2020 census As of the
2020 census, there were 27,390 people residing in the county; 18.2% were under the age of 18 and 27.3% were 65 years of age or older, and the median age was 49.2 years. For every 100 females there were 100.9 males, and for every 100 females age 18 and over there were 98.7 males. 39.3% of residents lived in urban areas and 60.7% lived in rural areas. The racial makeup of the county was 82.6% White, 0.3%
Black or African American, 1.1%
American Indian and Alaska Native, 1.0%
Asian, 0.3%
Native Hawaiian and
Pacific Islander, 5.1% from some other race, and 9.6% from
two or more races.
Hispanic or Latino residents of any race comprised 10.8% of the population. There were 11,727 households in the county, of which 22.2% had children under the age of 18 living with them and 24.6% had a female householder with no spouse or partner present. About 29.4% of all households were made up of individuals and 15.8% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The population density was . There were 18,359 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the county was 91.5% white, 1.0% American Indian, 0.9% Asian, 0.3% black or African American, 0.2% Pacific islander, 3.6% from other races, and 2.4% from two or more races. Those of Hispanic or Latino origin made up 9.0% of the population. Of the 10,834 households, 23.8% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 51.6% were married couples living together, 8.1% had a female householder with no husband present, 36.0% were non-families, and 29.1% of all households were made up of individuals. The average household size was 2.29 and the average family size was 2.79. The median age was 47.5 years.
2000 census As of the census of 2000, there were 24,262 people, 10,200 households and 6,793 families residing in the county. The
population density was . There were 15,906 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the county was 93.86%
White, 0.22%
Black or
African American, 1.19%
Native American, 0.65%
Asian, 0.21%
Pacific Islander, 1.89% from
other races, and 1.98% from two or more races. 5.13% of the population were
Hispanic or
Latino of any race. 20.1% were of
German, 13.3%
English, 10.7%
American and 8.6%
Irish ancestry. There were 10,200 households, out of which 24.6% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 54.8% were
married couples living together, 7.7% had a female householder with no husband present, and 33.4% were non-families. 27.9% of all households were made up of individuals, and 12.6% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.33 and the average family size was 2.82. In the county, the population was spread out, with 22.2% under the age of 18, 6.5% from 18 to 24, 23.5% from 25 to 44, 28% from 45 to 64, and 19.8% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 44 years. For every 100 females there were 100.4 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 98.1 males. The median income for a household in the county was $34,269, and the median income for a family was $40,197. Males had a median income of $31,509 versus $21,555 for females. The
per capita income for the county was $19,052. About 8.1% of families and 11.4% of the population were below the
poverty line, including 13.4% of those under age 18 and 8.1% of those age 65 or over. ==Economy==