Columbia, SC, South Carolina
Akashic| Kamala Harris ✓Democratic | 49.7% | 256,488 |
|---|---|---|
| Donald TrumpRepublican | 48.7% | 251,166 |
| Chase OliverLibertarian | 1.6% | 8,001 |
County-level results (11 counties) — table
| County | Winner | Margin |
|---|---|---|
| Calhoun County, SC | Republican | R+14.3 |
| Clarendon County, SC | Republican | R+12.3 |
| Fairfield County, SC | Democratic | D+13.2 |
| Kershaw County, SC | Republican | R+28.2 |
| Lee County, SC | Democratic | D+17.7 |
| Lexington County, SC | Republican | R+33.5 |
| Newberry County, SC | Republican | R+34.3 |
| Orangeburg County, SC | Democratic | D+24.6 |
| Richland County, SC | Democratic | D+34.6 |
| Saluda County, SC | Republican | R+44.4 |
| Sumter County, SC | Democratic | D+4.9 |
| Year | Won | Democratic | Republican | Other | Margin | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| D | 49.7%Harris256,488 | 48.7%Trump251,166 | 1.6%Oliver8,001 | 515,655 | ||
| D | 53.0%Biden284,031 | 45.6%Trump244,156 | 1.4%Jorgensen7,453 | 535,640 | ||
| D | 50.2%Clinton236,404 | 45.5%Trump214,259 | 4.2%Johnson19,881 | 470,544 | ||
| D | 53.2%Obama244,836 | 45.5%Romney209,391 | 1.2%Johnson5,689 | 459,916 | ||
| D | 52.5%Obama239,104 | 46.6%McCain212,309 | 1.0%Barr4,422 | 455,835 | ||
| R | 47.7%Kerry182,272 | 51.4%Bush196,405 | 0.9%Nader3,477 | 382,154 | ||
| R | 45.7%Gore152,938 | 52.1%Bush174,420 | 2.2%Nader7,253 | 334,611 | ||
| D | 48.1%Clinton132,944 | 46.7%Dole129,080 | 5.1%Perot14,099 | 276,123 | ||
| R | 44.4%Clinton134,250 | 45.8%Bush138,667 | 9.8%Perot29,660 | 302,577 | ||
| R | 39.7%Dukakis96,701 | 58.7%Bush142,851 | 1.6%Paul3,795 | 243,347 | ||
| R | 37.9%Mondale91,737 | 60.7%Reagan146,648 | 1.4%Bergland3,353 | 241,738 | ||
| R | 46.0%Carter100,447 | 51.3%Reagan112,165 | 2.7%Anderson5,905 | 218,517 | ||
| D | 52.4%Carter104,843 | 47.0%Ford94,033 | 0.6%Anderson1,203 | 200,079 | ||
| R | 30.8%McGovern53,484 | 67.8%Nixon117,640 | 1.4%Schmitz2,353 | 173,477 | ||
| R | 32.9%Humphrey53,497 | 40.0%Nixon65,021 | 27.2%Wallace44,191 | 162,709 | ||
| R | 36.0%Johnson45,155 | 64.0%Goldwater80,281 | 0.0%Hass1 | 125,437 | ||
| R | 41.1%Kennedy34,823 | 58.9%Nixon49,830 | 0.0% | 84,653 | ||
| O | 32.2%Stevenson20,228 | 23.5%Eisenhower14,784 | 44.3%Andrews27,834 | 62,846 | ||
| R | 38.9%Stevenson28,162 | 61.1%Eisenhower44,277 | 0.0% | 72,439 | ||
| O | 17.0%Truman5,359 | 4.1%Dewey1,276 | 78.9%Thurmond24,853 | 31,488 | ||
| D | 90.1%Roosevelt21,080 | 2.2%Dewey524 | 7.7%Thomas1,794 | 23,398 | ||
| D | 97.5%Roosevelt16,145 | 2.5%Willkie407 | 0.0% | 16,552 | ||
| D | 98.4%Roosevelt23,345 | 0.0%Landon0 | 1.6%Lemke376 | 23,721 | ||
| D | 97.8%Roosevelt17,760 | 0.0%Hoover0 | 2.2%Thomas401 | 18,161 | ||
| D | 93.8%Smith13,993 | 6.2%Hoover919 | 0.0%Thomas5 | 14,917 | ||
| D | 96.9%Davis12,095 | 1.9%Coolidge233 | 1.3%La Follette159 | 12,487 | ||
| D | 93.7%Cox15,209 | 6.2%Harding1,004 | 0.1%Debs15 | 16,228 | ||
| D | 93.9%Wilson15,340 | 4.5%Hughes731 | 1.6%Benson263 | 16,334 | ||
| D | 94.2%Wilson10,567 | 0.0%Taft0 | 5.8%Roosevelt647 | 11,214 | ||
| D | 92.8%Bryan15,714 | 7.0%Taft1,177 | 0.2%Debs41 | 16,932 | ||
| D | 95.0%Parker13,656 | 5.0%Roosevelt721 | 0.0% | 14,377 | ||
| D | 94.7%Bryan10,749 | 5.3%McKinley599 | 0.0% | 11,348 | ||
| D | 87.8%Bryan13,361 | 11.8%McKinley1,797 | 0.4%Palmer64 | 15,222 | ||
| D | 78.9%Cleveland12,276 | 19.0%Harrison2,952 | 2.1%Weaver333 | 15,561 |
| Year | Margin (D minus R) |
|---|---|
| 1892 | +59.9% |
| 1896 | +76.0% |
| 1900 | +89.4% |
| 1904 | +90.0% |
| 1908 | +85.9% |
| 1912 | +94.2% |
| 1916 | +89.4% |
| 1920 | +87.5% |
| 1924 | +95.0% |
| 1928 | +87.6% |
| 1932 | +97.8% |
| 1936 | +98.4% |
| 1940 | +95.1% |
| 1944 | +87.9% |
| 1948 | +13.0% |
| 1952 | −22.2% |
| 1956 | +8.7% |
| 1960 | −17.7% |
| 1964 | −28.0% |
| 1968 | −7.1% |
| 1972 | −37.0% |
| 1976 | +5.4% |
| 1980 | −5.4% |
| 1984 | −22.7% |
| 1988 | −19.0% |
| 1992 | −1.5% |
| 1996 | +1.4% |
| 2000 | −6.4% |
| 2004 | −3.7% |
| 2008 | +5.9% |
| 2012 | +7.7% |
| 2016 | +4.7% |
| 2020 | +7.4% |
| 2024 | +1.0% |
| Year | Total registered |
|---|---|
| 2016 | 702,661 |
| 2018 | 775,013 |
| 2020 | 826,216 |
| 2022 | 788,390 |
| 2024 | 795,432 |
The Columbia DMA anchors South Carolina's Midlands, blending a large state-government workforce, two major universities, and Fort Jackson — the Army's largest basic-training post — into an electorate that swings differently than the coast or Upstate.
Across the recorded series it reached a Democratic high of 98.4 points in 1936 and a Republican high of 37.0 points in 1972. Between 2020 and 2024 the market moved 6.4 points toward the Republican candidate; the 2024 margin was 1.0 points.
A population of 1,122,746, a 51% non-Hispanic-white share, and a median household income of $64,520 describe the market. The market's voting pattern over the last decade is most similar to that of Memphis and Jackson, MS.
The media markets 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.
Compare two places, side by side
Twelve curated comparisons line up election history, demographics, and the divergence story for two places at a glance. Browse all comparisons →
Columbia, SC, South Carolina. Akashic. https://akashic.app/dma/546/. Accessed May 20, 2026. License: CC BY 4.0.