Lake County, Indiana: Florida Surge county. In 2024, voted D+6%. Republican peak: R+50 in 1920.
Key facts
- 2024 presidential margin
- D+6MIT Election Lab
- Political typology
- Florida SurgeAkashic typology
- Population
- 500,3792024 5-year
- Median household income
- $71,4932024 5-year
- White (non-Hispanic)
- 54.9%2024 5-year
- Black
- 23.1%2024 5-year
- Hispanic / Latino
- 20.9%2024 5-year
- Peak Democratic margin
- D+34 in 1936MIT Election Lab
- Peak Republican margin
- R+50 in 1920MIT Election Lab
- Most similar
- Greensville County, VA · similarity 0.99
2024 results by precinct
2024 precinct map of Lake CountyPrecinct-level 2024 presidential results for Lake 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 | +0.8% |
| 1896 | −17.4% |
| 1900 | −17.4% |
| 1904 | −34.9% |
| 1908 | −25.7% |
| 1912 | −0.2% |
| 1916 | −13.8% |
| 1920 | −50.4% |
| 1924 | −41.8% |
| 1928 | −20.1% |
| 1932 | +3.8% |
| 1936 | +33.6% |
| 1940 | +22.0% |
| 1944 | +21.7% |
| 1948 | +19.3% |
| 1952 | +10.0% |
| 1956 | −4.4% |
| 1960 | +25.7% |
| 1964 | +29.2% |
| 1968 | +10.3% |
| 1972 | −13.1% |
| 1976 | +14.4% |
| 1980 | +2.8% |
| 1984 | +10.8% |
| 1988 | +13.5% |
| 1992 | +26.3% |
| 1996 | +31.9% |
| 2000 | +26.0% |
| 2004 | +22.8% |
| 2008 | +34.3% |
| 2012 | +30.9% |
| 2016 | +20.4% |
| 2020 | +15.1% |
| 2024 | +5.6% |
DemocraticRepublican
38 presidential elections
| Year | Won | Margin | Democratic | Republican | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| D | 109,086 | 97,270 | 210,102 | ||
| D | 124,870 | 91,760 | 219,955 | ||
| D | 116,896 | 75,565 | 202,704 | ||
| D | 130,897 | 68,431 | 202,147 | ||
| D | 139,301 | 67,742 | 208,757 | ||
| D | 114,743 | 71,903 | 188,022 | ||
| D | 109,078 | 63,389 | 175,994 | ||
| D | 100,198 | 47,873 | 163,860 | ||
| D | 102,778 | 53,867 | 186,298 | ||
| D | 105,026 | 79,929 | 185,735 | ||
| D | 117,984 | 94,870 | 214,143 | ||
| D | 101,145 | 95,408 | 207,339 | ||
| D | 120,700 | 90,119 | 212,741 | ||
| R | 88,510 | 115,480 | 205,342 | ||
| D | 99,897 | 77,911 | 213,574 | ||
| D | 134,978 | 73,722 | 209,523 | ||
| D | 132,554 | 78,278 | 211,358 | ||
| R | 85,000 | 92,803 | 178,460 | ||
| D | 90,721 | 74,073 | 165,845 | ||
| D | 77,025 | 51,413 | 132,595 | ||
| D | 75,066 | 48,147 | 123,950 | ||
| D | 71,985 | 45,898 | 118,330 | ||
| D | 68,551 | 33,689 | 103,750 | ||
| D | 46,060 | 42,596 | 91,492 | ||
| R | 32,321 | 48,768 | 81,719 | ||
| R | 10,918 | 30,990 | 47,968 | ||
| R | 7,136 | 26,296 | 38,028 | ||
| R | 9,946 | 13,262 | 24,111 | ||
| O | 5,136 | 5,176 | 17,483 | ||
| R | 5,502 | 9,499 | 15,579 | ||
| R | 2,933 | 6,429 | 10,028 | ||
| R | 3,733 | 5,337 | 9,201 | ||
| R | 3,418 | 4,883 | 8,403 | ||
| D | 3,010 | 2,958 | 6,160 | ||
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Demographics
2024 ACS
Race, ethnicity, and ancestry
Click any group to see the ancestries typically reported within it.
German
13.3%
Irish
9.8%
Polish
9.0%
English
5.6%
Italian
4.6%
American
2.5%
Scottish
1.1%
African American
18.5%
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: 39.7 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
$71,493
Lake County ranks near the middle of US counties.
Lake County$71,493
Indiana$71,957
United States$80,734
Lake 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
14.3%
Children face moderate poverty.
Children under 1821.6%
Working age (18–64)12.1%
Seniors (65+)11.9%
Source · American Community Survey 5-year estimates, 2024 release.
2024 ACS
Language at home
Population aged 5 and older
84.9%
speak English only
Spanish10.9%
Other Indo-European2.7%
Asian & Pacific Islander0.9%
Other languages0.5%
Source · ACS 5-year estimates, 2024.
2020 religion census
Religious adherents
Adherents per capita by tradition
Source · 2020 US Religion Census. Remaining 49.4% of residents not counted as adherents by any reporting body.
Lake County delivers some of Indiana's largest Democratic margins, yet its presidential gap has compressed by roughly 20 points over two decades as Gary's population decline reshapes the electorate and suburban precincts trend more competitive.
The Democratic margin here once reached thirty-four points in 2008. Between 2020 and 2024 the county moved nine points toward the Republican candidate; the 2024 margin was six points.
A population of 500,379, a 55% non-Hispanic-white share, and a median household income of $71,493 describe the county. The county's voting pattern over the last decade is most similar to that of Greensville County and Mora 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.
Lake County, Indiana. Akashic. https://akashic.app/county/18089/. Accessed May 20, 2026. License: CC BY 4.0.
License: CC BY 4.0
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Frequently asked questions
How did Lake County, Indiana vote in 2024?
In 2024, Lake County, Indiana voted Democratic by 5.6 points (D+6), carried by the Democratic candidate. Out of 210,102 votes cast, 109,086 went Democratic and 97,270 went Republican.
What is Lake County, Indiana's political typology?
Akashic places Lake County, Indiana in the "Florida Surge" typology — Florida coastal and retiree counties that moved sharply Republican across the Trump era. 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 23 times, Republican 10 times, and other 1 times.
When did Lake County, Indiana last vote Republican?
The most recent presidential election in which Lake County, Indiana voted Republican was 1972.
How many people live in Lake County, Indiana?
Lake County, Indiana has a population of 500,379 according to the 2024 American Community Survey 5-year estimates from the US Census Bureau.
What is the median household income in Lake County, Indiana?
Median household income in Lake County, Indiana is $71,493 — below the national median of $80,734. The Indiana state median is $71,957.
What is the political history of Lake County, Indiana?
Akashic tracks 38 presidential elections in Lake County, Indiana from 1876 to 2024. Of those, 23 went Democratic and 10 went Republican. The county's typology — "Florida Surge" — captures where that record, its demographics, and its recent swing place it among American communities.