Florence is a Republican stronghold. About 21% of voters here vote Democratic and 79% Republican.
About 65% of adults in Florence typically vote, near the U.S. average of about 62%. Among adults in Florence, ~14% vote Democratic, ~51% Republican, and ~35% don't vote. The map below shows estimated turnout by block group.
How Florence compares
Among cities within 25 miles, Florence leans more Republican than 15 of 25 neighbors.
Florence runs about 28 points more Republican than South Dakota as a whole.
Why Florence 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 Florence, not a ranked or complete list of what matters most.
Areas with a high white share and below-average college attainment vote Republican. In Florence, about 96% of residents are non-Hispanic white, about 24 points above the U.S. average of 72%; about 17% of adults hold a bachelor's degree, about 9 points below the South Dakota average of 26%. Rural areas vote Republican, and Florence sits in the bottom quarter on density (about 4%, below 83% of cities). A high family-household share predicts Republican voting, and about 81% of households in Florence are family households, above 91% of cities.
Paved land cover and Republican lean
Places with little paved surface tend to lean Republican; Florence, SD sits in the bottom quarter nationally on this measure. Paved ground does not change how people vote; it mostly reflects how urban and built-up a place is.
Why turnout in Florence looks the way it does
Areas with strong routine healthcare access turn out at higher rates. Florence 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 94% of households in Florence own their home, about 19 points above the U.S. average of 75%. High high-school completion lines up with higher turnout, and about 96% of adults in Florence have completed high school, above 84% of cities. Learn more about the findings and methodology on the political spectrum map.
Nearby Cities
- Waverly, SD R+57
- Wallace, SD R+55
- Kampeska, SD R+57
- Henry, SD R+58
- Rauville, SD R+56
- Watertown, SD R+40
- South Shore, SD R+54
- Foley, SD R+54
- Bradley, SD R+60
- Grover, SD R+66
Cities with Similar Populations
- Lupton, AZ D+55
- Wrightsville, VT D+22
- Lower Marlboro, MD R+23
- North Belgrade, ME R+6
- Aultman, PA R+50
- Beaman, MO R+69
- Faunsdale, AL D+9
- Browns Crossroads, AL R+87
- Kings Creek, SC R+75
- Pool, WV R+63
All Local Stats
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Sources and methodology
Precinct-level voting records used to fit the model come from South Dakota 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.