[2] Per Japanese census data,[3] the population of Kakuda peaked around 1950 and has fluctuated in the decades since, with a general trend of decline.

The town of Kakuda was established with the creation of the post-Meiji restoration modern municipalities system on April 1, 1889.

Kakuda has a mayor-council form of government with a directly elected mayor and a unicameral city legislature of 18 members.

In terms of national politics, the city is part of Miyagi 3rd district of the lower house of the Diet of Japan.

Kakuda has a mixed economy based on light manufacturing of automotive parts and electrics, and on agriculture, primarily the cultivation of soybeans and plums.