Tompkins County, New York: Diversifying Metro county. In 2024, voted D+50%. Republican peak: R+57 in 1956.
Key facts
- 2024 presidential margin
- D+50MIT Election Lab
- Political typology
- Diversifying MetroAkashic typology
- Population
- 104,5372024 5-year
- Median household income
- $74,0242024 5-year
- White (non-Hispanic)
- 75.2%2024 5-year
- Black
- 4.2%2024 5-year
- Hispanic / Latino
- 6.6%2024 5-year
- Peak Democratic margin
- D+50 in 2024MIT Election Lab
- Peak Republican margin
- R+57 in 1956MIT Election Lab
- Most similar
- Denver County, CO · similarity 1.00
2024 results by precinct
2024 precinct map of Tompkins CountyPrecinct-level 2024 presidential results for Tompkins 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 | −14.9% |
| 1896 | −20.0% |
| 1900 | −16.1% |
| 1904 | −17.0% |
| 1908 | −14.7% |
| 1912 | +12.8% |
| 1916 | −14.8% |
| 1920 | −44.4% |
| 1924 | −50.0% |
| 1928 | −47.1% |
| 1932 | −31.7% |
| 1936 | −30.5% |
| 1940 | −33.2% |
| 1944 | −28.1% |
| 1948 | −39.1% |
| 1952 | −49.5% |
| 1956 | −56.6% |
| 1960 | −32.7% |
| 1964 | +27.9% |
| 1968 | −12.3% |
| 1972 | −17.5% |
| 1976 | −9.3% |
| 1980 | −1.6% |
| 1984 | +2.9% |
| 1988 | +17.8% |
| 1992 | +28.0% |
| 1996 | +24.9% |
| 2000 | +21.1% |
| 2004 | +31.2% |
| 2008 | +42.1% |
| 2012 | +40.6% |
| 2016 | +43.4% |
| 2020 | +49.2% |
| 2024 | +49.6% |
DemocraticRepublican
38 presidential elections
| Year | Won | Margin | Democratic | Republican | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| D | 34,631 | 11,354 | 46,902 | ||
| D | 33,619 | 11,096 | 45,735 | ||
| D | 28,890 | 10,371 | 42,678 | ||
| D | 27,244 | 11,107 | 39,781 | ||
| D | 29,826 | 11,927 | 42,552 | ||
| D | 27,229 | 13,994 | 42,421 | ||
| D | 21,807 | 13,351 | 40,060 | ||
| D | 20,772 | 11,532 | 37,124 | ||
| D | 23,197 | 11,520 | 41,660 | ||
| D | 21,455 | 14,932 | 36,699 | ||
| D | 19,357 | 18,255 | 37,777 | ||
| R | 11,970 | 12,448 | 29,668 | ||
| R | 12,808 | 15,463 | 28,671 | ||
| R | 12,344 | 17,605 | 30,011 | ||
| R | 10,343 | 13,446 | 25,248 | ||
| D | 16,103 | 9,070 | 25,202 | ||
| R | 8,659 | 17,061 | 25,733 | ||
| R | 5,475 | 19,749 | 25,224 | ||
| R | 6,285 | 18,673 | 25,019 | ||
| R | 5,721 | 13,719 | 20,444 | ||
| R | 7,174 | 12,805 | 20,053 | ||
| R | 7,118 | 14,325 | 21,693 | ||
| R | 7,007 | 13,332 | 20,746 | ||
| R | 6,180 | 12,185 | 18,916 | ||
| R | 5,114 | 14,471 | 19,866 | ||
| R | 3,701 | 11,766 | 16,123 | ||
| R | 3,487 | 9,508 | 13,573 | ||
| R | 3,455 | 4,736 | 8,638 | ||
| D | 3,272 | 2,237 | 8,103 | ||
| R | 3,734 | 5,090 | 9,232 | ||
| R | 3,780 | 5,414 | 9,615 | ||
| R | 3,852 | 5,409 | 9,696 | ||
| R | 3,506 | 5,342 | 9,200 | ||
| R | 3,404 | 4,717 | 8,813 | ||
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Demographics
2024 ACS
Race, ethnicity, and ancestry
Click any group to see the ancestries typically reported within it.
English
13.6%
Irish
12.6%
German
12.2%
Italian
7.4%
American
3.6%
Polish
3.3%
French
2.3%
African American
3.4%
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: 32.3 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
$74,024
Tompkins County ranks near the middle of US counties.
Tompkins County$74,024
New York$85,974
United States$80,734
Tompkins 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
16.4%
Child poverty is below the national average.
Children under 1811.0%
Working age (18–64)18.4%
Seniors (65+)6.9%
Source · American Community Survey 5-year estimates, 2024 release.
2024 ACS
Language at home
Population aged 5 and older
82.6%
speak English only
Other Indo-European6.3%
Asian & Pacific Islander6.1%
Spanish4.0%
Other languages1.0%
Source · ACS 5-year estimates, 2024.
2020 religion census
Religious adherents
Adherents per capita by tradition
Source · 2020 US Religion Census. Remaining 70.1% of residents not counted as adherents by any reporting body.
Tompkins County's electorate is heavily shaped by Cornell University and Ithaca College, producing Democratic presidential margins that routinely exceed 50 points — among the widest of any county in the state.
The Democratic margin here reached fifty points in 2024. The 2024 margin was fifty points.
A population of 104,537, a 75% non-Hispanic-white share, and a median household income of $74,024 describe the county. The county's voting pattern over the last decade is most similar to that of Denver County and Dane 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.
Tompkins County, New York. Akashic. https://akashic.app/county/36109/. Accessed May 20, 2026. License: CC BY 4.0.
License: CC BY 4.0
More in New York
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Frequently asked questions
How did Tompkins County, New York vote in 2024?
In 2024, Tompkins County, New York voted Democratic by 49.6 points (D+50), carried by the Democratic candidate. Out of 46,902 votes cast, 34,631 went Democratic and 11,354 went Republican.
What is Tompkins County, New York's political typology?
Akashic places Tompkins County, New York in the "Diversifying Metro" typology — Mid-size metropolitan counties growing more diverse and trending Democratic. 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 13 times, Republican 21 times, and other 0 times.
When did Tompkins County, New York last vote Republican?
The most recent presidential election in which Tompkins County, New York voted Republican was 1980.
How many people live in Tompkins County, New York?
Tompkins County, New York has a population of 104,537 according to the 2024 American Community Survey 5-year estimates from the US Census Bureau.
What is the median household income in Tompkins County, New York?
Median household income in Tompkins County, New York is $74,024 — below the national median of $80,734. The New York state median is $85,974.
What is the political history of Tompkins County, New York?
Akashic tracks 38 presidential elections in Tompkins County, New York from 1876 to 2024. Of those, 13 went Democratic and 21 went Republican. The county's typology — "Diversifying Metro" — captures where that record, its demographics, and its recent swing place it among American communities.