Fentress County is a Republican stronghold. About 16% of voters here vote Democratic and 84% Republican.
About 69% of adults in Fentress County typically vote, above the U.S. average of about 62%. Among adults in Fentress County, ~11% vote Democratic, ~58% Republican, and ~31% don't vote. The map below shows estimated turnout by block group.
How Fentress County compares
Among counties within 50 miles, Fentress County leans more Republican than 12 of 18 neighbors.
Fentress County runs about 38 points more Republican than Tennessee as a whole.
Why Fentress 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 Fentress County, not a ranked or complete list of what matters most.
Areas with a high white share and below-average college attainment vote Republican. In Fentress County, about 93% of residents are non-Hispanic white, about 21 points above the U.S. average of 72%; about 14% of adults hold a bachelor's degree, about 8 points below the Tennessee average of 22%.
Population density and Republican lean
Places with low population density tend to lean Republican; Fentress County, TN sits in the bottom quarter nationally on this measure.
Why turnout in Fentress County looks the way it does
Homeowners vote more often than renters. About 84% of households in Fentress County own their home, about 7 points above the Tennessee average of 77%. Learn more about the findings and methodology on the political spectrum map.
Nearby Counties
- Pickett County, TN R+70
- Overton County, TN R+67
- Scott County, TN R+70
- Morgan County, TN R+70
- Clinton County, KY R+72
- Cumberland County, TN R+57
- Wayne County, KY R+65
- Putnam County, TN R+43
- McCreary County, KY R+70
- Clay County, TN R+67
Counties with Similar Populations
- Ste. Genevieve County, MO R+55
- Lamar County, GA R+36
- Westmoreland County, VA R+14
- Cedar County, IA R+34
- Yancey County, NC R+43
- Appling County, GA R+53
- Hampton County, SC D+9
- Randolph County, AR R+63
- Dickinson County, KS R+51
- Deaf Smith County, TX R+30
Sources and methodology
Precinct-level voting records used to fit the model come from Tennessee Secretary of State, Division 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.