akashic
1876–2024
Richland Parish, Louisiana
Richland Parish·Louisiana

Richland Parish changed its political identity.

A rural delta parish where cotton fields meet consistent Republican margins

18762024·38 elections
Richland Parish, Louisiana · Startbosshogg · Wikimedia Commons
Latest
R+39
in 2024
Archetype
Realigner
since the recent cycles
Population
19,822
2024 ACS
Most similar
Rapides Parish
LA · similarity 1.00
23 precincts · 9,193 votes cast
Trump · R+39
Margin
Turnout
Harris +50
Trump +50
Real precinct boundaries. Hover for vote totals.
YearWonMarginDemocraticRepublicanTotal
2024R
−39.4%
2,7326,3549,193
2020R
−34.0%
3,2256,6079,940
2016R
−32.6%
3,1576,2879,597
2012R
−26.4%
3,3875,8469,329
2008R
−26.6%
3,3115,7519,181
2004R
−27.6%
3,0825,4718,665
2000R
−19.0%
3,2824,8958,485
1996D
+4.3%
4,1433,7658,710
1992R
−1.1%
3,7063,8088,903
1988R
−28.8%
2,8335,2268,315
1984R
−33.7%
2,9185,9809,083
1980R
−11.7%
3,7454,7728,744
1976R
−1.9%
3,4953,6307,270
1972R
−48.8%
1,3354,3046,079
1968R
−0.2%
1,0171,0316,463
1964D
+71.5%
4,4987475,245
1960R
−9.9%
9961,3783,869
1956D
+0.9%
1,0941,0633,557
1952D
+20.6%
2,4991,6454,144
1948D
+33.2%
9601192,535
1944D
+62.1%
2,0874882,575
1940D
+77.3%
2,4173102,727
1936D
+87.1%
2,4251652,594
1932D
+94.9%
1,773461,820
1928D
+63.5%
1,0832421,325
1924D
+70.8%
678116794
1920D
+86.0%
66450714
1916D
+97.9%
6507657
1912D
+89.5%
3932437
1908D
+96.0%
4459454
1904D
+95.3%
2917298
1900D
+91.8%
30413317
1896D
+82.9%
70661778
1892D
+99.1%
8824886
1888
No data
1884
No data
1880
No data
1876
No data
Demographics
Race, ethnicity, and ancestry
Click any group to see the ancestries typically reported within it.
American
100.0%
African American
28.6%
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. Ancestry is a self-reported, multiple-response item; ancestry percentages do not sum to the parent race percentage.
Language at home
Population aged 5 and older
0.0%
speak English only
Source · ACS 5-year estimates, 2024.
Religious adherents
Adherents per capita by tradition
Baptist
38.9%
Methodist
5.6%
Pentecostal & Holiness
4.0%
Other Christian
3.4%
Catholic & Orthodox
1.1%
Mainline Protestant
0.9%
Source · 2020 US Religion Census. Remaining 46.1% of residents not counted as adherents by any reporting body.

Richland Parish, anchored by the small city of Rayville, sits in Louisiana's northeastern delta region and has delivered Republican presidential margins above 35 points in each of the last three cycles, reflecting a predominantly rural, majority-white electorate.

The unraveling was not abrupt. The Democratic margin in Richland Parish peaked at ninety-nine points in 1892; it narrowed steadily over the late twentieth century. The 2000 election delivered the county to the Republican party for the first time in many years, by a margin of nineteen points. By 2024, the margin had settled into deep Republican territory.

The economic and demographic context is severe. Richland Parish's median household income of $53,544 is among the lowest of any county in the United States; 24% of residents live below the federal poverty line. The county's voting pattern over the last decade is most similar to that of Rapides Parish and Grady County.