Benton County leans Republican by roughly 20 points: about 40% of voters vote Democratic and 60% Republican.
About 73% of adults in Benton County typically vote, above the U.S. average of about 62%. Among adults in Benton County, ~29% vote Democratic, ~44% Republican, and ~27% don't vote. The map below shows estimated turnout by block group.
How Benton County compares
Among counties within 50 miles, Benton County leans more Republican than 2 of 5 neighbors.
Benton County runs about 39 points more Republican than Washington as a whole. Washington leans Democratic overall, while Benton County is one of the few Republican-leaning pockets.
Politics vary noticeably by city within Benton County. The south side is the most Republican-leaning (R+37) and the north side is the least Republican-leaning (R+7), a spread of about 30 points.
Why Benton County leans the way it does
This analysis examined 14,881 data points per county to find what predicts political lean and turnout. The items below are a few correlations that stood out for Benton County, not a ranked or complete list of what matters most.
Benton County votes Republican even though it is densely developed (about 76%, far above the Washington average of 41%). State and regional patterns outweigh the Democratic lean that density usually predicts here. Benton County runs against the grain of Washington, a Republican-leaning pocket in a Democratic-leaning state.
Paved land cover and Democratic lean
Places with extensive paved surfaces tend to lean Democratic; Benton County, WA sits in the top 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 Benton County looks the way it does
Turnout in Benton County sits close to the national pattern. Routine healthcare access, homeownership, education, and food security all land near their national averages here. Learn more about the findings and methodology on the political spectrum map.
Nearby Counties
- Franklin County, WA R+16
- Umatilla County, OR R+34
- Morrow County, OR R+36
- Walla Walla County, WA R+7
- Adams County, WA R+31
- Yakima County, WA R+6
- Columbia County, WA R+51
- Grant County, WA R+34
- Gilliam County, OR R+48
- Garfield County, WA R+58
Counties with Similar Populations
- Muscogee County, GA D+25
- Elkhart County, IN R+28
- Richmond County, GA D+41
- Champaign County, IL D+29
- Clermont County, OH R+37
- Harrison County, MS R+18
- Onslow County, NC R+23
- Washington County, PA R+24
- Yuma County, AZ R+8
- Anderson County, SC R+43
Sources and methodology
Precinct-level voting records used to fit the model come from Washington 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.