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HOW WE'VE GROWN: Data shows Newton population surged 13% since 2010
Population density
According to the 2020 Census data, Newton County’s population density ranges from at least 10,000 per square mile in western Newton and central Covington (dark blue), to 99 or less per square mile in eastern Newton (light green). - photo by Courtesy of the U.S. Census Bureau

COVINGTON, Ga. — Newton County added more than 12,000 new residents in the past decade to surge in population to more than 112,000 in 2020.

It also became a minority-majority county between 2010 and 2020 after Black and Latino residents combined to become more than half the population, according to recently released totals from the 2020 U.S. Census.

Census data released for government redistricting purposes show Newton County’s population grew 13% between 2010 and 2020 — almost twice the U.S. rate of 7% and well above Georgia’s statewide rate of 10.5% during the same time period.

The county’s population grew by 12,524 in 10 years — from 99,959 in 2010 to 112,483 in 2020.

The numbers released Aug. 12 showed:

• The county’s population grew by an average of 1,252 annually between 2010 and 2020.

• Newton County’s white population dropped from 52% of the total population in 2010, to 42% in 2020.

More than 5,000 fewer white residents lived in Newton County in 2020 compared to 2010 — decreasing from 51,995 in 2010 to 46,746 in 2020.

• The Black population increased from 40% of the total in 2010 to 46% in 2020 — making it the dominant race in Newton County.

Almost 12,000 additional Black residents made Newton their home, with the number increasing from 40,371 in 2010 to 52,246 in 2020, according to the Census Bureau.

By comparison, white residents made up 50% of the statewide population in 2020 (56% in 2010) and Black residents comprised 31% of Georgia’s total in 2020 (30% in 2010).

• The number of Hispanic or Latino residents in Newton County increased by more than 50% in 10 years, with 4,635 counted in 2010 and 7,164 in 2020.

Their share of Newton County’s population increased from 4.6% in 2010 to 6.4% in 2020 — below their statewide share of 10.5% of Georgia’s population in 2020.

• The number of residents identifying themselves as Two or More Races — also identified as multiracial — rose from 1.7% in 2010 to 3.8% in 2020.

Other population groups did not significantly change their shares of the county’s population in the decade, with the largest segment of the 2020 population being Asian residents at 0.9%, followed by Some Other Race, 0.7%; American Indian, 0.2%; and Pacific Islander, 0.1%.

Nationally the white population remained the largest race or ethnicity group in the U.S. with 204.3 million people identifying as white alone. Overall, 235.4 million people reported white alone or in combination with another group. However, the white alone population decreased by 8.6% since 2010, the Census Bureau reported.