Bertie County leans Democratic by roughly 20 points: about 60% of voters vote Democratic and 40% Republican.
About 73% of adults in Bertie County typically vote, above the U.S. average of about 62%. Among adults in Bertie County, ~44% vote Democratic, ~29% Republican, and ~27% don't vote. The map below shows estimated turnout by block group.
How Bertie County compares
Among counties within 50 miles, Bertie County leans more Democratic than 12 of 16 neighbors.
Bertie County runs about 22 points more Democratic than North Carolina as a whole. North Carolina leans Republican overall, while Bertie County is one of the few Democratic-leaning pockets.
Politics vary noticeably by city within Bertie County. The southwest side runs the most Democratic (D+71) and the east side runs the most Republican (R+19), a spread of about 90 points.
Why Bertie 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 Bertie County, 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 58% of residents in Bertie County are Black or African American, about 40 points above the North Carolina average of 18%. A high never-married share predicts Democratic voting, and about 33% of adults in Bertie County have never been married, above 77% of counties. Bertie County runs against the grain of North Carolina, a Democratic-leaning pocket in a Republican-leaning state.
Walkability and Republican lean
Places with a low walkability score tend to lean Republican; Bertie County, NC 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 Bertie County looks the way it does
Areas with limited routine healthcare access turn out at lower rates. Bertie County is in the bottom quarter nationally for routine-care measures such as insurance coverage, preventive screenings, and dental visits. Learn more about the findings and methodology on the political spectrum map.
Nearby Counties
- Hertford County, NC D+25
- Chowan County, NC R+12
- Martin County, NC R+4
- Washington County, NC D+7
- Gates County, NC R+29
- Perquimans County, NC R+34
- Northampton County, NC D+15
- Beaufort County, NC R+24
- Edgecombe County, NC D+26
- Franklin City, VA D+32
Counties with Similar Populations
- Kalkaska County, MI R+42
- Unicoi County, TN R+57
- Johnson County, TN R+67
- Grant County, AR R+71
- Madison County, FL R+18
- Schuyler County, NY R+23
- Benzie County, MI R+10
- Attala County, MS R+13
- Russell County, KY R+67
- Southampton County, VA R+22
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Sources and methodology
Precinct-level voting records used to fit the model come from North Carolina State Board of 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.