akashic
1876–2024
Mercer County, Illinois
Mercer County·Illinois

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

A rural Mississippi River county that has shifted sharply rightward over two decades

18762024·38 elections
Mercer County, Illinois · Boscophotos · Wikimedia Commons
Latest
R+27
in 2024
Archetype
Republican loyalist
since the recent cycles
Population
15,495
2024 ACS
Most similar
Adams County
WI · similarity 0.99
24 precincts · 8,346 votes cast
Trump · R+27
Margin
Turnout
Harris +50
Trump +50
Real precinct boundaries. Hover for vote totals.
YearWonMarginDemocraticRepublicanTotal
2024R
−27.1%
2,9505,2158,346
2020R
−24.0%
3,2805,4188,914
2016R
−20.4%
3,0714,8078,525
2012D
+7.4%
4,5073,8768,568
2008D
+11.9%
4,8873,8338,848
2004D
+1.2%
4,5124,4058,974
2000D
+8.6%
4,4003,6888,318
1996D
+20.1%
4,2782,6887,897
1992D
+11.8%
3,9902,9838,540
1988D
+6.6%
4,2043,6837,929
1984R
−10.4%
3,9824,9078,927
1980R
−19.5%
3,3615,1449,156
1976R
−8.1%
4,0904,8168,982
1972R
−22.1%
3,4775,4528,940
1968R
−19.8%
3,1434,8448,600
1964D
+2.2%
4,4104,2208,630
1960R
−23.2%
3,4765,5829,061
1956R
−31.7%
2,9695,7328,708
1952R
−41.1%
2,6796,4169,097
1948R
−25.5%
3,1175,2678,420
1944R
−26.6%
3,2775,6678,978
1940R
−24.6%
3,8306,33610,204
1936R
−2.8%
4,7515,0289,884
1932R
−1.4%
4,3094,4368,835
1928R
−41.9%
2,3165,6998,073
1924R
−47.6%
1,6995,6188,225
1920R
−53.4%
1,5745,5317,416
1916R
−20.9%
3,4305,3089,006
1912D
+12.9%
1,6029594,996
1908R
−21.9%
1,7772,8714,992
1904R
−36.3%
1,3863,2305,075
1900R
−21.5%
2,1103,3045,563
1896R
−14.3%
2,3293,1205,524
1892R
−10.6%
1,9752,4704,687
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
14.8%
Catholic & Orthodox
9.6%
Methodist
7.5%
Other Christian
2.9%
Baptist
1.3%
Pentecostal & Holiness
0.5%
Source · 2020 US Religion Census. Remaining 63.4% of residents not counted as adherents by any reporting body.

Mercer County's 2024 presidential margin of R+27.1 reflects a broader rural realignment across western Illinois, where small agricultural communities have moved decisively away from their mid-20th-century Democratic leanings.

The Republican margin in Mercer County reached its widest at fifty-three points in 1920. The margin in 2024 was twenty-seven points, in line with the county's deep historical pattern.

Mercer County's loyalty is rooted in its place. Median household income of $74,182, a 94% non-Hispanic-white share, and a population of 15,495 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 Adams County and Henderson County.