Gary leans heavily Republican by roughly 36 points: about 32% of voters vote Democratic and 68% Republican.
About 37% of adults in Gary typically vote, below the U.S. average of about 62%. Among adults in Gary, ~12% vote Democratic, ~25% Republican, and ~63% don't vote. The map below shows estimated turnout by block group.
How Gary compares
Among cities within 25 miles, Gary leans more Republican than 12 of 157 neighbors.
Gary runs about 6 points more Democratic than West Virginia as a whole.
Politics vary noticeably by neighborhood within Gary. The southwest side is the most Republican-leaning (R+66) and the northeast side is the least Republican-leaning (R+8), a spread of about 57 points.
Why Gary 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 Gary, not a ranked or complete list of what matters most.
Rural areas vote Republican. About 5% of residents in Gary live in densely developed areas, about 7 points below the West Virginia average of 12%. Low college attainment predicts Republican voting, and Gary sits in the bottom quarter (about 14%, below 80% of cities).
Food insecurity and voter turnout
Places with high food insecurity tend to turn out at a lower rate; Gary, WV sits in the top tenth nationally on this measure. Food insecurity does not directly drive turnout; it reflects economic hardship, which lines up with lower voting.
Why turnout in Gary looks the way it does
Areas with limited routine healthcare access turn out at lower rates. Gary 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 42%, about 9 points below the West Virginia average of 52%. High food insecurity lines up with lower turnout, and about 30% of adults in Gary report food insecurity, above 95% of cities. High-crime urban areas turn out at lower rates, and Gary sits in the top 15% on a violent-crime measure. Learn more about the findings and methodology on the political spectrum map.
Nearby Cities
- Thorpe, WV R+23
- Monson, WV R+66
- Pageton, WV R+53
- Kimball, WV R+23
- Landgraff, WV R+30
- Caretta, WV R+70
- Anawalt, WV R+58
- Welch, WV R+32
- Keystone, WV R+19
Cities with Similar Populations
- Glenwood, MI R+38
- El Rito, NM D+26
- Camargo, IL R+56
- Canaan Center, NH R+12
- Hodge, LA R+34
- Floyd, IA R+44
- Smithville, OK R+78
- Wisner, NY R+19
- Wahkon, MN R+40
- Cedar Grove, IN R+68
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Sources and methodology
Precinct-level voting records used to fit the model come from West Virginia 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.