Emerald Isle leans Republican by roughly 30 points: about 35% of voters vote Democratic and 65% Republican.
About 94% of adults in Emerald Isle typically vote, above the U.S. average of about 62%. Among adults in Emerald Isle, ~33% vote Democratic, ~61% Republican, and ~6% don't vote. The map below shows estimated turnout by block group.
How Emerald Isle compares
Among cities within 25 miles, Emerald Isle leans more Republican than 17 of 34 neighbors.
Emerald Isle runs about 27 points more Republican than North Carolina as a whole.
Why Emerald Isle 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 Emerald Isle, not a ranked or complete list of what matters most.
Emerald Isle votes Republican even though it is densely developed (about 26%, about 10 points below the U.S. average of 36%). Here an older population outweighs the Democratic lean that density usually predicts.
Cancer-screening access and voter turnout
Places with high colon-cancer-screening access tend to turn out at a higher rate; Emerald Isle, NC sits in the top tenth nationally on this measure. Cancer screening does not drive turnout; it reflects income, insurance, and healthcare access.
Why turnout in Emerald Isle looks the way it does
Areas with strong routine healthcare access turn out at higher rates. Emerald Isle 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 74%, about 13 points above the U.S. average of 60%. High high-school completion lines up with higher turnout, and about 99% of adults in Emerald Isle have completed high school, above 97% of cities. Learn more about the findings and methodology on the political spectrum map.
Nearby Cities
- Cape Carteret, NC R+39
- Cedar Point, NC R+42
- Bogue, NC R+41
- Peletier, NC R+51
- Swansboro, NC R+45
- Salter Path, NC R+26
- Indian Beach, NC R+26
- Stella, NC R+45
- Hubert, NC R+42
Cities with Similar Populations
- Dillsboro, IN R+59
- Andrews, NC R+48
- Speedwell, TN R+74
- Colfax, LA R+58
- Arcadia, OK R+41
- Sabetha, KS R+62
- Laton, CA R+37
- Lincoln, ME R+28
- Crandon, WI R+27
- Eminence, KY R+40
Sources and methodology
Precinct-level voting records used to fit the model come from North Carolina 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.