How did Brookings, SD vote in the 2020 presidential election?

Brookings, SD voted Republican in 2020 with a margin of R+13.0. Joe Biden received 6,110 votes and Donald Trump received 8,000 out of 14,567 total votes cast, a 1.8-point shift toward Democrats from 2016.

What is Brookings, SD's political history?

Brookings, SD has 33 presidential elections on record, spanning 1892 to 2020. Democrats have won 5 and Republicans 28 of those contests. The largest single-election swing was 72.4 points in 1912.

What are the demographics of Brookings, SD?

Brookings, SD has a population of 126,445 according to the 2020 Census. The racial composition is 91.9% non-Hispanic white, 2.4% Hispanic. About 38% of residents hold a bachelor's degree or higher. Median household income is $50,920.

Live · Metropolitan area

Brookings, SD

Home to South Dakota State University, Brookings punches above its size in civic engagement

Brookings anchors a small but education-driven metro where the university population shapes turnout patterns and keeps the area's demographics younger and more transient than surrounding rural Kingsbury and Moody counties.

Presidential margin · 2020

Data unavailable for this race.

Race data unavailable

Geography

Race data unavailable

No current race for this office.

2020FIPS 15100

Population126K

Median ageU.S. 38.9y

26.5y▼ 12.4

Bachelor's+U.S. 35%

38.1%▲ 3.1

White91.9%
Hispanic2.4%
Asian2.4%
Two or more2.0%
Native1.0%
Other1.0%
Black0.9%

Trajectory · 2008–2020

Brookings, SDBaseline

Cycle2020

Open in Cartographer

Constituent Counties

Open in Cartographer

Constituent Geography

Counties in Brookings, SD

2020 presidential results across the counties that make up this geography.

Sort:

County	Pop.	Margin	Share
Brookings	35K	E	—
Brookings	33K	E	—
Brookings	29K	E	—
Brookings	28K	E	—

4 countiesTotal votes: 0

Historian Query

Ask the Historian

Explore Brookings, SD's political evolution with the Historian

“How has the Brookings, SD metro area voted in presidential elections?”

Race & Ancestry

Who Lives Here

A race-first Census view with ancestry expansion where source coverage is strong enough to support detail.

Brookings, SDCensus ACS 2024Ancestry detail available

Census race profile

Major Census race and ethnicity groups shown as a share of total population.

Expand rows for ancestry detail

White (Non-Hispanic) 91.9%Asian 2.4%Hispanic 2.4%Multiracial 1.3%Native American 1.0%Black 0.9%

Group	Brookings, SD	National
▶White (Non-Hispanic)(13)	91.9%	57.4%
▶Asian(5)	2.4%	6.0%
▶Hispanic / Latino(13)	2.4%	19.3%
Multiracial / Other	1.3%	4.0%
▶Native American / Alaska Native(3)	1.0%	0.9%
▶Black / African American(7)	0.9%	12.2%
▶Middle Eastern / North African(3)	0.3%	0.9%

Method notes

Census treats race and Hispanic/Latino origin as separate questions. Race categories other than Hispanic reflect total populations (small Hispanic overlap in Black, Asian, AIAN, NHPI). “Multiracial / Other” is derived as a non-overlapping remainder.

Click rows to expand ancestry detail. Ancestry from ACS B04006, B03001, B02020, B02016. Totals may differ from race — individuals can report multiple ancestries.

Black / African American (estimated remainder) is derived as Black population share minus reported Sub-Saharan African and West Indian ancestry. It is shown as an estimated ancestry detail, not a standalone Census ancestry category.

MENA estimated from ancestry reporting — Census does not have a separate MENA race category. Not shown in bar (overlaps with other race groups).

Religious Adherents

Population that are religious adherents:

49.2%(17.4K people)

U.S. Religion Census 2020

Browse all religions

Catholic-Evangelical edge: -20.8pp (vs national 4.5pp). A strongly Evangelical-leaning religious profile, which nationally correlates with Republican-leaning rural and exurban communities.

Ecological pattern — how to read this

Reflects patterns in counties where this religious tradition concentrates — not a claim about individual voters.

Values are derived by joining Religion Census 2020 (U.S. Religion Data Archive) with certified election results at the county level. That means we know what counties with more or fewer of this group did — not how any individual voted.

This is known as ecological inference. It is a valid way to surface geographic correlation but must not be read as a personal-vote claim about anyone in the group.

Tradition	% Pop	% Adherents	US Pop	US Adherents
Mainline Protestant	18.8%	38.3%	—	—
Evangelical Protestant	18.2%	36.9%	—	—
Catholic	10.1%	20.6%	—	—
Other	2.1%	4.2%	—	—
LDS (Mormon)	1.0%	2.1%	—	—
Non-religiousPopulation	50.8%	—	—	—

Click the chevron to expand denominations. Tradition and denomination rows label both share of total population and share of all religious adherents. Non-religious is shown as a share of total population only.

Explore Mainline Protestant adherence nationally

Who lives in the Brookings, SD metro area? 126,445 residents across 4 counties.

Demographic Comparison

Demographics

Read this geography's profile in three layers: local, state (where available), and national baseline.

Export CSVPro

Brookings, SD vs National126K residents

38% of adults hold a bachelor's degree — 5pp above the national average. Places with similar education levels vote D+8 on average nationally.

Population & electorate

Scale, voting-age share, and this geography's footprint inside the national electorate.

Total population

Local vs state vs U.S.

126K

local

126KNational 334.9M

Share of U.S. population

Local vs state vs U.S.

0.04%

local

0.04%National 100%

Voting-age population

Local vs state vs U.S.

37.7%

local

37.7%National 75.7%

Economic profile

Income, attainment, and ownership indicators that often shape coalition structure and turnout behavior.

Median household income

Local vs state vs U.S.

$50,920

local

$50,920National $83,960

Poverty rate

Local vs state vs U.S.

15.6%

local

15.6%National 12.5%

College degree

Local vs state vs U.S.

38.1%

local

38.1%National 35.6%

Homeownership

Local vs state vs U.S.

57.8%

local

57.8%National 65.2%

Community profile

Age structure, language use, and nativity signals that explain how this geography differs from state and nation.

Median age

Local vs state vs U.S.

26.5 yrs

local

26.5 yrsNational 39.1 yrs

Age 18–29

Local vs state vs U.S.

26.9%

local

26.9%National 15.7%

Age 65+

Local vs state vs U.S.

8.9%

local

8.9%National 17.0%

Foreign born

Local vs state vs U.S.

4.7%

local

4.7%National 14.1%

Non-English at home

Local vs state vs U.S.

7.0%

local

7.0%National 22.2%

English only

Local vs state vs U.S.

93.0%

local

93.0%National 77.8%

Voter Turnout

Turnout in Brookings, SD

Turnout % = votes cast ÷ citizen voting-age population (CVAP). Source: CVAP Special Tab 2020-2024.

2020 Turnout

54.9%

vs Previous

+7.1pp

Eligible Non-Voters

12K · 45.1%

Citizen VAP

26,512

History

1984–2020

Ticket-Splitting

Do voters in Brookings, SD split their tickets?

Divergence between offices in the same election reveals persuadable voters.

ConsistencyHeavy splitting (0/100)

2022 Office Comparisons

Offices	Margin A	Margin B	Split
Senate vs Governor	R+33.8	R+15.1	18.7pp

Average divergence across office pairs: 29.0pp

Containing Geography

Located In

Brookings, SD sits inside these higher-level geographies.

South Dakota(State)

Upgrade Path

Unlock Metro Area Analytics

Advance from the public dossier into precinct-level, insight-rich district intelligence.

Target plan Pro$33/mo

Precinct data, Smart Insights, full history, and export controls tailored to place pages.

Precinct-Level Data

See results for every neighborhood and voting precinct

Smart Insights

Automated highlights from recent election patterns

Full Historical Access

165 years of election data at every level of geography

CSV Exports

Download any table or chart as a CSV file

Upgrade to Pro$33/mo