† 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
GroupWatertown, SDSouth DakotaUnited States
German39.8%33.1%12.5%
Norwegian15.8%10.4%—
Irish9.1%9.9%9.4%
English6.2%7.7%9.5%
American4.1%4.4%5.3%
Swedish3.1%2.5%—
Polish2.8%—2.2%
Dutch2.4%3.4%—
Mexican2.5%2.6%11.3%
Cuban0.2%—0.7%
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
Watertown, SD
South Dakota
United States
Median age
40.4
38.2
39.1
Age 18–24
8.8%
9.2%
9.2%
Age 65 and older
19.7%
18.0%
17.2%
Household economy
Measure
Watertown, SD
South Dakota
United States
Median household income
$72,727
$75,081
$84,427
Poverty rate
8.8%
12.0%
12.5%
Bachelor's degree or higher (25+)
21.4%
31.9%
35.6%
Languages at home
Measure
Watertown, SD
South Dakota
United States
Speaks a non-English language at home
3.0%
7.1%
22.3%
Spanish
2.0%
2.6%
13.6%
Religious landscape
Measure
Watertown, SD
South Dakota
United States
Catholic
21.1%
14.8%
18.6%
Evangelical Protestant
18.0%
20.1%
16.5%
Unclaimed / not counted
34.7%
44.9%
51.5%
Mainline Protestant
24.5%
18.0%
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.
Watertown, SD
presidential history
Presidential margin, 1892–2024
Democratic minus Republican, by election
Presidential margin over time
Year
Margin (D minus R)
1892
−28.0%
1896
−15.5%
1900
−20.0%
1904
−48.1%
1908
−30.8%
1912
+45.0%
1916
−6.9%
1920
−40.7%
1924
−27.4%
1928
−6.5%
1932
+30.7%
1936
+16.4%
1940
−7.7%
1944
−3.5%
1948
+9.3%
1952
−31.8%
1956
−15.4%
1960
−10.5%
1964
+19.7%
1968
+3.6%
1972
−3.5%
1976
+1.9%
1980
−25.5%
1984
−26.7%
1988
−4.9%
1992
−2.2%
1996
−2.5%
2000
−22.7%
2004
−23.3%
2008
−6.4%
2012
−18.3%
2016
−39.3%
2020
−38.9%
2024
−40.8%
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
28.4%Harris3,840
69.2%Trump9,349
2.4%
R+40.8
R+1.9
R+39.3
13,510
R
29.2%Biden3,837
68.1%Trump8,958
2.8%
R+38.9
D+0.4
R+43.4
13,161
R
27.2%Clinton3,174
66.5%Trump7,764
6.3%
R+39.3
R+21.0
R+41.4
11,669
R
39.8%Obama4,588
58.1%Romney6,696
2.1%
R+18.3
R+11.9
R+22.1
11,524
R
45.9%Obama5,595
52.3%McCain6,374
1.8%
R+6.4
D+16.9
R+13.7
12,185
R
37.7%Kerry4,803
61.0%Bush7,778
1.3%
R+23.3
R+0.7
R+20.9
12,751
R
37.6%Gore4,192
60.3%Bush6,718
2.0%
R+22.7
R+20.2
R+23.2
11,138
R
42.7%Clinton4,722
45.2%Dole4,995
12.1%
R+2.5
R+0.3
R+11.0
11,055
R
33.8%Clinton3,701
36.0%Bush3,943
30.1%
R+2.2
D+2.7
R+7.8
10,943
R
47.0%Dukakis4,570
52.0%Bush5,050
1.0%
R+4.9
D+21.7
D+2.8
9,714
R
36.5%Mondale3,528
63.1%Reagan6,108
0.4%
R+26.7
R+1.1
R+8.4
9,678
R
33.6%Carter3,353
59.1%Reagan5,903
7.3%
R+25.5
R+27.4
R+15.8
9,990
D
50.8%Carter4,680
48.9%Ford4,504
0.3%
D+1.9
D+5.4
R+0.2
9,213
R
48.1%McGovern4,601
51.6%Nixon4,936
0.3%
R+3.5
R+7.1
D+19.7
9,564
D
50.1%Humphrey4,235
46.5%Nixon3,929
3.4%
D+3.6
R+16.1
D+4.3
8,452
D
59.8%Johnson5,353
40.2%Goldwater3,593
0.0%
D+19.7
D+30.1
R+2.9
8,946
R
44.8%Kennedy4,304
55.2%Nixon5,309
0.0%
R+10.5
D+5.0
R+10.6
9,613
R
42.3%Stevenson3,772
57.7%Eisenhower5,150
0.0%
R+15.4
D+16.4
±0.0
8,922
R
34.1%Stevenson2,974
65.9%Eisenhower5,750
0.0%
R+31.8
R+41.1
R+21.1
8,724
D
54.3%Truman4,042
45.0%Dewey3,349
0.7%
D+9.3
D+12.8
D+4.8
7,441
R
48.2%Roosevelt3,120
51.8%Dewey3,348
0.0%
R+3.5
D+4.1
R+11.0
6,468
R
46.2%Roosevelt3,705
53.8%Willkie4,320
0.0%
R+7.7
R+24.1
R+17.6
8,025
D
55.9%Roosevelt4,256
39.4%Landon3,005
4.7%
D+16.4
R+14.2
R+7.8
7,620
D
65.0%Roosevelt4,806
34.3%Hoover2,538
0.7%
D+30.7
D+37.2
D+12.9
7,396
R
46.6%Smith3,299
53.1%Hoover3,762
0.4%
R+6.5
D+20.9
D+10.9
7,087
O
13.9%Davis627
41.4%Coolidge1,862
44.7%
La Follette +3.3
D+13.2
R+2.3
4,500
R
19.2%Cox867
59.8%Harding2,706
21.0%
R+40.7
R+33.8
R+14.5
4,522
R
44.9%Wilson1,344
51.8%Hughes1,550
3.2%
R+6.9
R+51.9
R+10.0
2,991
O
45.0%Wilson1,111
0.0%Taft0
55.0%
Roosevelt +9.9
D+75.8
D+25.5
2,467
R
32.5%Bryan831
63.3%Taft1,618
4.2%
R+30.8
D+17.3
R+21.2
2,556
R
24.1%Parker582
72.2%Roosevelt1,741
3.7%
R+48.1
R+28.1
R+28.4
2,412
R
38.3%Bryan805
58.3%McKinley1,225
3.4%
R+20.0
R+4.5
R+12.4
2,102
R
41.6%Bryan759
57.1%McKinley1,041
1.3%
R+15.5
D+12.6
R+9.4
1,823
R
24.1%Cleveland408
52.2%Harrison882
23.7%
R+28.0
—
R+29.7
1,691
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
20.6%2,265
75.2%8,279
11,004
2020
R
27.7%3,626
72.3%9,479
13,105
voter registration
Registered voters
By party of registration, over time
Party registration · 2026R+38.5
vs
Presidential vote · 2024R+40.8
Registration and the presidential vote track closely here — within 2.3 points.
Domestic migration in Watertown, SD in Watertown, SD: net domestic migration by year
Year
Net domestic migration
2011
+72
2012
+43
2013
+82
2014
−70
2015
−197
2016
−4
2017
−82
2018
−194
2019
−108
2021
+131
2022
+195
2023
+127
2024
+260
2025
+277
Watertown anchors the northeast corner of South Dakota, drawing workers and voters from a wide rural catchment. Its Codington County electorate has leaned heavily Republican in recent presidential cycles, often by margins exceeding 30 points.
Across the recorded series it reached a Democratic high of 45.0 points in 1912 and a Republican high of 48.1 points in 1904. Between 2020 and 2024 the metro moved 1.9 points toward the Republican candidate; the 2024 margin was 40.8 points.
A population of 28,767, a 90% non-Hispanic-white share, and a median household income of $72,727 describe the metro. The metro's voting pattern over the last decade is most similar to that of Wahpeton, ND-MN and Spencer, IA.
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
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Watertown, SD, South Dakota. Akashic. https://akashic.app/cbsa/47980/. Accessed May 20, 2026. License: CC BY 4.0.
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In 2024, Watertown, SD, South Dakota voted Republican by 40.8 points (R+40.8), carried by the Republican candidate. Out of 13,510 votes cast, 3,840 went Democratic and 9,349 went Republican.
When did Watertown, SD, South Dakota last vote Democratic?
The most recent presidential election in which Watertown, SD, South Dakota voted Democratic was 1976.
How many people live in Watertown, SD, South Dakota?
Watertown, SD, South Dakota has a population of 28,767 according to the 2024 American Community Survey 5-year estimates from the US Census Bureau.
What is the median household income in Watertown, SD, South Dakota?
Median household income in Watertown, SD, South Dakota is $72,727 — below the national median of $80,734. The South Dakota state median is $75,081.
What is the political history of Watertown, SD, South Dakota?
Akashic tracks 34 presidential elections in Watertown, SD, South Dakota from 1892 to 2024. Of those, 6 went Democratic and 26 went Republican.
