Wapello County, Iowa
Precinct data
Results by precinct
22 precincts · 14,571 votes
Precinct boundaries and identifiers are cycle-specific. This table does not join rows across years without a validated crosswalk.
| Precinct -Ottumwa 3Ottumwa 3 | 639 | 780 | 17 | 1,436 | 44.5% | 54.3% | R+9.8 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Precinct -Ottumwa 2Ottumwa 2 | 522 | 687 | 20 | 1,229 | 42.5% | 55.9% | R+13.4 |
| Precinct -Ottumwa 9Ottumwa 9 | 421 | 633 | 13 | 1,067 | 39.5% | 59.3% | R+19.9 |
| Precinct -Ottumwa 8Ottumwa 8 | 317 | 624 | 13 | 954 | 33.2% | 65.4% | R+32.2 |
| Precinct -Ottumwa 10Ottumwa 10 | 361 | 580 | 10 | 951 | 38.0% | 61.0% | R+23.0 |
| Precinct -Ottumwa 1Ottumwa 1 | 318 | 520 | 14 | 852 | 37.3% | 61.0% | R+23.7 |
| Precinct -Agency City/Twp/Pleasant TwpAgency City/Twp/Pleasant Twp | 208 | 566 | 13 | 787 | 26.4% | 71.9% | R+45.5 |
| Precinct -Adams Twp/Blakesurg City/PolkAdams Twp/Blakesurg City/Polk | 154 | 605 | 12 | 771 | 20.0% | 78.5% | R+58.5 |
| Precinct -Center TownshipCenter Township | 195 | 550 | 8 | 753 | 25.9% | 73.0% | R+47.1 |
| Precinct -Ottumwa 7Ottumwa 7 | 267 | 460 | 12 | 739 | 36.1% | 62.2% | R+26.1 |
| Precinct -Ottumwa 6Ottumwa 6 | 241 | 449 | 15 | 705 | 34.2% | 63.7% | R+29.5 |
| Precinct -Ottumwa 5Ottumwa 5 | 282 | 348 | 5 | 635 | 44.4% | 54.8% | R+10.4 |
| Precinct -Washington TownshipWashington Township | 139 | 484 | 7 | 630 | 22.1% | 76.8% | R+54.8 |
| Precinct -Ottumwa 4Ottumwa 4 | 236 | 337 | 7 | 580 | 40.7% | 58.1% | R+17.4 |
| Precinct -Green TownshipGreen Township | 105 | 377 | 7 | 489 | 21.5% | 77.1% | R+55.6 |
| Precinct -Columbia TownshipColumbia Township | 119 | 359 | 3 | 481 | 24.7% | 74.6% | R+49.9 |
| Precinct -Keokuk TownshipKeokuk Township | 107 | 352 | 9 | 468 | 22.9% | 75.2% | R+52.4 |
| Precinct -Richland TownshipRichland Township | 104 | 291 | 3 | 398 | 26.1% | 73.1% | R+47.0 |
| Precinct -Dahlonega TownshipDahlonega Township | 94 | 189 | 2 | 285 | 33.0% | 66.3% | R+33.3 |
| Precinct -Highland TwpHighland Twp | 31 | 110 | 3 | 144 | 21.5% | 76.4% | R+54.9 |
| Precinct -Competine TwpCompetine Twp | 16 | 105 | 1 | 122 | 13.1% | 86.1% | R+73.0 |
| Precinct -Cass TownshipCass Township | 20 | 73 | 2 | 95 | 21.1% | 76.8% | R+55.8 |
Presidential margin, 1892–2024
Democratic minus Republican, by election
| Year | Margin (D minus R) |
|---|---|
| 1892 | −3.4% |
| 1896 | −3.3% |
| 1900 | −9.4% |
| 1904 | −30.1% |
| 1908 | −9.1% |
| 1912 | +4.1% |
| 1916 | −4.4% |
| 1920 | −39.6% |
| 1924 | −39.4% |
| 1928 | −33.0% |
| 1932 | +13.2% |
| 1936 | +15.8% |
| 1940 | +13.5% |
| 1944 | +13.0% |
| 1948 | +15.6% |
| 1952 | −5.1% |
| 1956 | +2.6% |
| 1960 | +0.4% |
| 1964 | +43.2% |
| 1968 | +8.3% |
| 1972 | −5.2% |
| 1976 | +20.1% |
| 1980 | +8.2% |
| 1984 | +19.4% |
| 1988 | +30.8% |
| 1992 | +23.7% |
| 1996 | +24.4% |
| 2000 | +13.5% |
| 2004 | +10.3% |
| 2008 | +13.5% |
| 2012 | +11.9% |
| 2016 | −20.4% |
| 2020 | −23.6% |
| 2024 | −31.4% |
U.S. Senate
| Year | Won | Democratic | Republican | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2022 | R | 36.8%3,837 | 63.2%6,601 | 10,438 |
| 2020 | R | 41.4%6,344 | 55.2%8,464 | 15,334 |
Registered voters
By party of registration, over time
Registration leans Republican; the presidential vote runs 28 points more Democratic.
| Year | Total registered | Democratic | Republican | Unaffiliated | Other |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2008 | 23,695 | 11,421 | 4,888 | 7,381 | 5 |
| 2010 | 23,697 | 10,802 | 5,603 | 7,283 | 9 |
| 2012 | 23,940 | 10,297 | 5,715 | 7,906 | 22 |
| 2014 | 23,107 | 9,687 | 5,461 | 7,916 | 43 |
| 2016 | 22,854 | 9,233 | 5,806 | 7,725 | 90 |
| 2018 | 22,112 | 8,632 | 5,654 | 7,714 | 112 |
| 2020 | 22,286 | 8,201 | 6,550 | 7,383 | 152 |
| 2022 | 21,668 | 7,257 | 6,891 | 7,349 | 171 |
| 2024 | 21,487 | 6,518 | 7,158 | 7,629 | 182 |
Who moves in and out
Net migration over time, and who arrivals are — where they came from and what those places vote
−381 net domestic migration · 2025
Net −2,971 over 2011–2025 · gain loss
Arrivals reported $40,943 in average income, against $67,421 for residents who stayed — 39% lower. (IRS SOI, 2022–23)
The places arrivals came from lean R+33.3 on average — 1.9 points more Republican-leaning than Wapello County, IA itself (R+31.4).
Where arrivals came from lean of each source
- Mahaska County, IA65R+51.4
- Davis County, IA48R+54.4
- Jefferson County, IA41R+6.8
- Polk County, IA35D+10.8
- Monroe County, IA31R+50.6
- Keokuk County, IA25R+51.5
Where departures went households, 2022–23
- Polk County, IA86
- Mahaska County, IA63
- Keokuk County, IA34
- Jefferson County, IA33
- Davis County, IA32
- Marion County, IA31
Migration is one input to a place’s political change, not its cause — a shift can also come from residents changing their minds, generational turnover, or turnout. These figures describe the places people moved between; they do not measure how any mover voted.
| Year | Net domestic migration |
|---|---|
| 2011 | −300 |
| 2012 | −124 |
| 2013 | −55 |
| 2014 | −216 |
| 2015 | −64 |
| 2016 | −365 |
| 2017 | −473 |
| 2018 | −129 |
| 2019 | −154 |
| 2021 | −77 |
| 2022 | −367 |
| 2023 | −23 |
| 2024 | −243 |
| 2025 | −381 |
Wapello County, anchored by Ottumwa along the Des Moines River, was a union-labor stronghold that backed Democrats into the 2000s; by 2024 it recorded an R+31 presidential margin, tracing one of Iowa's steepest partisan realignments.
Across the recorded series it reached a Democratic high of 43.2 points in 1964 and a Republican high of 39.6 points in 1920. Between 2020 and 2024 the county moved 7.8 points toward the Republican candidate; the 2024 margin was 31.4 points.
A population of 35,362, a 76% non-Hispanic-white share, and a median household income of $64,766 describe the county. The county's voting pattern over the last decade is most similar to that of Lee County and Clarke County.
The counties whose fingerprint — 2000–2024 trajectory, demographics, ancestry, religion — sits closest to this one, and why.
Twin score (0–100) = weighted cosine between tier-standardized fingerprints: presidential margins 2000–2024 with 12-yr trend and elasticity, ACS income, age, education, population and race, top reported ancestries, and religious adherence — chips name the closest-shared dimensions and the widest gap. Re-weight the groups in the twins explorer.
Browse places by community — income, education, race & ethnicity, language — all community cuts →
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 →
Wapello County, Iowa. Akashic. https://akashic.app/county/19179/. Accessed May 20, 2026. License: CC BY 4.0.