† Citizen voting-age population estimated for prior cycles; 2004 predates the ACS and is extrapolated. Source: ACS 5-year, table B05003.
——
D+60R+60
1 counties by 2024 margin · County returns · MIT Election Lab
People and households
Who lives here
Exact values for this place, its state, and the United States.
Race · ethnicity · ancestry
Communities and origins
GroupGaffney, SCSouth CarolinaUnited States
American13.9%8.2%5.3%
English9.8%12.1%9.5%
Irish8.0%9.1%9.4%
German5.7%9.4%12.5%
Scottish1.8%2.1%1.3%
Italian1.6%3.4%4.8%
Scotch-Irish1.4%1.4%—
Dutch0.6%——
African American†17.7%23.4%9.9%
African0.7%0.6%0.5%
Mexican2.8%3.4%11.3%
Puerto Rican1.3%1.0%1.8%
Cuban0.3%0.3%0.7%
Spaniard0.3%——
Costa Rican0.2%——
Guatemalan0.2%0.3%0.5%
Colombian0.2%0.4%0.4%
Hispanic or Latino counts residents of any race; the race groups count only their non-Hispanic residents, so the groups are mutually exclusive and sum to 100%. Expand a row to see ancestries reported within that group.
Age and life stage
Measure
Gaffney, SC
South Carolina
United States
Median age
40.4
40.5
39.1
Age 18–24
8.8%
9.1%
9.2%
Age 65 and older
17.5%
18.9%
17.2%
Household economy
Measure
Gaffney, SC
South Carolina
United States
Median household income
$50,288
$69,324
$84,427
Poverty rate
18.4%
14.1%
12.5%
Bachelor's degree or higher (25+)
18.4%
32.1%
35.6%
Languages at home
Measure
Gaffney, SC
South Carolina
United States
Speaks a non-English language at home
5.3%
8.4%
22.3%
Spanish
4.1%
5.2%
13.6%
Religious landscape
Measure
Gaffney, SC
South Carolina
United States
Catholic
2.1%
8.0%
18.6%
Evangelical Protestant
53.1%
28.6%
16.5%
Unclaimed / not counted
37.3%
47.5%
51.5%
American Community Survey 2024 5-year (CVAP, income, age, poverty, education, language, race, ancestry) · presidential returns from MIT Election Lab through 2024 · 2020 U.S. Religion Census (ASARB) — congregational adherents; unclaimed is the residual not counted by congregations.
Gaffney, SC
presidential history
Presidential margin, 1900–2024
Democratic minus Republican, by election
Presidential margin over time
Year
Margin (D minus R)
1900
+93.1%
1904
+96.0%
1908
+91.6%
1912
+98.2%
1916
+95.4%
1920
+94.7%
1924
+95.6%
1928
+87.9%
1932
+98.4%
1936
+99.0%
1940
+96.6%
1944
+90.2%
1948
+30.0%
1952
+56.8%
1956
+56.7%
1960
+55.0%
1964
+8.0%
1968
−8.1%
1972
−55.7%
1976
+32.7%
1980
+12.2%
1984
−35.6%
1988
−28.3%
1992
−9.9%
1996
−6.4%
2000
−23.0%
2004
−30.1%
2008
−29.3%
2012
−29.3%
2016
−41.7%
2020
−43.8%
2024
−51.4%
DemocraticRepublican
34 presidential elections
Third column names the leading third-party or independent finisher. Source · MIT Election Lab · ICPSR · VEST (precinct-level 2024). Swing · margin change from the prior cycle. vs U.S. · margin relative to the national result that year.
Year
Won
Democratic
Republican
Other
Margin
Swing
vs U.S.
Total
R
23.9%Harris5,939
75.3%Trump18,697
0.8%
R+51.4
R+7.6
R+49.9
24,839
R
27.6%Biden6,983
71.4%Trump18,043
1.0%
R+43.8
R+2.1
R+48.2
25,270
R
28.0%Clinton6,092
69.7%Trump15,167
2.3%
R+41.7
R+12.4
R+43.8
21,759
R
34.8%Obama7,231
64.1%Romney13,314
1.1%
R+29.3
±0.0
R+33.1
20,773
R
34.7%Obama7,215
64.1%McCain13,305
1.2%
R+29.3
D+0.7
R+36.6
20,766
R
34.6%Kerry6,466
64.6%Bush12,090
0.8%
R+30.1
R+7.0
R+27.6
18,714
R
37.6%Gore6,138
60.7%Bush9,900
1.7%
R+23.0
R+16.7
R+23.6
16,323
R
42.7%Clinton5,821
49.0%Dole6,689
8.3%
R+6.4
D+3.5
R+14.9
13,639
R
37.5%Clinton5,453
47.3%Bush6,887
15.2%
R+9.9
D+18.5
R+15.4
14,557
R
35.6%Dukakis4,322
63.9%Bush7,763
0.5%
R+28.3
D+7.2
R+20.6
12,151
R
32.0%Mondale4,101
67.6%Reagan8,655
0.4%
R+35.6
R+47.7
R+17.3
12,809
D
55.5%Carter6,889
43.3%Reagan5,379
1.2%
D+12.2
R+20.5
D+21.9
12,418
D
66.2%Carter7,765
33.5%Ford3,931
0.3%
D+32.7
D+88.4
D+30.6
11,732
R
21.5%McGovern2,107
77.2%Nixon7,570
1.3%
R+55.7
R+47.6
R+32.6
9,800
O
19.0%Humphrey1,998
27.2%Nixon2,853
53.8%
Wallace +26.6
R+16.2
R+7.5
10,493
D
54.0%Johnson4,258
46.0%Goldwater3,627
0.0%
D+8.0
R+47.0
R+14.6
7,885
D
77.5%Kennedy5,391
22.5%Nixon1,565
0.0%
D+55.0
R+1.7
D+54.8
6,956
D
75.2%Stevenson3,687
18.5%Eisenhower907
6.3%
D+56.7
R+0.1
D+72.1
4,902
D
78.4%Stevenson5,545
21.6%Eisenhower1,529
0.0%
D+56.8
D+26.7
D+67.5
7,074
O
34.4%Truman605
4.4%Dewey77
61.2%
Thurmond +26.8
R+60.1
D+25.6
1,758
D
94.1%Roosevelt1,620
4.0%Dewey68
1.9%
D+90.2
R+6.4
D+82.7
1,721
D
98.3%Roosevelt2,069
1.7%Willkie36
0.0%
D+96.6
R+2.4
D+86.6
2,105
D
99.0%Roosevelt2,280
0.0%Landon0
1.0%
D+99.0
D+0.6
D+74.7
2,303
D
98.4%Roosevelt2,363
0.0%Hoover0
1.6%
D+98.4
D+10.4
D+80.6
2,402
D
94.0%Smith1,388
6.0%Hoover89
0.0%
D+87.9
R+7.6
D+105.4
1,477
D
97.5%Davis1,186
2.0%Coolidge24
0.5%
D+95.6
D+0.8
D+120.7
1,216
D
97.4%Cox1,771
2.6%Harding48
0.0%
D+94.7
R+0.7
D+120.9
1,819
D
96.4%Wilson1,271
1.0%Hughes13
2.7%
D+95.4
R+2.8
D+92.2
1,319
D
98.2%Wilson1,259
0.0%Taft0
1.8%
D+98.2
D+6.6
D+78.7
1,282
D
95.8%Bryan1,506
4.2%Taft66
0.0%
D+91.6
R+4.4
D+101.2
1,572
D
98.0%Parker1,507
2.0%Roosevelt31
0.0%
D+96.0
D+2.9
D+115.6
1,538
D
96.5%Bryan1,084
3.5%McKinley39
0.0%
D+93.1
—
D+100.6
1,123
—
—
—
—
No data
—
—
—
—
—
—
—
No data
—
—
—
Congressional elections · 2 Senate races
U.S. Senate
Source · MIT Election Lab (MEDSL), Senate. CC-BY 4.0.
Year
Won
Democratic
Republican
Total
2022
R
20.8%3,355
79.1%12,753
16,120
2020
R
28.8%7,265
69.2%17,481
25,247
voter registration
Registered voters
Total registered voters, over time
Registered voters
Voter registration in Gaffney, SC
Year
Total registered
2016
32,295
2018
36,193
2020
38,547
2022
36,441
2024
37,804
domestic migration
Who moves in and out
Net domestic migration over time
+447 net domestic migration · 2025
20112025
Net +3,657 over 2011–2025 · gain loss
Domestic migration in Gaffney, SC in Gaffney, SC: net domestic migration by year
Year
Net domestic migration
2011
+75
2012
+6
2013
+194
2014
+259
2015
+132
2016
+161
2017
+210
2018
+145
2019
+214
2021
+10
2022
+283
2023
+721
2024
+800
2025
+447
Gaffney anchors a small Upstate South Carolina metro where manufacturing employment and a predominantly working-class white electorate have driven consistent double-digit Republican margins in statewide races over the past two decades.
Across the recorded series it reached a Democratic high of 99.0 points in 1936 and a Republican high of 55.7 points in 1972. Between 2020 and 2024 the metro moved 7.6 points toward the Republican candidate; the 2024 margin was 51.4 points.
A population of 56,647, a 70% non-Hispanic-white share, and a median household income of $50,288 describe the metro. The metro's voting pattern over the last decade is most similar to that of Jesup, GA and Alexander City, AL.
Akashic
Political twins — metros
The metros whose fingerprint — 2000–2024 trajectory, demographics, ancestry, religion — sits closest to this one, and why.
Twin score (0–100) = weighted cosine between tier-standardized fingerprints: presidential margins 2000–2024 with 12-yr trend and elasticity, ACS income, age, education, population and race, top reported ancestries, and religious adherence — chips name the closest-shared dimensions and the widest gap. Re-weight the groups in the twins explorer.
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.
Gaffney, SC, South Carolina. Akashic. https://akashic.app/cbsa/23500/. Accessed May 20, 2026. License: CC BY 4.0.
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In 2024, Gaffney, SC, South Carolina voted Republican by 51.4 points (R+51.4), carried by the Republican candidate. Out of 24,839 votes cast, 5,939 went Democratic and 18,697 went Republican.
When did Gaffney, SC, South Carolina last vote Democratic?
The most recent presidential election in which Gaffney, SC, South Carolina voted Democratic was 1980.
How many people live in Gaffney, SC, South Carolina?
Gaffney, SC, South Carolina has a population of 56,647 according to the 2024 American Community Survey 5-year estimates from the US Census Bureau.
What is the median household income in Gaffney, SC, South Carolina?
Median household income in Gaffney, SC, South Carolina is $50,288 — below the national median of $80,734. The South Carolina state median is $69,324.
What is the political history of Gaffney, SC, South Carolina?
Akashic tracks 34 presidential elections in Gaffney, SC, South Carolina from 1892 to 2024. Of those, 18 went Democratic and 12 went Republican.
