Isanti County, Minnesota


Isanti County is a county in the east-central part of the U.S. state of Minnesota. As of the 2020 census, the population was 41,135. Its county seat is Cambridge.

History

The county was formed on February 13, 1857. Its name came from the Izaty Indians, the ancient name for the Santee Indians, members of the Dakota alliance. Isanti derives from the Dakota word for "knife" and refers to the Santee tribe.
Isanti County is included in the Minneapolis-St. Paul-Bloomington Metropolitan Statistical Area.

Geography

The Rum River flows south through the county's central part. The county's terrain is hilly and etched with drainages and gullies, and dotted with lakes and ponds. The terrain generally slopes to the south and east; its highest point is near its northwest corner, at ASL. The county has an area of, of which is land and is water.

Major highways

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2020 census

Note: the US Census treats Hispanic/Latino as an ethnic category. This table excludes Latinos from the racial categories and assigns them to a separate category. Hispanics/Latinos can be of any race.
As of the 2020 census, the county had a population of 41,135. The median age was 39.6 years. 24.1% of residents were under the age of 18 and 16.7% of residents were 65 years of age or older. For every 100 females there were 101.0 males, and for every 100 females age 18 and over there were 99.5 males age 18 and over.
The racial makeup of the county was 92.1% White, 0.8% Black or African American, 0.5% American Indian and Alaska Native, 1.2% Asian, <0.1% Native Hawaiian and Pacific Islander, 0.8% from some other race, and 4.5% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino residents of any race comprised 2.2% of the population.
40.7% of residents lived in urban areas, while 59.3% lived in rural areas.
There were 15,615 households in the county, of which 32.2% had children under the age of 18 living in them. Of all households, 53.9% were married-couple households, 16.4% were households with a male householder and no spouse or partner present, and 19.7% were households with a female householder and no spouse or partner present. About 22.7% of all households were made up of individuals and 10.3% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older.
There were 16,550 housing units, of which 5.6% were vacant. Among occupied housing units, 82.5% were owner-occupied and 17.5% were renter-occupied. The homeowner vacancy rate was 0.8% and the rental vacancy rate was 5.3%.

2010 census

As of the census of 2010, there were 37,816 people, 14,331 households, and 8,415 families in the county. The population density was. There were 12,062 housing units at an average density of. The racial makeup of the county was 96.0% White, 0.6% Black or African American, 0.5% Native American, 0.8% Asian, 0% Pacific Islander, 1.6% from other races, and 0.94% from two or more races. 1.5% of the population were Hispanic or Latino of any race. 30.3% were of German, 21.3% Swedish, 12.7% Norwegian and 5.1% Irish ancestry.
There were 11,236 households, of which 38.1% had children under 18 living with them, 62.1% were married couples living together, 8.4% had a female householder with no husband present, and 25.1% were non-families. 20.1% of all households were made up of individuals, and 8.2% had someone living alone who was 65 or older. The average household size was 2.74 and the average family size was 3.15.
The county population contained 28.7% under 18, 7.8% from 18 to 24, 30.4% from 25 to 44, 22.2% from 45 to 64, and 10.8% who were 65 or older. The median age was 36. For every 100 females there were 100.5 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 98.8 males.
The median income for a household in the county was $50,127, and the median income for a family was $55,996. Males had a median income of $39,381 versus $26,427 for females. The per capita income for the county was $20,348. About 4.0% of families and 5.7% of the population were below the poverty line, including 5.7% of those under 18 and 8.6% of those 65 or older.

Communities

Cities

This rural turned exurban county is more conservative than the state as a whole. In 2008, John McCain won Isanti County with almost 57% of the vote, while losing the state with 44% of the vote. Norm Coleman also did well, obtaining 48% of the vote while losing the state with 42%. Both George W. Bush and Tim Pawlenty won this county twice, winning a majority of the county each time.
Democrats tend to do poorly here. In 2008, Barack Obama obtained just 41% of the vote while he won the state with 54%. Al Franken received just 33% of Isanti County's votes. Since 1992, no Democrat has won this county with over 50% of the vote. In 2016, Donald Trump won almost 65% of the vote here while narrowly losing the state to Hillary Clinton. Trump increased his vote share to just over 68% in 2020 and to nearly 70% in 2024.
Independents also do well in this county. In 1998, the county's results were Jesse Ventura's best in the state, as he won the county with over 50% of the vote. Ross Perot came in a close third place with 29% of the vote while getting 24% statewide.