Jury Pool Profile
Dent County, Missouri
- County seat
- Salem
- Judicial district
- 42nd Judicial Circuit Court
- Population (July 2025 estimate)
- 14,584
- Census PEP. The five-year ACS survey average is 14,539.
At a glance
Dent County is a 14,584-person venue. The county population is 92% White (Census race-alone categories). Median household income is $54,798, $16,785 below the MO state median of $71,583; 16.5% of residents 25 and over hold a bachelor's degree or higher. 1.1% of residents 5 and older speak a language other than English at home. The largest employment sector is Education & health services, at 32.8% of covered employment, average pay $41,158/year. Trailing-12-month unemployment is 3.84%, below the 3.85% state average. The county carried the Republican presidential candidate in 2016, 2020, and 2024, taking 83% to 85% of the vote across the three.
- Population
- 14,539
- Median household income
- $56,312
- Unemployment
- 3.8%
Who sits on a jury?
≥70% White (race-alone) and <20% Black. This county: 92% / 0%.
Dent County has a population of 14,539, with a median age of 43.5. By Census race-alone categories, White residents make up 91.8%; Black residents 0.5%. Independently, 2.2% of residents identify as Hispanic or Latino of any race.
The median household earns $54,798; 16.5% of residents 25 and over hold a bachelor's degree or higher; 14.4% 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 33% of covered jobs.
Education & health services is the largest employment sector at 32.8% of covered employment, followed by Trade, transportation & utilities at 24.2%. Trailing-12-month unemployment is 3.84%, below the Missouri state average.
Political composition
Republican candidate carried this county in 2016, 2020, and 2024 (avg winning share: 84%). 'Strongly' threshold: ≥60% avg.
Dent County was carried by the Republican candidate in the 2016, 2020, and 2024 cycles, with 84.7% in 2024, 83.8% in 2020, 82.6% in 2016.
Languages, households, faith & health
Family households are 64% of all households (thresholds: ≥70% = 'family-dominant'; 50–70% = 'family-majority'; <50% = 'singles/nonfamily-majority'). 1.1% of residents 5 and older speak a language other than English at home (threshold for 'linguistically diverse' is ≥10%).
1.1% of residents 5 years and older speak a language other than English at home. The most common are Spanish, German or other West Germanic, Vietnamese. Veterans account for 11.4% of the adult civilian population (1,279 individuals).