2020 census As of the
2020 census, the county had a population of 55,620 and a median age of 48.9 years. 16.8% of residents were under the age of 18 and 27.1% of residents were 65 years of age or older. For every 100 females there were 107.3 males, and for every 100 females age 18 and over there were 108.0 males age 18 and over. The racial makeup of the county was 79.5% White, 1.8%
Black or African American, 1.8%
American Indian and Alaska Native, 1.5%
Asian, 0.2%
Native Hawaiian and
Pacific Islander, 5.0% from some other race, and 10.2% from
two or more races.
Hispanic or Latino residents of any race comprised 12.8% of the population. 52.2% of residents lived in urban areas, while 47.8% lived in rural areas. There were 22,711 households in the county, of which 22.6% had children under the age of 18 living with them and 26.5% had a female householder with no spouse or partner present. About 30.6% of all households were made up of individuals and 16.9% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older.
2000 census As of the
census of 2000, there were 54,501 people, 21,004 households, and 14,240 families residing in the county. The
population density was . There were 28,336 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the county was 89.5%
White, 2.1%
Black or
African American, 1.8%
Native American, 0.7%
Asian, 0.2%
Pacific Islander, 2.9% from
other races, and 2.8% from two or more races. 8.2% of the population were
Hispanic or
Latino of any race. 94.7% spoke
English and 3.5%
Spanish as their first language. There were 21,004 households, out of which 26.1% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 54.4% were
married couples living together, 9.6% had a female householder with no husband present, and 32.2% were non-families. 26.0% of all households were made up of individuals, and 11.70% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.36 and the average family size was 2.82. In the county, the population was spread out, with 20.7% under the age of 18, 7.6% from 18 to 24, 25.3% from 25 to 44, 27.9% from 45 to 64, and 18.5% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 43 years. For every 100 females there were 111.50 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 112.20 males. The median income for a household in the county was $38,725, and the median income for a family was $44,327. Males had a median income of $35,373 versus $25,805 for females. The
per capita income for the county was $21,015. About 8.1% of families and 11.4% of the population were below the
poverty line, including 16.2% of those under age 18 and 4.0% of those age 65 or over. ==Government and policing==