Grand Forks County leans slightly Republican by roughly 8 points: about 46% of voters vote Democratic and 54% Republican.
About 66% of adults in Grand Forks County typically vote, near the U.S. average of about 62%. Among adults in Grand Forks County, ~30% vote Democratic, ~36% Republican, and ~34% don't vote. The map below shows estimated turnout by block group.
How Grand Forks County compares
Among counties within 50 miles, Grand Forks County is the least Republican-leaning.
Grand Forks County runs about 28 points more Democratic than North Dakota as a whole.
Politics vary noticeably by city within Grand Forks County. The east side runs the most Democratic (D+4) and the west side runs the most Republican (R+51), a spread of about 55 points.
Why Grand Forks 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 Grand Forks County, not a ranked or complete list of what matters most.
Grand Forks County votes Republican even though it is densely developed (about 78%, far above the North Dakota average of 12%). State and regional patterns outweigh the Democratic lean that density usually predicts here.
Preventive-care access and voter turnout
Places with strong routine preventive-care access tend to turn out at a higher rate; Grand Forks County, ND sits above the national average on this measure. Dental visits do not drive turnout; the rate reflects income, insurance, and healthcare access, which line up with who votes.
Why turnout in Grand Forks County looks the way it does
Areas with high high-school completion turn out at higher rates. About 96% of adults in Grand Forks County have completed high school, about 6 points above the U.S. average of 90%. Learn more about the findings and methodology on the political spectrum map.
Nearby Counties
- Polk County, MN R+31
- Traill County, ND R+37
- Marshall County, MN R+53
- Walsh County, ND R+46
- Steele County, ND R+33
- Red Lake County, MN R+47
- Pennington County, MN R+32
- Norman County, MN R+27
- Nelson County, ND R+43
- Griggs County, ND R+52
Counties with Similar Populations
- Kauai County, HI D+20
- Putnam County, FL R+42
- Lauderdale County, MS R+5
- Fauquier County, VA R+19
- McKinley County, NM D+27
- Robertson County, TN R+46
- Christian County, KY R+21
- Tooele County, UT R+45
- Pottawatomie County, OK R+49
- Scioto County, OH R+47
Sources and methodology
Precinct-level voting records used to fit the model come from North 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.