Census: Fayette County becoming more diverse. Hispanic population sees big gains
Mirroring trends seen in many parts of the country, Fayette County is becoming less white and more diverse, U.S. Census Data released Thursday showed.
Overall, Fayette County grew by 9 percent or added 26,767 people. The total estimated population is 322,750.
More than 30 percent of Fayette County’s population is non-white, the data shows. The Census adjusted its race and ethnicity questions on the form people filled out, leading to more accurate results showing the country is more multiracial and diverse, according to Nicholas Jones, director and senior advisor for race and ethnicity research and outreach.
Other key changes:
- 66.8 percent of the population is white only. That’s a decrease from 2010 when 73 percent of Fayette County was white only.
- The county’s Black population is still the largest minority group at 14.7 percent, up slightly from 14.2 percent in 2010. That population is more than 48,000.
- Asian and Hispanic populations also grew significantly in the last ten years.
- The Asian population was 3.2 percent in 2010. It is now 4.2 percent, a more than 40 percent increase in that population, census data shows. The total Asian population is now 13,457.
The Hispanic population also grew significantly in the last decade. That population is now 9.2 percent of Fayette County’s total population, a 43 percent increase from 2010 when that population was 6.9 percent. The Hispanic community now numbers 29,750.
The Census noted that the race and ethnicity changes between 2010 and 2020 reflect true increases or decreases as well as more accurate results from question changes.
According to census data, Fayette County has one of the largest Asian populations in Kentucky. Only Warren County has a larger percentage of Asian residents.
Shelby County is the only other county in Kentucky with a higher percentage of Hispanic residents than Fayette County. Shelby County’s Hispanic population is 11.2 percent.
Also on the rise is the number of people who claim one or more racial or ethnic groups. In 2010, it was less than 1 percent of the population. In 2020, it was 3.1 percent.
Fayette County is now 33.2 percent non-white.
The U.S. Census data is used to redraw congressional, state legislative and local council election districts. In Lexington, each council member appoints a community member to the redistricting committee, which then re-draws the council district lines, so each council district has similar numbers of people. That committee will resume its work now that the census data has been released.
This story was originally published August 13, 2021 at 7:34 AM.
