Rusk County, Texas: Sunbelt Conservative county. In 2024, voted R+59%. Democratic peak: D+87 in 1936.
Key facts
- 2024 presidential margin
- R+59MIT Election Lab
- Political typology
- Sunbelt ConservativeAkashic typology
- Population
- 52,8422024 5-year
- Median household income
- $68,6582024 5-year
- White (non-Hispanic)
- 65.6%2024 5-year
- Black
- 13.2%2024 5-year
- Hispanic / Latino
- 19.1%2024 5-year
- Peak Democratic margin
- D+87 in 1936MIT Election Lab
- Peak Republican margin
- R+59 in 2024MIT Election Lab
- Most similar
- Converse County, WY · similarity 1.00
2024 results by precinct
2024 precinct map of Rusk CountyPrecinct-level 2024 presidential results for Rusk 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 | No data |
| 1896 | No data |
| 1900 | No data |
| 1904 | No data |
| 1908 | No data |
| 1912 | +43.2% |
| 1916 | +51.7% |
| 1920 | +28.3% |
| 1924 | +64.1% |
| 1928 | +25.3% |
| 1932 | +82.5% |
| 1936 | +86.7% |
| 1940 | +83.6% |
| 1944 | +67.1% |
| 1948 | +41.1% |
| 1952 | +0.5% |
| 1956 | −20.5% |
| 1960 | −14.9% |
| 1964 | +8.6% |
| 1968 | +2.7% |
| 1972 | −48.0% |
| 1976 | −5.7% |
| 1980 | −21.6% |
| 1984 | −41.2% |
| 1988 | −27.8% |
| 1992 | −13.1% |
| 1996 | −15.7% |
| 2000 | −40.7% |
| 2004 | −46.3% |
| 2008 | −46.3% |
| 2012 | −51.1% |
| 2016 | −56.1% |
| 2020 | −55.6% |
| 2024 | −59.3% |
DemocraticRepublican
38 presidential elections
| Year | Won | Margin | Democratic | Republican | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| R | 4,337 | 17,234 | 21,741 | ||
| R | 4,629 | 16,534 | 21,396 | ||
| R | 3,935 | 14,675 | 19,134 | ||
| R | 4,451 | 13,924 | 18,546 | ||
| R | 4,983 | 13,646 | 18,722 | ||
| R | 4,899 | 13,390 | 18,344 | ||
| R | 4,841 | 11,611 | 16,633 | ||
| R | 5,988 | 8,423 | 15,534 | ||
| R | 5,391 | 7,560 | 16,574 | ||
| R | 5,140 | 9,117 | 14,313 | ||
| R | 4,599 | 11,081 | 15,741 | ||
| R | 5,582 | 8,705 | 14,467 | ||
| R | 6,063 | 6,800 | 12,915 | ||
| R | 2,867 | 8,179 | 11,072 | ||
| O | 4,078 | 3,739 | 12,546 | ||
| D | 6,528 | 5,488 | 12,033 | ||
| R | 4,390 | 6,001 | 10,840 | ||
| R | 3,381 | 5,140 | 8,573 | ||
| D | 5,694 | 5,634 | 11,340 | ||
| D | 4,322 | 1,294 | 7,375 | ||
| D | 5,232 | 637 | 6,844 | ||
| D | 7,901 | 704 | 8,613 | ||
| D | 6,107 | 433 | 6,548 | ||
| D | 5,074 | 483 | 5,566 | ||
| D | 1,732 | 1,033 | 2,765 | ||
| D | 3,097 | 651 | 3,815 | ||
| D | 1,555 | 745 | 2,863 | ||
| D | 1,849 | 521 | 2,568 | ||
| D | 1,453 | 488 | 2,232 | ||
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Demographics
2024 ACS
Race, ethnicity, and ancestry
Click any group to see the ancestries typically reported within it.
American
19.2%
English
11.3%
Irish
8.8%
German
6.9%
Italian
1.7%
French
1.3%
Scottish
1.3%
African American
10.6%
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: 39.1 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
$68,658
Rusk County ranks near the middle of US counties.
Rusk County$68,658
Texas$78,476
United States$80,734
Rusk 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
14.4%
Children face moderate poverty.
Children under 1820.4%
Working age (18–64)12.5%
Seniors (65+)12.3%
Source · American Community Survey 5-year estimates, 2024 release.
2024 ACS
Language at home
Population aged 5 and older
86.1%
speak English only
Spanish13.3%
Asian & Pacific Islander0.4%
Other Indo-European0.2%
Other languages0.1%
Source · ACS 5-year estimates, 2024.
2020 religion census
Religious adherents
Adherents per capita by tradition
Source · 2020 US Religion Census. Remaining 56.8% of residents not counted as adherents by any reporting body.
Rusk County's economy has long run on timber, cattle, and petroleum extraction, anchoring a rural electorate that backed the Republican presidential nominee by nearly 60 points in 2024—one of the wider margins in East Texas.
The Republican margin here reached fifty-nine points in 2024. Between 2020 and 2024 the county moved four points toward the Republican candidate; the 2024 margin was fifty-nine points.
A median household income of $68,658, a 66% non-Hispanic-white share, and a population of 52,842 describe the county. The county's voting pattern over the last decade is most similar to that of Converse County and Kay 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.
Rusk County, Texas. Akashic. https://akashic.app/county/48401/. Accessed May 20, 2026. License: CC BY 4.0.
License: CC BY 4.0
More in Texas
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Frequently asked questions
How did Rusk County, Texas vote in 2024?
In 2024, Rusk County, Texas voted Republican by 59.3 points (R+59), carried by the Republican candidate. Out of 21,741 votes cast, 4,337 went Democratic and 17,234 went Republican.
What is Rusk County, Texas's political typology?
Akashic places Rusk County, Texas 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 12 times, Republican 16 times, and other 1 times.
When did Rusk County, Texas last vote Democratic?
The most recent presidential election in which Rusk County, Texas voted Democratic was 1964.
How many people live in Rusk County, Texas?
Rusk County, Texas has a population of 52,842 according to the 2024 American Community Survey 5-year estimates from the US Census Bureau.
What is the median household income in Rusk County, Texas?
Median household income in Rusk County, Texas is $68,658 — below the national median of $80,734. The Texas state median is $78,476.
What is the political history of Rusk County, Texas?
Akashic tracks 38 presidential elections in Rusk County, Texas from 1876 to 2024. Of those, 12 went Democratic and 16 went Republican. The county's typology — "Sunbelt Conservative" — captures where that record, its demographics, and its recent swing place it among American communities.