Cortland is a Republican stronghold. About 21% of voters here vote Democratic and 79% Republican.
About 80% of adults in Cortland typically vote, above the U.S. average of about 62%. Among adults in Cortland, ~17% vote Democratic, ~63% Republican, and ~20% don't vote. The map below shows estimated turnout by block group.
How Cortland compares
Among cities within 25 miles, Cortland leans more Republican than 28 of 43 neighbors.
Cortland runs about 37 points more Republican than Nebraska as a whole.
Why Cortland 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 Cortland, not a ranked or complete list of what matters most.
Areas with many family households vote Republican. About 75% of households in Cortland are family households, about 9 points above the U.S. average of 67%.
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 Cortland, NE does.
Why turnout in Cortland looks the way it does
Areas with high high-school completion turn out at higher rates. About 97% of adults in Cortland 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
- Princeton, NE R+47
- Hallam, NE R+49
- Firth, NE R+48
- Clatonia, NE R+58
- Pickrell, NE R+58
- Sprague, NE R+48
- Adams, NE R+60
- Hickman, NE R+32
- Holland, NE R+41
- Martell, NE R+48
Cities with Similar Populations
- Mainesburg, PA R+57
- Hartland, IL R+28
- Suches, GA R+60
- Glenwillow, OH D+11
- Amboy, IN R+63
- Snead, AL R+85
- Lake Dalecarlia, IN R+42
- Arden, WA R+43
- Eldridge, AL R+86
- Thompsonville, MS R+14
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Sources and methodology
Precinct-level voting records used to fit the model come from Nebraska 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.