How did Columbia, MO vote in the 2024 presidential election?

Columbia, MO voted Democratic in 2024 with a margin of D+2.4. Kamala D Harris received 52,140 votes and Donald Trump received 49,600 out of 103,901 total votes cast, a 2.6-point shift toward Republicans from 2020.

What is Columbia, MO's political history?

Columbia, MO has 40 presidential elections on record, spanning 1868 to 2024. Democrats have won 33 and Republicans 7 of those contests. The largest single-election swing was 30.8 points in 1968.

What are the demographics of Columbia, MO?

Columbia, MO has a population of 756,950 according to the 2020 Census. The racial composition is 81.6% non-Hispanic white, 2.9% Hispanic, 8.3% Black. About 43% of residents hold a bachelor's degree or higher. Median household income is $52,292.

Which places are most similar to Columbia, MO?

Based on demographic and electoral similarity analysis, the three most similar metro areas to Columbia, MO are Lincoln, NE, Bloomington, IN, Athens-Clarke County, GA. Similarity is computed using a vector embedding of demographic, economic, and electoral characteristics.

Live · Metropolitan area

Columbia, MO

College-town anchor in a rural-red region

Home to the University of Missouri, Columbia's Boone County posts notably higher Democratic margins than surrounding Ozark and agricultural counties, making it an isolated blue island in central Missouri's otherwise lopsided congressional map.

Presidential margin · 2024

Data unavailable for this race.

Race data unavailable

Geography

Race data unavailable

No current race for this office.

2024FIPS 17860

Population757K

Median ageU.S. 38.9y

31.6y▼ 7.3

Bachelor's+U.S. 35%

42.8%▲ 7.8

White81.6%
Black8.3%
Two or more4.1%
Asian3.4%
Hispanic2.9%
Other1.0%

Trajectory · 2008–2024

Columbia, MOBaseline

Cycle2024

Open in Cartographer

Constituent Counties

Open in Cartographer

Similarity Explorer

Similar metro areas

Reads like Lincoln, NE, Bloomington, IN, and Athens-Clarke County, GA.

8 visible matches

Lincoln, NE

Educated rural competitive

D+1.5

Similarity score96%

Bloomington, IN

Educated rural competitive

D+16.2

Similarity score96%

Athens-Clarke County, GA

Educated rural competitive

R+2.4

Similarity score95%

Ames, IA

Educated rural competitive

D+2.8

Similarity score95%

Iowa City, IA

Educated rural competitive

D+30.5

Similarity score94%

Champaign-Urbana, IL

Educated rural competitive

D+14.5

Similarity score94%

Lawrence, KS

Educated rural competitive

D+38.0

Similarity score94%

State College, PA

Educated rural competitive

D+2.8

Similarity score94%

Constituent Geography

Counties in Columbia, MO

2024 presidential results across the counties that make up this geography.

Sort:

County	Pop.	Margin	Dem	Rep	Total	Share
Boone	188K	D+9.7	48,452	39,673	90,110	21.7%
Boone	173K	D+9.7	48,452	39,673	90,110	21.7%
Boone	152K	D+9.7	48,452	39,673	90,110	21.7%
Boone	135K	D+9.7	48,452	39,673	90,110	21.7%
Cooper	18K	R+45.8	2,347	6,393	8,835	2.1%
Cooper	17K	R+45.8	2,347	6,393	8,835	2.1%
Cooper	17K	R+45.8	2,347	6,393	8,835	2.1%
Cooper	17K	R+45.8	2,347	6,393	8,835	2.1%
Howard	10K	R+44.3	1,341	3,534	4,956	1.2%
Howard	10K	R+44.3	1,341	3,534	4,956	1.2%
Howard	10K	R+44.3	1,341	3,534	4,956	1.2%
Howard	10K	R+44.3	1,341	3,534	4,956	1.2%

12 countiesTotal votes: 415,604

Historian Query

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“How has the Columbia, MO 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.

Columbia, MOCensus 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) 81.6%Black 8.3%Multiracial 3.5%Asian 3.4%Hispanic 2.9%

Group	Columbia, MO	National
▶White (Non-Hispanic)(13)	81.6%	57.4%
▶Black / African American(12)	8.3%	12.2%
Multiracial / Other	3.5%	4.0%
▶Asian(6)	3.4%	6.0%
▶Hispanic / Latino(17)	2.9%	19.3%
▶Middle Eastern / North African(10)	0.6%	0.9%
▶Native American / Alaska Native(2)	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:

38.1%(82.0K people)

U.S. Religion Census 2020

Browse all religions

Catholic-Evangelical edge: -36.0pp (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
Evangelical Protestant	19.0%	49.9%	—	—
Catholic	7.0%	18.4%	—	—
Mainline Protestant	6.2%	16.2%	—	—
Other	4.1%	10.7%	—	—
Black Protestant	1.8%	4.6%	—	—
LDS (Mormon)	1.6%	4.3%	—	—
Non-religiousPopulation	61.9%	—	—	—

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 Evangelical Protestant adherence nationally

Who lives in the Columbia, MO metro area? 756,950 residents across 12 counties.

Demographic Comparison

Demographics

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

Export CSVPro

Columbia, MO vs National757K residents

43% of adults hold a bachelor's degree — 10pp above the national average. Places with similar education levels vote D+16 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.

757K

local

757KNational 334.9M

Share of U.S. population

Local vs state vs U.S.

0.23%

local

0.23%National 100%

Voting-age population

Local vs state vs U.S.

40.5%

local

40.5%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.

$52,292

local

$52,292National $83,960

Poverty rate

Local vs state vs U.S.

16.6%

local

16.6%National 12.5%

College degree

Local vs state vs U.S.

42.8%

local

42.8%National 35.6%

Homeownership

Local vs state vs U.S.

59.0%

local

59.0%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.

31.6 yrs

local

31.6 yrsNational 39.1 yrs

Age 18–29

Local vs state vs U.S.

21.1%

local

21.1%National 15.7%

Age 65+

Local vs state vs U.S.

9.4%

local

9.4%National 17.0%

Foreign born

Local vs state vs U.S.

5.0%

local

5.0%National 14.1%

Non-English at home

Local vs state vs U.S.

7.1%

local

7.1%National 22.2%

English only

Local vs state vs U.S.

92.9%

local

92.9%National 77.8%

Voter Turnout

Turnout in Columbia, MO

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

2024 Turnout

62.7%

vs Previous

-0.6pp

Eligible Non-Voters

62K · 37.3%

Citizen VAP

165,825

History

1988–2024

Ticket-Splitting

Do voters in Columbia, MO split their tickets?

Divergence between offices in the same election reveals persuadable voters.

ConsistencyModerate splitting (57/100)

2024 Office Comparisons

Offices	Margin A	Margin B	Split
Senate vs Governor	D+6.4	R+3.0	9.4pp
President vs Governor	D+2.4	R+3.0	5.4pp
President vs Senate	D+2.4	D+6.4	3.9pp

Average divergence across office pairs: 8.9pp

Containing Geography

Located In

Columbia, MO sits inside these higher-level geographies.

Missouri(State)

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