Alabama leans Republican by roughly 22 points: about 39% of voters vote Democratic and 61% Republican.
About 68% of adults in Alabama typically vote, above the U.S. average of about 62%. Among adults in Alabama, ~26% vote Democratic, ~42% Republican, and ~32% don't vote. The map below shows estimated turnout by block group.
How Alabama compares
Among states within 500 miles, Alabama leans more Republican than 9 of 11 neighbors.
Politics vary noticeably by county within Alabama. The northeast side is the most Republican-leaning (R+61) and the southeast side is the least Republican-leaning (R+8), a spread of about 53 points.
Why Alabama leans the way it does
This analysis examined 14,881 data points per state to find what predicts political lean and turnout. The items below are a few correlations that stood out for Alabama, not a ranked or complete list of what matters most.
Rural areas vote Republican, and Alabama sits in the bottom quarter on developed land relative to similar places. Low college attainment predicts Republican voting, and Alabama sits in the bottom quarter (about 28%, below 84% of states).
Paved land cover and Republican lean
Places with little paved surface tend to lean Republican; Alabama sits in the bottom tenth nationally on this measure. Paved ground does not change how people vote; it mostly reflects how urban and built-up a place is.
Why turnout in Alabama looks the way it does
Turnout in Alabama sits close to the national pattern. Learn more about the findings and methodology on the political spectrum map.
Nearby States
- Mississippi R+13
- Georgia D+4
- Tennessee R+23
- Louisiana R+13
- Kentucky R+28
- South Carolina R+12
- Arkansas R+25
- Florida R+7
- North Carolina Even
- Missouri R+14
States with Similar Populations
Sources and methodology
Precinct-level voting records used to fit the model come from Alabama Secretary of State, Elections, distributed by the Voting and Election Science Team. Demographic inputs come from the U.S. Census Bureau (ACS 5-year estimates and the 2020 Decennial Census). Health and environmental inputs come from the CDC (PLACES and the Environmental Justice Index). Land cover comes from the USGS and EPA. Election-day and lead-up weather come from PRISM 4km daily grids and the NOAA Global Historical Climatology Network. Mail-voting and election-administration patterns come from the MIT Election Lab's Survey of the Performance of American Elections. Block-group crime detail comes from CrimeGrade. Internet data and modeling support provided by ISPreports.org.
Modeling and analysis by the BestNeighborhood data science team. Full methodology and findings: political spectrum map.
Methodology reviewed by the BestNeighborhood data team. Last updated May 2026.