Elmore County leans heavily Republican by roughly 42 points: about 29% of voters vote Democratic and 71% Republican.
About 59% of adults in Elmore County typically vote, near the U.S. average of about 62%. Among adults in Elmore County, ~17% vote Democratic, ~42% Republican, and ~41% don't vote. The map below shows estimated turnout by block group.
How Elmore County compares
Elmore County sits in a sparsely populated area with few comparable counties nearby.
Elmore County runs about 6 points more Republican than Idaho as a whole.
Politics vary noticeably by city within Elmore County. The southwest side is the most Republican-leaning (R+60) and the west side is the least Republican-leaning (R+34), a spread of about 27 points.
Why Elmore 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 Elmore County, not a ranked or complete list of what matters most.
Car-dependent areas vote Republican. About 83% of residents in Elmore County drive to work alone, about 9 points above the U.S. average of 74%.
Cancer-screening access and voter turnout
Places with low colon-cancer-screening access tend to turn out at a lower rate; Elmore County, ID sits in the bottom tenth nationally on this measure. Cancer screening does not drive turnout; it reflects income, insurance, and healthcare access.
Why turnout in Elmore County looks the way it does
Areas with limited routine healthcare access turn out at lower rates. Elmore County is in the bottom quarter nationally for routine-care measures such as insurance coverage, preventive screenings, and dental visits. Renters vote less often than owners, and about 36% of households in Elmore County rent, above 88% of counties. Crowded housing lines up with lower turnout, and about 4% of homes in Elmore County have more than one occupant per room, above 84% of counties. Learn more about the findings and methodology on the political spectrum map.
Nearby Counties
- Ada County, ID R+8
- Camas County, ID R+72
- Gooding County, ID R+54
- Owyhee County, ID R+63
- Boise County, ID R+50
- Canyon County, ID R+40
- Gem County, ID R+58
- Jerome County, ID R+48
- Lincoln County, ID R+63
- Twin Falls County, ID R+45
Counties with Similar Populations
- Stoddard County, MO R+62
- Le Sueur County, MN R+32
- Cherokee County, NC R+51
- Jasper County, SC Even
- Garrett County, MD R+50
- Marion County, MO R+44
- Custer County, OK R+49
- Marion County, TN R+62
- Perry County, KY R+61
- Pine County, MN R+37
Sources and methodology
Precinct-level voting records used to fit the model come from Idaho 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.