2020 census As of the
2020 census, the county had a population of 16,595. The median age was 38.6 years. 21.2% of residents were under the age of 18 and 19.5% of residents were 65 years of age or older. For every 100 females there were 106.3 males, and for every 100 females age 18 and over there were 106.1 males age 18 and over. The racial makeup of the county was 48.8% White, 1.1%
Black or African American, 13.2%
American Indian and Alaska Native, 1.9%
Asian, 0.0%
Native Hawaiian and
Pacific Islander, 15.8% from some other race, and 19.2% from
two or more races.
Hispanic or Latino residents of any race comprised 50.3% of the population. 48.9% of residents lived in urban areas, while 51.1% lived in rural areas. There were 6,471 households in the county, of which 27.9% had children under the age of 18 living with them and 29.4% had a female householder with no spouse or partner present. About 33.8% of all households were made up of individuals and 14.0% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The population density was . There were 8,059 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the county was 75.1% white, 11.7% American Indian, 1.2% Asian, 1.1% black or African American, 8.1% from other races, and 2.8% from two or more races. Those of Hispanic or Latino origin made up 48.5% of the population. Of the 7,014 households, 30.4% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 43.1% were married couples living together, 12.9% had a female householder with no husband present, 38.% were non-families, and 30.8% of all households were made up of individuals. The average household size was 2.46 and the average family size was 3.09. The median age was 36.9 years.
2000 census As of the
2000 census, there were 18,078 people, 6,675 households, and 4,492 families residing in the county. The
population density was . There were 7,808 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the county was 62.9%
White, 0.6%
Black or
African American, 10.9%
Native American, 1.1%
Asian, 0.1%
Pacific Islander, 20.1% from
other races, and 4.3% from two or more races. 48.7% of the population were
Hispanic or
Latino of any race. There were 6,675 households, out of which 33.8% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 48.4% were
married couples living together, 13.3% had a female householder with no husband present, and 32.7% were non-families. 26.8% of all households were made up of individuals, and 8.2% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.62 and the average family size was 3.20. In the county, the population was spread out, with 28.4% under the age of 18, 12.6% from 18 to 24, 26.1% from 25 to 44, 22.0% from 45 to 64, and 10.9% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 32 years. For every 100 females there were 103.3 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 103.9 males. The median income for a household in the county was $23,439, and the median income for a family was $29,544. Males had a median income of $28,490 versus $22,482 for females. The
per capita income for the county was $12,826. About 24.1% of families and 31.7% of the population were below the
poverty line, including 43.6% of those under age 18 and 24.3% of those age 65 or over. ==Politics==