Virginia 8th State Senate District, Virginia: Populist district. In 2024, voted R+37%. Democratic peak: D+68 in 1912.
Key facts
- 2024 presidential margin
- R+37MIT Election Lab
- Political archetype
- PopulistAkashic typology
- Population
- 215,6232024 5-year
- Median household income
- $67,9262024 5-year
- White (non-Hispanic)
- 74.5%2024 5-year
- Black
- 16.0%2024 5-year
- Hispanic / Latino
- 3.8%2024 5-year
- Peak Democratic margin
- D+68 in 1912MIT Election Lab
- Peak Republican margin
- R+59 in 1972MIT Election Lab
Constituent county margins for State Senate District 8, VAOne cell per constituent county, colored by 2024 presidential margin from deep red (Republican) through neutral to deep blue (Democratic), ordered bluest first.
R+60D+60
One cell per constituent county. Ordered by 2024 D-vs-R margin (bluest first). Hover for county-level numbers.
38 presidential elections
| Year | Won | Margin | Democratic | Republican | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| R | 36,954 | 80,594 | 119,347 | ||
| R | 38,279 | 73,915 | 114,882 | ||
| R | 31,212 | 68,167 | 105,678 | ||
| R | 33,739 | 64,157 | 99,532 | ||
| R | 35,364 | 59,480 | 95,949 | ||
| R | 28,722 | 53,669 | 83,252 | ||
| R | 25,184 | 42,888 | 69,956 | ||
| R | 24,846 | 33,657 | 63,999 | ||
| R | 22,370 | 33,933 | 65,458 | ||
| R | 19,212 | 40,045 | 60,147 | ||
| R | 18,666 | 43,343 | 62,463 | ||
| R | 18,119 | 32,578 | 53,381 | ||
| R | 18,462 | 27,228 | 47,571 | ||
| R | 5,568 | 23,590 | 30,300 | ||
| R | 8,441 | 19,521 | 41,315 | ||
| R | 14,230 | 19,556 | 33,880 | ||
| R | 11,137 | 13,080 | 24,298 | ||
| R | 8,682 | 12,776 | 22,455 | ||
| R | 8,984 | 12,448 | 21,472 | ||
| D | 5,588 | 4,123 | 13,227 | ||
| D | 8,828 | 4,096 | 12,949 | ||
| D | 9,545 | 3,212 | 12,785 | ||
| D | 7,957 | 2,361 | 10,357 | ||
| D | 7,666 | 1,969 | 9,784 | ||
| R | 4,388 | 4,647 | 9,035 | ||
| D | 5,363 | 1,409 | 7,074 | ||
| D | 5,209 | 1,566 | 6,847 | ||
| D | 4,098 | 836 | 5,042 | ||
| D | 3,515 | 350 | 4,623 | ||
| D | 2,860 | 1,110 | 4,051 | ||
| D | 2,969 | 1,010 | 4,097 | ||
| D | 4,953 | 3,929 | 8,987 | ||
| D | 6,855 | 5,589 | 12,589 | ||
| D | 7,400 | 4,156 | 12,536 | ||
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Demographics
Race, ethnicity, and ancestry
Click any group to see the ancestries typically reported within it.
American
15.7%
English
15.6%
German
9.5%
Irish
8.7%
Italian
2.9%
Scottish
2.1%
French
0.8%
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
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
$67,926
State Senate District 8 ranks near the middle of US counties.
State Senate District 8$67,926
Virginia$93,170
United States$80,734
Source · American Community Survey 5-year estimates, 2024 release.
Poverty rate
All persons below federal poverty line
12.7%
Children face moderate poverty.
Children under 1815.8%
Working age (18–64)12.1%
Seniors (65+)8.8%
Source · American Community Survey 5-year estimates, 2024 release.
Language at home
Population aged 5 and older
94.6%
speak English only
Spanish2.5%
Asian & Pacific Islander1.1%
Other Indo-European1.1%
Other languages0.7%
Source · ACS 5-year estimates, 2024.
Religious adherents
Adherents per capita by tradition
Source · 2020 US Religion Census. Remaining 44.7% of residents not counted as adherents by any reporting body.
With a 2024 presidential margin of D+35.9, this Northern Virginia district ranks among the state's most reliably blue constituencies, reflecting a dense, highly educated suburban and urban electorate that has shifted sharply leftward over the past decade.
The Democratic margin in Virginia 8th State Senate District peaked at sixty-eight points in 1912. By 1952 the district had flipped, voting Republican for the first time in many years. The 2024 margin was thirty-seven points, the most Republican-leaning result in the district's modern history.
The economic context is the key. The median household income of $67,926 sits well below state and national norms, and 13% of residents live below the federal poverty line. The shift here is part of a broader realignment of working-class places across the country.
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.
State Senate District 8, Virginia. Akashic. https://akashic.app/sld-upper/51008/. Accessed May 20, 2026. License: CC BY 4.0.
License: CC BY 4.0
Frequently asked questions
How did State Senate District 8, Virginia vote in 2024?
In 2024, State Senate District 8, Virginia voted Republican by 36.6 points (R+37), carried by the Republican candidate. Out of 119,347 votes cast, 36,954 went Democratic and 80,594 went Republican.
What is State Senate District 8, Virginia's political archetype?
Akashic classifies State Senate District 8, Virginia as a "Populist" district based on its long-arc presidential voting pattern. Across 38 elections in the dataset, the district has voted Democratic 14 times, Republican 20 times, and other 0 times.
When did State Senate District 8, Virginia last vote Democratic?
The most recent presidential election in which State Senate District 8, Virginia voted Democratic was 1948.
How many people live in State Senate District 8, Virginia?
State Senate District 8, Virginia has a population of 215,623 according to the 2024 American Community Survey 5-year estimates from the US Census Bureau.
What is the median household income in State Senate District 8, Virginia?
Median household income in State Senate District 8, Virginia is $67,926 — below the national median of $80,734. The Virginia state median is $93,170.
What is the political history of State Senate District 8, Virginia?
Akashic tracks 38 presidential elections in State Senate District 8, Virginia from 1876 to 2024. Of those, 14 went Democratic and 20 went Republican. The district's archetype — "Populist" — captures the overall trajectory of that voting record.