Benton is a Democratic stronghold. About 89% of voters here vote Democratic and 11% Republican.
About 58% of adults in Benton typically vote, near the U.S. average of about 62%. Among adults in Benton, ~52% vote Democratic, ~6% Republican, and ~42% don't vote. The map below shows estimated turnout by block group.
How Benton compares
Among cities within 25 miles, Benton leans more Democratic than 43 of 45 neighbors.
Benton runs about 109 points more Democratic than Alabama as a whole. Alabama leans Republican overall, while Benton is one of the few Democratic-leaning pockets.
Why Benton 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 Benton, not a ranked or complete list of what matters most.
Rural, majority-Black areas of the Southern Black Belt vote Democratic, against the usual rural pattern. About 94% of residents in Benton are Black or African American, about 70 points above the Alabama average of 24%. A high never-married share predicts Democratic voting, and about 56% of adults in Benton have never been married, in the top fraction of cities. Benton runs against the grain of Alabama, a Democratic-leaning pocket in a Republican-leaning state.
Walkability and Republican lean
Places with a low walkability score tend to lean Republican; Benton, AL sits in the bottom tenth 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 Benton looks the way it does
Areas with limited routine healthcare access turn out at lower rates. Benton is in the bottom quarter nationally for routine-care measures such as insurance coverage, preventive screenings, and dental visits. The dental-visit rate here is about 49%, about 11 points below the U.S. average of 60%. High food insecurity lines up with lower turnout, and about 33% of adults in Benton report food insecurity, above 97% of cities. Learn more about the findings and methodology on the political spectrum map.
Nearby Cities
- Petronia, AL D+79
- White Hall, AL D+52
- Tyler, AL R+12
- Mount Nebo, AL D+28
- Collirene, AL D+77
- St. Clair, AL R+38
- Mosses, AL D+80
- Lowndesboro, AL R+13
- Gordonville, AL D+78
- Mulberry, AL R+5
Cities with Similar Populations
- Couch, MO R+69
- Baizetown, KY R+70
- Gwenford, ID R+83
- Parkville, MN R+17
- Sanco, TX R+77
- Wailea, HI D+29
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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.