Craighead County, Arkansas: Stable Rural Right county. In 2024, voted R+37%. Democratic peak: D+75 in 1932.
Key facts
- 2024 presidential margin
- R+37MIT Election Lab
- Political typology
- Stable Rural RightAkashic typology
- Population
- 113,2492024 5-year
- Median household income
- $59,5482024 5-year
- White (non-Hispanic)
- 71.9%2024 5-year
- Black
- 16.8%2024 5-year
- Hispanic / Latino
- 6.3%2024 5-year
- Peak Democratic margin
- D+75 in 1932MIT Election Lab
- Peak Republican margin
- R+37 in 2024MIT Election Lab
- Most similar
- Independence County, AR · similarity 0.99
2024 results by precinct
2024 precinct map of Craighead CountyPrecinct-level 2024 presidential results for Craighead County, with each precinct boundary colored by Democratic-vs-Republican margin.
—
Margin—
Turnout—
Harris +50Trump +50
Real precinct boundaries. Hover for vote totals.
presidential history
Presidential margin, 1876–2024
Democratic minus Republican, by election
| Year | Margin (D minus R) |
|---|---|
| 1876 | No data |
| 1880 | No data |
| 1884 | No data |
| 1888 | No data |
| 1892 | +49.1% |
| 1896 | +70.2% |
| 1900 | +44.6% |
| 1904 | +28.6% |
| 1908 | +36.7% |
| 1912 | +48.2% |
| 1916 | +56.6% |
| 1920 | +31.5% |
| 1924 | +32.2% |
| 1928 | +4.2% |
| 1932 | +75.1% |
| 1936 | +64.6% |
| 1940 | +55.5% |
| 1944 | +41.5% |
| 1948 | +48.5% |
| 1952 | +17.4% |
| 1956 | +18.3% |
| 1960 | −3.4% |
| 1964 | +23.4% |
| 1968 | −8.4% |
| 1972 | −31.9% |
| 1976 | +38.0% |
| 1980 | −8.3% |
| 1984 | −26.9% |
| 1988 | −13.0% |
| 1992 | +18.9% |
| 1996 | +16.6% |
| 2000 | +0.9% |
| 2004 | −7.2% |
| 2008 | −24.5% |
| 2012 | −31.0% |
| 2016 | −35.8% |
| 2020 | −35.4% |
| 2024 | −37.4% |
DemocraticRepublican
38 presidential elections
| Year | Won | Margin | Democratic | Republican | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| R | 11,210 | 25,152 | 37,242 | ||
| R | 11,921 | 25,558 | 38,511 | ||
| R | 10,538 | 22,892 | 34,461 | ||
| R | 10,527 | 20,350 | 31,700 | ||
| R | 11,294 | 18,881 | 30,968 | ||
| R | 13,665 | 15,818 | 29,801 | ||
| D | 12,376 | 12,158 | 25,157 | ||
| D | 13,284 | 9,210 | 24,582 | ||
| D | 13,931 | 9,104 | 25,596 | ||
| R | 9,083 | 11,887 | 21,615 | ||
| R | 8,035 | 14,047 | 22,343 | ||
| R | 9,231 | 11,010 | 21,456 | ||
| D | 13,840 | 6,213 | 20,053 | ||
| R | 5,843 | 11,312 | 17,155 | ||
| O | 3,738 | 5,047 | 15,527 | ||
| D | 8,334 | 5,163 | 13,541 | ||
| R | 4,898 | 5,258 | 10,738 | ||
| D | 5,876 | 4,035 | 10,060 | ||
| D | 5,975 | 4,199 | 10,202 | ||
| D | 3,238 | 759 | 5,110 | ||
| D | 3,582 | 1,474 | 5,074 | ||
| D | 3,300 | 935 | 4,262 | ||
| D | 3,335 | 710 | 4,066 | ||
| D | 4,412 | 606 | 5,066 | ||
| D | 2,132 | 1,958 | 4,118 | ||
| D | 1,711 | 812 | 2,794 | ||
| D | 2,079 | 1,058 | 3,241 | ||
| D | 1,957 | 543 | 2,500 | ||
| D | 1,259 | 269 | 2,054 | ||
| D | 1,653 | 711 | 2,564 | ||
| D | 1,051 | 559 | 1,721 | ||
| D | 1,326 | 489 | 1,876 | ||
| D | 1,890 | 329 | 2,224 | ||
| D | 1,248 | 372 | 1,784 | ||
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Demographics
2024 ACS
Race, ethnicity, and ancestry
Click any group to see the ancestries typically reported within it.
English
13.1%
Irish
10.1%
American
9.5%
German
9.3%
Scottish
1.9%
Italian
1.8%
French
1.0%
African American
13.4%
Multiple ancestry combinations reported; no single grouping above 1%.
American Indian, Alaska Native, Native Hawaiian, and Pacific Islander combined.
Source · American Community Survey 5-year estimates, 2024 release. Hispanic/Latino is an ethnicity that overlaps the race categories, so these shares can total more than 100%. Ancestry is a self-reported, multiple-response item; ancestry percentages do not sum to the parent race percentage.
2024 ACS
Age distribution by sex
Median age: 34.5 in this county, 39.1 nationally
Male
Age
Female
85+
75–84
65–74
55–64
45–54
35–44
25–34
18–24
5–17
<5
Source · American Community Survey 5-year estimates, 2024 release.
2024 ACS
Median household income
Inflation-adjusted dollars
$59,548
Craighead County ranks near the middle of US counties.
Craighead County$59,548
Arkansas$60,773
United States$80,734
Craighead County ranks near the middle of US counties by median household income.
Source · American Community Survey 5-year estimates, 2024 release.
2024 ACS
Poverty rate
All persons below federal poverty line
20.1%
Children face higher poverty than working-age adults.
Children under 1829.0%
Working age (18–64)17.5%
Seniors (65+)11.4%
Source · American Community Survey 5-year estimates, 2024 release.
2024 ACS
Language at home
Population aged 5 and older
93.3%
speak English only
Spanish5.0%
Asian & Pacific Islander0.8%
Other Indo-European0.6%
Other languages0.3%
Source · ACS 5-year estimates, 2024.
2020 religion census
Religious adherents
Adherents per capita by tradition
Source · 2020 US Religion Census. Remaining 39.6% of residents not counted as adherents by any reporting body.
Home to Arkansas State University and a expanding manufacturing base, Craighead County has shifted steadily toward lopsided Republican margins even as its population grows — a pattern common to mid-sized Sun Belt college towns outside major metros.
The Republican margin here reached thirty-seven points in 2024. Between 2020 and 2024 the county moved two points toward the Republican candidate; the 2024 margin was thirty-seven points.
A population of 113,249, a 72% non-Hispanic-white share, and a median household income of $59,548 describe the county. The county's voting pattern over the last decade is most similar to that of Independence County and Yell County.
Most similar counties
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.
Craighead County, Arkansas. Akashic. https://akashic.app/county/05031/. Accessed May 20, 2026. License: CC BY 4.0.
License: CC BY 4.0
More stable rural right counties
Frequently asked questions
How did Craighead County, Arkansas vote in 2024?
In 2024, Craighead County, Arkansas voted Republican by 37.4 points (R+37), carried by the Republican candidate. Out of 37,242 votes cast, 11,210 went Democratic and 25,152 went Republican.
What is Craighead County, Arkansas's political typology?
Akashic places Craighead County, Arkansas in the "Stable Rural Right" typology — Mountain, Plains, and rural Republican counties already near their ceiling, with little further room to swing. The typology is a data-driven cluster built from vote share, vote swing, race and ethnicity, income, language spoken at home, religion, and ancestry. Across 38 elections in the dataset, the county has voted Democratic 22 times, Republican 11 times, and other 1 times.
When did Craighead County, Arkansas last vote Democratic?
The most recent presidential election in which Craighead County, Arkansas voted Democratic was 2000.
How many people live in Craighead County, Arkansas?
Craighead County, Arkansas has a population of 113,249 according to the 2024 American Community Survey 5-year estimates from the US Census Bureau.
What is the median household income in Craighead County, Arkansas?
Median household income in Craighead County, Arkansas is $59,548 — below the national median of $80,734. The Arkansas state median is $60,773.
What is the political history of Craighead County, Arkansas?
Akashic tracks 38 presidential elections in Craighead County, Arkansas from 1876 to 2024. Of those, 22 went Democratic and 11 went Republican. The county's typology — "Stable Rural Right" — captures where that record, its demographics, and its recent swing place it among American communities.