How did Salinas, CA vote in the 2024 presidential election?

Salinas, CA voted Democratic in 2024 with a margin of D+29.9. Kamala D Harris received 93,060 votes and Donald Trump received 49,226 out of 146,718 total votes cast, a 11.4-point shift toward Republicans from 2020.

What is Salinas, CA's political history?

Salinas, CA has 40 presidential elections on record, spanning 1868 to 2024. It has voted Democratic in every presidential election since 1992. The largest single-election swing was 100.6 points in 1872.

What are the demographics of Salinas, CA?

Salinas, CA has a population of 437,613 according to the 2020 Census. The racial composition is 26.9% non-Hispanic white, 61.6% Hispanic, 2.2% Black. About 28% of residents hold a bachelor's degree or higher. Median household income is $97,230.

Which places are most similar to Salinas, CA?

Based on demographic and electoral similarity analysis, the three most similar metro areas to Salinas, CA are Merced, CA, Riverside-San Bernardino-Ontario, CA, Santa Maria-Santa Barbara, CA. Similarity is computed using a vector embedding of demographic, economic, and electoral characteristics.

Salinas, CA

Latest: 2024↓ R+11.4 vs 2020

Safe Democratic — shifted 11.4pp toward Republicans in 2024 — 438K residents — 1 counties

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Race & ancestry

Group	%
▶White (Non-Hispanic)(13)	26.9%
▶Hispanic / Latino(20)	61.6%
▶Black / African American(9)	2.2%
▶Asian(6)	5.7%
▶Middle Eastern / North African(11)	0.7%
▶Native American / Alaska Native(2)	0.9%
▶Native Hawaiian / Pacific Islander(6)	0.4%
Multiracial / Other	2.4%

View full demographics →

Religious adherence

Tradition	% Pop	% Adherents
Catholic	46.6%	77.8%
Other	6.4%	10.7%
Evangelical Protestant	5.0%	8.3%
LDS (Mormon)	1.5%	2.4%
Mainline Protestant	1.3%	2.2%
Black Protestant	0.5%	0.8%
Non-religious	40.1%	—

View full religion →

Presidential results

Year	Result
2024	Harris+29.9
2020	Biden+41.3
2016	Clinton+40.6
2012	Obama+36.9
2008	Obama+38.3
2004	Kerry+22.0
2000	Gore+20.3
1996	Clinton+16.5
1992	Clinton+15.8

View full election history →

Salinas, CA is a metro area that has a population of 437,613. In the 2024 presidential election, it voted Democratic with a margin of D+29.9. Akashic Edge tracks 40 presidential elections here, dating back to 1868.

Salinas, CA Presidential Election Results, 1948–2024
Year	Dem %	Rep %	Margin	Swing
2024	63.4%	33.6%	D+29.9	R+11.4
2020	69.5%	28.3%	D+41.3	D+0.7
2016	66.8%	26.2%	D+40.6	D+3.8
2012	67.1%	30.3%	D+36.9	R+1.4
2008	68.2%	29.9%	D+38.3	D+16.3
2004	60.4%	38.4%	D+22.0	D+1.7
2000	57.5%	37.2%	D+20.3	D+3.8
1996	53.2%	36.7%	D+16.5	D+0.7
1992	47.0%	31.2%	D+15.8	D+16.8
1988	48.8%	49.8%	R+1.0	D+14.3
1984	41.8%	57.2%	R+15.4	D+5.8
1980	33.5%	54.7%	R+21.2	R+16.1
1976	46.0%	51.0%	R+5.0	D+12.5
1972	39.5%	57.0%	R+17.5	R+9.5
1968	42.1%	50.2%	R+8.1	R+32.0
1964	61.8%	37.9%	D+23.9	D+36.8
1960	43.4%	56.3%	R+12.8	D+6.5
1956	40.2%	59.5%	R+19.3	D+5.1
1952	37.5%	61.9%	R+24.5	R+20.0
1948	46.1%	50.6%	R+4.5	—

Political Identity

What defines Salinas, CA?

It has a majority-minority electorate where racial demographics are the primary driver of partisan lean.

Constituent Counties

Open in Cartographer

Similarity Explorer

Similar metro areas

Nearest neighbors matched on the same place-page feature set used across the dossier system.

8 visible matches

Merced, CA

Diverse rural democratic

R+4.4

Similarity score95%

Riverside-San Bernardino-Ontario, CA

Diverse rural democratic

R+1.7

Similarity score95%

Santa Maria-Santa Barbara, CA

Diverse rural democratic

D+26.7

Similarity score95%

Fresno, CA

Diverse rural democratic

R+6.7

Similarity score95%

Modesto, CA

Diverse rural democratic

R+11.0

Similarity score95%

Los Angeles-Long Beach-Anaheim, CA

Diverse rural democratic

D+24.7

Similarity score93%

Visalia, CA

Diverse rural democratic

Constituent Geography

Counties in Salinas, CA

2024 presidential results across the counties that make up this geography.

Sort:

County	Pop.	Margin	Dem	Rep	Total	Share
Monterey	438K	D+29.9	93,060	49,226	146,718	100.0%

1 countiesTotal votes: 146,718

Historian Query

Ask the Historian

Explore Salinas, CA's political evolution with the Historian

“How has the Salinas, CA metro area voted in presidential elections?”

Automated Readout

Key Insights

High-confidence patterns distilled from this geography's election history.

Has voted Democratic in the last 5 presidential elections
Latest election (2024) was a Democratic landslide with a 29.9% margin
Swung 11.4 points toward Republican between 2020 and 2024

Race & Ancestry

Who Lives Here

A race-first Census view with ancestry expansion where source coverage is strong enough to support detail.

Salinas, CACensus ACS 2024Ancestry detail available

Census race profile

Major Census race and ethnicity groups shown as a share of total population.

Expand rows for ancestry detail

Hispanic 61.6%White (Non-Hispanic) 26.9%Asian 5.7%Multiracial 2.4%Black 2.2%Native American 0.9%Native Hawaiian 0.4%

Group	Salinas, CA	National
▶Hispanic / Latino(20)	61.6%	19.3%
▶White (Non-Hispanic)(13)	26.9%	57.4%
▶Asian(6)	5.7%	6.0%
Multiracial / Other	2.4%	4.0%
▶Black / African American(9)	2.2%	12.2%
▶Native American / Alaska Native(2)	0.9%	0.9%
▶Middle Eastern / North African(11)	0.7%	0.9%
▶Native Hawaiian / Pacific Islander(6)	0.4%	0.2%

Method notes

Census treats race and Hispanic/Latino origin as separate questions. Race categories other than Hispanic reflect total populations (small Hispanic overlap in Black, Asian, AIAN, NHPI). “Multiracial / Other” is derived as a non-overlapping remainder.

Click rows to expand ancestry detail. Ancestry from ACS B04006, B03001, B02020, B02016. Totals may differ from race — individuals can report multiple ancestries.

Black / African American (estimated remainder) is derived as Black population share minus reported Sub-Saharan African and West Indian ancestry. It is shown as an estimated ancestry detail, not a standalone Census ancestry category.

MENA estimated from ancestry reporting — Census does not have a separate MENA race category. Not shown in bar (overlaps with other race groups).

Religious Adherents

Population that are religious adherents:

59.9%(262.1K people)

U.S. Religion Census 2020

Browse all religions

Catholic-Evangelical edge: +65.0pp (vs national 4.5pp). A strongly Catholic-leaning religious profile, which nationally correlates with Democratic-leaning urban and suburban communities.

Tradition	% Pop	% Adherents	US Pop	US Adherents
Catholic	46.6%	77.8%	—	—
Other	6.4%	10.7%	—	—
Evangelical Protestant	5.0%	8.3%	—	—
LDS (Mormon)	1.5%	2.4%	—	—
Mainline Protestant	1.3%	2.2%	—	—
Black Protestant	0.5%	0.8%	—	—
Non-religiousPopulation	40.1%	—	—	—

Click the chevron to expand denominations. Tradition and denomination rows label both share of total population and share of all religious adherents. Non-religious is shown as a share of total population only.

Who lives in the Salinas, CA metro area? 437,613 residents across 1 counties.

Demographic Comparison

Demographics

Read this geography's profile in three layers: local, state (where available), and national baseline.

Salinas, CA vs National438K residents

Population & electorate

Scale, voting-age share, and this geography's footprint inside the national electorate.

Total population

Local vs state vs U.S.

438K

local

438KNational 334.9M

Share of U.S. population

Local vs state vs U.S.

0.13%

local

0.13%National 100%

Voting-age population

Local vs state vs U.S.

70.0%

local

70.0%National 75.7%

Economic profile

Income, attainment, and ownership indicators that often shape coalition structure and turnout behavior.

Median household income

Local vs state vs U.S.

$97,230

local

$97,230National $83,960

Poverty rate

Local vs state vs U.S.

12.7%

local

12.7%National 12.5%

College degree

Local vs state vs U.S.

28.2%

local

28.2%National 35.6%

Homeownership

Local vs state vs U.S.

52.1%

local

52.1%National 65.2%

Community profile

Age structure, language use, and nativity signals that explain how this geography differs from state and nation.

Median age

Local vs state vs U.S.

35.5 yrs

local

35.5 yrsNational 39.1 yrs

Age 18–29

Local vs state vs U.S.

16.7%

local

16.7%National 15.7%

Age 65+

Local vs state vs U.S.

14.9%

local

14.9%National 17.0%

Foreign born

Local vs state vs U.S.

29.6%

local

29.6%National 14.1%

Non-English at home

Local vs state vs U.S.

56.3%

local

56.3%National 22.2%

English only

Local vs state vs U.S.

43.7%

local

43.7%National 77.8%

Voter Turnout

Turnout in Salinas, CA

Estimated using 2020 Census voting-age population.

2024 Turnout

47.9%

vs Previous

-5.6pp

Voting-Age Pop

306,494

History

1988–2024

Competitiveness

How competitive is Salinas, CA?

Safe DAvg margin: D+37.3 (last 3 elections)

2008

D+38.3

2012

D+36.9

2016

D+40.6

2020

D+41.3

2024

D+29.9

Elasticity

11.4pp

margin range

Party Flips

last 30 years

5-Elec Avg

D+37.4

Ticket-Splitting

Do voters in Salinas, CA split their tickets?

Divergence between offices in the same election reveals persuadable voters.

ConsistencyHeavy splitting (0/100)

2024 Office Comparisons

Offices	Margin A	Margin B	Split
President vs Senate	D+29.9	D+28.0	1.9pp

Average divergence across office pairs: 21.8pp

Containing Geography

Located In

Salinas, CA sits inside these higher-level geographies.

California(State)

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