Iowa 1st Congressional District, Iowa: Bellwether district. In 2024, voted R+8%. Republican peak: R+39 in 1920.
Key facts
- 2024 presidential margin
- R+8MIT Election Lab
- Political archetype
- BellwetherAkashic typology
- Population
- 800,6862024 5-year
- Median household income
- $74,3492024 5-year
- White (non-Hispanic)
- 85.0%2024 5-year
- Black
- 4.1%2024 5-year
- Hispanic / Latino
- 6.0%2024 5-year
- Peak Democratic margin
- D+27 in 1964MIT Election Lab
- Peak Republican margin
- R+39 in 1920MIT Election Lab
R
MILLER-MEEKS, Mariannette
−1 liberal+1 conservative
Predecessors: HINSON, Ashley (2021–2023), FINKENAUER, Abby (2019–2021), BLUM, Rod (2017–2019), BLUM, Rod (2015–2017)
Source · Voteview / Lewis, Poole, Rosenthal et al. (CC-BY).
Constituent county margins for Congressional District 1, IAOne cell per constituent county, colored by 2024 presidential margin from deep red (Republican) through neutral to deep blue (Democratic), ordered bluest first.
R+60D+60
One cell per constituent county. Ordered by 2024 D-vs-R margin (bluest first). Hover for county-level numbers.
38 presidential elections
| Year | Won | Margin | Democratic | Republican | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| R | 190,491 | 226,292 | 424,659 | ||
| R | 203,389 | 215,726 | 428,030 | ||
| R | 177,840 | 189,869 | 400,728 | ||
| D | 225,987 | 173,019 | 406,774 | ||
| D | 224,744 | 162,547 | 393,911 | ||
| D | 200,115 | 177,747 | 381,540 | ||
| D | 169,185 | 149,046 | 331,341 | ||
| D | 159,803 | 114,872 | 306,533 | ||
| D | 156,996 | 119,996 | 341,061 | ||
| D | 169,995 | 132,027 | 304,769 | ||
| R | 152,192 | 168,416 | 323,245 | ||
| R | 129,715 | 152,951 | 316,925 | ||
| D | 149,588 | 148,682 | 305,173 | ||
| R | 121,769 | 161,922 | 289,378 | ||
| R | 115,602 | 138,079 | 270,793 | ||
| D | 168,256 | 96,564 | 265,291 | ||
| R | 119,960 | 160,232 | 280,450 | ||
| R | 107,031 | 162,696 | 270,658 | ||
| R | 100,590 | 176,197 | 279,007 | ||
| R | 108,759 | 111,429 | 224,938 | ||
| R | 107,040 | 125,374 | 234,076 | ||
| R | 121,353 | 142,699 | 265,151 | ||
| D | 131,119 | 109,728 | 248,538 | ||
| D | 131,750 | 95,492 | 233,144 | ||
| R | 86,026 | 142,665 | 230,009 | ||
| R | 45,133 | 124,233 | 221,242 | ||
| R | 56,120 | 136,775 | 206,747 | ||
| R | 53,127 | 64,740 | 122,072 | ||
| D | 48,995 | 29,356 | 116,988 | ||
| R | 54,950 | 62,580 | 122,254 | ||
| R | 45,744 | 68,410 | 121,107 | ||
| R | 57,299 | 68,926 | 129,663 | ||
| R | 57,835 | 68,215 | 128,793 | ||
| D | 57,335 | 52,011 | 114,529 | ||
| — | — | — | — | ||
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Congressional elections · 16 Senate races
U.S. Senate
| Year | Won | D % | R % | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2022 | R | 43.3% | 55.4% | 1,230,416 |
| 2020 | R | 44.4% | 50.9% | 1,700,130 |
| 2016 | R | 35.7% | 60.1% | 1,541,036 |
| 2014 | R | 43.8% | 52.1% | 1,129,700 |
| 2010 | R | 33.3% | 64.4% | 1,116,063 |
| 2008 | D | 62.7% | 37.3% | 1,502,918 |
| 2004 | R | 27.9% | 70.2% | 1,479,228 |
| 2002 | D | 54.2% | 43.8% | 1,023,075 |
| 1998 | R | 30.5% | 68.4% | 947,907 |
| 1996 | D | 51.8% | 46.7% | 1,224,054 |
| 1992 | R | 27.2% | 69.6% | 1,292,494 |
| 1990 | D | 54.5% | 45.4% | 983,933 |
| 1986 | R | 33.6% | 66.0% | 891,762 |
| 1984 | D | 55.5% | 43.7% | 1,292,700 |
| 1980 | R | 45.5% | 53.5% | 1,276,986 |
| 1978 | R | 47.9% | 51.1% | 824,576 |
Demographics
Race, ethnicity, and ancestry
Click any group to see the ancestries typically reported within it.
German
29.7%
Irish
14.0%
English
11.0%
American
4.6%
Italian
2.0%
Scottish
1.7%
Polish
1.2%
Source · American Community Survey 5-year estimates, 2024 release. Hispanic/Latino is an ethnicity that overlaps the race categories, so these shares can total more than 100%. Ancestry is a self-reported, multiple-response item; ancestry percentages do not sum to the parent race percentage.
Age distribution by sex
Median age: 39.0 in this county, 39.1 nationally
Male
Age
Female
85+
75–84
65–74
55–64
45–54
35–44
25–34
18–24
5–17
<5
Source · American Community Survey 5-year estimates, 2024 release.
Median household income
2024 inflation-adjusted dollars
$74,349
Congressional District 1 ranks near the middle of US counties.
Congressional District 1$74,349
Iowa$75,059
United States$80,734
Source · American Community Survey 5-year estimates, 2024 release.
Poverty rate
All persons below federal poverty line
12.1%
Child poverty is below the national average.
Children under 1812.6%
Working age (18–64)12.1%
Seniors (65+)8.9%
Source · American Community Survey 5-year estimates, 2024 release.
Language at home
Population aged 5 and older
92.5%
speak English only
Spanish3.2%
Other Indo-European1.8%
Asian & Pacific Islander1.6%
Other languages1.0%
Source · ACS 5-year estimates, 2024.
Religious adherents
Adherents per capita by tradition
Source · 2020 US Religion Census. Remaining 62.1% of residents not counted as adherents by any reporting body.
Iowa's 1st district stretches from the Cedar Rapids metro into rural eastern counties, a mix that once made it a genuine swing seat but has shifted steadily toward Republican margins over the past three election cycles.
The Democratic margin in Iowa 1st Congressional District has rarely exceeded twenty-seven points in modern history; the Republican margin has rarely exceeded thirty-nine points. 2024 delivered the district to the Republican candidate by eight points.
Its demographics resemble the country more than they resemble most districts. A 85% non-Hispanic-white share, a 12% poverty rate, and a median household income of $74,349 — all within the broad national range.
Compare two places, side by side
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Cite this page
All citations released under CC BY 4.0. Attribution: Akashic Intelligence.
Congressional District 1, Iowa. Akashic. https://akashic.app/cd/1901/. Accessed May 20, 2026. License: CC BY 4.0.
License: CC BY 4.0
Frequently asked questions
How did Congressional District 1, Iowa vote in 2024?
In 2024, Congressional District 1, Iowa voted Republican by 8.4 points (R+8), carried by the Republican candidate. Out of 424,659 votes cast, 190,491 went Democratic and 226,292 went Republican.
What is Congressional District 1, Iowa's political archetype?
Akashic classifies Congressional District 1, Iowa as a "Bellwether" district based on its long-arc presidential voting pattern. Across 38 elections in the dataset, the district has voted Democratic 13 times, Republican 21 times, and other 0 times.
When did Congressional District 1, Iowa last vote Democratic?
The most recent presidential election in which Congressional District 1, Iowa voted Democratic was 2012.
How many people live in Congressional District 1, Iowa?
Congressional District 1, Iowa has a population of 800,686 according to the 2024 American Community Survey 5-year estimates from the US Census Bureau.
What is the median household income in Congressional District 1, Iowa?
Median household income in Congressional District 1, Iowa is $74,349 — below the national median of $80,734. The Iowa state median is $75,059.
What is the political history of Congressional District 1, Iowa?
Akashic tracks 38 presidential elections in Congressional District 1, Iowa from 1876 to 2024. Of those, 13 went Democratic and 21 went Republican. The district's archetype — "Bellwether" — captures the overall trajectory of that voting record.