Buffalo Prairie leans heavily Republican by roughly 40 points: about 30% of voters vote Democratic and 70% Republican.
About 80% of adults in Buffalo Prairie typically vote, above the U.S. average of about 62%. Among adults in Buffalo Prairie, ~24% vote Democratic, ~56% Republican, and ~20% don't vote. The map below shows estimated turnout by block group.
How Buffalo Prairie compares
Among cities within 25 miles, Buffalo Prairie leans more Republican than 48 of 60 neighbors.
Buffalo Prairie runs about 51 points more Republican than Illinois as a whole. Illinois leans Democratic overall, while Buffalo Prairie is one of the few Republican-leaning pockets.
Politics vary noticeably by neighborhood within Buffalo Prairie. The southwest side is the most Republican-leaning (R+51) and the north side is the least Republican-leaning (R+33), a spread of about 18 points.
Why Buffalo Prairie 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 Buffalo Prairie, not a ranked or complete list of what matters most.
Buffalo Prairie votes against the grain of Illinois. Illinois leans Democratic overall, while Buffalo Prairie runs about 51 points more Republican.
High-school completion, developed land, and voter turnout
Places that combine high-school-completion-heavy adults and a rural land-use pattern tend to turn out at a higher rate, as Buffalo Prairie, IL does.
Why turnout in Buffalo Prairie looks the way it does
Areas with high high-school completion turn out at higher rates. About 97% of adults in Buffalo Prairie have completed high school, about 7 points above the U.S. average of 90%. Learn more about the findings and methodology on the political spectrum map.
Nearby Cities
- Illinois City, IL R+38
- Hamlet, IL R+37
- Millersburg, IL R+50
- Taylor Ridge, IL R+32
- Reynolds, IL R+38
- Joy, IL R+50
- Andalusia, IL R+21
- New Era, IA R+27
- Montpelier, IA R+28
- Buffalo, IA R+26
Cities with Similar Populations
- Isle Labbe, LA R+60
- Green Bank, WV R+57
- Olivia, TX R+70
- Wood, SD R+41
- Jonesburg, LA R+86
- Trade Lake, WI R+40
- Womacks, VA R+30
- Tesuque, NM D+56
- Monterey, KY R+63
- Sierra City, CA R+12
Sources and methodology
Precinct-level voting records used to fit the model come from Illinois 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.