† Citizen voting-age population estimated for prior cycles; 2004 predates the ACS and is extrapolated. Source: ACS 5-year, table B05003.
——
D+60R+60
20042024
Boundary 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
GroupCrescoIowaUnited States
German38.8%30.5%12.5%
Norwegian13.9%4.1%—
Czech8.4%——
Irish8.1%12.8%9.4%
English3.6%10.2%9.5%
American3.2%4.6%5.3%
Polish2.3%—2.2%
French1.8%—1.6%
Mexican2.8%5.0%11.3%
Cuban0.5%—0.7%
Spaniard0.5%——
Guatemalan0.3%0.4%0.5%
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
Cresco
Iowa
United States
Median age
38.5
38.8
39.1
Age 18–24
5.5%
10.0%
9.2%
Age 65 and older
21.3%
18.1%
17.2%
Household economy
Measure
Cresco
Iowa
United States
Median household income
$60,608
$75,059
$84,427
Poverty rate
13.4%
11.1%
12.5%
Bachelor's degree or higher (25+)
20.7%
31.8%
35.6%
Languages at home
Measure
Cresco
Iowa
United States
Speaks a non-English language at home
3.3%
9.2%
22.3%
Spanish
3.2%
4.7%
13.6%
Religious landscape
Measure
Cresco
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.
Cresco, Iowa
presidential history
Presidential margin, 2004–2024
Democratic minus Republican, by election
Presidential margin over time
Year
Margin (D minus R)
2004
+14.8%
2008
+30.7%
2012
+28.9%
2016
−11.5%
2020
−17.7%
2024
−16.7%
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.
Year
Won
Democratic
Republican
Other
Margin
Swing
vs U.S.
Total
R
40.8%Harris819
57.6%Trump1,154
1.6%
R+16.7
D+1.0
R+15.2
2,005
R
40.5%Biden819
58.2%Trump1,177
1.3%
R+17.7
R+6.2
R+22.2
2,022
R
41.1%Clinton775
52.6%Trump991
6.3%
R+11.5
R+40.3
R+13.6
1,884
D
63.5%Obama1,257
34.7%Romney686
1.8%
D+28.9
R+1.9
D+25.0
1,978
D
64.2%Obama1,261
33.4%McCain657
2.4%
D+30.7
D+16.0
D+23.5
1,965
D
56.2%Kerry1,110
41.4%Bush818
2.4%
D+14.8
—
D+17.2
1,975
Cresco sits in Howard County, which has shifted sharply toward Republican margins over the past two election cycles after decades as a competitive rural battleground. Its small meatpacking and agricultural workforce shapes both its demography and its political volatility.
Across the recorded series it reached a Democratic high of 30.7 points in 2008 and a Republican high of 17.7 points in 2020. Between 2020 and 2024 the city moved 1.0 points toward the Democratic candidate; the 2024 margin was 16.7 points.
A population of 3,908, a 92% non-Hispanic-white share, and a median household income of $60,608 describe the city.
In 2024, Cresco, Iowa voted Republican by 16.7 points (R+16.7), carried by the Republican candidate. Out of 2,005 votes cast, 819 went Democratic and 1,154 went Republican.
When did Cresco, Iowa last vote Democratic?
The most recent presidential election in which Cresco, Iowa voted Democratic was 2012.
How many people live in Cresco, Iowa?
Cresco, Iowa has a population of 3,908 according to the 2024 American Community Survey 5-year estimates from the US Census Bureau.
What is the median household income in Cresco, Iowa?
Median household income in Cresco, Iowa is $60,608 — below the national median of $80,734. The Iowa state median is $75,059.
What is the political history of Cresco, Iowa?
Akashic tracks 6 presidential elections in Cresco, Iowa from 2004 to 2024. Of those, 3 went Democratic and 3 went Republican.
