Gaston County, North Carolina

2024 results by precinct

46 precincts · 119,256 votes cast

Trump · R+25

Harris +50

Trump +50

Real precinct boundaries. Hover for vote totals.

38 presidential elections

Year	Won	Margin	Democratic	Republican	Total
2024	R	−25.0%	44,062	73,828	119,256
2020	R	−27.8%	40,959	73,033	115,498
2016	R	−31.8%	31,177	61,798	96,431
2012	R	−25.4%	33,171	56,138	90,483
2008	R	−25.0%	31,384	52,507	84,402
2004	R	−36.1%	20,254	43,252	63,755
2000	D	+34.1%	39,453	19,281	59,179
1996	R	−24.1%	19,458	33,149	56,739
1992	R	−25.4%	19,121	34,714	61,435
1988	R	−40.8%	14,582	34,775	49,451
1984	R	−46.9%	14,142	39,167	53,392
1980	R	−13.5%	19,016	25,139	45,204
1976	D	+7.4%	22,878	19,727	42,764
1972	R	−52.8%	8,462	27,956	36,901
1968	R	−20.2%	10,100	18,741	42,814
1964	D	+8.2%	20,197	17,129	37,326
1960	R	−2.8%	20,104	21,250	41,354
1956	R	−7.4%	15,671	18,159	33,830
1952	R	−3.7%	17,781	19,157	36,938
1948	D	+14.7%	8,966	6,180	18,968
1944	D	+39.1%	13,744	6,023	19,767
1940	D	+60.2%	17,262	4,294	21,556
1936	D	+57.3%	17,555	4,772	22,327
1932	D	+42.4%	12,890	5,164	18,211
1928	R	−18.3%	6,702	9,702	16,404
1924	D	+29.3%	6,554	3,566	10,202
1920	D	+10.4%	7,148	5,803	12,951
1916	D	+8.6%	3,019	2,542	5,572
1912	D	+53.2%	2,333	244	3,924
1908	D	+9.7%	2,398	1,970	4,408
1904	D	+36.9%	1,958	896	2,879
1900	D	+8.4%	1,931	1,626	3,615
1896	D	+11.9%	2,069	1,625	3,727
1892	D	+13.8%	1,616	1,173	3,207
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%

Polish

0.7%

African American

14.0%

Multiple ancestry combinations reported; no single grouping above 1%.

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.

Age distribution by sex

Median age: 39.1 in this county, 39.1 nationally

Male

Age

Female

0.6%

85+

1.1%

2.0%

75–84

3.0%

4.6%

65–74

5.4%

6.5%

55–64

6.8%

6.5%

45–54

7.0%

6.2%

35–44

6.6%

6.7%

25–34

7.0%

4.1%

18–24

3.8%

8.5%

5–17

8.2%

3.0%

2.8%

Source · American Community Survey 5-year estimates, 2024 release.

Median household income

2024 inflation-adjusted dollars

$67,478

Gaston County ranks near the middle of US counties.

Gaston County$67,478

North Carolina$72,388

United States$80,734

Source · American Community Survey 5-year estimates, 2024 release.

Poverty rate

All persons below federal poverty line

13.5%

Children face moderate poverty.

Children under 1818.0%

Working age (18–64)100.0%

Seniors (65+)18.0%

Source · American Community Survey 5-year estimates, 2024 release.

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

23.3%

Other Christian

12.2%

Catholic & Orthodox

6.8%

Methodist

5.9%

Pentecostal & Holiness

3.7%

Mainline Protestant

3.6%

Non-Christian

1.4%

Source · 2020 US Religion Census. Remaining 43.1% of residents not counted as adherents by any reporting body.

Gaston County's economy traces back to the textile mill era, and its working-class base has produced some of the widest Republican presidential margins in the Charlotte metro, running roughly 25 points in 2024.

The shift began with civil rights. 2004 marked the realignment in Gaston County, by a thirty-six points margin. The Republican margin reached its widest at fifty-three points in 1972. The 2024 margin was twenty-five points.

The political shift has tracked, in Gaston County, the political shift of the South more broadly. A 68% non-Hispanic-white share, a median household income of $67,478, and a 14% poverty rate describe the demographic context. The county's voting pattern over the last decade is most similar to that of Union County and Henderson County.

Most similar counties

Gaston County voted Democratic for a century. The shift began with civil rights.