† 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
GroupPontiacIllinoisUnited States
German28.8%16.1%12.5%
Irish13.4%10.6%9.4%
English9.5%6.9%9.5%
American5.0%3.3%5.3%
Italian4.4%5.4%4.8%
Polish2.8%6.0%2.2%
French1.9%0.7%1.6%
Dutch1.1%——
African American†9.0%12.1%9.9%
Mexican3.3%14.4%11.3%
Puerto Rican0.5%1.7%1.8%
Cuban0.2%0.2%0.7%
Salvadoran0.2%—0.7%
Spaniard0.2%——
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
Pontiac
Illinois
United States
Median age
42.8
39.1
39.1
Age 18–24
8.3%
9.1%
9.2%
Age 65 and older
21.3%
16.9%
17.2%
Household economy
Measure
Pontiac
Illinois
United States
Median household income
$61,279
$83,390
$84,427
Poverty rate
13.1%
11.8%
12.5%
Bachelor's degree or higher (25+)
16.2%
37.9%
35.6%
Languages at home
Measure
Pontiac
Illinois
United States
Speaks a non-English language at home
4.1%
24.1%
22.3%
Spanish
2.7%
14.0%
13.6%
Other Indo-European
1.0%
2.6%
2.0%
Religious landscape
Measure
Pontiac
Illinois
United States
Catholic
—
24.2%
18.6%
Evangelical Protestant
—
11.7%
16.5%
Unclaimed / not counted
—
49.2%
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.
Pontiac, Illinois
presidential history
Presidential margin, 2004–2024
Democratic minus Republican, by election
Presidential margin over time
Year
Margin (D minus R)
2004
−22.1%
2008
−9.8%
2012
−22.6%
2016
−29.0%
2020
−27.4%
2024
−29.4%
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
R
34.2%Harris1,521
63.6%Trump2,828
2.3%
R+29.4
R+2.0
R+27.9
4,450
R
34.9%Biden1,581
62.3%Trump2,820
2.8%
R+27.4
D+1.7
R+31.8
4,526
R
31.6%Clinton1,254
60.6%Trump2,406
7.8%
R+29.0
R+6.4
R+31.1
3,968
R
37.7%Obama1,490
60.3%Romney2,385
2.0%
R+22.6
R+12.8
R+26.5
3,955
R
44.0%Obama1,840
53.8%McCain2,252
2.2%
R+9.8
D+12.2
R+17.1
4,186
R
38.9%Kerry1,625
60.9%Bush2,547
0.2%
R+22.1
—
R+19.6
4,179
Pontiac sits at the junction of I-55 and historic Route 66, serving as the commercial and administrative hub for a county that has shifted toward Republican margins by double digits in recent presidential cycles.
Across the recorded series it reached a Republican high of 29.4 points in 2024. Between 2020 and 2024 the city moved 2.0 points toward the Republican candidate; the 2024 margin was 29.4 points.
A population of 11,294, a 82% non-Hispanic-white share, and a median household income of $61,279 describe the city. The city's voting pattern over the last decade is most similar to that of Lincoln and Olney.
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, Pontiac, Illinois voted Republican by 29.4 points (R+29.4), carried by the Republican candidate. Out of 4,450 votes cast, 1,521 went Democratic and 2,828 went Republican.
How many people live in Pontiac, Illinois?
Pontiac, Illinois has a population of 11,294 according to the 2024 American Community Survey 5-year estimates from the US Census Bureau.
What is the median household income in Pontiac, Illinois?
Median household income in Pontiac, Illinois is $61,279 — below the national median of $80,734. The Illinois state median is $83,390.
What is the political history of Pontiac, Illinois?
Akashic tracks 6 presidential elections in Pontiac, Illinois from 2004 to 2024. Of those, 0 went Democratic and 6 went Republican.
