Fort McDowell leans heavily Democratic by roughly 44 points: about 72% of voters vote Democratic and 28% Republican.
About 47% of adults in Fort McDowell typically vote, below the U.S. average of about 62%. Among adults in Fort McDowell, ~34% vote Democratic, ~13% Republican, and ~53% don't vote. The map below shows estimated turnout by block group.
How Fort McDowell compares
Among cities within 25 miles, Fort McDowell is the most Democratic-leaning.
Fort McDowell runs about 49 points more Democratic than Arizona as a whole. Arizona leans Republican overall, while Fort McDowell is one of the few Democratic-leaning pockets.
Politics vary noticeably by neighborhood within Fort McDowell. The north side runs the most Democratic (D+55) and the southeast side runs the most Republican (R+44), a spread of about 98 points.
Why Fort McDowell 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 Fort McDowell, not a ranked or complete list of what matters most.
Fort McDowell votes against the grain of Arizona. Arizona leans Republican overall, while Fort McDowell runs about 49 points more Democratic. A high never-married share predicts Democratic voting, and about 57% of adults in Fort McDowell have never been married, in the top fraction of cities.
Cancer-screening access and voter turnout
Places with low colon-cancer-screening access tend to turn out at a lower rate; Fort McDowell, AZ 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 Fort McDowell looks the way it does
Areas with limited routine healthcare access turn out at lower rates. Fort McDowell is in the bottom quarter nationally for routine-care measures such as insurance coverage, preventive screenings, and dental visits. The dental-visit rate here is about 40%, about 14 points below the Arizona average of 54%. High food insecurity lines up with lower turnout, and about 38% of adults in Fort McDowell report food insecurity, above 98% of cities. Low high-school completion lines up with lower turnout, and about 79% of adults in Fort McDowell have completed high school, below 92% of cities. Learn more about the findings and methodology on the political spectrum map.
Nearby Cities
- Fountain Hills, AZ R+21
- Alchesay Flat, AZ D+6
- Rio Verde, AZ R+26
- Scottsdale, AZ R+3
- Goldfield, AZ R+47
- Mesa, AZ R+7
- Apache Junction, AZ R+28
- Paradise Valley, AZ R+15
- Higley, AZ R+17
- Carefree, AZ R+26
Cities with Similar Populations
- Goodland, IN R+57
- Leetsdale, PA D+11
- Bodega, CA D+44
- Illiopolis, IL R+44
- North Haven, NY D+31
- Courtland, MN R+51
- Franklin, WV R+50
- Tabor, SD R+59
- Bruceville-Eddy, TX R+65
- Conewango Valley, NY R+55
Sources and methodology
Precinct-level voting records used to fit the model come from Arizona 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.