According to theU.S. Census Bureau, the county has a total area of 1,058 square miles (2,740 km2), of which 60 square miles (160 km2) (5.6%) are covered by water.[3] It is located in the LowerRio Grande Valley, on the shore ofFalcon International Reservoir. It was previously linked toMexico by an international bridge, but this was flooded when theFalcon Dam and reservoir were built. It is now linked to Mexico by theFalcon Dam Port of Entry.
Zapata County, Texas – Racial and ethnic composition 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 may be of any race.
As of the2020 census, 13,889 people, 4,536 households, and 3,254 families lived in the county. The median age was 32.8 years; 30.9% of residents were under the age of 18 and 14.5% were 65 years of age or older. For every 100 females there were 100.6 males, and for every 100 females age 18 and over there were 96.0 males age 18 and over.[10]
78.8% of residents lived in urban areas, while 21.2% lived in rural areas.[12]
Of the 4,536 households in the county, 43.3% had children under the age of 18 living in them. Of all households, 49.4% were married-couple households, 17.9% were households with a male householder and no spouse or partner present, and 28.0% were households with a female householder and no spouse or partner present. About 23.2% of all households were made up of individuals and 11.6% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older.[10]
There were 6,159 housing units, of which 26.4% were vacant. Among occupied housing units, 78.8% were owner-occupied and 21.2% were renter-occupied. The homeowner vacancy rate was 2.1% and the rental vacancy rate was 11.9%.[10]
As of the 2000census,[13] 12,182 people, 3,921 households, and 3,164 families resided in the county. Zapata County is estimated to be the 11th-fastest growing county (+15.8%) in Texas since 2000 (based on percentage of population change). Thepopulation density was 12 people per square mile (4.6 people/km2). The 6,167 housing units had an average density of 6 units per square mile (2.3 units/km2). Theracial makeup of the county was 84.07% White, 0.41% African American, 0.32% Native American, 0.19% Asian, 0.04% Pacific Islander, 12.64% from other races, and 2.33% from two or more races. About 84.78% of the population were Hispanics or Latinos of any race.
Of the 3,921 households, 43.2% had children under 18 living with them, 64.2% were married couples living together, 13.0% had a female householder with no husband present, and 19.3% were not families. About 17.5% of all households were made up of individuals, and 10.3% had someone living alone who was 65 or older. The average household size was 3.10 and the average family size was 3.52.
In the county, the age distribution was 33.0% under 18, 10.0% from 18 to 24, 24.1% from 25 to 44, 18.6% from 45 to 64, and 14.3% who were 65 or older. The median age was 31 years. For every 100 females, there were 96.8 males. For every 100 females 18 and over, there were 93.7 males.
The median income for a household in the county was $24,635 and for a family was $26,722. Males had a median income of $26,294 versus $14,579 for females. Theper capita income for the county was $10,486. About 29.3% of families and 35.8% of the population were below thepoverty line, including 46.1% of those under 18 and 21.3% of those 65 or over.
According to the 2020 US Census, Zapata County is 55% Catholic, 5.8% Evangelical Protestant, 2.4% Mormon, 1.5% Jehovah's Witnesses, 0.4% mainline Protestant, and 35.0% other or none.[14]
In the majority of U.S. presidential elections, Zapata County supportedDemocratic Party candidates, but on three occasions, it gave record-setting margins to Republican presidential nominees, when it delivered the highest percentage of the vote of any county in the nation to them. The first time was in1896, when it gave 96.3% of the vote toWilliam McKinley, though he lost Texas as a whole with 30.8% of the statewide popular vote, but won the national election with 51.0% of the nationwide popular vote. The second time was in1908, whenWilliam Howard Taft won 99.1% of the vote in the county, despite losing the state to DemocratWilliam Jennings Bryan and receiving just 22.4% of the statewide vote, but winning the national election with 51.6% of the nationwide popular vote. The last time was in1912, when it again gave then-incumbent President Taft 80.9% of the vote, with it being his best county in the nation, but against the state and nation's preference for the Democratic victorWoodrow Wilson; in the popular vote, Taft only received 9.5% statewide and 23.2% nationwide.
It voted Republican for President in1920 and then consistently voted Democratic until2020, when RepublicanDonald Trump defeated DemocratJoe Biden 52% to 47%, about the same as the statewide margin.[15] Zapata was the most Hispanic county to vote for Trump in 2020, as well as the county with the lowest non-Hispanic White population to do so. In2024, this trend continued, with Trump receiving nearly 61% of the vote in the county. Zapata shifted to the right from2012 to 2024 by 66%, representing the third-furthest such rightward shift for any county in the country, surpassed only byStarr County andMaverick County's respective shifts of 89 and 77%.[16]
United States presidential election results for Zapata County, Texas[17]
