Black Hawk County, Iowa: Industrial Catholic Metro county. In 2024, voted D+1%. Republican peak: R+58 in 1920.
Key facts
- 2024 presidential margin
- D+1MIT Election Lab
- Political typology
- Industrial Catholic MetroAkashic typology
- Population
- 131,0492024 5-year
- Median household income
- $66,4172024 5-year
- White (non-Hispanic)
- 79.5%2024 5-year
- Black
- 9.3%2024 5-year
- Hispanic / Latino
- 5.2%2024 5-year
- Peak Democratic margin
- D+22 in 1964MIT Election Lab
- Peak Republican margin
- R+58 in 1920MIT Election Lab
- Most similar
- Ashland County, WI · similarity 0.99
2024 results by precinct
2024 precinct map of Black Hawk CountyPrecinct-level 2024 presidential results for Black Hawk 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 | −15.4% |
| 1896 | −35.2% |
| 1900 | −32.1% |
| 1904 | −43.1% |
| 1908 | −25.4% |
| 1912 | +19.7% |
| 1916 | −21.8% |
| 1920 | −58.5% |
| 1924 | −53.0% |
| 1928 | −39.1% |
| 1932 | −0.3% |
| 1936 | +9.9% |
| 1940 | +0.5% |
| 1944 | +2.8% |
| 1948 | +9.8% |
| 1952 | −24.5% |
| 1956 | −16.1% |
| 1960 | −8.3% |
| 1964 | +21.7% |
| 1968 | −9.1% |
| 1972 | −17.1% |
| 1976 | −2.4% |
| 1980 | −3.4% |
| 1984 | −1.2% |
| 1988 | +13.4% |
| 1992 | +13.3% |
| 1996 | +19.4% |
| 2000 | +12.1% |
| 2004 | +11.5% |
| 2008 | +22.4% |
| 2012 | +20.2% |
| 2016 | +7.3% |
| 2020 | +9.0% |
| 2024 | +1.2% |
DemocraticRepublican
38 presidential elections
| Year | Won | Margin | Democratic | Republican | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| D | 31,299 | 30,572 | 62,906 | ||
| D | 35,647 | 29,640 | 66,593 | ||
| D | 32,233 | 27,476 | 65,007 | ||
| D | 39,821 | 26,235 | 67,141 | ||
| D | 39,184 | 24,662 | 64,775 | ||
| D | 35,392 | 28,046 | 63,907 | ||
| D | 30,112 | 23,468 | 55,085 | ||
| D | 29,651 | 19,322 | 53,109 | ||
| D | 29,584 | 21,398 | 61,550 | ||
| D | 31,657 | 24,112 | 56,171 | ||
| R | 31,467 | 32,262 | 64,233 | ||
| R | 27,443 | 29,627 | 63,722 | ||
| R | 29,508 | 30,994 | 61,715 | ||
| R | 21,721 | 30,929 | 53,782 | ||
| R | 21,097 | 25,594 | 49,554 | ||
| D | 30,716 | 19,744 | 50,516 | ||
| R | 24,078 | 28,435 | 52,551 | ||
| R | 20,403 | 28,250 | 48,719 | ||
| R | 17,360 | 28,671 | 46,234 | ||
| D | 19,603 | 16,041 | 36,230 | ||
| D | 16,593 | 15,687 | 32,434 | ||
| D | 17,305 | 17,132 | 34,532 | ||
| D | 16,793 | 13,666 | 31,681 | ||
| R | 14,660 | 14,746 | 29,765 | ||
| R | 8,467 | 19,409 | 27,989 | ||
| R | 2,981 | 15,813 | 24,221 | ||
| R | 4,000 | 16,920 | 22,101 | ||
| R | 4,270 | 6,742 | 11,361 | ||
| O | 3,702 | 1,601 | 10,649 | ||
| R | 3,127 | 5,437 | 9,112 | ||
| R | 1,861 | 5,236 | 7,827 | ||
| R | 2,512 | 5,010 | 7,781 | ||
| R | 2,167 | 4,643 | 7,030 | ||
| R | 2,544 | 3,483 | 6,102 | ||
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Demographics
2024 ACS
Race, ethnicity, and ancestry
Click any group to see the ancestries typically reported within it.
German
30.2%
Irish
11.3%
English
8.5%
American
4.7%
Italian
1.6%
French
1.6%
Scottish
1.2%
African American
7.4%
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: 35.7 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
$66,417
Black Hawk County ranks near the middle of US counties.
Black Hawk County$66,417
Iowa$75,059
United States$80,734
Black Hawk 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
14.9%
Children face moderate poverty.
Children under 1817.2%
Working age (18–64)14.9%
Seniors (65+)8.1%
Source · American Community Survey 5-year estimates, 2024 release.
2024 ACS
Language at home
Population aged 5 and older
91.2%
speak English only
Spanish3.3%
Other Indo-European2.9%
Asian & Pacific Islander2.1%
Other languages0.4%
Source · ACS 5-year estimates, 2024.
2020 religion census
Religious adherents
Adherents per capita by tradition
Source · 2020 US Religion Census. Remaining 51.0% of residents not counted as adherents by any reporting body.
Home to Waterloo and the University of Northern Iowa, Black Hawk County sits at the intersection of a mid-size industrial city and a college town — a combination that has kept its presidential margins razor-thin in recent cycles.
Its margins are typically close. The Democratic margin reached twenty-two points in 2008; the Republican margin reached fifty-eight points in 1920. Between 2020 and 2024 the county moved eight points toward the Republican candidate; the 2024 margin was one point.
Its demographics sit near national norms: a 80% non-Hispanic-white share, a median household income of $66,417, and a 15% poverty rate. The county's voting pattern over the last decade is most similar to that of Ashland County and Guadalupe 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.
Black Hawk County, Iowa. Akashic. https://akashic.app/county/19013/. Accessed May 20, 2026. License: CC BY 4.0.
License: CC BY 4.0
More industrial catholic metro counties
Frequently asked questions
How did Black Hawk County, Iowa vote in 2024?
In 2024, Black Hawk County, Iowa voted Democratic by 1.2 points (D+1), carried by the Democratic candidate. Out of 62,906 votes cast, 31,299 went Democratic and 30,572 went Republican.
What is Black Hawk County, Iowa's political typology?
Akashic places Black Hawk County, Iowa in the "Industrial Catholic Metro" typology — Mid-size industrial metros with Catholic ethnic roots — among the most competitive, swing-prone ground in the country. 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 15 times, Republican 18 times, and other 1 times.
When did Black Hawk County, Iowa last vote Republican?
The most recent presidential election in which Black Hawk County, Iowa voted Republican was 1984.
How many people live in Black Hawk County, Iowa?
Black Hawk County, Iowa has a population of 131,049 according to the 2024 American Community Survey 5-year estimates from the US Census Bureau.
What is the median household income in Black Hawk County, Iowa?
Median household income in Black Hawk County, Iowa is $66,417 — below the national median of $80,734. The Iowa state median is $75,059.
What is the political history of Black Hawk County, Iowa?
Akashic tracks 38 presidential elections in Black Hawk County, Iowa from 1876 to 2024. Of those, 15 went Democratic and 18 went Republican. The county's typology — "Industrial Catholic Metro" — captures where that record, its demographics, and its recent swing place it among American communities.