Hughson leans heavily Republican by roughly 32 points: about 34% of voters vote Democratic and 66% Republican.
About 57% of adults in Hughson typically vote, near the U.S. average of about 62%. Among adults in Hughson, ~19% vote Democratic, ~38% Republican, and ~43% don't vote. The map below shows estimated turnout by block group.
How Hughson compares
Among cities within 25 miles, Hughson leans more Republican than 18 of 36 neighbors.
Hughson runs about 53 points more Republican than California as a whole. California leans Democratic overall, while Hughson is one of the few Republican-leaning pockets.
Politics vary noticeably by neighborhood within Hughson. The southeast side is the most Republican-leaning (R+52) and the south side is the least Republican-leaning (R+21), a spread of about 31 points.
Why Hughson 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 Hughson, not a ranked or complete list of what matters most.
Hughson votes Republican even though it is densely developed (about 57%, about 21 points above the U.S. average of 36%). State and regional patterns outweigh the Democratic lean that density usually predicts here. A high family-household share predicts Republican voting, and about 77% of households in Hughson are family households, above 83% of cities. Hughson runs against the grain of California, a Republican-leaning pocket in a Democratic-leaning state.
Never-married share, developed land, and voter turnout
Places that combine a never-married-heavy adult population and a heavily developed built environment tend to turn out at a lower rate, as Hughson, CA does.
Why turnout in Hughson looks the way it does
Areas with limited routine healthcare access turn out at lower rates. Hughson is in the bottom quarter nationally for routine-care measures such as insurance coverage, preventive screenings, and dental visits. Renters vote less often than owners, and about 34% of households in Hughson rent, above 89% of cities. Crowded housing lines up with lower turnout, and about 4% of homes in Hughson have more than one occupant per room, above 82% of cities. Learn more about the findings and methodology on the political spectrum map.
Nearby Cities
- Empire, CA R+38
- Keyes, CA R+16
- Ceres, CA R+5
- Denair, CA R+43
- Waterford, CA R+30
- Turlock, CA R+13
- Modesto, CA Even
- Hickman, CA R+56
- Riverbank, CA R+12
- Oakdale, CA R+28
Cities with Similar Populations
- Cross Lanes, WV R+25
- Rupert, ID R+54
- Chillicothe, IL R+20
- Marathon, FL R+24
- Tyrone, GA R+4
- Sedona, AZ D+13
- Gunnison, CO D+23
- Timonium, MD D+21
- Edwards, CO D+22
- Madison, NC R+49
All Local Stats
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Sources and methodology
Precinct-level voting records used to fit the model come from California 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.