkhart
TrumpR+22
—
2024 presidential margin by county for South Bend-Elkhart, INA map of the constituent counties of South Bend-Elkhart, IN, each outlined and filled by its 2024 presidential margin from deep red (Republican) through neutral to deep blue (Democratic).Berrien County, MI · R+8Fulton County, IN · R+51Pulaski County, IN · R+54LaGrange County, IN · R+57Marshall County, IN · R+43St. Joseph County, IN · D+1Kosciusko County, IN · R+52Starke County, IN · R+52Elkhart County, IN · R+32Cass County, MI · R+34
How it voted
Share of the 2024 vote
Donald Trump ✓Republican59.9%229,734
Kamala HarrisDemocratic38.3%146,996
OtherAll other candidates1.8%6,948
D+60
R+60
10 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: −21.6% in 2024.flipped R · 1968−21.6%DR18762024
Presidential margin over time
YearMargin (D minus R)
1876No data
1880No data
1884No data
1888No data
1892−0.2%
1896−6.2%
1900−7.6%
1904−21.4%
1908−9.9%
1912+17.1%
1916−0.9%
1920−27.9%
1924−27.7%
1928−27.8%
1932+11.9%
1936+11.1%
1940−6.8%
1944−11.3%
1948−6.7%
1952−18.9%
1956−21.9%
1960−12.0%
1964+13.3%
1968−13.6%
1972−34.6%
1976−14.0%
1980−22.0%
1984−27.8%
1988−21.8%
1992−7.5%
1996−7.4%
2000−17.5%
2004−20.9%
2008−0.1%
2012−14.5%
2016−21.8%
2020−18.4%
2024−21.6%
DemocraticRepublican
38 presidential elections
Source · MIT Election Lab · ICPSR · VEST (precinct-level 2024).
YearWonMarginDemocraticRepublicanTotal
R
−21.6%
146,996229,734383,678
R
−18.4%
155,396227,213389,822
R
−21.8%
128,644206,188356,118
R
−14.5%
148,141199,294353,841
R
−0.1%
184,306184,754373,700
R
−20.9%
135,423207,571345,798
R
−17.5%
124,139178,378309,335
R
−7.4%
118,299139,688290,049
R
−7.5%
115,259139,102318,442
R
−21.8%
113,627177,417292,324
R
−27.8%
108,516192,592302,941
R
−22.0%
109,698177,862309,925
R
−14.0%
127,384169,488300,353
R
−34.6%
95,114197,471295,484
R
−13.6%
108,776148,498291,493
D
+13.3%
162,559124,300288,380
R
−12.0%
133,924170,654306,095
R
−21.9%
110,393172,745284,541
R
−18.9%
108,995160,706272,983
R
−6.7%
102,958118,003225,647
R
−11.3%
99,602125,205227,031
R
−6.8%
104,102119,350224,884
D
+11.1%
110,64188,141203,528
D
+11.9%
106,15583,070194,420
R
−27.8%
62,218110,510173,832
R
−27.7%
43,53781,572137,223
R
−27.9%
42,71778,145126,801
R
−0.9%
37,28438,02779,604
O
+17.1%
27,38115,22371,296
R
−9.9%
34,87342,99881,939
R
−21.4%
27,60143,83175,774
R
−7.6%
33,41039,06174,583
R
−6.2%
33,24937,69972,209
R
−0.2%
28,96429,10661,375
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Demographics

2024 ACS
Race, ethnicity, and ancestry
Click any group to see the ancestries typically reported within it.
German
20.8%
English
9.6%
Irish
9.6%
American
6.1%
Polish
4.4%
Italian
2.7%
French
1.5%
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: 38.5 in this county, 39.1 nationally
Male
Age
Female
0.7%
85+
1.4%
2.3%
75–84
2.9%
5.1%
65–74
5.5%
6.3%
55–64
6.3%
5.8%
45–54
5.8%
6.0%
35–44
6.0%
6.2%
25–34
6.1%
4.7%
18–24
4.7%
9.1%
5–17
8.7%
3.2%
<5
3.1%
Source · American Community Survey 5-year estimates, 2024 release.
2024 ACS
Median household income
Inflation-adjusted dollars
$68,750
South Bend-Elkhart ranks near the middle of US counties.
South Bend-Elkhart$68,750
Indiana$72,875
United States$80,734
Source · American Community Survey 5-year estimates, 2024 release.
2024 ACS
Poverty rate
All persons below federal poverty line
12.9%
Children face moderate poverty.
Children under 1818.3%
Working age (18–64)11.2%
Seniors (65+)11.1%
Source · American Community Survey 5-year estimates, 2024 release.
2024 ACS
Language at home
Population aged 5 and older
85.5%
speak English only
Spanish7.6%
Other Indo-European5.4%
Asian & Pacific Islander1.0%
Other languages0.5%
Source · ACS 5-year estimates, 2024.
2020 religion census
Religious adherents
Adherents per capita by tradition
Other Christian
14.9%
Catholic & Orthodox
11.2%
Mainline Protestant
4.3%
Baptist
3.3%
Methodist
3.3%
Pentecostal & Holiness
3.2%
Non-Christian
0.5%
Source · 2020 US Religion Census. Remaining 59.3% of residents not counted as adherents by any reporting body.

The South Bend-Elkhart market pairs a mid-sized university city that has trended competitive in recent cycles with Elkhart County's RV-industry workforce, one of Indiana's most reliably wide-margin Republican geographies.

Across the recorded series it reached a Democratic high of seventeen points in 1912 and a Republican high of thirty-five points in 1972. Between 2020 and 2024 the market moved three points toward the Republican candidate; the 2024 margin was twenty-two points.

A population of 908,629, a 77% non-Hispanic-white share, and a median household income of $68,750 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.
South Bend-Elkhart, Indiana. Akashic. https://akashic.app/dma/588/. Accessed May 20, 2026. License: CC BY 4.0.
License: CC BY 4.0

Frequently asked questions

How did South Bend-Elkhart, Indiana vote in 2024?
In 2024, South Bend-Elkhart, Indiana voted Republican by 21.6 points (R+22), carried by the Republican candidate. Out of 383,678 votes cast, 146,996 went Democratic and 229,734 went Republican.
What is South Bend-Elkhart, Indiana's political typology?
Akashic places South Bend-Elkhart, Indiana in the "Sunbelt Conservative" 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 3 times, Republican 30 times, and other 1 times.
When did South Bend-Elkhart, Indiana last vote Democratic?
The most recent presidential election in which South Bend-Elkhart, Indiana voted Democratic was 1964.
How many people live in South Bend-Elkhart, Indiana?
South Bend-Elkhart, Indiana has a population of 908,629 according to the 2024 American Community Survey 5-year estimates from the US Census Bureau.
What is the median household income in South Bend-Elkhart, Indiana?
Median household income in South Bend-Elkhart, Indiana is $68,750 — below the national median of $80,734. The Indiana state median is $72,875.
What is the political history of South Bend-Elkhart, Indiana?
Akashic tracks 38 presidential elections in South Bend-Elkhart, Indiana from 1876 to 2024. Of those, 3 went Democratic and 30 went Republican. The market's typology — "Sunbelt Conservative" — captures where that record, its demographics, and its recent swing place it among American communities.