Cuyahoga County
County
Cuyahoga County Courthouse in Downtown Cleveland
Flag Seal
Etymology: Cuyahoga River
Map of Cuyahoga County within Ohio
Coordinates: 41°32′24″N 81°39′36″W / 41.54000°N 81.66000°W / 41.54000; -81.66000
Country	United States
State	Ohio
Region	Northeast Ohio
Founded	May 1, 1810
Named for	Cuyahoga River
County seat	Cleveland
Government
• County Executive	Chris Ronayne (D)
Area
• Total	1,246 sq mi (3,230 km2)
• Land	457 sq mi (1,180 km2)
• Water	788 sq mi (2,040 km2)
Elevation	653 ft (199 m)
Population  (2020)
• Total	1,264,817
• Estimate  (2022)	1,236,041
• Density	2,768/sq mi (1,069/km2)
Gross Domestic Product [1]
• Total	US$104.292 billion (2022)
Time zone	UTC−5 (EST)
• Summer (DST)	UTC−4 (EDT)
Area code	216
Congressional districts	7th, 11th
Largest city	Cleveland
Website	www.cuyahogacounty.us

Cuyahoga County (/ˌkaɪ.əˈhɒɡə/ or /ˌkaɪ.əˈhoʊɡə/^[2][3][4][5]) is a large urban county located in the northeastern part of the U.S. state of Ohio. The county seat and largest city is Cleveland.^[6] As of the 2020 census, its population was 1,264,817, making it the second-most populous county in the state.^[7]

Cuyahoga County is situated on the southern shore of Lake Erie, across the U.S.–Canada maritime border. The county is bisected by the Cuyahoga River, after which it was named. "Cuyahoga" is an Iroquoian word meaning "crooked river".^[8] It is the core county of the Cleveland, OH Metropolitan Statistical Area and Cleveland–Akron–Canton, OH Combined Statistical Area.

History

The land that became Cuyahoga County was previously part of the French colony of Canada (New France), which was ceded in 1763 to Great Britain and renamed Province of Quebec. In the early 1790s, the land became part of the Connecticut Western Reserve in the Northwest Territory, and it was purchased by the Connecticut Land Company in 1795. Cleveland was established one year later by General Moses Cleaveland near the mouth of the Cuyahoga River.^[9]

Cuyahoga County was created on June 7, 1807, and organized on May 1, 1810.^[10][11] Cleveland (then known as "Cleaveland") was selected as the county seat in 1809.^[12] The county was later reduced in size by the creation of Huron, Lake, and Lorain counties.^[13]

In 1831, future U.S. President James A. Garfield was born in what was at the time Cuyahoga County's Orange Township.^[14]

Geography

According to the United States Census Bureau, the county has an area of 1,246 sq mi (3,230 km²), of which 457 sq mi (1,180 km²) are land and 788 sq mi (2,040 km²) (63%) are water.^[15] It is the second-largest county in Ohio by area. A portion of Cuyahoga Valley National Park is in the county's southeastern section.

Adjacent counties

• Lake County (northeast)
• Geauga County (east)
• Summit County (southeast)
• Medina County (southwest)
• Lorain County (west)
• Portage County (southeast)

Demographics

2010 census

As of the 2010 census, there were 1,280,122 people, 571,457 households, and 319,996 families were residing in the county. The population density was 2,800 people/sq mi (1,081/km²). The 621,763 housing units averaged 1,346 per sq mi (520/km²). The racial makeup of the county was 63.6% White, 29.7% African American, 0.2% Native American, 2.6% Asian (0.9% Indian, 0.7% Chinese, 0.3% Filipino, 0.2% Korean, 0.2% Vietnamese, 0.1% Japanese), 1.8% from other races, and 2.1% from two or more races. About 4.8% of the population were Hispanics or Latinos of any race (3.1% Puerto Rican, 0.7% Mexican, 0.1% Dominican, 0.1% Guatemalan).^[21] Further, 16.5% were of German, 12.8% Irish, 8.8% Italian, 8.1% Polish, 5.9% English, 3.7% Slovak, and 3.1% Hungarian heritage.

Sizable numbers of Russians (1.7%), French, (1.4%), Arabs (1.4%), Ukrainians (1.2%), and Greeks (0.7%) were residing in the county; as their first language, 88.4% spoke English, 3.7% Spanish, and 4.9% some other Indo-European language.^[22] In addition, 7.3% of the population were foreign-born (of which 44.4% were born in Europe, 36.3% in Asia, and 12.1% in Latin America).^[22][23]

Of the 571,457 households, 28.5% had children under 18 living with them, 42.4% were married couples living together, 15.7% had a female householder with no husband present, and 37.9% were not families. About 32.8% of all households consisted of single individuals, and 12.1% consisted of someone living alone who was 65 or older. The average household size was 2.39, and the average family size was 3.06.

The age distribution in the county was as follows: 25.0% under 18, 8.0% between 18 and 24, 29.3% between 25 and 44, 22.2% between 45 and 64, and 15.6% who were 65 or older. The median age was 37 years old. For every 100 females, there were 89.5 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 85.2 males.

The median income in the county was $43,603 for a household and $58,631 and for a family. The county’s per capita income was $26,263. About 10.3% of families, 19.4% of those under age 18, and 9.3% of those age 65 or over, and 13.1% of the population as a whole was living below the poverty line.^[24]

Government

The Cuyahoga County Council and Executive exercise direct government over unincorporated areas of Cuyahoga County. As of 2012, this consisted of two small areas: Chagrin Falls Township and Olmsted Township.^[25]

Cuyahoga County had long been led by a three-member Board of County Commissioners, which is the default form of county government in the state.^[26] In July 2008, Federal Bureau of Investigation agents began raiding the offices of Cuyahoga County Commissioners and those of a wide range of cities, towns, and villages across Cuyahoga County. The investigation revealed extensive bribery and corruption across the area, affecting hundreds of millions of dollars in county contracts and business. The investigation led to the arrest of county commissioner Jimmy Dimora; county auditor Frank Russo; MetroHealth vice president John J. Carroll; former Strongsville councilman Patrick Coyne; former Ohio District Courts of Appeals judge Anthony O. Calabrese III; former Cuyahoga County Court of Common Pleas judge Bridget McCafferty; Cuyahoga County Sheriff Gerald McFaul; former Cleveland City Council member Sabra Pierce Scott; Cuyahoga County Court of Common Pleas judge Steven Terry; and a wide range of attorneys, building inspectors, consultants, contractors, school district employees, and mid and low level county workers.^[27]

On November 3, 2009, county voters overwhelmingly approved the adoption of a new county charter, which replaced the three-commissioner form of county government with an elected county executive and county prosecutor, and an 11-member county council. Each council member represents a single geographic district, with no at-large districts. The elected offices of auditor, clerk of courts, coroner, engineer, recorder, sheriff, and treasurer were abolished. The county executive was given authority to appoint individuals to these offices, which became part of the executive branch of the county. Summit County is the only other Ohio county with this form of government.^[28]

In the November 2, 2010, election, Lakewood Mayor Ed FitzGerald (D) defeated Matt Dolan (R) to become the first Cuyahoga County Executive.^[29] The first Cuyahoga County Council was also elected, with Democrats winning eight seats, while Republicans won three.^[30]

On September 25, 2018, Cuyahoga County passed legislation which specifically protects LGBTQ+ people in their anti-discrimination laws. The protections under the bill specify equal access for the LGBTQ+ community to employment, housing, and public accommodations. The County is one of 20 municipalities in Ohio with this specific protection. Alongside the new language, the legislation creates a three-person Commission of Human Rights for Cuyahoga County which would support citizens looking to file a discrimination complaint.^[31] This legislation evokes the Ohio Fairness Act, a bill currently stalled in the House and Senate which would amend this anti-discrimination legislation on a state level.^[32]

Politics

Like many major urban counties, Cuyahoga County is heavily Democratic. Given its New England heritage and diverse population, plus union and labor involvement, the county often provides the Democratic Party with the largest margins in Ohio. In the 19th century, the Western Reserve, which Cleveland is the economic center of "probably the most intensely antislavery section of the country."^[33][34] It last voted Republican at the presidential level in 1972, when Richard Nixon carried it with a plurality. The last Republican presidential candidate to win an absolute majority was Dwight D. Eisenhower in 1956. However, it has occasionally voted Republican in statewide landslides since then, such as for John Kasich in the 2014 gubernatorial election and for George Voinovich in the 2004 Senate election.

Democratic strength is concentrated in the City of Cleveland and suburbs in eastern Cuyahoga County, such as Shaker Heights and Solon.

Republican strength is concentrated in the southern Cuyahoga County suburbs, such as Strongsville and North Royalton. Suburbs in western Cuyahoga County, such as North Olmsted and Westlake tend to be more moderate.

Since around 2016, formerly Democratic working-class suburbs such as Middleburg Heights and Parma have trended to the GOP, while formerly GOP upscale suburbs such as Bay Village and Chagrin Falls have trended Democratic.^[35]