† Citizen voting-age population estimated for prior cycles; 2004 predates the ACS and is extrapolated. Source: ACS 5-year, table B05003.
——
D+60R+60
2 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
GroupKearney, NENebraskaUnited States
German37.8%31.0%12.5%
Irish12.7%11.7%9.4%
English10.4%9.4%9.5%
Swedish5.8%3.1%—
American4.1%3.5%5.3%
Polish2.6%2.7%2.2%
Czech2.6%3.4%—
Italian2.3%2.1%4.8%
Mexican7.2%8.7%11.3%
Guatemalan1.1%1.0%0.5%
Honduran0.2%0.2%0.3%
Salvadoran0.2%0.6%0.7%
Bolivian0.2%——
Venezuelan0.2%——
Spaniard0.2%——
Chinese0.5%0.2%1.3%
Vietnamese0.2%0.5%0.6%
Japanese0.2%—0.2%
Nepalese0.2%——
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
Kearney, NE
Nebraska
United States
Median age
35.7
37.3
39.1
Age 18–24
13.5%
9.8%
9.2%
Age 65 and older
17.0%
16.8%
17.2%
Household economy
Measure
Kearney, NE
Nebraska
United States
Median household income
$76,230
$76,475
$84,427
Poverty rate
9.6%
10.6%
12.5%
Bachelor's degree or higher (25+)
34.4%
34.7%
35.6%
Languages at home
Measure
Kearney, NE
Nebraska
United States
Speaks a non-English language at home
8.5%
12.8%
22.3%
Spanish
6.0%
8.5%
13.6%
Religious landscape
Measure
Kearney, NE
Nebraska
United States
Catholic
18.4%
19.1%
18.6%
Evangelical Protestant
14.4%
14.2%
16.5%
Unclaimed / not counted
48.2%
50.8%
51.5%
Mainline Protestant
17.6%
12.1%
5.2%
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.
Kearney, NE
presidential history
Presidential margin, 1892–2024
Democratic minus Republican, by election
Presidential margin over time
Year
Margin (D minus R)
1892
−34.5%
1896
+12.3%
1900
+3.1%
1904
−42.6%
1908
+2.3%
1912
+24.4%
1916
+17.2%
1920
−29.3%
1924
−21.8%
1928
−43.2%
1932
+24.7%
1936
+18.0%
1940
−18.5%
1944
−21.1%
1948
−10.4%
1952
−52.1%
1956
−38.0%
1960
−30.4%
1964
+3.0%
1968
−37.0%
1972
−48.4%
1976
−27.7%
1980
−47.2%
1984
−56.5%
1988
−35.2%
1992
−33.9%
1996
−36.5%
2000
−49.3%
2004
−54.7%
2008
−38.2%
2012
−43.2%
2016
−48.3%
2020
−45.4%
2024
−46.4%
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
25.9%Harris7,122
72.4%Trump19,892
0.7%Oliver192 +3
R+46.4
R+1.0
R+45.0
27,492
All 6 candidates in 2024 · 4 minor / independent
Donald J TrumpRepublican72.4%19,892
Kamala D HarrisDemocratic25.9%7,122
Chase OliverNonpartisan0.7%192
OtherAll other candidates0.5%129
Jill SteinNonpartisan0.3%86
Cornel WestNonpartisan0.3%71
R
25.8%Biden7,051
71.2%Trump19,462
3.0%
R+45.4
D+2.8
R+49.9
27,328
R
21.8%Clinton5,313
70.0%Trump17,100
8.2%
R+48.3
R+5.0
R+50.3
24,425
R
27.1%Obama6,138
70.3%Romney15,919
2.5%
R+43.2
R+5.0
R+47.1
22,633
R
30.0%Obama6,743
68.3%McCain15,321
1.7%
R+38.2
D+16.5
R+45.5
22,443
R
21.9%Kerry4,807
76.6%Bush16,843
1.5%
R+54.7
R+5.4
R+52.3
21,987
R
23.5%Gore4,607
72.8%Bush14,264
3.6%
R+49.3
R+12.8
R+49.8
19,583
R
26.8%Clinton5,059
63.3%Dole11,957
10.0%
R+36.5
R+2.6
R+45.0
18,904
R
21.0%Clinton4,392
54.9%Bush11,482
24.1%
R+33.9
D+1.3
R+39.5
20,918
R
31.9%Dukakis5,758
67.1%Bush12,102
1.0%
R+35.2
D+21.3
R+27.4
18,042
R
21.4%Mondale3,812
77.9%Reagan13,873
0.7%
R+56.5
R+9.3
R+38.3
17,812
R
21.9%Carter3,893
69.1%Reagan12,281
9.0%
R+47.2
R+19.5
R+37.5
17,773
R
34.8%Carter5,527
62.4%Ford9,925
2.8%
R+27.7
D+20.8
R+29.7
15,901
R
25.8%McGovern3,747
74.2%Nixon10,790
0.0%
R+48.4
R+11.4
R+25.3
14,537
R
28.0%Humphrey3,700
65.0%Nixon8,592
7.0%
R+37.0
R+40.1
R+36.3
13,216
D
51.5%Johnson7,203
48.5%Goldwater6,777
0.0%
D+3.0
D+33.5
R+19.5
13,980
R
34.8%Kennedy5,154
65.2%Nixon9,660
0.0%
R+30.4
D+7.5
R+30.6
14,814
R
31.0%Stevenson4,272
69.0%Eisenhower9,500
0.0%
R+38.0
D+14.1
R+22.6
13,772
R
24.0%Stevenson3,431
76.0%Eisenhower10,889
0.0%
R+52.1
R+41.7
R+41.3
14,320
R
44.8%Truman5,116
55.2%Dewey6,302
0.0%
R+10.4
D+10.7
R+14.9
11,418
R
39.5%Roosevelt5,119
60.5%Dewey7,855
0.0%
R+21.1
R+2.6
R+28.6
12,974
R
40.7%Roosevelt5,621
59.3%Willkie8,179
0.0%
R+18.5
R+36.5
R+28.5
13,800
D
57.5%Roosevelt8,447
39.6%Landon5,809
2.9%
D+18.0
R+6.8
R+6.3
14,683
D
61.1%Roosevelt8,239
36.3%Hoover4,902
2.6%
D+24.7
D+67.9
D+6.9
13,492
R
28.1%Smith3,894
71.2%Hoover9,886
0.7%
R+43.2
R+21.3
R+25.7
13,882
R
29.8%Davis3,580
51.7%Coolidge6,199
18.5%
R+21.8
D+7.5
D+3.3
11,997
R
33.3%Cox3,531
62.6%Harding6,637
4.1%
R+29.3
R+46.5
R+3.1
10,600
D
56.8%Wilson4,273
39.5%Hughes2,976
3.7%
D+17.2
R+7.1
D+14.1
7,525
D
45.2%Wilson3,073
20.9%Taft1,417
33.9%
D+24.4
D+22.0
D+4.8
6,794
D
49.2%Bryan3,694
46.8%Taft3,519
4.0%
D+2.3
D+45.0
D+11.9
7,513
R
18.0%Parker1,127
60.7%Roosevelt3,789
21.3%
R+42.6
R+45.7
R+23.0
6,245
D
49.8%Bryan3,165
46.7%McKinley2,971
3.5%
D+3.1
R+9.2
D+10.6
6,360
D
54.9%Bryan3,593
42.7%McKinley2,790
2.4%
D+12.3
D+46.8
D+18.4
6,540
O
7.9%Cleveland502
42.4%Harrison2,683
49.7%
Weaver +7.2
—
R+36.1
6,326
Congressional elections · 3 Senate races
U.S. Senate
Source · MIT Election Lab (MEDSL), Senate. CC-BY 4.0.
Year
Won
Democratic
Republican
Total
2024
R
34.6%9,427
65.1%17,742
27,244
2020
R
16.0%4,263
73.4%19,519
26,598
2018
R
28.2%5,357
67.9%12,891
18,991
voter registration
Registered voters
By party of registration, over time
Party registration · 2026R+46.8
vs
Presidential vote · 2024R+46.4
Registration and the presidential vote track closely here — within 0.4 points.
Domestic migration in Kearney, NE in Kearney, NE: net domestic migration by year
Year
Net domestic migration
2011
+325
2012
+246
2013
−102
2014
−249
2015
−60
2016
+95
2017
−222
2018
−292
2019
−52
2021
−125
2022
+52
2023
−35
2024
+169
2025
−90
Kearney's metro sits at the crossroads of I-80 and the Union Pacific main line, drawing a workforce tied to meatpacking and regional logistics. Buffalo County has voted Republican in presidential races by consistent double-digit margins over the past two decades.
Across the recorded series it reached a Democratic high of 24.7 points in 1932 and a Republican high of 56.5 points in 1984. Between 2020 and 2024 the metro moved 1.0 points toward the Republican candidate; the 2024 margin was 46.4 points.
A population of 57,292, a 85% non-Hispanic-white share, and a median household income of $76,230 describe the metro. The metro's voting pattern over the last decade is most similar to that of Hastings, NE and Norfolk, NE.
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 →
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Kearney, NE, Nebraska. Akashic. https://akashic.app/cbsa/28260/. Accessed May 20, 2026. License: CC BY 4.0.
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In 2024, Kearney, NE, Nebraska voted Republican by 46.4 points (R+46.4), carried by the Republican candidate. Out of 27,492 votes cast, 7,122 went Democratic and 19,892 went Republican.
When did Kearney, NE, Nebraska last vote Democratic?
The most recent presidential election in which Kearney, NE, Nebraska voted Democratic was 1964.
How many people live in Kearney, NE, Nebraska?
Kearney, NE, Nebraska has a population of 57,292 according to the 2024 American Community Survey 5-year estimates from the US Census Bureau.
What is the median household income in Kearney, NE, Nebraska?
Median household income in Kearney, NE, Nebraska is $76,230 — below the national median of $80,734. The Nebraska state median is $76,475.
What is the political history of Kearney, NE, Nebraska?
Akashic tracks 34 presidential elections in Kearney, NE, Nebraska from 1892 to 2024. Of those, 8 went Democratic and 25 went Republican.
