akashic
1876–2024
Berkeley County, South Carolina
Berkeley County·South Carolina

Berkeley County voted Democratic for a century. The shift began with civil rights.

Fast-growing Charleston exurb anchored by the naval corridor

18762024·38 elections
Berkeley County, South Carolina · Upstateherd · Wikimedia Commons
Latest
R+16
in 2024
Archetype
Old Confederacy
since the recent cycles
Population
246,802
2024 ACS
Most similar
Escambia County
FL · similarity 0.99
94 precincts · 112,834 votes cast
Trump · R+16
Margin
Turnout
Harris +50
Trump +50
Real precinct boundaries. Hover for vote totals.
YearWonMarginDemocraticRepublicanTotal
2024R
−16.3%
46,41664,777112,834
2020R
−11.7%
45,22357,397104,458
2016R
−17.5%
30,70544,58779,517
2012R
−14.6%
28,54238,47568,195
2008R
−13.0%
27,75536,20564,781
2004R
−22.6%
20,14232,10452,937
2000R
−16.4%
17,70724,79643,316
1996R
−13.0%
13,35817,69133,242
1992R
−15.5%
12,53318,04835,479
1988R
−28.4%
9,31216,77926,297
1984R
−39.1%
7,38016,97224,511
1980R
−12.9%
9,85012,83023,064
1976D
+16.4%
9,7416,98116,781
1972R
−34.6%
4,4979,34514,019
1968D
+7.7%
5,0894,02113,918
1964R
−26.6%
3,5376,1009,637
1960D
+2.4%
2,5422,4224,964
1956R
−4.1%
9021,0553,736
1952R
−18.5%
1,7082,4824,190
1948D
+13.8%
323581,919
1944D
+68.3%
52132716
1940D
+68.7%
49091581
1936D
+98.9%
6900698
1932D
+97.7%
9410963
1928D
+73.6%
27642318
1924D
+90.1%
50126527
1920D
+91.6%
54824572
1916D
+97.4%
4576463
1912D
+94.7%
3230341
1908D
+44.3%
609235844
1904D
+70.5%
665115780
1900D
+61.6%
472112584
1896D
+46.8%
513183705
1892R
−6.0%
1,0371,1712,239
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
0.5%
African American
18.4%
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
Catholic & Orthodox
10.8%
Other Christian
9.9%
Baptist
4.9%
Methodist
4.8%
Pentecostal & Holiness
4.2%
Mainline Protestant
1.1%
Non-Christian
0.2%
Source · 2020 US Religion Census. Remaining 64.1% of residents not counted as adherents by any reporting body.

Berkeley County's population has roughly doubled since 2000, driven by spillover growth from the Charleston metro and the economic gravity of Joint Base Charleston — a combination that has kept its presidential margins consistently Republican despite rapid demographic change.

The shift began with civil rights. 1980 marked the realignment in Berkeley County, by a thirteen points margin. The Republican margin reached its widest at thirty-nine points in 1984. The 2024 margin was sixteen points.

The political shift has tracked, in Berkeley County, the political shift of the South more broadly. A 62% non-Hispanic-white share, a median household income of $84,358, and a 10% poverty rate describe the demographic context. The county's voting pattern over the last decade is most similar to that of Escambia County and Greene County.