Stark County, Illinois: Heartland Swing county. In 2024, voted R+46%. Republican peak: R+60 in 1920.
Key facts
- 2024 presidential margin
- R+46MIT Election Lab
- Political typology
- Heartland SwingAkashic typology
- Population
- 5,3082024 5-year
- Median household income
- $62,8782024 5-year
- White (non-Hispanic)
- 91.7%2024 5-year
- Black
- 1.2%2024 5-year
- Hispanic / Latino
- 2.9%2024 5-year
- Peak Democratic margin
- D+6 in 1932MIT Election Lab
- Peak Republican margin
- R+60 in 1920MIT Election Lab
- Most similar
- Paulding County, OH · similarity 1.00
2024 results by precinct
2024 precinct map of Stark CountyPrecinct-level 2024 presidential results for Stark 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 | −17.0% |
| 1896 | −22.2% |
| 1900 | −26.8% |
| 1904 | −48.1% |
| 1908 | −36.4% |
| 1912 | +5.1% |
| 1916 | −34.5% |
| 1920 | −60.4% |
| 1924 | −50.4% |
| 1928 | −38.7% |
| 1932 | +5.5% |
| 1936 | −9.6% |
| 1940 | −30.1% |
| 1944 | −37.0% |
| 1948 | −37.1% |
| 1952 | −51.1% |
| 1956 | −48.7% |
| 1960 | −35.7% |
| 1964 | −8.8% |
| 1968 | −31.8% |
| 1972 | −43.4% |
| 1976 | −30.2% |
| 1980 | −45.9% |
| 1984 | −34.8% |
| 1988 | −18.0% |
| 1992 | −1.4% |
| 1996 | −0.6% |
| 2000 | −16.2% |
| 2004 | −21.3% |
| 2008 | −5.4% |
| 2012 | −16.3% |
| 2016 | −37.4% |
| 2020 | −41.2% |
| 2024 | −45.6% |
DemocraticRepublican
38 presidential elections
| Year | Won | Margin | Democratic | Republican | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| R | 725 | 1,983 | 2,761 | ||
| R | 815 | 2,004 | 2,886 | ||
| R | 751 | 1,778 | 2,743 | ||
| R | 1,095 | 1,528 | 2,662 | ||
| R | 1,357 | 1,513 | 2,907 | ||
| R | 1,189 | 1,841 | 3,061 | ||
| R | 1,211 | 1,694 | 2,989 | ||
| R | 1,262 | 1,278 | 2,864 | ||
| R | 1,336 | 1,384 | 3,351 | ||
| R | 1,274 | 1,841 | 3,153 | ||
| R | 1,072 | 2,228 | 3,318 | ||
| R | 806 | 2,358 | 3,380 | ||
| R | 1,146 | 2,191 | 3,459 | ||
| R | 993 | 2,529 | 3,540 | ||
| R | 1,128 | 2,292 | 3,665 | ||
| R | 1,776 | 2,117 | 3,893 | ||
| R | 1,383 | 2,925 | 4,314 | ||
| R | 1,118 | 3,241 | 4,361 | ||
| R | 1,100 | 3,398 | 4,500 | ||
| R | 1,163 | 2,537 | 3,707 | ||
| R | 1,401 | 3,050 | 4,458 | ||
| R | 1,818 | 3,393 | 5,225 | ||
| R | 2,220 | 2,696 | 4,958 | ||
| D | 2,369 | 2,119 | 4,533 | ||
| R | 1,306 | 2,966 | 4,293 | ||
| R | 784 | 2,698 | 3,796 | ||
| R | 661 | 2,750 | 3,456 | ||
| R | 1,390 | 2,887 | 4,336 | ||
| O | 669 | 549 | 2,340 | ||
| R | 738 | 1,635 | 2,467 | ||
| R | 574 | 1,764 | 2,475 | ||
| R | 939 | 1,665 | 2,713 | ||
| R | 1,030 | 1,636 | 2,725 | ||
| R | 824 | 1,240 | 2,443 | ||
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Demographics
2024 ACS
Race, ethnicity, and ancestry
Click any group to see the ancestries typically reported within it.
German
26.9%
English
17.5%
Irish
12.6%
American
6.2%
Scottish
4.1%
Italian
2.4%
Polish
1.1%
African American
1.0%
Multiple ancestry combinations reported; no single grouping above 1%.
Sample size too small to break out by ancestry reliably.
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: 44.4 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
$62,878
Stark County ranks near the middle of US counties.
Stark County$62,878
Illinois$83,390
United States$80,734
Stark 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
11.1%
Children face moderate poverty.
Children under 1815.5%
Working age (18–64)10.7%
Seniors (65+)3.5%
Source · American Community Survey 5-year estimates, 2024 release.
2024 ACS
Language at home
Population aged 5 and older
96.5%
speak English only
Spanish1.8%
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 68.0% of residents not counted as adherents by any reporting body.
Stark County's small, rural population has shifted decisively toward Republican presidential candidates over the past decade, recording a 45-point margin in 2024 — among the widest in a state that trends Democratic statewide.
The Democratic margin here peaked at six points in 1932. Between 2020 and 2024 the county moved four points toward the Republican candidate; the 2024 margin was forty-six points.
A population of 5,308, a 92% non-Hispanic-white share, and a median household income of $62,878 describe the county. The county's voting pattern over the last decade is most similar to that of Paulding County and Jay 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.
Stark County, Illinois. Akashic. https://akashic.app/county/17175/. Accessed May 20, 2026. License: CC BY 4.0.
License: CC BY 4.0
More heartland swing counties
Frequently asked questions
How did Stark County, Illinois vote in 2024?
In 2024, Stark County, Illinois voted Republican by 45.6 points (R+46), carried by the Republican candidate. Out of 2,761 votes cast, 725 went Democratic and 1,983 went Republican.
What is Stark County, Illinois's political typology?
Akashic places Stark County, Illinois in the "Heartland Swing" typology — Industrial Midwest swing counties drifting steadily toward the Republican Party. 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 1 times, Republican 32 times, and other 1 times.
When did Stark County, Illinois last vote Democratic?
The most recent presidential election in which Stark County, Illinois voted Democratic was 1932.
How many people live in Stark County, Illinois?
Stark County, Illinois has a population of 5,308 according to the 2024 American Community Survey 5-year estimates from the US Census Bureau.
What is the median household income in Stark County, Illinois?
Median household income in Stark County, Illinois is $62,878 — below the national median of $80,734. The Illinois state median is $83,390.
What is the political history of Stark County, Illinois?
Akashic tracks 38 presidential elections in Stark County, Illinois from 1876 to 2024. Of those, 1 went Democratic and 32 went Republican. The county's typology — "Heartland Swing" — captures where that record, its demographics, and its recent swing place it among American communities.