Howard County leans heavily Republican by roughly 50 points: about 25% of voters vote Democratic and 75% Republican.
About 50% of adults in Howard County typically vote, below the U.S. average of about 62%. Among adults in Howard County, ~12% vote Democratic, ~38% Republican, and ~50% don't vote. The map below shows estimated turnout by block group.
How Howard County compares
Among counties within 50 miles, Howard County leans more Republican than 3 of 8 neighbors.
Howard County runs about 36 points more Republican than Texas as a whole.
Politics vary noticeably by city within Howard County. The northeast side is the most Republican-leaning (R+79) and the west side is the least Republican-leaning (R+22), a spread of about 57 points.
Why Howard 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 Howard County, not a ranked or complete list of what matters most.
Areas with low college attainment vote Republican. About 15% of adults in Howard County hold a bachelor's degree, about 11 points below the Texas average of 26%. Dense places usually vote Democratic, but Howard County runs against that pattern.
Cancer-screening access and voter turnout
Places with low colon-cancer-screening access tend to turn out at a lower rate; Howard County, TX sits in the bottom tenth nationally on this measure. Cancer screening does not drive turnout; it reflects income, insurance, and healthcare access.
Why turnout in Howard County looks the way it does
Areas with limited routine healthcare access turn out at lower rates. Howard County 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 49%, about 11 points below the U.S. average of 60%. Learn more about the findings and methodology on the political spectrum map.
Nearby Counties
- Martin County, TX R+68
- Glasscock County, TX R+85
- Borden County, TX R+93
- Mitchell County, TX R+50
- Sterling County, TX R+80
- Midland County, TX R+48
- Dawson County, TX R+47
- Scurry County, TX R+66
- Ector County, TX R+42
- Nolan County, TX R+47
Counties with Similar Populations
- Lincoln County, MS R+37
- Wasatch County, UT R+33
- Chambers County, AL R+13
- Morrow County, OH R+58
- Monroe County, IL R+39
- Alcorn County, MS R+59
- Lincoln County, NE R+46
- Harris County, GA R+45
- Effingham County, IL R+56
- Clark County, WI R+43
Sources and methodology
Precinct-level voting records used to fit the model come from Texas Secretary of State, Elections Division, 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.