Rapid City
Latest: 2024
Safe Republican — 266K residents — 19 counties
Race & ancestry
| Group | % |
|---|---|
▶White (Non-Hispanic)(13) | 81.6% |
▶Hispanic / Latino(14) | 4.9% |
▶Black / African American(9) | 0.9% |
▶Asian(6) | 0.9% |
▶Middle Eastern / North African(9) | 0.3% |
▶Native American / Alaska Native(7) | 6.0% |
▶Native Hawaiian / Pacific Islander(3) | 0.1% |
Multiracial / Other | 5.6% |
Religious adherence
| Tradition | % Pop | % Adherents |
|---|---|---|
| Evangelical Protestant | 20.1% | 47.3% |
| Mainline Protestant | 9.5% | 22.3% |
| Catholic | 9.3% | 21.8% |
| Other | 3.5% | 8.2% |
| LDS (Mormon) | 2.6% | 6.1% |
| Black Protestant | 0.1% | 0.3% |
| Non-religious | 57.5% | — |
Presidential results
| Year | Result |
|---|---|
| 2024 | Trump+40.3 |
| 2020 | Trump+38.9 |
| 2016 | Trump+44.5 |
| 2012 | Romney+34.6 |
| 2008 | McCain+25.8 |
| 2004 | Bush+35.4 |
| 2000 | Bush+40.7 |
| 1996 | Dole+16.4 |
| 1992 | Bush+14.7 |
Rapid City is a media market that has a population of 265,694. In the 2024 presidential election, it voted Republican with a margin of R+40.3. Akashic Edge tracks 34 presidential elections here, dating back to 1892.
| Year | Dem % | Rep % | Margin | Swing |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2024 | 28.6% | 68.9% | R+40.3 | R+1.5 |
| 2020 | 29.0% | 67.9% | R+38.9 | D+5.7 |
| 2016 | 23.9% | 68.4% | R+44.5 | R+9.9 |
| 2012 | 31.3% | 65.9% | R+34.6 | R+8.8 |
| 2008 | 35.9% | 61.7% | R+25.8 | D+9.5 |
| 2004 | 31.3% | 66.7% | R+35.4 | D+5.4 |
| 2000 | 28.3% | 69.0% | R+40.7 | R+24.3 |
| 1996 | 35.8% | 52.2% | R+16.4 | R+1.7 |
| 1992 | 30.4% | 45.1% | R+14.7 | D+7.6 |
| 1988 | 38.4% | 60.7% | R+22.3 | D+21.0 |
| 1984 | 28.0% | 71.3% | R+43.3 | R+1.6 |
| 1980 | 25.6% | 67.3% | R+41.7 | R+26.0 |
| 1976 | 41.4% | 57.1% | R+15.7 | D+15.9 |
| 1972 | 34.0% | 65.5% | R+31.5 | R+9.0 |
| 1968 | 35.1% | 57.6% | R+22.6 | R+24.1 |
| 1964 | 50.8% | 49.2% | D+1.6 | D+23.8 |
| 1960 | 38.9% | 61.1% | R+22.2 | D+6.5 |
| 1956 | 35.7% | 64.3% | R+28.7 | D+14.3 |
| 1952 | 28.5% | 71.4% | R+42.9 | R+32.2 |
| 1948 | 44.1% | 54.9% | R+10.8 | — |
What defines Rapid City?
Rapid City voted overwhelmingly Republican in 2024. Akashic Edge tracks 34 presidential elections here, revealing how its political character has evolved over more than a century.
Constituent Counties
Similar media markets
Nearest neighbors matched on the same place-page feature set used across the dossier system.
Billings
Small-town rural republican
Minot-Bismarck-Dickinson (Williston)
Small-town rural republican
Spokane
Small-town rural republican 3
Sioux City
Small-town rural republican
Chattanooga
Small-town rural republican
Evansville
Small-town rural republican
Sioux Falls(Mitchell)
Small-town rural republican 3
Sherman-Ada
Small-town rural republican
Counties in Rapid City
2024 presidential results across the counties that make up this geography.
Sort:
| County | Pop. | Margin | Dem | Rep | Total | Share |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Pennington | 114K | R+26.4 | 20,051 | 35,009 | 56,580 | 41.7% |
| Sheridan | 32K | R+49.4 | 3,920 | 12,041 | 16,425 | 12.1% |
| Meade | 31K | R+50.9 | 3,421 | 10,887 | 14,672 | 10.8% |
| Lawrence | 27K | R+31.4 | 5,074 | 9,904 | 15,409 | 11.4% |
| Butte | 11K | R+60.6 | 942 | 4,024 | 5,082 | 3.7% |
| Custer | 9K | R+45.8 | 1,567 | 4,313 | 6,001 | 4.4% |
| Crook | 7K | R+77.4 | 443 | 3,805 | 4,344 | 3.2% |
| Fall River | 7K | R+49.3 | 1,030 | 3,135 | 4,274 | 3.2% |
| Weston | 7K | R+76.6 | 378 | 3,069 | 3,512 | 2.6% |
| Morrill | 5K | R+68.4 | 366 | 2,026 | 2,426 | 1.8% |
| Bennett | 3K | R+26.4 | 389 | 676 | 1,088 | 0.8% |
| Perkins | 3K | R+70.0 | 228 | 1,342 | 1,591 | 1.2% |
| Jackson | 3K | R+35.1 | 357 | 753 | 1,129 | 0.8% |
| Ziebach | 2K | R+2.8 | 366 | 388 | 781 | 0.6% |
| Haakon | 2K | E | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0.0% |
| Carter | 1K | R+80.2 | 75 | 760 | 854 | 0.6% |
| Harding | 1K | R+86.1 | 48 | 754 | 820 | 0.6% |
| Jones | 1K | R+75.8 | 60 | 477 | 550 | 0.4% |
| Legacy FIPS 46113 | -- | E | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0.0% |
19 countiesTotal votes: 135,538
Ask the Historian
Explore Rapid City's political evolution with the Historian
Key Insights
High-confidence patterns distilled from this geography's election history.
- Has voted Republican in the last 5 presidential elections
- Latest election (2024) was a Republican landslide with a 40.3% margin
Who Lives Here
A race-first Census view with ancestry expansion where source coverage is strong enough to support detail.
Census race profile
Major Census race and ethnicity groups shown as a share of total population.
| Group | Rapid City | National |
|---|---|---|
▶White (Non-Hispanic)(13) | 81.6% | 57.4% |
▶Native American / Alaska Native(7) | 6.0% | 0.9% |
Multiracial / Other | 5.6% | 4.0% |
▶Hispanic / Latino(14) | 4.9% | 19.3% |
▶Asian(6) | 0.9% | 6.0% |
▶Black / African American(9) | 0.9% | 12.2% |
▶Middle Eastern / North African(9) | 0.3% | 0.9% |
▶Native Hawaiian / Pacific Islander(3) | 0.1% | 0.2% |
Method notes
Religious Adherents
Population that are religious adherents:
42.5%
Catholic-Evangelical edge: -30.0pp (vs national 4.5pp). A strongly Evangelical-leaning religious profile, which nationally correlates with Republican-leaning rural and exurban communities.
| Tradition | % Pop | % Adherents | US Pop | US Adherents |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 20.1% | 47.3% | — | — | |
| 9.5% | 22.3% | — | — | |
| 9.3% | 21.8% | — | — | |
| 3.5% | 8.2% | — | — | |
LDS (Mormon) | 2.6% | 6.1% | — | — |
| 0.1% | 0.3% | — | — | |
Non-religiousPopulation | 57.5% | — | — | — |
Who lives in the Rapid City media market? 265,694 residents across 19 counties.
Demographics
Read this geography's profile in three layers: local, state (where available), and national baseline.
Population & electorate
Scale, voting-age share, and this geography's footprint inside the national electorate.
Total population
266K
Share of U.S. population
0.08%
Voting-age population
75.8%
Economic profile
Income, attainment, and ownership indicators that often shape coalition structure and turnout behavior.
Median household income
$73,624
Poverty rate
11.2%
College degree
30.6%
Homeownership
71.3%
Community profile
Age structure, language use, and nativity signals that explain how this geography differs from state and nation.
Median age
41.7 yrs
Age 18–29
14.0%
Age 65+
21.5%
Foreign born
2.1%
Non-English at home
4.3%
English only
95.7%
Turnout in Rapid City
Estimated using 2020 Census voting-age population.
67.3%
+0.6pp
201,271
1988–2024
How competitive is Rapid City?
Safe RAvg margin: R+41.2 (last 3 elections)
2008
R+25.8
2012
R+34.6
2016
R+44.5
2020
R+38.9
2024
R+40.3
18.7pp
0
R+36.8
Do voters in Rapid City split their tickets?
Divergence between offices in the same election reveals persuadable voters.
Heavy splitting (0/100)
| Offices | Margin A | Margin B | Split |
|---|---|---|---|
| President vs Governor | R+40.3 | R+85.3 | 45.0pp |
| President vs Senate | R+40.3 | R+72.1 | 31.8pp |
| Senate vs Governor | R+72.1 | R+85.3 | 13.2pp |
Average divergence across office pairs: 23.0pp
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