Smith County, Tennessee: Realigner county. In 2024, voted R+65%. Republican peak: R+65 in 2024.
Key facts
- 2024 presidential margin
- R+65MIT Election Lab
- Political archetype
- RealignerAkashic typology
- Population
- 20,3892024 5-year
- Median household income
- $66,2932024 5-year
- White (non-Hispanic)
- 90.3%2024 5-year
- Black
- 1.9%2024 5-year
- Hispanic / Latino
- 3.1%2024 5-year
- Peak Democratic margin
- D+55 in 1932MIT Election Lab
- Peak Republican margin
- R+65 in 2024MIT Election Lab
- Most similar
- Overton County, TN · similarity 0.99
2024 results by precinct
2024 precinct map of Smith CountyPrecinct-level 2024 presidential results for Smith County, with each precinct boundary colored by Democratic-vs-Republican margin.
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Margin—
Turnout—
Harris +50Trump +50
Real precinct boundaries. Hover for vote totals.
38 presidential elections
| Year | Won | Margin | Democratic | Republican | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| R | 1,595 | 7,655 | 9,366 | ||
| R | 1,802 | 7,136 | 9,051 | ||
| R | 1,689 | 5,494 | 7,436 | ||
| R | 2,470 | 4,495 | 7,089 | ||
| R | 2,992 | 4,563 | 7,741 | ||
| D | 4,044 | 3,739 | 7,828 | ||
| D | 4,884 | 2,384 | 7,348 | ||
| D | 3,812 | 1,857 | 6,057 | ||
| D | 5,061 | 1,482 | 7,044 | ||
| D | 2,522 | 2,138 | 4,686 | ||
| D | 3,258 | 2,393 | 5,691 | ||
| D | 3,674 | 1,755 | 5,531 | ||
| D | 3,753 | 1,332 | 5,136 | ||
| R | 1,260 | 1,812 | 3,188 | ||
| O | 1,443 | 1,089 | 4,363 | ||
| D | 2,934 | 1,084 | 4,018 | ||
| D | 2,411 | 1,601 | 4,060 | ||
| D | 2,949 | 1,267 | 4,229 | ||
| D | 2,622 | 1,412 | 4,058 | ||
| D | 1,764 | 773 | 2,828 | ||
| D | 2,107 | 887 | 3,006 | ||
| D | 2,244 | 648 | 2,906 | ||
| D | 2,092 | 626 | 2,726 | ||
| D | 2,057 | 595 | 2,668 | ||
| D | 1,446 | 1,150 | 2,617 | ||
| D | 1,701 | 700 | 2,429 | ||
| D | 3,150 | 1,981 | 5,131 | ||
| D | 2,196 | 941 | 3,139 | ||
| D | 1,863 | 915 | 2,962 | ||
| D | 1,638 | 1,056 | 2,770 | ||
| D | 1,562 | 1,080 | 2,822 | ||
| D | 1,940 | 1,118 | 3,172 | ||
| D | 2,414 | 1,064 | 3,504 | ||
| D | 1,598 | 847 | 3,015 | ||
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| — | — | — | — | ||
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Demographics
Race, ethnicity, and ancestry
Click any group to see the ancestries typically reported within it.
American
22.2%
English
14.6%
Irish
8.0%
German
6.7%
Italian
2.6%
Scottish
2.0%
French
1.0%
African American
1.5%
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. Hispanic/Latino is an ethnicity that overlaps the race categories, so these shares can total more than 100%. Ancestry is a self-reported, multiple-response item; ancestry percentages do not sum to the parent race percentage.
Age distribution by sex
Median age: 40.6 in this county, 39.1 nationally
Male
Age
Female
85+
75–84
65–74
55–64
45–54
35–44
25–34
18–24
5–17
<5
Source · American Community Survey 5-year estimates, 2024 release.
Median household income
2024 inflation-adjusted dollars
$66,293
Smith County ranks near the middle of US counties.
Smith County$66,293
Tennessee$69,595
United States$80,734
Source · American Community Survey 5-year estimates, 2024 release.
Poverty rate
All persons below federal poverty line
10.0%
Child poverty is below the national average.
Children under 188.7%
Working age (18–64)10.1%
Seniors (65+)13.6%
Source · American Community Survey 5-year estimates, 2024 release.
Language at home
Population aged 5 and older
96.6%
speak English only
Spanish2.1%
Other Indo-European0.9%
Asian & Pacific Islander0.2%
Other languages0.1%
Source · ACS 5-year estimates, 2024.
Religious adherents
Adherents per capita by tradition
Source · 2020 US Religion Census. Remaining 63.4% of residents not counted as adherents by any reporting body.
Smith County's R+64.9 margin in 2024 places it among the state's most one-sided presidential results, reflecting a rural Upper Cumberland population that has shifted decisively away from competitive two-party contests over the past two decades.
The unraveling was not abrupt. The Democratic margin in Smith County peaked at fifty-five points in 1940; it narrowed steadily over the late twentieth century. The 2008 election delivered the county to the Republican party for the first time in many years, by a margin of twenty points. By 2024, the margin had widened further.
The economic and demographic context is severe. The median household income of $66,293 is among the lowest at this geographic scale; 10% of residents live below the federal poverty line. The county's voting pattern over the last decade is most similar to that of Overton County and DeKalb County.
Most similar counties
Cite this page
All citations released under CC BY 4.0. Attribution: Akashic Intelligence.
Smith County, Tennessee — The Long Memory. Akashic Intelligence — The Long Memory. https://akashic.app/county/47159/. Accessed May 20, 2026. License: CC BY 4.0.
License: CC BY 4.0
More in Tennessee
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Frequently asked questions
How did Smith County, Tennessee vote in 2024?
In 2024, Smith County, Tennessee voted Republican by 64.7 points (R+65), carried by the Republican candidate. Out of 9,366 votes cast, 1,595 went Democratic and 7,655 went Republican.
What is Smith County, Tennessee's political archetype?
Akashic classifies Smith County, Tennessee as a "Realigner" county based on its long-arc presidential voting pattern. Across 38 elections in the dataset, the county has voted Democratic 27 times, Republican 6 times, and other 1 times.
When did Smith County, Tennessee last vote Democratic?
The most recent presidential election in which Smith County, Tennessee voted Democratic was 2004.
How many people live in Smith County, Tennessee?
Smith County, Tennessee has a population of 20,389 according to the 2024 American Community Survey 5-year estimates from the US Census Bureau.
What is the median household income in Smith County, Tennessee?
Median household income in Smith County, Tennessee is $66,293 — below the national median of $80,734. The Tennessee state median is $69,595.
What is the political history of Smith County, Tennessee?
Akashic tracks 38 presidential elections in Smith County, Tennessee from 1876 to 2024. Of those, 27 went Democratic and 6 went Republican. The county's archetype — "Realigner" — captures the overall trajectory of that voting record.