akashic
1876–2024
Polk County, Wisconsin
Polk County·Wisconsin

Polk County has voted Republican for as long as anyone can remember.

A rural St. Croix River county where Republican margins have widened each cycle

18762024·38 elections
Polk County, Wisconsin · Appraiser · Wikimedia Commons
Latest
R+31
in 2024
Archetype
Republican loyalist
since the recent cycles
Population
45,555
2024 ACS
Most similar
Burnett County
WI · similarity 0.99
36 precincts · 28,222 votes cast
Trump · R+31
Margin
Turnout
Harris +50
Trump +50
Real precinct boundaries. Hover for vote totals.
YearWonMarginDemocraticRepublicanTotal
2024R
−30.9%
9,56718,29628,222
2020R
−27.5%
9,37016,61126,371
2016R
−27.5%
7,56513,81022,745
2012R
−9.0%
10,07312,09422,573
2008R
−1.8%
10,87611,28222,643
2004R
−3.9%
11,17312,09523,503
2000R
−3.0%
8,9619,55719,762
1996D
+18.0%
8,3345,38716,413
1992D
+12.7%
7,7465,44618,071
1988D
+13.2%
8,9816,86615,975
1984R
−0.4%
8,0348,10616,269
1980D
+2.5%
7,6077,20716,296
1976D
+15.6%
8,4856,15914,924
1972R
−6.6%
5,7386,56712,533
1968R
−3.5%
5,1795,58311,433
1964D
+31.5%
7,2153,75411,003
1960R
−10.7%
5,1486,38711,565
1956R
−8.3%
4,9855,89410,906
1952R
−23.9%
4,2746,96611,282
1948D
+14.2%
5,3303,9749,572
1944R
−8.4%
4,4895,3299,945
1940R
−9.4%
4,9796,03111,248
1936D
+19.3%
5,6183,59610,499
1932D
+21.6%
5,4213,4259,232
1928R
−51.4%
2,1776,9059,190
1924R
−33.3%
3172,7937,434
1920R
−67.9%
7524,7965,960
1916R
−9.0%
1,7132,0804,062
1912R
−0.6%
8308483,125
1908R
−50.9%
8162,7883,871
1904R
−77.1%
2962,9853,489
1900R
−57.8%
6942,7353,530
1896R
−51.3%
8912,8613,837
1892R
−36.4%
5851,4772,448
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%
Sample size too small to break out by ancestry reliably.
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
Mainline Protestant
22.9%
Other Christian
6.2%
Catholic & Orthodox
5.8%
Methodist
1.3%
Pentecostal & Holiness
0.5%
Baptist
0.3%
Non-Christian
0.2%
Source · 2020 US Religion Census. Remaining 62.8% of residents not counted as adherents by any reporting body.

Polk County's largely rural, non-college electorate has shifted steadily rightward over the past decade, producing a 30-point Republican presidential margin in 2024 despite sitting on the Minnesota border in a competitive swing state.

The Republican margin in Polk County reached its widest at seventy-seven points in 1904. The margin in 2024 was thirty-one points, in line with the county's deep historical pattern.

Polk County's loyalty is rooted in its place. Median household income of $77,219, a 94% non-Hispanic-white share, and a population of 45,555 together describe a community whose political habits are deeply settled. The county's voting pattern over the last decade is most similar to that of Burnett County and Delta County.