akashic
1876–2024
Delegate District 97·West Virginia

West Virginia 97th State House District has voted Republican in twelve straight presidential cycles.

One of West Virginia's most reliably Republican legislative seats

1876 — 2024·38 elections
WV
Latest
R+28
in 2024
Archetype
Republican loyalist
since the recent cycles
Population
22,114
2024 ACS

West Virginia 97th State House District, West Virginia: Republican loyalist district. In 2024, voted R+28%. Republican peak: R+36 in 1972.

Key facts

2024 presidential margin
R+28MIT Election Lab
Political archetype
Republican loyalistAkashic typology
Population
22,1142024 5-year
Median household income
$87,4012024 5-year
White (non-Hispanic)
80.7%2024 5-year
Black
6.8%2024 5-year
Hispanic / Latino
6.9%2024 5-year
Peak Democratic margin
D+33 in 1912MIT Election Lab
Peak Republican margin
R+36 in 1972MIT Election Lab
2024 results by constituent county
2 counties · 0 D · 2 R
R+60
D+60
One cell per constituent county. Ordered by 2024 D-vs-R margin (bluest first). Hover for county-level numbers.
38 presidential elections
Source · MIT Election Lab · ICPSR · VEST (precinct-level 2024).
YearWonMarginDemocraticRepublicanTotal
R
−27.9%
3,5296,33210,055
R
−22.8%
3,5175,6569,363
R
−27.7%
2,6344,8618,042
R
−13.7%
2,9663,9367,076
R
−5.3%
3,3283,7047,115
R
−18.0%
2,5963,7446,388
R
−12.3%
1,8892,4374,455
R
−0.5%
1,7701,7894,012
R
−3.1%
1,5081,6253,832
R
−19.5%
1,2751,8953,183
R
−27.6%
1,2452,1993,451
R
−9.7%
1,3731,6863,230
D
+3.2%
1,5951,4953,090
R
−35.9%
8701,8442,714
R
−7.6%
9611,1532,513
D
+30.7%
1,6028502,453
D
+2.3%
1,3601,3002,660
R
−14.9%
1,0691,4442,513
D
+0.4%
1,3211,3102,631
D
+13.6%
1,2549542,214
D
+9.1%
1,1449532,098
D
+23.5%
1,6611,0292,690
D
+24.8%
1,6469912,644
D
+23.1%
1,4909262,437
R
−22.9%
8361,3342,177
D
+11.4%
1,0698431,983
D
+7.9%
1,0158651,895
D
+17.6%
6664651,145
D
+32.6%
6382821,092
D
+14.3%
6184611,101
D
+15.0%
6184541,090
R
−17.3%
4366201,063
D
+11.2%
5614461,026
D
+18.6%
576394977
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Demographics

Race, ethnicity, and ancestry
Click any group to see the ancestries typically reported within it.
German
19.3%
English
14.1%
Irish
13.9%
American
5.8%
Italian
5.1%
Scottish
2.4%
Polish
2.3%
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: 39.4 in this county, 39.1 nationally
Male
Age
Female
0.5%
85+
0.9%
2.2%
75–84
2.2%
4.8%
65–74
5.4%
6.8%
55–64
6.9%
6.6%
45–54
6.5%
6.9%
35–44
6.8%
6.7%
25–34
6.6%
4.1%
18–24
3.8%
8.6%
5–17
8.1%
2.9%
<5
2.8%
Source · American Community Survey 5-year estimates, 2024 release.
Median household income
2024 inflation-adjusted dollars
$87,401
Delegate District 97 ranks near the middle of US counties.
Delegate District 97$87,401
West Virginia$59,608
United States$80,734
Source · American Community Survey 5-year estimates, 2024 release.
Poverty rate
All persons below federal poverty line
10.2%
Child poverty is below the national average.
Children under 1813.1%
Working age (18–64)9.2%
Seniors (65+)11.9%
Source · American Community Survey 5-year estimates, 2024 release.
Language at home
Population aged 5 and older
93.8%
speak English only
Spanish4.1%
Other Indo-European0.8%
Asian & Pacific Islander0.8%
Other languages0.5%
Source · ACS 5-year estimates, 2024.
Religious adherents
Adherents per capita by tradition
Other Christian
7.9%
Catholic & Orthodox
7.9%
Methodist
5.6%
Baptist
3.0%
Mainline Protestant
2.9%
Pentecostal & Holiness
2.3%
Non-Christian
0.1%
Source · 2020 US Religion Census. Remaining 70.3% of residents not counted as adherents by any reporting body.

With a 2024 presidential margin of R+56.8, District 97 sits among the state's most one-sided legislative constituencies, reflecting the deep rural realignment that has reshaped West Virginia's political map over the past two decades.

The Republican margin in West Virginia 97th State House District reached its widest at thirty-six points in 1972. The margin in 2024 was twenty-eight points, in line with the district's deep historical pattern.

Its loyalty is rooted in its place. Median household income of $87,401, a 81% non-Hispanic-white share, and a population of 22,114 together describe a district whose political habits are deeply settled.

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 →

Cite this page
All citations released under CC BY 4.0. Attribution: Akashic Intelligence.
Delegate District 97, West Virginia. Akashic. https://akashic.app/sld-lower/54097/. Accessed May 20, 2026. License: CC BY 4.0.
License: CC BY 4.0

Frequently asked questions

How did Delegate District 97, West Virginia vote in 2024?
In 2024, Delegate District 97, West Virginia voted Republican by 27.9 points (R+28), carried by the Republican candidate. Out of 10,055 votes cast, 3,529 went Democratic and 6,332 went Republican.
What is Delegate District 97, West Virginia's political archetype?
Akashic classifies Delegate District 97, West Virginia as a "Republican loyalist" district based on its long-arc presidential voting pattern. Across 38 elections in the dataset, the district has voted Democratic 17 times, Republican 17 times, and other 0 times.
When did Delegate District 97, West Virginia last vote Democratic?
The most recent presidential election in which Delegate District 97, West Virginia voted Democratic was 1976.
How many people live in Delegate District 97, West Virginia?
Delegate District 97, West Virginia has a population of 22,114 according to the 2024 American Community Survey 5-year estimates from the US Census Bureau.
What is the median household income in Delegate District 97, West Virginia?
Median household income in Delegate District 97, West Virginia is $87,401 — above the national median of $80,734. The West Virginia state median is $59,608.
What is the political history of Delegate District 97, West Virginia?
Akashic tracks 38 presidential elections in Delegate District 97, West Virginia from 1876 to 2024. Of those, 17 went Democratic and 17 went Republican. The district's archetype — "Republican loyalist" — captures the overall trajectory of that voting record.