Columbus is a Republican stronghold. About 20% of voters here vote Democratic and 80% Republican.
About 82% of adults in Columbus typically vote, above the U.S. average of about 62%. Among adults in Columbus, ~16% vote Democratic, ~66% Republican, and ~18% don't vote. The map below shows estimated turnout by block group.
How Columbus compares
Among cities within 25 miles, Columbus leans more Republican than 33 of 55 neighbors.
Columbus runs about 42 points more Republican than Missouri as a whole.
Why Columbus 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 Columbus, not a ranked or complete list of what matters most.
Areas with many family households vote Republican. About 78% of households in Columbus are family households, about 11 points above the U.S. average of 67%.
Never-married share, developed land, and voter turnout
Places that combine a low never-married share and a rural land-use pattern tend to turn out at a higher rate, as Columbus, MO does.
Why turnout in Columbus looks the way it does
Homeowners vote more often than renters. About 92% of households in Columbus own their home, about 13 points above the Missouri average of 78%. Learn more about the findings and methodology on the political spectrum map.
Nearby Cities
- Pittsville, MO R+60
- Lake Lafayette, MO R+61
- Fayetteville, MO R+61
- Centerview, MO R+52
- Chapel Hill, MO R+57
- Odessa, MO R+50
- Holden, MO R+50
- Kingsville, MO R+58
- Bates City, MO R+58
- Mayview, MO R+59
Cities with Similar Populations
- Witmer, PA R+27
- Gillett, AR R+53
- Ten Sleep, WY R+74
- Roseann, VA R+70
- Wampsville, NY R+30
- Kit Carson, CA R+28
- Grice, TX R+76
- Koppel, PA R+28
- Masonville, IA R+43
- Findley, MI R+49
All Local Stats
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Sources and methodology
Precinct-level voting records used to fit the model come from Missouri 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.