Jury Pool Profile
Otero County, Colorado
- County seat
- La Junta
- Judicial district
- 16th Judicial District Court
- Population (July 2025 estimate)
- 17,683
- Census PEP. The five-year ACS survey average is 18,321.
At a glance
Otero County is a 17,683-person venue. The county population is 67% White (Census race-alone categories). 42% identify as Hispanic or Latino of any race. Those figures overlap rather than adding up; counted separately, non-Hispanic White residents are 52.4%, which is the basis the chart below uses. Median household income is $51,225, $45,646 below the CO state median of $96,871; 18.2% of residents 25 and over hold a bachelor's degree or higher. 15.2% of residents 5 and older speak a language other than English at home, most commonly Spanish. The largest employment sector is Education & health services, at 37.3% of covered employment, average pay $49,373/year. Trailing-12-month unemployment is 5.45%, above the 3.87% state average. The county carried the Republican presidential candidate in 2016, 2020, and 2024, taking 59% to 62% of the vote across the three.
- Population
- 18,321
- Median household income
- $54,037
- Unemployment
- 5.5%
Who sits on a jury?
50–70% White and ≥15% Black. This county: 67% / 1%.
Otero County has a population of 18,321, with a median age of 41.8. By Census race-alone categories, White residents make up 67.2%; Black residents 1.2%. Independently, 42.0% of residents identify as Hispanic or Latino of any race.
The median household earns $51,225; 18.2% of residents 25 and over hold a bachelor's degree or higher; 19.0% live below the federal poverty line.
Economic context
Largest sector in BLS QCEW, even counting every withheld job toward the other sectors: Education & health services, about 37% of covered jobs.
Education & health services is the largest employment sector at 37.3% of covered employment, followed by Trade, transportation & utilities at 19.5%. Trailing-12-month unemployment is 5.45%, above the Colorado state average.
Political composition
Republican candidate carried this county in 2016, 2020, and 2024 (avg winning share: 60%). 'Strongly' threshold: ≥60% avg.
Otero County was carried by the Republican candidate in the 2016, 2020, and 2024 cycles, with 61.8% in 2024, 60.1% in 2020, 59.3% in 2016.
Languages, households, faith & health
Family households are 63% of all households (thresholds: ≥70% = 'family-dominant'; 50–70% = 'family-majority'; <50% = 'singles/nonfamily-majority'). 15.2% of residents 5 and older speak a language other than English at home (threshold for 'linguistically diverse' is ≥10%).
15.2% of residents 5 years and older speak a language other than English at home. The most common are Spanish, German or other West Germanic, Tagalog. Veterans account for 6.6% of the adult civilian population (926 individuals).