Hooker County is a Republican stronghold. About 11% of voters here vote Democratic and 89% Republican.
About 76% of adults in Hooker County typically vote, above the U.S. average of about 62%. Among adults in Hooker County, ~8% vote Democratic, ~68% Republican, and ~24% don't vote. The map below shows estimated turnout by block group.
How Hooker County compares
Among counties within 50 miles, Hooker County leans more Republican than 2 of 5 neighbors.
Hooker County runs about 58 points more Republican than Nebraska as a whole.
Why Hooker 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 Hooker County, not a ranked or complete list of what matters most.
Rural areas vote Republican. Fewer than 1% of residents in Hooker County live in densely developed areas, about 16 points below the Nebraska average of 17%.
Paved land cover and Republican lean
Places with little paved surface tend to lean Republican; Hooker County, NE 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 Hooker County looks the way it does
Areas with strong routine healthcare access turn out at higher rates. Hooker 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 67%, about 7 points above the U.S. average of 60%. High high-school completion lines up with higher turnout, and about 95% of adults in Hooker County have completed high school, above 94% of counties. Learn more about the findings and methodology on the political spectrum map.
Nearby Counties
- Thomas County, NE R+76
- McPherson County, NE R+84
- Grant County, NE R+84
- Arthur County, NE R+59
- Logan County, NE R+83
- Blaine County, NE R+81
- Cherry County, NE R+67
- Lincoln County, NE R+46
- Keith County, NE R+60
- Brown County, NE R+74
Counties with Similar Populations
- Slope County, ND R+74
- Logan County, NE R+83
- San Juan County, CO D+29
- Esmeralda County, NV R+61
- Banner County, NE R+79
- Thomas County, NE R+76
- Kent County, TX R+79
- Terrell County, TX R+65
- Yakutat City and Borough, AK Even
- Treasure County, MT R+66
Sources and methodology
Precinct-level voting records used to fit the model come from Nebraska 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.