Belva is a Republican stronghold. About 17% of voters here vote Democratic and 83% Republican.
About 48% of adults in Belva typically vote, below the U.S. average of about 62%. Among adults in Belva, ~8% vote Democratic, ~40% Republican, and ~52% don't vote. The map below shows estimated turnout by block group.
How Belva compares
Among cities within 25 miles, Belva leans more Republican than 126 of 143 neighbors.
Belva runs about 24 points more Republican than West Virginia as a whole.
Politics vary noticeably by neighborhood within Belva. The west side is the most Republican-leaning (R+72) and the southwest side is the least Republican-leaning (R+54), a spread of about 18 points.
Why Belva leans the way it does
This analysis examined 14,881 data points per city to find what predicts political lean and turnout. The items below are a few correlations that stood out for Belva, not a ranked or complete list of what matters most.
Rural areas vote Republican. About 4% of residents in Belva live in densely developed areas, about 8 points below the West Virginia average of 12%. Low college attainment predicts Republican voting, and Belva sits in the bottom quarter (about 10%, below 93% of cities). A high family-household share predicts Republican voting, and about 82% of households in Belva are family households, above 92% of cities.
Walkability and Republican lean
Places with a low walkability score tend to lean Republican; Belva, WV sits in the bottom quarter nationally on this measure. A walkable street grid does not change how people vote; it mostly reflects how urban a place is.
Why turnout in Belva looks the way it does
High-crime urban areas turn out at lower rates, mostly because the housing stress common in those areas makes voting harder. Belva sits in the top 15% nationally on a violent-crime measure. See CrimeGrade for more details. Limited routine healthcare access lines up with lower turnout, and Belva sits in the bottom quarter on routine-care measures. High food insecurity lines up with lower turnout, and about 21% of adults in Belva report food insecurity, above 83% of cities. Learn more about the findings and methodology on the political spectrum map.
Nearby Cities
- Dixie, WV R+64
- Jodie, WV R+59
- Swiss, WV R+72
- Carbondale, WV R+54
- Mount Olive, WV R+53
- Vaughan, WV R+72
- Gauley Bridge, WV R+52
- Lizemores, WV R+66
- Glen Ferris, WV R+51
Cities with Similar Populations
- East Winthrop, ME R+8
- Garrison, MO R+66
- Lafontaine, KS R+70
- Central Park, WA R+18
- West Albion, MN R+47
- Rock, IL R+58
- Iuka, KS R+65
- Willard, NM R+49
- Ono, PA R+54
- Gether, VA R+26
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Sources and methodology
Precinct-level voting records used to fit the model come from West Virginia 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.