Highland County, Virginia: Stable Rural Right county. In 2024, voted R+44%. Republican peak: R+71 in 1972.
Key facts
- 2024 presidential margin
- R+44MIT Election Lab
- Political typology
- Stable Rural RightAkashic typology
- Population
- 2,2962024 5-year
- Median household income
- $65,6252024 5-year
- White (non-Hispanic)
- 94.9%2024 5-year
- Black
- 0.0%2024 5-year
- Hispanic / Latino
- 0.0%2024 5-year
- Peak Democratic margin
- D+30 in 1964MIT Election Lab
- Peak Republican margin
- R+71 in 1972MIT Election Lab
- Most similar
- Huntingdon County, PA · similarity 1.00
2024 results by precinct
2024 precinct map of Highland CountyPrecinct-level 2024 presidential results for Highland 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 | +22.2% |
| 1896 | +6.1% |
| 1900 | −2.6% |
| 1904 | −7.2% |
| 1908 | −2.1% |
| 1912 | +14.6% |
| 1916 | +8.8% |
| 1920 | −11.1% |
| 1924 | +5.6% |
| 1928 | −25.4% |
| 1932 | +13.0% |
| 1936 | −0.7% |
| 1940 | −6.7% |
| 1944 | −9.0% |
| 1948 | −14.3% |
| 1952 | −24.8% |
| 1956 | −18.4% |
| 1960 | −13.5% |
| 1964 | +29.9% |
| 1968 | −31.3% |
| 1972 | −71.3% |
| 1976 | −12.0% |
| 1980 | −20.7% |
| 1984 | −42.6% |
| 1988 | −27.3% |
| 1992 | −13.7% |
| 1996 | −15.2% |
| 2000 | −34.0% |
| 2004 | −30.3% |
| 2008 | −21.9% |
| 2012 | −32.9% |
| 2016 | −42.2% |
| 2020 | −44.0% |
| 2024 | −44.2% |
DemocraticRepublican
38 presidential elections
| Year | Won | Margin | Democratic | Republican | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| R | 416 | 1,095 | 1,535 | ||
| R | 417 | 1,092 | 1,533 | ||
| R | 371 | 958 | 1,391 | ||
| R | 459 | 924 | 1,413 | ||
| R | 590 | 930 | 1,554 | ||
| R | 522 | 982 | 1,520 | ||
| R | 453 | 942 | 1,437 | ||
| R | 446 | 631 | 1,221 | ||
| R | 494 | 686 | 1,400 | ||
| R | 456 | 807 | 1,286 | ||
| R | 398 | 997 | 1,406 | ||
| R | 487 | 751 | 1,278 | ||
| R | 493 | 629 | 1,132 | ||
| R | 8,420 | 52,536 | 61,904 | ||
| R | 284 | 619 | 1,069 | ||
| D | 5,295 | 2,844 | 8,184 | ||
| R | 401 | 527 | 932 | ||
| R | 432 | 633 | 1,091 | ||
| R | 419 | 696 | 1,118 | ||
| R | 423 | 579 | 1,090 | ||
| R | 535 | 641 | 1,176 | ||
| R | 549 | 628 | 1,182 | ||
| R | 515 | 522 | 1,040 | ||
| D | 464 | 355 | 838 | ||
| R | 371 | 623 | 994 | ||
| D | 508 | 454 | 972 | ||
| R | 379 | 474 | 857 | ||
| D | 370 | 310 | 683 | ||
| D | 313 | 221 | 632 | ||
| R | 292 | 305 | 618 | ||
| R | 304 | 352 | 667 | ||
| R | 512 | 540 | 1,065 | ||
| D | 553 | 489 | 1,051 | ||
| D | 611 | 386 | 1,015 | ||
| — | — | — | — | ||
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Demographics
2024 ACS
Race, ethnicity, and ancestry
Click any group to see the ancestries typically reported within it.
German
25.0%
English
21.3%
Irish
11.1%
American
9.8%
Scottish
2.1%
Italian
1.6%
French
1.2%
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: 56.5 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
$65,625
Highland County ranks near the middle of US counties.
Highland County$65,625
Virginia$93,170
United States$80,734
Highland 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
9.5%
Child poverty is below the national average.
Children under 188.4%
Working age (18–64)10.9%
Seniors (65+)4.5%
Source · American Community Survey 5-year estimates, 2024 release.
2024 ACS
Language at home
Population aged 5 and older
98.3%
speak English only
Asian & Pacific Islander0.9%
Spanish0.4%
Other Indo-European0.4%
Source · ACS 5-year estimates, 2024.
2020 religion census
Religious adherents
Adherents per capita by tradition
Source · 2020 US Religion Census. Remaining 44.5% of residents not counted as adherents by any reporting body.
Nestled in the Allegheny Highlands with fewer than 2,600 residents, Highland County has recorded some of Virginia's widest presidential margins, reflecting the deep-red voting patterns typical of rural Appalachian communities where agriculture and small-town life dominate.
The Republican margin here reached seventy-one points in 1972. The 2024 margin was forty-four points.
A population of 2,296, a 95% non-Hispanic-white share, and a median household income of $65,625 describe the county. The county's voting pattern over the last decade is most similar to that of Huntingdon County and Tioga 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.
Highland County, Virginia. Akashic. https://akashic.app/county/51091/. Accessed May 20, 2026. License: CC BY 4.0.
License: CC BY 4.0
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Frequently asked questions
How did Highland County, Virginia vote in 2024?
In 2024, Highland County, Virginia voted Republican by 44.2 points (R+44), carried by the Republican candidate. Out of 1,535 votes cast, 416 went Democratic and 1,095 went Republican.
What is Highland County, Virginia's political typology?
Akashic places Highland County, Virginia 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 7 times, Republican 27 times, and other 0 times.
When did Highland County, Virginia last vote Democratic?
The most recent presidential election in which Highland County, Virginia voted Democratic was 1964.
How many people live in Highland County, Virginia?
Highland County, Virginia has a population of 2,296 according to the 2024 American Community Survey 5-year estimates from the US Census Bureau.
What is the median household income in Highland County, Virginia?
Median household income in Highland County, Virginia is $65,625 — below the national median of $80,734. The Virginia state median is $93,170.
What is the political history of Highland County, Virginia?
Akashic tracks 38 presidential elections in Highland County, Virginia from 1876 to 2024. Of those, 7 went Democratic and 27 went Republican. The county's typology — "Stable Rural Right" — captures where that record, its demographics, and its recent swing place it among American communities.