Onslow County, North Carolina: Sunbelt Conservative county. In 2024, voted R+36%. Democratic peak: D+84 in 1936.
Key facts
- 2024 presidential margin
- R+36MIT Election Lab
- Political typology
- Sunbelt ConservativeAkashic typology
- Population
- 207,9062024 5-year
- Median household income
- $68,1482024 5-year
- White (non-Hispanic)
- 67.2%2024 5-year
- Black
- 12.0%2024 5-year
- Hispanic / Latino
- 14.0%2024 5-year
- Peak Democratic margin
- D+84 in 1936MIT Election Lab
- Peak Republican margin
- R+61 in 1972MIT Election Lab
- Most similar
- Rowan County, NC · similarity 1.00
2024 results by precinct
2024 precinct map of Onslow CountyPrecinct-level 2024 presidential results for Onslow 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 | +38.8% |
| 1896 | +45.2% |
| 1900 | +36.3% |
| 1904 | +28.2% |
| 1908 | +10.1% |
| 1912 | +55.0% |
| 1916 | +20.7% |
| 1920 | +29.2% |
| 1924 | +44.4% |
| 1928 | −7.8% |
| 1932 | +82.1% |
| 1936 | +84.3% |
| 1940 | +79.6% |
| 1944 | +72.5% |
| 1948 | +79.0% |
| 1952 | +54.4% |
| 1956 | +48.5% |
| 1960 | +32.9% |
| 1964 | +22.5% |
| 1968 | −1.3% |
| 1972 | −61.3% |
| 1976 | +14.3% |
| 1980 | −8.9% |
| 1984 | −41.7% |
| 1988 | −26.1% |
| 1992 | −15.6% |
| 1996 | −19.6% |
| 2000 | +31.1% |
| 2004 | −39.3% |
| 2008 | −21.5% |
| 2012 | −26.7% |
| 2016 | −34.3% |
| 2020 | −30.2% |
| 2024 | −35.8% |
DemocraticRepublican
38 presidential elections
| Year | Won | Margin | Democratic | Republican | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| R | 25,684 | 54,960 | 81,681 | ||
| R | 24,266 | 46,078 | 72,235 | ||
| R | 17,514 | 37,122 | 57,135 | ||
| R | 18,490 | 32,243 | 51,435 | ||
| R | 19,499 | 30,278 | 50,203 | ||
| R | 11,250 | 25,890 | 37,277 | ||
| D | 19,657 | 10,269 | 30,215 | ||
| R | 8,685 | 13,396 | 24,049 | ||
| R | 8,045 | 11,842 | 24,318 | ||
| R | 7,162 | 12,253 | 19,488 | ||
| R | 5,713 | 13,928 | 19,687 | ||
| R | 7,371 | 8,861 | 16,736 | ||
| D | 7,954 | 5,953 | 13,970 | ||
| R | 2,424 | 10,343 | 12,921 | ||
| O | 3,281 | 3,444 | 12,267 | ||
| D | 5,955 | 3,771 | 9,726 | ||
| D | 5,564 | 2,812 | 8,376 | ||
| D | 4,692 | 1,626 | 6,318 | ||
| D | 4,275 | 1,261 | 5,536 | ||
| D | 3,318 | 316 | 3,799 | ||
| D | 2,711 | 433 | 3,144 | ||
| D | 2,383 | 271 | 2,654 | ||
| D | 2,758 | 235 | 2,993 | ||
| D | 2,615 | 253 | 2,877 | ||
| R | 1,072 | 1,253 | 2,325 | ||
| D | 1,122 | 423 | 1,576 | ||
| D | 1,557 | 853 | 2,410 | ||
| D | 1,197 | 785 | 1,986 | ||
| D | 901 | 66 | 1,517 | ||
| D | 870 | 710 | 1,580 | ||
| D | 828 | 451 | 1,335 | ||
| D | 1,322 | 618 | 1,940 | ||
| D | 1,559 | 589 | 2,148 | ||
| D | 1,137 | 379 | 1,952 | ||
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Demographics
2024 ACS
Race, ethnicity, and ancestry
Click any group to see the ancestries typically reported within it.
German
13.2%
English
13.1%
Irish
13.0%
Italian
6.3%
American
4.6%
Polish
1.8%
Scottish
1.8%
African American
9.6%
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: 27.7 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
$68,148
Onslow County ranks near the middle of US counties.
Onslow County$68,148
North Carolina$72,388
United States$80,734
Onslow 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
11.6%
Children face moderate poverty.
Children under 1815.1%
Working age (18–64)10.1%
Seniors (65+)14.0%
Source · American Community Survey 5-year estimates, 2024 release.
2024 ACS
Language at home
Population aged 5 and older
89.6%
speak English only
Spanish7.3%
Other Indo-European1.6%
Asian & Pacific Islander1.2%
Other languages0.3%
Source · ACS 5-year estimates, 2024.
2020 religion census
Religious adherents
Adherents per capita by tradition
Source · 2020 US Religion Census. Remaining 64.9% of residents not counted as adherents by any reporting body.
Onslow County's political profile is shaped heavily by its military population: Camp Lejeune and Marine Corps Air Station New River together drive one of the highest active-duty concentrations of any county in the country, contributing to a consistently wide Republican margin.
The Republican margin here reached sixty-one points in 1972. Between 2020 and 2024 the county moved six points toward the Republican candidate; the 2024 margin was thirty-six points.
A median household income of $68,148, a 67% non-Hispanic-white share, and a population of 207,906 describe the county. The county's voting pattern over the last decade is most similar to that of Rowan County and Harnett 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.
Onslow County, North Carolina. Akashic. https://akashic.app/county/37133/. Accessed May 20, 2026. License: CC BY 4.0.
License: CC BY 4.0
More in North Carolina
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Frequently asked questions
How did Onslow County, North Carolina vote in 2024?
In 2024, Onslow County, North Carolina voted Republican by 35.8 points (R+36), carried by the Republican candidate. Out of 81,681 votes cast, 25,684 went Democratic and 54,960 went Republican.
What is Onslow County, North Carolina's political typology?
Akashic places Onslow County, North Carolina in the "Sunbelt Conservative" typology — Affluent, predominantly white Sunbelt counties — reliably Republican. 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 20 times, Republican 13 times, and other 1 times.
When did Onslow County, North Carolina last vote Democratic?
The most recent presidential election in which Onslow County, North Carolina voted Democratic was 2000.
How many people live in Onslow County, North Carolina?
Onslow County, North Carolina has a population of 207,906 according to the 2024 American Community Survey 5-year estimates from the US Census Bureau.
What is the median household income in Onslow County, North Carolina?
Median household income in Onslow County, North Carolina is $68,148 — below the national median of $80,734. The North Carolina state median is $72,388.
What is the political history of Onslow County, North Carolina?
Akashic tracks 38 presidential elections in Onslow County, North Carolina from 1876 to 2024. Of those, 20 went Democratic and 13 went Republican. The county's typology — "Sunbelt Conservative" — captures where that record, its demographics, and its recent swing place it among American communities.