Custer County, South Dakota: Stable Rural Right county. In 2024, voted R+46%. Republican peak: R+46 in 2016.
Key facts
- 2024 presidential margin
- R+46MIT Election Lab
- Political typology
- Stable Rural RightAkashic typology
- Population
- 8,8922024 5-year
- Median household income
- $84,1122024 5-year
- White (non-Hispanic)
- 88.9%2024 5-year
- Black
- 0.3%2024 5-year
- Hispanic / Latino
- 3.1%2024 5-year
- Peak Democratic margin
- D+46 in 1912MIT Election Lab
- Peak Republican margin
- R+46 in 1980MIT Election Lab
- Most similar
- Butte County, SD · similarity 1.00
2024 results by precinct
2024 precinct map of Custer CountyPrecinct-level 2024 presidential results for Custer County, with each precinct boundary colored by Democratic-vs-Republican margin.
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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 | −33.0% |
| 1896 | +9.1% |
| 1900 | −7.5% |
| 1904 | −37.7% |
| 1908 | −6.0% |
| 1912 | +45.9% |
| 1916 | −10.3% |
| 1920 | −31.1% |
| 1924 | −38.2% |
| 1928 | −34.2% |
| 1932 | +22.2% |
| 1936 | +5.3% |
| 1940 | −21.9% |
| 1944 | −28.8% |
| 1948 | −14.0% |
| 1952 | −45.1% |
| 1956 | −27.9% |
| 1960 | −27.2% |
| 1964 | +1.5% |
| 1968 | −20.2% |
| 1972 | −29.6% |
| 1976 | −15.7% |
| 1980 | −45.7% |
| 1984 | −43.3% |
| 1988 | −20.6% |
| 1992 | −10.2% |
| 1996 | −18.4% |
| 2000 | +43.1% |
| 2004 | −38.3% |
| 2008 | −31.8% |
| 2012 | −38.2% |
| 2016 | −46.0% |
| 2020 | −42.4% |
| 2024 | −45.8% |
DemocraticRepublican
38 presidential elections
| Year | Won | Margin | Democratic | Republican | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| R | 1,567 | 4,313 | 6,001 | ||
| R | 1,522 | 3,852 | 5,494 | ||
| R | 1,121 | 3,293 | 4,721 | ||
| R | 1,335 | 3,062 | 4,520 | ||
| R | 1,475 | 2,909 | 4,507 | ||
| R | 1,272 | 2,922 | 4,304 | ||
| D | 2,495 | 955 | 3,573 | ||
| R | 1,122 | 1,740 | 3,357 | ||
| R | 1,078 | 1,422 | 3,363 | ||
| R | 1,180 | 1,806 | 3,036 | ||
| R | 858 | 2,183 | 3,063 | ||
| R | 708 | 2,057 | 2,955 | ||
| R | 995 | 1,373 | 2,405 | ||
| R | 798 | 1,476 | 2,289 | ||
| R | 727 | 1,143 | 2,064 | ||
| D | 1,176 | 1,142 | 2,318 | ||
| R | 878 | 1,533 | 2,411 | ||
| R | 853 | 1,514 | 2,367 | ||
| R | 652 | 1,725 | 2,377 | ||
| R | 917 | 1,217 | 2,148 | ||
| R | 712 | 1,288 | 2,000 | ||
| R | 1,151 | 1,796 | 2,947 | ||
| D | 1,519 | 1,365 | 2,912 | ||
| D | 1,548 | 977 | 2,568 | ||
| R | 715 | 1,464 | 2,190 | ||
| R | 236 | 833 | 1,561 | ||
| R | 383 | 784 | 1,289 | ||
| R | 392 | 488 | 931 | ||
| O | 419 | 0 | 913 | ||
| R | 428 | 487 | 986 | ||
| R | 228 | 536 | 818 | ||
| R | 415 | 483 | 905 | ||
| D | 515 | 429 | 947 | ||
| R | 166 | 503 | 1,021 | ||
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Demographics
2024 ACS
Race, ethnicity, and ancestry
Click any group to see the ancestries typically reported within it.
German
31.7%
Irish
16.8%
English
10.1%
American
5.3%
Scottish
3.6%
Italian
3.1%
French
2.5%
Sample size too small to break out by ancestry reliably.
Multiple ancestry combinations reported; no single grouping above 1%.
Sample size too small to break out by ancestry reliably.
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: 57.6 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
$84,112
Custer County ranks in the top 25% of US counties.
Custer County$84,112
South Dakota$75,081
United States$80,734
Custer County ranks in the top 25% 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
9.0%
Child poverty is below the national average.
Children under 188.3%
Working age (18–64)6.9%
Seniors (65+)24.2%
Source · American Community Survey 5-year estimates, 2024 release.
2024 ACS
Language at home
Population aged 5 and older
94.4%
speak English only
Other Indo-European3.5%
Spanish1.6%
Other languages0.3%
Asian & Pacific Islander0.2%
Source · ACS 5-year estimates, 2024.
2020 religion census
Religious adherents
Adherents per capita by tradition
Source · 2020 US Religion Census. Remaining 59.1% of residents not counted as adherents by any reporting body.
Custer County's economy revolves around tourism, forestry, and ranching in the Black Hills, producing one of South Dakota's most lopsided Republican presidential margins — a pattern consistent across the past several election cycles.
The Republican margin here reached forty-six points in 2016. Between 2020 and 2024 the county moved three points toward the Republican candidate; the 2024 margin was forty-six points.
A population of 8,892, a 89% non-Hispanic-white share, and a median household income of $84,112 describe the county. The county's voting pattern over the last decade is most similar to that of Butte County and Meade 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.
Custer County, South Dakota. Akashic. https://akashic.app/county/46033/. Accessed May 20, 2026. License: CC BY 4.0.
License: CC BY 4.0
More in South Dakota
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Frequently asked questions
How did Custer County, South Dakota vote in 2024?
In 2024, Custer County, South Dakota voted Republican by 45.8 points (R+46), carried by the Republican candidate. Out of 6,001 votes cast, 1,567 went Democratic and 4,313 went Republican.
What is Custer County, South Dakota's political typology?
Akashic places Custer County, South Dakota in the "Stable Rural Right" typology — Mountain, Plains, and rural Republican counties already near their ceiling, with little further room to swing. 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 5 times, Republican 28 times, and other 1 times.
When did Custer County, South Dakota last vote Democratic?
The most recent presidential election in which Custer County, South Dakota voted Democratic was 2000.
How many people live in Custer County, South Dakota?
Custer County, South Dakota has a population of 8,892 according to the 2024 American Community Survey 5-year estimates from the US Census Bureau.
What is the median household income in Custer County, South Dakota?
Median household income in Custer County, South Dakota is $84,112 — above the national median of $80,734. The South Dakota state median is $75,081.
What is the political history of Custer County, South Dakota?
Akashic tracks 38 presidential elections in Custer County, South Dakota from 1876 to 2024. Of those, 5 went Democratic and 28 went Republican. The county's typology — "Stable Rural Right" — captures where that record, its demographics, and its recent swing place it among American communities.