† 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
GroupBurienWashingtonUnited States
German10.8%14.5%12.5%
English9.9%12.1%9.5%
Irish7.8%9.8%9.4%
Italian3.1%3.1%4.8%
Norwegian3.1%4.0%—
American2.3%3.8%5.3%
Swedish2.2%1.8%—
Scottish2.1%2.6%1.3%
Mexican15.6%10.8%11.3%
Salvadoran1.1%0.4%0.7%
Puerto Rican0.9%0.5%1.8%
Spaniard0.9%0.4%—
Guatemalan0.7%0.2%0.5%
Honduran0.7%—0.3%
Colombian0.7%0.2%0.4%
Spanish0.7%0.3%—
Chinese4.3%2.2%1.3%
Asian Indian3.8%2.0%1.4%
Filipino1.7%1.5%0.9%
Vietnamese1.7%1.1%0.6%
Korean1.2%0.9%0.4%
Japanese0.7%0.4%0.2%
Taiwanese0.3%——
Cambodian0.2%0.3%—
African American†4.0%2.3%9.9%
Ethiopian1.1%0.3%—
African0.7%0.4%0.5%
Somali0.7%0.2%—
Nigerian0.2%—0.2%
Kenyan0.2%——
Samoan3.0%0.2%—
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
Burien
Washington
United States
Median age
40.4
38.5
39.1
Age 18–24
8.2%
8.5%
9.2%
Age 65 and older
16.0%
16.7%
17.2%
Household economy
Measure
Burien
Washington
United States
Median household income
$91,318
$98,141
$84,427
Poverty rate
12.9%
9.9%
12.5%
Bachelor's degree or higher (25+)
33.2%
39.3%
35.6%
Languages at home
Measure
Burien
Washington
United States
Speaks a non-English language at home
34.0%
21.5%
22.3%
Spanish
17.3%
9.1%
13.6%
Vietnamese
6.3%
1.0%
0.5%
Other Asian & Pacific Island
2.5%
2.1%
1.1%
Other languages
2.0%
1.1%
0.8%
Religious landscape
Measure
Burien
Washington
United States
Catholic
—
10.7%
18.6%
Evangelical Protestant
—
20.5%
16.5%
Unclaimed / not counted
—
58.8%
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.
Burien, Washington
presidential history
Presidential margin, 2004–2024
Democratic minus Republican, by election
Presidential margin over time
Year
Margin (D minus R)
2004
+26.2%
2008
+37.4%
2012
+39.1%
2016
+44.3%
2020
+46.6%
2024
+45.9%
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
71.0%Harris15,869
25.1%Trump5,609
3.9%
D+45.9
R+0.7
D+47.4
22,360
D
72.0%Biden17,788
25.4%Trump6,267
2.7%
D+46.6
D+2.3
D+42.2
24,719
D
69.0%Clinton13,593
24.7%Trump4,870
6.3%
D+44.3
D+5.1
D+42.2
19,705
D
68.1%Obama13,187
29.0%Romney5,610
2.9%
D+39.1
D+1.7
D+35.3
19,361
D
67.7%Obama12,667
30.3%McCain5,667
2.0%
D+37.4
D+11.2
D+30.1
18,710
D
62.1%Kerry11,338
36.0%Bush6,562
1.9%
D+26.2
—
D+28.6
18,244
Burien sits just south of Seattle-Tacoma International Airport, with a renter share above the state median and a diverse population that has made housing and public-safety spending recurring fault lines in city elections.
Across the recorded series it reached a Democratic high of 46.6 points in 2020. Between 2020 and 2024 the city moved 0.7 points toward the Republican candidate; the 2024 margin was 45.9 points.
A population of 51,513, a 48% non-Hispanic-white share, and a median household income of $91,318 describe the city. The city's voting pattern over the last decade is most similar to that of Des Moines and Shoreline.
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, Burien, Washington voted Democratic by 45.9 points (D+45.9), carried by the Democratic candidate. Out of 22,360 votes cast, 15,869 went Democratic and 5,609 went Republican.
How many people live in Burien, Washington?
Burien, Washington has a population of 51,513 according to the 2024 American Community Survey 5-year estimates from the US Census Bureau.
What is the median household income in Burien, Washington?
Median household income in Burien, Washington is $91,318 — above the national median of $80,734. The Washington state median is $98,141.
What is the political history of Burien, Washington?
Akashic tracks 6 presidential elections in Burien, Washington from 2004 to 2024. Of those, 6 went Democratic and 0 went Republican.
