akashic
1876–2024
Dorchester County, Maryland
Dorchester County·Maryland

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

A Chesapeake waterman county that leans reliably Republican by double digits

18762024·38 elections
Dorchester County, Maryland · Eli Pousson · Wikimedia Commons
Latest
R+15
in 2024
Archetype
Republican loyalist
since the recent cycles
Population
32,754
2024 ACS
Most similar
Polk County
FL · similarity 0.98
44 precincts · 16,772 votes cast
Trump · R+15
Margin
Turnout
Harris +50
Trump +50
Real precinct boundaries. Hover for vote totals.
YearWonMarginDemocraticRepublicanTotal
2024R
−14.5%
6,9549,39016,772
2020R
−11.9%
6,8578,76415,977
2016R
−14.4%
6,2458,41315,104
2012R
−4.7%
7,2577,97615,444
2008R
−8.2%
6,9128,16815,274
2004R
−17.9%
5,4117,80113,339
2000R
−5.4%
5,2325,84711,392
1996D
+2.7%
4,6134,33710,054
1992R
−9.1%
3,9334,93410,957
1988R
−26.0%
3,7096,34310,140
1984R
−35.5%
3,1606,6999,981
1980R
−2.4%
4,9085,16010,550
1976R
−2.6%
4,5284,7689,296
1972R
−51.6%
2,1366,8599,149
1968R
−14.5%
2,7144,18310,114
1964R
−7.7%
4,5645,3279,891
1960D
+3.5%
4,9644,6269,590
1956R
−21.8%
3,7335,8099,542
1952R
−6.7%
4,8235,52410,499
1948D
+9.1%
4,5073,7518,351
1944D
+5.8%
4,7644,2419,005
1940D
+21.1%
6,0883,95310,128
1936D
+17.2%
5,2933,7359,039
1932D
+13.4%
4,5473,4668,052
1928R
−48.7%
2,1806,3338,535
1924R
−4.7%
3,0473,3566,612
1920R
−3.3%
3,9504,2188,210
1916D
+5.3%
2,7502,4685,320
1912D
+58.1%
5,4852,3875,329
1908D
+100.0%
4,8692,76989
1904D
+100.0%
6,2422,680102
1900R
−100.0%
2,7333,36615
1896R
−7.0%
2,6383,0485,835
1892R
−7.6%
2,0152,3654,597
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%
Polish
0.8%
African American
19.8%
Multiple ancestry combinations reported; no single grouping above 1%.
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
Methodist
15.4%
Other Christian
8.2%
Catholic & Orthodox
5.4%
Mainline Protestant
2.7%
Baptist
2.5%
Pentecostal & Holiness
1.3%
Non-Christian
0.1%
Source · 2020 US Religion Census. Remaining 64.4% of residents not counted as adherents by any reporting body.

Dorchester's economy has long centered on the Bay's crabbing and farming industries, and its rural, majority-white electorate has shifted steadily rightward over the past two decades, delivering R+14.5 in 2024.

The Republican margin in Dorchester County reached its widest at 100 points in 1900. The margin in 2024 was fifteen points, in line with the county's deep historical pattern.

Dorchester County's loyalty is rooted in its place. Median household income of $61,839, a 62% non-Hispanic-white share, and a population of 32,754 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 Polk County and Cape May County.