Hays leans slightly Republican by roughly 14 points: about 43% of voters vote Democratic and 57% Republican.
About 52% of adults in Hays typically vote, below the U.S. average of about 62%. Among adults in Hays, ~22% vote Democratic, ~30% Republican, and ~48% don't vote. The map below shows estimated turnout by block group.
How Hays compares
Among cities within 25 miles, Hays leans more Republican than 13 of 59 neighbors.
Hays runs about 9 points more Democratic than Mississippi as a whole.
Politics vary noticeably by neighborhood within Hays. The northeast side is the most split-leaning (R+74) and the north side is the least split-leaning (Even), a spread of about 72 points.
Why Hays 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 Hays, not a ranked or complete list of what matters most.
Areas with low college attainment vote Republican. About 13% of adults in Hays hold a bachelor's degree, about 6 points below the Mississippi average of 19%. A high family-household share predicts Republican voting, and about 89% of households in Hays are family households, in the top fraction of cities.
Walkability and Republican lean
Places with a low walkability score tend to lean Republican; Hays, MS sits in the bottom quarter nationally on this measure. A walkable street grid does not change how people vote; it mostly reflects how urban a place is.
Why turnout in Hays looks the way it does
Areas with limited routine healthcare access turn out at lower rates. Hays 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 5%, about 55 points below the U.S. average of 60%. High food insecurity lines up with lower turnout, and about 43% of adults in Hays report food insecurity, in the top fraction of cities. Learn more about the findings and methodology on the political spectrum map.
Nearby Cities
- Conehatta, MS R+31
- Gum Springs, MS Even
- Usrytown, MS R+48
- Prospect, MS R+85
- Sebastopol, MS R+60
- Harperville, MS D+17
- Lake, MS R+31
- Forest, MS D+7
- Hillsboro, MS D+11
- High Hill, MS R+52
Cities with Similar Populations
- Rexville, WA D+9
- Thornburg, PA D+18
- Boyd, MT R+60
- Pitcherville, MA R+12
- East Dickinson, NY R+43
- Avoca, NE R+50
- White Tower, KY R+44
- Hunter, ND R+44
- Pine Hill, NY D+8
- Lehigh, OK R+71
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Sources and methodology
Precinct-level voting records used to fit the model come from Mississippi 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.