congressional districtIowa 1st Congressional District
presidential margin
2004–2024 · Democratic minus Republican
2004D+5.9
2008D+15.7
2012D+13.0
2016R+3.0
2020R+2.9
2024R+8.4
net swing · 2004→2024R+14.3D+5.9 → R+8.4
vs. U.S. · 2024R+7.0R+8.4 vs R+1.5
presidential returns
2024 turnout 70.1% of 605,985 citizens 18+
Year
Democrat
Republican
Others
Total
CVAP
Turnout
2024
190,502
226,309
7,877
424,688
605,985
70.1%
2020
203,400
215,742
8,916
428,058
593,039†
72.2%
2016
177,850
189,883
28,895
396,628
584,965†
67.8%
2012
226,087
173,043
7,763
406,893
572,515†
71.1%
2008
224,737
162,527
8,636
395,900
563,558†
70.3%
2004
200,125
177,758
3,679
381,562
554,600†
68.8%
† Citizen voting-age population estimated for prior cycles from the constituent-county ACS trend anchored to the current figure. Source: ACS 5-year, table B05003.
——
D+60R+60
20042024
District by 2024 margin · Precinct returns · VEST · 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
GroupIA-1IowaUnited States
German30.3%30.5%12.5%
Irish14.3%12.8%9.4%
English11.2%10.2%9.5%
American4.7%4.6%5.3%
Dutch2.5%2.7%—
Norwegian2.5%4.1%—
Swedish1.9%1.9%—
Italian1.8%1.6%4.8%
Mexican3.9%5.0%11.3%
Puerto Rican0.4%0.3%1.8%
African American†3.4%2.6%9.9%
African0.4%0.3%0.5%
Sudanese0.2%0.2%—
Asian Indian0.5%0.5%1.4%
Chinese0.4%0.3%1.3%
Vietnamese0.3%0.3%0.6%
Korean0.2%0.2%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
IA-1
Iowa
United States
Median age
38.9
38.8
39.1
Age 18–24
10.6%
10.0%
9.2%
Age 65 and older
18.2%
18.1%
17.2%
Household economy
Measure
IA-1
Iowa
United States
Median household income
$73,680
$75,059
$84,427
Poverty rate
12.1%
11.1%
12.5%
Bachelor's degree or higher (25+)
33.4%
31.8%
35.6%
Languages at home
Measure
IA-1
Iowa
United States
Speaks a non-English language at home
7.5%
9.2%
22.3%
Spanish
3.2%
4.7%
13.6%
Religious landscape
Measure
IA-1
Iowa
United States
Catholic
—
14.7%
18.6%
Evangelical Protestant
—
10.9%
16.5%
Unclaimed / not counted
—
55.2%
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.
Iowa 1st Congressional District
presidential history
Presidential margin, 2004–2024
Democratic minus Republican, by election
Presidential margin over time
Year
Margin (D minus R)
2004
+5.9%
2008
+15.7%
2012
+13.0%
2016
−3.0%
2020
−2.9%
2024
−8.4%
DemocraticRepublican
6 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. Third-party votes in 2012 are allocated from certified county totals by this place's share of each county's two-party vote — that cycle's precinct source records two-party splits. † 2004 sub-county results are estimated: the source's block-level detail for this cycle was unreliable — either county/municipality-level consolidated reporting (COVID-era) or a precinct-to-block allocation that misplaced votes — so the figures are allocated from the constituent county totals in proportion to the place and scaled to certified totals.
Federal officeholders only. State and local officeholders are planned for the next data pass.
Congressional elections · 25 House races
U.S. House
Each result reflects the U.S. House district as it was drawn for that election; redistricting has redrawn these lines over time, so they can differ from the current 120th-Congress district shown on the map above.
Source · MIT Election Lab (MEDSL), House. CC-BY 4.0.
Year
District
Won
Democratic
Republican
Total
2024
1
R
49.8%206,156
50.0%206,955
414,078
2022
1
R
46.6%142,173
53.4%162,947
305,380
2020
1
R
48.6%201,347
51.2%212,088
413,869
2018
1
D
51.0%170,342
45.9%153,442
334,243
2016
1
R
46.1%177,403
53.7%206,903
384,977
2014
1
R
48.8%141,145
51.1%147,762
289,306
2012
1
D
56.9%222,422
41.6%162,465
390,849
2010
1
D
49.5%104,428
47.5%100,219
210,902
2008
1
D
64.6%186,991
35.4%102,439
289,430
2006
1
D
55.1%114,322
43.2%89,729
207,478
2004
1
R
43.3%125,490
55.2%159,993
290,054
2002
1
R
42.6%83,779
57.2%112,280
196,455
2000
1
R
36.1%96,283
61.8%164,972
266,990
1998
1
R
42.3%79,529
56.6%106,419
188,132
1996
1
R
45.6%111,595
52.8%129,242
244,596
1994
1
R
37.9%69,461
60.2%110,448
183,461
1992
1
R
31.4%81,600
68.6%178,042
259,642
1990
1
R
0.0%0
99.8%90,042
90,193
1988
1
R
38.4%71,280
60.7%112,746
185,716
1986
1
R
33.6%43,985
66.4%86,834
130,825
1984
1
R
33.2%65,293
66.8%131,182
196,475
1982
1
R
40.8%61,734
59.2%89,595
151,342
1980
1
R
34.9%72,602
64.1%133,349
208,111
1978
1
R
35.8%45,037
63.5%79,940
125,955
1976
1
R
47.8%101,024
51.9%109,694
211,204
Iowa's 1st district stretches from the Cedar Rapids metro into rural eastern counties, a mix that once made it a genuine swing seat but has shifted steadily toward Republican margins over the past three election cycles.
Across the recorded series it reached a Democratic high of 15.7 points in 2008 and a Republican high of 8.4 points in 2024. Between 2020 and 2024 the district moved 5.5 points toward the Republican candidate; the 2024 margin was 8.4 points.
A population of 797,584, a 83% non-Hispanic-white share, and a median household income of $73,680 describe the district. The district's voting pattern over the last decade is most similar to that of Congressional District 2 and Congressional District 3.
Akashic
Political twins — districts
The congressional districts 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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Iowa 1st Congressional District. Akashic. https://akashic.app/cd/1901/. Accessed May 20, 2026. License: CC BY 4.0.
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How did Iowa 1st Congressional District vote in 2024?
In 2024, Iowa 1st Congressional District voted Republican by 8.4 points (R+8.4), carried by the Republican candidate. Out of 424,688 votes cast, 190,502 went Democratic and 226,309 went Republican.
When did Iowa 1st Congressional District last vote Democratic?
The most recent presidential election in which Iowa 1st Congressional District voted Democratic was 2012.
How many people live in Iowa 1st Congressional District?
Iowa 1st Congressional District has a population of 797,584 according to the 2024 American Community Survey 5-year estimates from the US Census Bureau.
What is the median household income in Iowa 1st Congressional District?
Median household income in Iowa 1st Congressional District is $73,680 — below the national median of $80,734. The Iowa state median is $75,059.
What is the political history of Iowa 1st Congressional District?
Akashic tracks 6 presidential elections in Iowa 1st Congressional District from 2004 to 2024. Of those, 3 went Democratic and 3 went Republican.
