Dakota, MN Political Map | Democrat & Republican Areas in Dakota

By the BestNeighborhood data science team. Last updated May 2026.

Dakota leans Republican by roughly 16 points: about 42% of voters vote Democratic and 58% Republican.

 

About 81% of adults in Dakota typically vote, above the U.S. average of about 62%. Among adults in Dakota, ~34% vote Democratic, ~47% Republican, and ~19% don't vote. The map below shows estimated turnout by block group.

How Dakota compares

Among cities within 25 miles, Dakota leans more Republican than 11 of 59 neighbors.

Dakota runs about 21 points more Republican than Minnesota as a whole. Minnesota leans Democratic overall, while Dakota is one of the few Republican-leaning pockets.

Politics vary noticeably by neighborhood within Dakota. The north side is the most Republican-leaning (R+24) and the east side is the least Republican-leaning (R+14), a spread of about 11 points.

Why Dakota 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 Dakota, not a ranked or complete list of what matters most.

Dakota votes against the grain of Minnesota. Minnesota leans Democratic overall, while Dakota runs about 21 points more Republican.

Preventive-care access and voter turnout

Places with strong routine preventive-care access tend to turn out at a higher rate; Dakota, MN sits in the top tenth nationally on this measure. Dental visits do not drive turnout; the rate reflects income, insurance, and healthcare access, which line up with who votes.

Why turnout in Dakota looks the way it does

Areas with strong routine healthcare access turn out at higher rates. Dakota is in the top quarter nationally for routine-care measures such as insurance coverage, preventive screenings, and dental visits. The dental-visit rate here is about 71%, about 11 points above the U.S. average of 60%. Homeowners vote more often than renters, and about 93% of households in Dakota own their home, about 18 points above the U.S. average of 75%. High high-school completion lines up with higher turnout, and about 96% of adults in Dakota have completed high school, above 81% of cities. Learn more about the findings and methodology on the political spectrum map.

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Sources and methodology

Precinct-level voting records used to fit the model come from Minnesota 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.