Participation measured against the same-year citizen voting-age population. Audited cycles count total general-election participants — ballots or participating voters, not presidential candidate votes. Cycles before 2016 predate that series and are derived from the certified presidential returns instead; they are marked everywhere they appear and are excluded from the figures below.
2004–20248 cycles · 5 audited
2024 turnout
64.9%328,871 participants ÷ 506,635 CVAP
2020→2022 drop-off
+24.8 ptsPresidential-dependent
Drop-off vs state
0.0 ptsPositive means a larger decline than the statewide pattern
Mechanical 2026
40.1%–43.6%Recent-cycle and two-cycle persistence scenarios; not a forecast
Participation by cycle
Presidential Midterm Derived, pre-2016
0%20%40%60%80%
45.3%
40.9%
20042008201220162018202020222024
Select a presidential cycle to show it on the map and results ledger above.
Cycle
Participants
CVAP
Turnout
Series
Quality
328,871
506,635 ± 2,917
64.9%
Audited
B/A
2022Mid
205,774
503,684 ± 2,487
40.9%
Audited
B/A
346,491
528,025 ± 3,110
65.6%
Audited
B/A
2018Mid
231,700
511,190 ± 2,409
45.3%
Audited
B/A
311,841
494,088 ± 2,241
63.1%
Audited
B/A
293,764
454,205
64.7%
Derived
—
265,853
430,108
61.8%
Derived
—
227,586
406,011 extrapolated
56.1%
Derived
—
Sources and methods
Audited cycles (2016, 2018, 2020, 2022, 2024) count total general-election participants against the same-year CVAP special tabulation, each cell carrying its own numerator and denominator quality grade. Derived cycles (2004, 2008, 2012) come from the certified presidential returns on this page over the ACS 5-year CVAP series, so they measure presidential votes cast rather than ballots — a floor on participation. Where a derived cycle predates the ACS its denominator is extrapolated rather than read, and says so on its own line below. They are shown for the longer arc and are excluded from the drop-off, excess-drop-off, and 2026 scenario figures above.
2024: numerator source 158, denominator source 157; total voters participating; eavs-f1a-state-v1:observed:aggregated; allocation share 0.0%; series 288/227.
2022: numerator source 158, denominator source 157; total voters participating; eavs-f1a-state-v1:observed:aggregated; allocation share 0.0%; series 285/182.
2020: numerator source 158, denominator source 157; total voters participating; eavs-f1a-state-v1:observed:aggregated; allocation share 0.0%; series 282/1.
2018: numerator source 158, denominator source 157; total voters participating; eavs-f1a-state-v1:observed:aggregated; allocation share 0.0%; series 279/137.
2016: numerator source 158, denominator source 157; total voters participating; eavs-f1a-state-v1:observed:aggregated; allocation share 0.0%; series 276/110.
2012 (derived): Certified presidential returns · ACS 5-year CVAP (B05003); presidential votes cast — a floor on participation, not a ballot count.
2008 (derived): Certified presidential returns · ACS 5-year CVAP (B05003); presidential votes cast — a floor on participation, not a ballot count.
2004 (derived): Certified presidential returns · extrapolated CVAP denominator; presidential votes cast — a floor on participation, not a ballot count; 2004 predates the ACS, so the denominator is a linear back-extrapolation from the 2008 and 2012 CVAP values, not a read figure.
presidential history
Party record book
District of Columbia · the strongest Democratic and Republican presidential performances recorded here, measured three ways.
1964–2024 · 16 presidential cycles
Highest vote share
Largest share of the presidential candidate vote cast here.
Democratic
Barack Obama2008
92.5%
245,800 votes · D+85.9
Runner-up · Joe Biden, 2020 · 92.1%
Republican
Richard Nixon1972
21.6%
35,226 votes · D+56.5
Runner-up · Richard Nixon, 1968 · 18.2%
Most votes
Largest number of votes cast for the party’s presidential nominee here.
Democratic
Joe Biden2020
317,323votes
92.1% of the vote · D+86.8
Runner-up · Kamala Harris, 2024 · 294,185 votes
Republican
Richard Nixon1972
35,226votes
21.6% of the vote · D+56.5
Runner-up · Richard Nixon, 1968 · 31,012 votes
Best relative to the U.S.
This Place’s margin against the national margin in the same election — positive when it leaned toward the party more than the country did.
Democratic
Walter Mondale1984
+89.9pts D vs U.S.
Place D+71.7 · U.S. R+18.2
Runner-up · Kamala Harris, 2024 · +85.3 pts
Republican
Barry Goldwater1964
−48.4pts R vs U.S.
Place D+71.0 · U.S. D+22.6
Runner-up · Gerald Ford, 1976 · −63.1 pts
U.S. House elections · 2 House
U.S. House
Source · MIT Election Lab (MEDSL), House. CC BY 4.0.
Year
District
Won
Democratic
Republican
Total
2024
At-large
D
80.1%251,540
6.3%19,765
314,069
2020
At-large
D
87.0%299,388
0.0%0
344,144
presidential primaries
Nominating contests
District of Columbia · which candidate this place backed in each party’s presidential nominating contest, cycle by cycle. A primary is a contest inside one party, so it has no Democratic–Republican margin and is not part of the general-election record above.
Akashic reports votes cast, not delegates awarded. The two can disagree: Clinton led the 2008 national primary popular vote by less than half a point and did not win the nomination.
Presidential nominating contests in District of Columbia, by party and cycle.
○no contest record — Akashic holds no result for that party and cycle here. It is not a claim that no contest was held. Telling apart a contest that was cancelled, one that went uncontested, and one simply not yet ingested needs a nominating-contest calendar, which is a separate ingest from results and does not exist yet.
Republican presidential primaries are not yet ingested — the Republican series runs from 1856 and is in scope. The row is kept so its absence is visible: a Democratic-only panel would otherwise read as though no one else held a contest.
Akashic carries 10 states for 2012 and 3 states for 2024. Cycles in which an incumbent president seeks renomination are thin by nature — few states run a contested primary — so a sparse column is politics, not a hole in the record.
2020 field
110,668 votes cast across 1 counties reporting. The universe is the party's primary electorate, not everyone who lives here, so this is not comparable to a general-election turnout without that in mind.
Biden✓84,09376.0%
Warren14,22812.9%
Sanders11,11610.0%
All others8090.7%
Gabbard4420.4%
“All others” is a residual bucket, not a candidate: it holds every name past the ones listed, including candidates who had already withdrawn but still drew votes. Shares are of the 1 counties reporting, and describe the contest as a whole — not any one county inside it.
Earlier cycles — 2016, 2008
2016 field
97,763 votes cast across 1 counties reporting. The universe is the party's primary electorate, not everyone who lives here, so this is not comparable to a general-election turnout without that in mind.
Clinton✓76,70478.5%
Sanders20,36120.8%
All others6980.7%
“All others” is a residual bucket, not a candidate: it holds every name past the ones listed, including candidates who had already withdrawn but still drew votes. Shares are of the 1 counties reporting, and describe the contest as a whole — not any one county inside it.
2008 field
123,994 votes cast across 1 counties reporting. The universe is the party's primary electorate, not everyone who lives here, so this is not comparable to a general-election turnout without that in mind.
Obama✓93,38675.3%
Clinton29,47023.8%
All others7910.6%
Edwards3470.3%
“All others” is a residual bucket, not a candidate: it holds every name past the ones listed, including candidates who had already withdrawn but still drew votes. Shares are of the 1 counties reporting, and describe the contest as a whole — not any one county inside it.
voter registration
Registered voters
By party of registration, over time
Party registration · 2026D+70.9
vs
Presidential vote · 2024D+83.8
Registration leans Democratic; the presidential vote runs 13 points more Democratic than the rolls.
Domestic migration in District of Columbia in District of Columbia: net domestic migration by year
Year
Net domestic migration
2011
+7,537
2012
+6,711
2013
+6,051
2014
+1,778
2015
+3,201
2016
+2,057
2017
+973
2018
−318
2019
−2,203
2021
−6,258
2022
−5,029
2023
−2,706
2024
−386
2025
−4,128
The District first voted for president in 1964 and has given the Democratic nominee the widest margin of any jurisdiction in the country in every cycle since.
Widest margin in the country
D+83.8 in 2024 — Harris 90.3% to Trump 6.5%; the largest Democratic presidential margin of any U.S. jurisdiction · MIT Election Lab
Democratic since its first vote
D+71.0 in 1964, the District’s first presidential election; widest ever D+86.8 in 2016 and 2020 · MIT Election Lab
A federal district, not a state
3 electoral votes via the 23rd Amendment (ratified 1961); one non-voting U.S. House delegate, Eleanor Holmes Norton · U.S. Constitution; Voteview / bioguide.congress.gov
Black-plurality city
Black 41.6%, White 36.5%, Hispanic 11.9%, Asian 4.3% — 681,294 residents on 61 sq mi · ACS 2024 5-year (B03002)
Affluent and college-educated
Median household income $109,870 vs $80,734 nationally; 64.2% hold a bachelor’s degree, 38.0% a graduate or professional degree · ACS 2024 5-year
Slipped toward Trump in 2024
D+86.8 (2020) → D+83.8 (2024), a ~3-point move with the national tide; child poverty 22.8% against 15.4% overall · MIT Election Lab; ACS 2024 5-year
Akashic
Political twins — states
The states 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.
District of Columbia. Akashic. https://akashic.app/state/DC/. Accessed May 20, 2026. License: CC BY 4.0.
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In 2024, District of Columbia voted Democratic by 83.8 points (D+83.8), carried by the Democratic candidate. Out of 325,869 votes cast, 294,185 went Democratic and 21,076 went Republican.
How many people live in District of Columbia?
District of Columbia has a population of 681,294 according to the 2024 American Community Survey 5-year estimates from the US Census Bureau.
What is the median household income in District of Columbia?
Median household income in District of Columbia is $109,870 — above the national median of $80,734. The District of Columbia state median is $109,870.
What is the political history of District of Columbia?
Akashic tracks 34 presidential elections in District of Columbia from 1892 to 2024. Of those, 16 went Democratic and 0 went Republican.
