For first time, Wake County tops Mecklenburg County in estimated NC population

North Carolina has a new population leader.

Mecklenburg County is no longer the state’s most populous county, new U.S. Census Bureau estimates show.

After years of creeping up on Mecklenburg, Wake County, which includes Raleigh, finally overtook it — 1.13 million to 1.12 million.

The change came after Wake grew by 1.75% from 2019-20 and Mecklenburg grew by 1.41%, according to annual population estimates released Tuesday. The census bureau has yet to release an official population count, which will be detailed in the 2020 Census.

Other highlights from the 2019-20 estimates include:

▪ The two fastest-growing N.C. counties were on the coast — Brunswick County on the southeast coast grew at 4.2% and Currituck County on the northeast coast grew by 4.1%.

▪ Combined, Mecklenburg and Wake counties make up more than 20% of the state’s population.

▪ Four neighboring counties — Cabarrus, Iredell, Union and Lincoln — outpaced Mecklenburg’s growth percentage-wise. Cabarrus grew the fastest at 2.4%.

▪ 31 of the state’s 100 counties lost population. Several were in the northeast part of the state, including Hertford County, which lost 2.3% of its population — the biggest percentage decrease in the state.

▪ North Carolina is now home to an estimated 10.6 million people. The state will pick up one congressional seat