Bayfield County, Wisconsin: Farm Belt county. In 2024, voted D+11%. Republican peak: R+74 in 1904.
Key facts
- 2024 presidential margin
- D+11MIT Election Lab
- Political typology
- Farm BeltAkashic typology
- Population
- 16,5752024 5-year
- Median household income
- $71,1512024 5-year
- White (non-Hispanic)
- 84.1%2024 5-year
- Black
- 0.8%2024 5-year
- Hispanic / Latino
- 2.1%2024 5-year
- Peak Democratic margin
- D+34 in 1936MIT Election Lab
- Peak Republican margin
- R+74 in 1904MIT Election Lab
- Most similar
- Rolette County, ND · similarity 0.99
2024 results by precinct
2024 precinct map of Bayfield CountyPrecinct-level 2024 presidential results for Bayfield 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 | −4.1% |
| 1896 | −47.7% |
| 1900 | −56.9% |
| 1904 | −73.8% |
| 1908 | −49.5% |
| 1912 | +6.8% |
| 1916 | −12.5% |
| 1920 | −56.3% |
| 1924 | −32.0% |
| 1928 | −30.4% |
| 1932 | +17.7% |
| 1936 | +34.4% |
| 1940 | +21.2% |
| 1944 | +15.1% |
| 1948 | +12.7% |
| 1952 | −13.1% |
| 1956 | −7.0% |
| 1960 | +5.9% |
| 1964 | +34.4% |
| 1968 | +12.3% |
| 1972 | −5.3% |
| 1976 | +18.8% |
| 1980 | +5.5% |
| 1984 | +7.4% |
| 1988 | +16.5% |
| 1992 | +18.2% |
| 1996 | +22.4% |
| 2000 | +14.1% |
| 2004 | +21.6% |
| 2008 | +27.5% |
| 2012 | +24.8% |
| 2016 | +8.6% |
| 2020 | +14.1% |
| 2024 | +11.1% |
DemocraticRepublican
38 presidential elections
| Year | Won | Margin | Democratic | Republican | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| D | 6,107 | 4,860 | 11,240 | ||
| D | 6,147 | 4,617 | 10,880 | ||
| D | 4,953 | 4,124 | 9,612 | ||
| D | 6,033 | 3,603 | 9,788 | ||
| D | 5,972 | 3,365 | 9,468 | ||
| D | 5,845 | 3,754 | 9,699 | ||
| D | 4,427 | 3,266 | 8,259 | ||
| D | 3,895 | 2,250 | 7,340 | ||
| D | 3,873 | 2,393 | 8,112 | ||
| D | 4,323 | 3,095 | 7,458 | ||
| D | 4,034 | 3,474 | 7,567 | ||
| D | 3,705 | 3,278 | 7,789 | ||
| D | 3,885 | 2,624 | 6,693 | ||
| R | 2,736 | 3,045 | 5,865 | ||
| D | 3,036 | 2,333 | 5,702 | ||
| D | 3,875 | 1,886 | 5,777 | ||
| D | 3,196 | 2,841 | 6,060 | ||
| R | 2,691 | 3,096 | 5,806 | ||
| R | 2,616 | 3,419 | 6,107 | ||
| D | 3,081 | 2,338 | 5,835 | ||
| D | 3,362 | 2,475 | 5,890 | ||
| D | 4,387 | 2,829 | 7,342 | ||
| D | 4,366 | 2,071 | 6,663 | ||
| D | 2,981 | 2,035 | 5,335 | ||
| R | 1,709 | 3,279 | 5,171 | ||
| O | 205 | 1,675 | 4,600 | ||
| R | 589 | 2,536 | 3,458 | ||
| R | 996 | 1,320 | 2,583 | ||
| O | 666 | 514 | 2,232 | ||
| R | 579 | 1,957 | 2,785 | ||
| R | 350 | 2,665 | 3,136 | ||
| R | 632 | 2,428 | 3,156 | ||
| R | 770 | 2,244 | 3,092 | ||
| R | 1,349 | 1,467 | 2,905 | ||
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Demographics
2024 ACS
Race, ethnicity, and ancestry
Click any group to see the ancestries typically reported within it.
German
26.8%
Irish
10.9%
English
9.3%
Polish
6.2%
French
3.3%
Italian
2.8%
American
2.7%
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: 54.6 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
$71,151
Bayfield County ranks near the middle of US counties.
Bayfield County$71,151
Wisconsin$77,485
United States$80,734
Bayfield 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
9.8%
Child poverty is below the national average.
Children under 1813.4%
Working age (18–64)9.1%
Seniors (65+)8.8%
Source · American Community Survey 5-year estimates, 2024 release.
2024 ACS
Language at home
Population aged 5 and older
96.9%
speak English only
Other Indo-European1.1%
Other languages1.1%
Spanish0.6%
Asian & Pacific Islander0.4%
Source · ACS 5-year estimates, 2024.
2020 religion census
Religious adherents
Adherents per capita by tradition
Source · 2020 US Religion Census. Remaining 63.7% of residents not counted as adherents by any reporting body.
Bayfield County's Bad River and Red Cliff Ojibwe reservations give it a demographic profile unlike most rural Wisconsin counties, and its consistent Democratic lean in presidential races reflects that distinct electorate alongside a significant retiree and outdoor-recreation population.
The Republican margin here reached seventy-four points in 1904. Between 2020 and 2024 the county moved three points toward the Republican candidate; the 2024 margin was eleven points.
A population of 16,575, a 84% non-Hispanic-white share, and a median household income of $71,151 describe an agricultural county. The county's voting pattern over the last decade is most similar to that of Rolette County and Ashland 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.
Bayfield County, Wisconsin. Akashic. https://akashic.app/county/55007/. Accessed May 20, 2026. License: CC BY 4.0.
License: CC BY 4.0
More farm belt counties
Frequently asked questions
How did Bayfield County, Wisconsin vote in 2024?
In 2024, Bayfield County, Wisconsin voted Democratic by 11.1 points (D+11), carried by the Democratic candidate. Out of 11,240 votes cast, 6,107 went Democratic and 4,860 went Republican.
What is Bayfield County, Wisconsin's political typology?
Akashic places Bayfield County, Wisconsin in the "Farm Belt" typology — Rural Plains and Midwest farm counties — Republican, with modest recent movement. 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 21 times, Republican 11 times, and other 2 times.
When did Bayfield County, Wisconsin last vote Republican?
The most recent presidential election in which Bayfield County, Wisconsin voted Republican was 1972.
How many people live in Bayfield County, Wisconsin?
Bayfield County, Wisconsin has a population of 16,575 according to the 2024 American Community Survey 5-year estimates from the US Census Bureau.
What is the median household income in Bayfield County, Wisconsin?
Median household income in Bayfield County, Wisconsin is $71,151 — below the national median of $80,734. The Wisconsin state median is $77,485.
What is the political history of Bayfield County, Wisconsin?
Akashic tracks 38 presidential elections in Bayfield County, Wisconsin from 1876 to 2024. Of those, 21 went Democratic and 11 went Republican. The county's typology — "Farm Belt" — captures where that record, its demographics, and its recent swing place it among American communities.