† Citizen voting-age population estimated for prior cycles; 2004 predates the ACS and is extrapolated. Source: ACS 5-year, table B05003.
——
D+60R+60
20042024
Boundary by 2024 margin · Precinct returns · VEST · MIT Election Lab
People and households
Who lives here
Exact values for this place, its state, and the United States.
Race · ethnicity · ancestry
Communities and origins
GroupBessemerAlabamaUnited States
African American†63.3%24.6%9.9%
African2.1%0.6%0.5%
Nigerian0.3%—0.2%
Jamaican0.3%—0.4%
American4.9%12.8%5.3%
English4.7%12.1%9.5%
Irish2.5%8.0%9.4%
German2.1%6.4%12.5%
Scottish1.0%2.0%1.3%
Italian0.8%1.7%4.8%
Scotch-Irish0.5%1.2%—
French0.5%1.1%1.6%
Mexican6.2%3.2%11.3%
Guatemalan0.8%0.5%0.5%
Puerto Rican0.6%0.5%1.8%
Honduran0.4%—0.3%
Salvadoran0.4%—0.7%
Colombian0.4%—0.4%
Hispanic or Latino counts residents of any race; the race groups count only their non-Hispanic residents, so the groups are mutually exclusive and sum to 100%. Expand a row to see ancestries reported within that group.
Age and life stage
Measure
Bessemer
Alabama
United States
Median age
43.3
39.4
39.1
Age 18–24
8.4%
9.4%
9.2%
Age 65 and older
22.0%
17.7%
17.2%
Household economy
Measure
Bessemer
Alabama
United States
Median household income
$39,613
$63,999
$84,427
Poverty rate
28.0%
15.6%
12.5%
Bachelor's degree or higher (25+)
15.6%
28.5%
35.6%
Languages at home
Measure
Bessemer
Alabama
United States
Speaks a non-English language at home
9.9%
6.1%
22.3%
Spanish
9.3%
3.9%
13.6%
Religious landscape
Measure
Bessemer
Alabama
United States
Catholic
—
5.0%
18.6%
Evangelical Protestant
—
42.2%
16.5%
Unclaimed / not counted
—
36.6%
51.5%
American Community Survey 2024 5-year (CVAP, income, age, poverty, education, language, race, ancestry) · presidential returns from MIT Election Lab through 2024 · 2020 U.S. Religion Census (ASARB) — congregational adherents; unclaimed is the residual not counted by congregations.
Bessemer, Alabama
presidential history
Presidential margin, 2004–2024
Democratic minus Republican, by election
Presidential margin over time
Year
Margin (D minus R)
2004
+47.4%
2008
+57.0%
2012
+60.4%
2016
+59.4%
2020
+61.8%
2024
+58.5%
DemocraticRepublican
6 presidential elections
Third column names the leading third-party or independent finisher. Source · MIT Election Lab · ICPSR · VEST (precinct-level 2024). Swing · margin change from the prior cycle. vs U.S. · margin relative to the national result that year. Third-party votes in 2012 are allocated from certified county totals by this place's share of each county's two-party vote — that cycle's precinct source records two-party splits. † 2004 sub-county results are estimated: the source's block-level detail for this cycle was unreliable — either county/municipality-level consolidated reporting (COVID-era) or a precinct-to-block allocation that misplaced votes — so the figures are allocated from the constituent county totals in proportion to the place and scaled to certified totals.
Year
Won
Democratic
Republican
Other
Margin
Swing
vs U.S.
Total
D
78.8%Harris8,007
20.3%Trump2,064
0.9%
D+58.5
R+3.3
D+60.0
10,158
D
80.5%Biden9,018
18.8%Trump2,100
0.7%
D+61.8
D+2.4
D+57.3
11,200
D
79.0%Clinton8,919
19.6%Trump2,212
1.5%
D+59.4
R+1.0
D+57.3
11,295
D
79.8%Obama9,804
19.4%Romney2,387
0.8%
D+60.4
D+3.3
D+56.5
12,286
D
78.0%Obama10,065
20.9%McCain2,704
1.1%
D+57.0
D+9.6
D+49.8
12,909
D
73.3%Kerry7,995
25.9%Bush2,821
0.9%
D+47.4
—
D+49.9
10,912
Bessemer's workforce history in steel and manufacturing shaped a political culture that has tracked Democratic margins well above the national average for decades, anchored by a majority-Black electorate concentrated in aging mill-era neighborhoods.
Across the recorded series it reached a Democratic high of 61.8 points in 2020. Between 2020 and 2024 the city moved 3.3 points toward the Republican candidate; the 2024 margin was 58.5 points.
A population of 25,400, a 19% non-Hispanic-white share, and a median household income of $39,613 describe the city. The city's voting pattern over the last decade is most similar to that of Trotwood and East Cleveland.
Akashic
Political twins — cities
The cities 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.
In 2024, Bessemer, Alabama voted Democratic by 58.5 points (D+58.5), carried by the Democratic candidate. Out of 10,158 votes cast, 8,007 went Democratic and 2,064 went Republican.
How many people live in Bessemer, Alabama?
Bessemer, Alabama has a population of 25,400 according to the 2024 American Community Survey 5-year estimates from the US Census Bureau.
What is the median household income in Bessemer, Alabama?
Median household income in Bessemer, Alabama is $39,613 — below the national median of $80,734. The Alabama state median is $63,999.
What is the political history of Bessemer, Alabama?
Akashic tracks 6 presidential elections in Bessemer, Alabama from 2004 to 2024. Of those, 6 went Democratic and 0 went Republican.
