Otsego County, Michigan
Precinct data
Results by precinct
26 precincts · 15,971 votes
Precinct boundaries and identifiers are cycle-specific. This table does not join rows across years without a validated crosswalk.
| Precinct -Otsego Lake Township, Precinct 1Otsego Lake Township, Precinct 1 | 770 | 1,269 | 26 | 2,065 | 37.3% | 61.5% | R+24.2 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Precinct -Bagley Township, Precinct 1Bagley Township, Precinct 1 | 620 | 1,314 | 25 | 1,959 | 31.6% | 67.1% | R+35.4 |
| Precinct -Hayes Township, Precinct 1Hayes Township, Precinct 1 | 524 | 1,277 | 26 | 1,827 | 28.7% | 69.9% | R+41.2 |
| Precinct -Bagley Township, Precinct 2Bagley Township, Precinct 2 | 573 | 1,155 | 26 | 1,754 | 32.7% | 65.8% | R+33.2 |
| Precinct -Livingston Township, Precinct 1Livingston Township, Precinct 1 | 505 | 1,118 | 24 | 1,647 | 30.7% | 67.9% | R+37.2 |
| Precinct -Elmira Township, Precinct 1Elmira Township, Precinct 1 | 379 | 794 | 10 | 1,183 | 32.0% | 67.1% | R+35.1 |
| Precinct -Corwith Township, Precinct 1Corwith Township, Precinct 1 | 332 | 765 | 17 | 1,114 | 29.8% | 68.7% | R+38.9 |
| Precinct -Charlton Township, Precinct 1Charlton Township, Precinct 1 | 298 | 714 | 21 | 1,033 | 28.8% | 69.1% | R+40.3 |
| Precinct -Chester Township, Precinct 1Chester Township, Precinct 1 | 248 | 646 | 15 | 909 | 27.3% | 71.1% | R+43.8 |
| Precinct -City of Gaylord, Ward 2, Precinct 1City of Gaylord, Ward 2, Precinct 1 | 267 | 443 | 15 | 725 | 36.8% | 61.1% | R+24.3 |
| Precinct -City of Gaylord, Ward 1, Precinct 1City of Gaylord, Ward 1, Precinct 1 | 233 | 436 | 11 | 680 | 34.3% | 64.1% | R+29.9 |
| Precinct -City of Gaylord, Ward 3, Precinct 1City of Gaylord, Ward 3, Precinct 1 | 210 | 428 | 6 | 644 | 32.6% | 66.5% | R+33.9 |
| Precinct -Dover Township, Precinct 1Dover Township, Precinct 1 | 93 | 334 | 4 | 431 | 21.6% | 77.5% | R+55.9 |
| 1370478000001137-04780-00001 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | — | Even |
| 1370478000002137-04780-00002 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | — | Even |
| 1371484000001137-14840-00001 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | — | Even |
| 1371528000001137-15280-00001 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | — | Even |
| 1371832000001137-18320-00001 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | — | Even |
| 1372284000001137-22840-00001 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | — | Even |
| 1372562000001137-25620-00001 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | — | Even |
| 1373172001001137-31720-01001 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | — | Even |
| 1373172002001137-31720-02001 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | — | Even |
| 1373172003001137-31720-03001 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | — | Even |
| 1373736000001137-37360-00001 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | — | Even |
| 1374814000001137-48140-00001 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | — | Even |
| 1376168000001137-61680-00001 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | — | Even |
Presidential margin, 1892–2024
Democratic minus Republican, by election
| Year | Margin (D minus R) |
|---|---|
| 1892 | +0.5% |
| 1896 | −20.7% |
| 1900 | −38.9% |
| 1904 | −61.9% |
| 1908 | −49.3% |
| 1912 | −24.3% |
| 1916 | −1.1% |
| 1920 | −29.9% |
| 1924 | −57.7% |
| 1928 | −37.4% |
| 1932 | +14.9% |
| 1936 | +7.3% |
| 1940 | −9.4% |
| 1944 | −15.9% |
| 1948 | −21.7% |
| 1952 | −38.2% |
| 1956 | −27.6% |
| 1960 | −12.2% |
| 1964 | +29.8% |
| 1968 | −5.5% |
| 1972 | −19.5% |
| 1976 | −7.2% |
| 1980 | −15.7% |
| 1984 | −37.1% |
| 1988 | −27.2% |
| 1992 | −2.9% |
| 1996 | −3.4% |
| 2000 | −19.7% |
| 2004 | −22.7% |
| 2008 | −8.9% |
| 2012 | −19.6% |
| 2016 | −37.4% |
| 2020 | −34.1% |
| 2024 | −35.3% |
U.S. Senate
Registered voters
Total registered voters, over time
| Year | Total registered |
|---|---|
| 2016 | 21,009 |
| 2018 | 21,265 |
| 2020 | 23,031 |
| 2022 | 23,364 |
| 2024 | 24,120 |
Who moves in and out
Net migration over time, and who arrivals are — where they came from and what those places vote
+5 net domestic migration · 2025
Net +1,813 over 2011–2025 · gain loss
Arrivals reported $65,479 in average income, against $70,132 for residents who stayed — 7% lower. (IRS SOI, 2022–23)
The places arrivals came from lean R+14.4 on average — 21 points more Democratic-leaning than Otsego County, MI itself (R+35.3).
Where arrivals came from lean of each source
- Antrim County, MI55R+23.8
- Cheboygan County, MI47R+31.1
- Emmet County, MI44R+10.8
- Charlevoix County, MI43R+16.9
- Oakland County, MI41D+10.6
- Crawford County, MI34R+33.8
Where departures went households, 2022–23
- Antrim County, MI40
- Charlevoix County, MI40
- Cheboygan County, MI37
- Crawford County, MI36
- Oakland County, MI32
- Montmorency County, MI30
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 | −67 |
| 2012 | −116 |
| 2013 | +62 |
| 2014 | +20 |
| 2015 | +89 |
| 2016 | +228 |
| 2017 | +159 |
| 2018 | +116 |
| 2019 | +62 |
| 2021 | +302 |
| 2022 | +354 |
| 2023 | +271 |
| 2024 | +328 |
| 2025 | +5 |
Otsego's population of roughly 23,000 clusters around Gaylord in Michigan's Lower Peninsula, and the county has delivered Republican presidential margins exceeding 30 points in recent cycles, making it one of the state's most reliably one-sided rural counties.
Across the recorded series it reached a Democratic high of 29.8 points in 1964 and a Republican high of 61.9 points in 1904. Between 2020 and 2024 the county moved 1.2 points toward the Republican candidate; the 2024 margin was 35.3 points.
A population of 25,584, a 93% non-Hispanic-white share, and a median household income of $68,183 describe the county. The county's voting pattern over the last decade is most similar to that of Cheboygan County and Lapeer 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 →
Otsego County, Michigan. Akashic. https://akashic.app/county/26137/. Accessed May 20, 2026. License: CC BY 4.0.