Hamlin County is a Republican stronghold. About 18% of voters here vote Democratic and 82% Republican.
About 70% of adults in Hamlin County typically vote, above the U.S. average of about 62%. Among adults in Hamlin County, ~13% vote Democratic, ~57% Republican, and ~30% don't vote. The map below shows estimated turnout by block group.
How Hamlin County compares
Among counties within 50 miles, Hamlin County is the most Republican-leaning.
Hamlin County runs about 35 points more Republican than South Dakota as a whole.
Politics vary noticeably by city within Hamlin County. The northwest side is the most Republican-leaning (R+78) and the southeast side is the least Republican-leaning (R+50), a spread of about 28 points.
Why Hamlin 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 Hamlin County, not a ranked or complete list of what matters most.
Areas with many family households vote Republican. About 75% of households in Hamlin County are family households, about 8 points above the U.S. average of 67%. Rural areas with a high white share vote Republican. Non-Hispanic white share in Hamlin County is about 91%, about 19 points above the U.S. average of 72%.
Paved land cover and Republican lean
Places with little paved surface tend to lean Republican; Hamlin County, SD sits in the bottom tenth 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 Hamlin County looks the way it does
Areas with strong routine healthcare access turn out at higher rates. Hamlin County 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 70%, about 10 points above the U.S. average of 60%. Homeowners vote more often than renters, and about 82% of households in Hamlin County own their home, above 88% of counties. Learn more about the findings and methodology on the political spectrum map.
Nearby Counties
- Codington County, SD R+42
- Kingsbury County, SD R+50
- Deuel County, SD R+54
- Brookings County, SD R+25
- Clark County, SD R+57
- Lake County, SD R+38
- Grant County, SD R+52
- Lincoln County, MN R+49
- Miner County, SD R+52
- Moody County, SD R+40
Counties with Similar Populations
- Gentry County, MO R+63
- Van Buren County, TN R+71
- Quitman County, MS D+44
- Pendleton County, WV R+61
- Iron County, WI R+27
- Osceola County, IA R+57
- Presidio County, TX D+4
- Menifee County, KY R+64
- Clay County, NE R+64
- Shelby County, MO R+65
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.