† Citizen voting-age population estimated for prior cycles; 2004 predates the ACS and is extrapolated. Source: ACS 5-year, table B05003.
——
D+60R+60
3 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
GroupWaterloo-Cedar Falls, IAIowaUnited States
German33.7%30.5%12.5%
Irish11.4%12.8%9.4%
English8.7%10.2%9.5%
American5.2%4.6%5.3%
Norwegian4.3%4.1%—
Dutch2.0%2.7%—
Italian1.2%1.6%4.8%
French1.2%—1.6%
African American†6.3%2.6%9.9%
African0.4%0.3%0.5%
Haitian0.2%—0.3%
Liberian0.2%——
Mexican2.6%5.0%11.3%
Guatemalan0.7%0.4%0.5%
Puerto Rican0.4%0.3%1.8%
Cuban0.2%—0.7%
Burmese0.7%0.3%—
Asian Indian0.3%0.5%1.4%
Vietnamese0.2%0.3%0.6%
Korean0.2%0.2%0.4%
Chinese0.2%0.3%1.3%
Filipino0.2%0.2%0.9%
Marshallese0.3%——
Aztec0.2%——
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
Waterloo-Cedar Falls, IA
Iowa
United States
Median age
36.6
38.8
39.1
Age 18–24
13.5%
10.0%
9.2%
Age 65 and older
18.2%
18.1%
17.2%
Household economy
Measure
Waterloo-Cedar Falls, IA
Iowa
United States
Median household income
$70,988
$75,059
$84,427
Poverty rate
13.1%
11.1%
12.5%
Bachelor's degree or higher (25+)
31.0%
31.8%
35.6%
Languages at home
Measure
Waterloo-Cedar Falls, IA
Iowa
United States
Speaks a non-English language at home
7.3%
9.2%
22.3%
Spanish
2.8%
4.7%
13.6%
Russian, Polish, or other Slavic
1.3%
0.4%
0.7%
Other Asian & Pacific Island
1.2%
1.0%
1.1%
Religious landscape
Measure
Waterloo-Cedar Falls, IA
Iowa
United States
Catholic
13.6%
14.7%
18.6%
Evangelical Protestant
9.3%
10.9%
16.5%
Unclaimed / not counted
49.3%
55.2%
51.5%
Mainline Protestant
19.2%
15.8%
5.2%
Black Protestant
5.6%
0.7%
2.2%
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.
Waterloo-Cedar Falls, IA
presidential history
Presidential margin, 1892–2024
Democratic minus Republican, by election
Presidential margin over time
Year
Margin (D minus R)
1892
−4.6%
1896
−25.4%
1900
−23.5%
1904
−31.4%
1908
−17.7%
1912
+21.5%
1916
−28.0%
1920
−63.9%
1924
−48.7%
1928
−34.0%
1932
+9.2%
1936
+13.3%
1940
−6.6%
1944
−5.7%
1948
+4.9%
1952
−31.8%
1956
−21.6%
1960
−15.0%
1964
+18.9%
1968
−16.7%
1972
−21.8%
1976
−6.7%
1980
−9.9%
1984
−7.6%
1988
+8.6%
1992
+9.1%
1996
+15.3%
2000
+6.1%
2004
+5.6%
2008
+17.2%
2012
+14.1%
2016
+0.3%
2020
+1.1%
2024
−6.5%
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
45.9%Harris38,889
52.4%Trump44,369
1.7%
R+6.5
R+7.5
R+5.0
84,659
D
49.6%Biden43,811
48.5%Trump42,863
2.0%
D+1.1
D+0.8
R+3.4
88,415
D
46.1%Clinton39,445
45.8%Trump39,211
8.2%
D+0.3
R+13.9
R+1.8
85,642
D
56.3%Obama49,219
42.1%Romney36,855
1.6%
D+14.1
R+3.1
D+10.3
87,449
D
57.9%Obama48,914
40.7%McCain34,348
1.4%
D+17.2
D+11.7
D+10.0
84,474
D
52.4%Kerry43,803
46.9%Bush39,140
0.7%
D+5.6
R+0.5
D+8.0
83,535
D
51.7%Gore37,420
45.6%Bush32,994
2.7%
D+6.1
R+9.2
D+5.6
72,371
D
53.6%Clinton36,996
38.4%Dole26,463
8.0%
D+15.3
D+6.2
D+6.8
68,968
D
45.6%Clinton36,253
36.6%Bush29,040
17.8%
D+9.1
D+0.5
D+3.5
79,420
D
54.0%Dukakis38,829
45.3%Bush32,624
0.7%
D+8.6
D+16.2
D+16.4
71,952
R
45.8%Mondale37,466
53.4%Reagan43,684
0.8%
R+7.6
D+2.3
D+10.6
81,806
R
40.0%Carter32,839
49.9%Reagan40,977
10.1%
R+9.9
R+3.2
R+0.2
82,066
R
45.7%Carter36,121
52.4%Ford41,419
1.9%
R+6.7
D+15.1
R+8.8
79,060
R
38.1%McGovern26,687
59.9%Nixon41,968
1.9%
R+21.8
R+5.2
D+1.3
70,018
R
38.9%Humphrey25,253
55.6%Nixon36,064
5.5%
R+16.7
R+35.5
R+16.0
64,917
D
59.4%Johnson39,343
40.5%Goldwater26,839
0.1%
D+18.9
D+33.9
R+3.7
66,263
R
42.5%Kennedy29,486
57.5%Nixon39,928
0.1%
R+15.0
D+6.5
R+15.2
69,459
R
39.1%Stevenson25,203
60.7%Eisenhower39,095
0.1%
R+21.6
D+10.3
R+6.2
64,377
R
33.9%Stevenson21,206
65.7%Eisenhower41,129
0.4%
R+31.8
R+36.7
R+21.1
62,573
D
51.6%Truman25,449
46.7%Dewey23,032
1.7%
D+4.9
D+10.6
D+0.4
49,310
R
46.9%Roosevelt21,548
52.7%Dewey24,173
0.4%
R+5.7
D+0.8
R+13.2
45,910
R
46.6%Roosevelt23,153
53.1%Willkie26,414
0.3%
R+6.6
R+19.9
R+16.5
49,701
D
55.0%Roosevelt25,769
41.7%Landon19,542
3.3%
D+13.3
D+4.1
R+11.0
46,854
D
54.1%Roosevelt23,732
44.8%Hoover19,685
1.1%
D+9.2
D+43.2
R+8.6
43,893
R
32.8%Smith13,233
66.8%Hoover26,959
0.4%
R+34.0
D+14.7
R+16.6
40,350
R
12.1%Davis4,507
60.8%Coolidge22,667
27.1%
R+48.7
D+15.2
R+23.5
37,274
R
16.1%Cox5,616
80.1%Harding27,869
3.8%
R+63.9
R+36.0
R+37.8
34,802
R
34.9%Wilson6,417
62.9%Hughes11,553
2.2%
R+28.0
R+49.4
R+31.1
18,372
O
38.8%Wilson6,795
17.3%Taft3,035
43.9%
Roosevelt +5.0
D+39.2
D+1.9
17,508
R
39.0%Bryan6,157
56.7%Taft8,954
4.2%
R+17.7
D+13.7
R+8.2
15,781
R
31.3%Parker4,582
62.7%Roosevelt9,184
6.1%
R+31.4
R+7.9
R+11.7
14,656
R
37.1%Bryan5,644
60.6%McKinley9,213
2.3%
R+23.5
D+1.9
R+15.9
15,210
R
36.0%Bryan5,077
61.4%McKinley8,653
2.5%
R+25.4
R+20.7
R+19.3
14,085
R
46.6%Cleveland5,832
51.2%Harrison6,413
2.2%
R+4.6
—
R+6.3
12,524
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
46.9%29,843
53.0%33,683
63,593
2020
D
49.1%42,994
48.3%42,318
87,633
voter registration
Registered voters
By party of registration, over time
Party registration · 2024D+1.9
vs
Presidential vote · 2024R+6.5
Waterloo-Cedar Falls, IA registers Democratic but votes Republican — a 8.3-point gap between how voters register and how they vote, the signature of ancestral registration that trails realignment.
DemocraticRepublicanUnaffiliatedOther parties
Voter registration in Waterloo-Cedar Falls, IA
Year
Total registered
Democratic
Republican
Unaffiliated
Other
2008
113,988
38,514
30,632
44,782
60
2010
115,614
38,386
31,597
45,506
125
2012
117,963
38,255
32,351
47,175
182
2014
116,329
37,342
31,440
47,158
389
2016
115,918
38,472
32,907
43,827
712
2018
115,695
38,286
31,949
44,398
1,062
2020
117,286
42,429
34,581
39,304
972
2022
114,558
39,539
34,046
40,011
962
2024
114,134
36,993
34,874
41,184
1,083
domestic migration
Who moves in and out
Net domestic migration over time
−612 net domestic migration · 2025
20112025
Net −9,297 over 2011–2025 · gain loss
Domestic migration in Waterloo-Cedar Falls, IA in Waterloo-Cedar Falls, IA: net domestic migration by year
Year
Net domestic migration
2011
−285
2012
−358
2013
+71
2014
−405
2015
−544
2016
−1,695
2017
−1,502
2018
−1,156
2019
−1,110
2021
−637
2022
−980
2023
+66
2024
−150
2025
−612
Anchored by Waterloo and Cedar Falls, this metro pairs a historically union-heavy industrial core with a college-town precincts around the University of Northern Iowa, producing persistent intra-metro splits that have made it a genuine swing bellwether in statewide races.
Across the recorded series it reached a Democratic high of 21.5 points in 1912 and a Republican high of 63.9 points in 1920. Between 2020 and 2024 the metro moved 7.5 points toward the Republican candidate; the 2024 margin was 6.5 points.
A population of 168,637, a 82% non-Hispanic-white share, and a median household income of $70,988 describe the metro. The metro's voting pattern over the last decade is most similar to that of Cedar Rapids, IA and Davenport-Moline-Rock Island, IA-IL.
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.
Waterloo-Cedar Falls, IA, Iowa. Akashic. https://akashic.app/cbsa/47940/. Accessed May 20, 2026. License: CC BY 4.0.
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How did Waterloo-Cedar Falls, IA, Iowa vote in 2024?
In 2024, Waterloo-Cedar Falls, IA, Iowa voted Republican by 6.5 points (R+6.5), carried by the Republican candidate. Out of 84,659 votes cast, 38,889 went Democratic and 44,369 went Republican.
When did Waterloo-Cedar Falls, IA, Iowa last vote Democratic?
The most recent presidential election in which Waterloo-Cedar Falls, IA, Iowa voted Democratic was 2020.
How many people live in Waterloo-Cedar Falls, IA, Iowa?
Waterloo-Cedar Falls, IA, Iowa has a population of 168,637 according to the 2024 American Community Survey 5-year estimates from the US Census Bureau.
What is the median household income in Waterloo-Cedar Falls, IA, Iowa?
Median household income in Waterloo-Cedar Falls, IA, Iowa is $70,988 — below the national median of $80,734. The Iowa state median is $75,059.
What is the political history of Waterloo-Cedar Falls, IA, Iowa?
Akashic tracks 34 presidential elections in Waterloo-Cedar Falls, IA, Iowa from 1892 to 2024. Of those, 13 went Democratic and 20 went Republican.
