† Citizen voting-age population estimated for prior cycles; 2004 predates the ACS and is extrapolated. Source: ACS 5-year, table B05003.
——
D+60R+60
16 counties by 2024 margin · County returns · MIT Election Lab
People and households
Who lives here
Exact values for this place, its state, and the United States.
Race · ethnicity · ancestry
Communities and origins
GroupChicagoUnited States
German13.0%12.5%
Irish10.2%9.4%
Polish7.8%2.2%
Italian6.0%4.8%
English5.0%9.5%
American2.5%5.3%
Swedish1.5%—
Russian0.7%—
Mexican18.1%11.3%
Puerto Rican2.2%1.8%
Guatemalan0.4%0.5%
Ecuadorian0.4%—
Colombian0.3%0.4%
Cuban0.3%0.7%
Honduran0.2%0.3%
Venezuelan0.2%—
African American†14.0%9.9%
African0.6%0.5%
Nigerian0.3%0.2%
Jamaican0.2%0.4%
Asian Indian2.5%1.4%
Filipino1.3%0.9%
Chinese1.2%1.3%
Korean0.5%0.4%
Pakistani0.4%—
Vietnamese0.2%0.6%
Hispanic or Latino counts residents of any race; the race groups count only their non-Hispanic residents, so the groups are mutually exclusive and sum to 100%. Expand a row to see ancestries reported within that group.
Age and life stage
Measure
Chicago
United States
Median age
38.7
39.1
Age 18–24
8.9%
9.2%
Age 65 and older
16.2%
17.2%
Household economy
Measure
Chicago
United States
Median household income
$91,221
$84,427
Poverty rate
11.3%
12.5%
Bachelor's degree or higher (25+)
40.9%
35.6%
Languages at home
Measure
Chicago
United States
Speaks a non-English language at home
29.8%
22.3%
Spanish
17.7%
13.6%
Russian, Polish, or other Slavic
3.2%
0.7%
Other Indo-European
3.2%
2.0%
Other Asian & Pacific Island
1.1%
1.1%
Religious landscape
Measure
Chicago
United States
Catholic
28.4%
18.6%
Evangelical Protestant
8.3%
16.5%
Unclaimed / not counted
47.8%
51.5%
American Community Survey 2024 5-year (CVAP, income, age, poverty, education, language, race, ancestry) · presidential returns from MIT Election Lab through 2024 · 2020 U.S. Religion Census (ASARB) — congregational adherents; unclaimed is the residual not counted by congregations.
Chicago, Illinois
presidential history
Presidential margin, 1892–2024
Democratic minus Republican, by election
Presidential margin over time
Year
Margin (D minus R)
1892
+7.2%
1896
−20.6%
1900
−9.9%
1904
−35.1%
1908
−21.8%
1912
+11.1%
1916
−11.4%
1920
−51.0%
1924
−44.0%
1928
−10.5%
1932
+10.6%
1936
+22.8%
1940
+6.5%
1944
+10.3%
1948
+4.2%
1952
−5.8%
1956
−18.8%
1960
+6.8%
1964
+20.5%
1968
+1.3%
1972
−15.8%
1976
−0.2%
1980
−1.3%
1984
−9.1%
1988
−0.5%
1992
+16.6%
1996
+23.6%
2000
+20.2%
2004
+20.0%
2008
+35.1%
2012
+28.4%
2016
+32.0%
2020
+30.8%
2024
+23.1%
DemocraticRepublican
34 presidential elections
Third column names the leading third-party or independent finisher. Source · MIT Election Lab · ICPSR · VEST (precinct-level 2024). Swing · margin change from the prior cycle. vs U.S. · margin relative to the national result that year.
Year
Won
Democratic
Republican
Other
Margin
Swing
vs U.S.
Total
D
60.5%Harris2,518,309
37.3%Trump1,554,365
2.2%
D+23.1
R+7.7
D+24.6
4,165,419
D
64.4%Biden2,905,962
33.6%Trump1,515,280
2.0%
D+30.8
R+1.1
D+26.4
4,512,162
D
62.9%Clinton2,594,942
30.9%Trump1,276,280
6.2%
D+32.0
D+3.6
D+29.9
4,125,968
D
63.4%Obama2,433,049
35.0%Romney1,342,668
1.6%
D+28.4
R+6.7
D+24.6
3,838,274
D
67.0%Obama2,702,602
31.9%McCain1,286,531
1.1%
D+35.1
D+15.1
D+27.8
4,033,864
D
59.6%Kerry2,250,932
39.7%Bush1,496,928
0.7%
D+20.0
R+0.2
D+22.4
3,774,113
D
58.7%Gore1,974,624
38.6%Bush1,296,366
2.7%
D+20.2
R+3.4
D+19.7
3,362,265
D
57.7%Clinton1,738,817
34.1%Dole1,026,920
8.2%
D+23.6
D+7.1
D+15.1
3,013,727
D
50.1%Clinton1,786,875
33.5%Bush1,195,536
16.5%
D+16.6
D+17.0
D+11.0
3,569,951
R
49.4%Dukakis1,599,769
49.9%Bush1,614,750
0.8%
R+0.5
D+8.7
D+7.3
3,239,205
R
45.1%Mondale1,540,853
54.3%Reagan1,852,495
0.6%
R+9.1
R+7.8
D+9.1
3,413,126
R
45.0%Carter1,508,456
46.3%Reagan1,552,674
8.8%
R+1.3
R+1.1
D+8.4
3,355,132
R
49.0%Carter1,636,328
49.1%Ford1,642,059
1.9%
R+0.2
D+15.6
R+2.2
3,340,951
R
41.9%McGovern1,408,145
57.6%Nixon1,938,319
0.5%
R+15.8
R+17.1
D+7.4
3,363,730
D
46.1%Humphrey1,520,552
44.8%Nixon1,477,484
9.1%
D+1.3
R+19.2
D+2.0
3,297,448
D
60.2%Johnson2,021,938
39.7%Goldwater1,333,012
0.0%
D+20.5
D+13.7
R+2.1
3,356,109
D
53.3%Kennedy1,780,922
46.5%Nixon1,554,116
0.3%
D+6.8
D+25.5
D+6.6
3,343,727
R
40.5%Stevenson1,232,627
59.3%Eisenhower1,803,275
0.2%
R+18.8
R+13.0
R+3.3
3,043,270
R
47.0%Stevenson1,447,098
52.7%Eisenhower1,625,175
0.3%
R+5.8
R+10.0
D+5.0
3,080,999
D
51.7%Truman1,448,054
47.5%Dewey1,329,346
0.8%
D+4.2
R+6.1
R+0.2
2,799,211
D
55.0%Roosevelt1,517,838
44.7%Dewey1,233,573
0.4%
D+10.3
D+3.8
D+2.8
2,761,835
D
53.1%Roosevelt1,426,233
46.5%Willkie1,250,763
0.4%
D+6.5
R+16.3
R+3.4
2,687,813
D
60.0%Roosevelt1,512,438
37.2%Landon937,349
2.8%
D+22.8
D+12.2
R+1.4
2,520,799
D
53.8%Roosevelt1,145,428
43.1%Hoover918,776
3.1%
D+10.6
D+21.2
R+7.2
2,130,651
R
44.4%Smith869,053
54.9%Hoover1,075,422
0.8%
R+10.5
D+33.5
D+6.9
1,959,213
R
19.2%Davis272,095
63.2%Coolidge895,180
17.6%
R+44.0
D+7.0
R+18.8
1,416,626
R
21.3%Cox243,371
72.3%Harding826,877
6.5%
R+51.0
R+39.6
R+24.8
1,144,115
R
42.4%Wilson461,447
53.7%Hughes585,403
3.9%
R+11.4
R+22.4
R+14.5
1,089,568
O
30.2%Wilson172,829
19.1%Taft109,529
50.7%
Roosevelt +20.5
D+32.8
R+8.5
572,411
R
35.6%Bryan198,478
57.4%Taft319,797
7.0%
R+21.8
D+13.3
R+12.2
557,416
R
25.9%Parker134,875
61.0%Roosevelt317,746
13.1%
R+35.1
R+25.2
R+15.4
520,992
R
43.7%Bryan233,100
53.6%McKinley286,185
2.7%
R+9.9
D+10.6
R+2.4
533,707
R
38.9%Bryan197,123
59.5%McKinley301,389
1.6%
R+20.6
R+27.8
R+14.5
506,554
D
52.1%Cleveland191,505
44.9%Harrison164,987
3.0%
D+7.2
—
D+5.6
367,591
voter registration
Registered voters
Total registered voters, over time
Registered voters
Voter registration in Chicago
Year
Total registered
2016
4,689,310
2018
4,802,169
2020
4,885,892
2022
5,145,357
2024
5,018,552
domestic migration
Who moves in and out
Net domestic migration over time
−33,607 net domestic migration · 2025
20112025
Net −999,777 over 2011–2025 · gain loss
Domestic migration in Chicago in Chicago: net domestic migration by year
Year
Net domestic migration
2011
−52,434
2012
−50,952
2013
−50,553
2014
−66,556
2015
−83,158
2016
−87,936
2017
−86,594
2018
−84,576
2019
−75,885
2021
−93,358
2022
−124,266
2023
−67,303
2024
−42,599
2025
−33,607
Chicago's designated market area delivers the state's largest television audience and anchors Illinois Democrats' statewide math, with Cook County alone casting roughly 40% of the state's total votes in most election cycles.
Across the recorded series it reached a Democratic high of 35.1 points in 2008 and a Republican high of 51.0 points in 1920. Between 2020 and 2024 the market moved 7.7 points toward the Republican candidate; the 2024 margin was 23.1 points.
A population of 9,698,861, a 50% non-Hispanic-white share, and a median household income of $91,221 describe the market. The market's voting pattern over the last decade is most similar to that of Philadelphia and New York.
Akashic
Political twins — media markets
The media markets whose fingerprint — 2000–2024 trajectory, demographics, ancestry, religion — sits closest to this one, and why.
Twin score (0–100) = weighted cosine between tier-standardized fingerprints: presidential margins 2000–2024 with 12-yr trend and elasticity, ACS income, age, education, population and race, top reported ancestries, and religious adherence — chips name the closest-shared dimensions and the widest gap. Re-weight the groups in the twins explorer.
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.
Chicago, Illinois. Akashic. https://akashic.app/dma/602/. Accessed May 20, 2026. License: CC BY 4.0.
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In 2024, Chicago, Illinois voted Democratic by 23.1 points (D+23.1), carried by the Democratic candidate. Out of 4,165,419 votes cast, 2,518,309 went Democratic and 1,554,365 went Republican.
When did Chicago, Illinois last vote Republican?
The most recent presidential election in which Chicago, Illinois voted Republican was 1988.
How many people live in Chicago, Illinois?
Chicago, Illinois has a population of 9,698,861 according to the 2024 American Community Survey 5-year estimates from the US Census Bureau.
What is the median household income in Chicago, Illinois?
Median household income in Chicago, Illinois is $91,221 — above the national median of $80,734. The Illinois state median is $83,390.
What is the political history of Chicago, Illinois?
Akashic tracks 34 presidential elections in Chicago, Illinois from 1892 to 2024. Of those, 18 went Democratic and 15 went Republican.
