Joker is a Republican stronghold. About 17% of voters here vote Democratic and 83% Republican.
About 48% of adults in Joker typically vote, below the U.S. average of about 62%. Among adults in Joker, ~8% vote Democratic, ~39% Republican, and ~53% don't vote. The map below shows estimated turnout by block group.
How Joker compares
Among cities within 25 miles, Joker leans more Republican than 73 of 115 neighbors.
Joker runs about 24 points more Republican than West Virginia as a whole.
Why Joker 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 Joker, not a ranked or complete list of what matters most.
Rural areas vote Republican. About 5% of residents in Joker live in densely developed areas, about 7 points below the West Virginia average of 12%. A high white share with below-average college attainment predicts Republican voting, and Joker fits that profile on both counts.
Paved land cover and Republican lean
Places with little paved surface tend to lean Republican; Joker, WV sits in the bottom quarter 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 Joker looks the way it does
Areas with high food insecurity turn out at lower rates. About 22% of adults in Joker report food insecurity, about 6 points above the U.S. average of 16%. Limited routine healthcare access lines up with lower turnout, and Joker sits in the bottom quarter on routine-care measures. Low high-school completion lines up with lower turnout, and about 83% of adults in Joker have completed high school, below 85% of cities. Learn more about the findings and methodology on the political spectrum map.
Nearby Cities
- Mount Zion, WV R+63
- Annamoriah, WV R+66
- Big Bend, WV R+67
- Russet, WV R+64
- Grantsville, WV R+67
- Munday, WV R+66
- Pleasant Hill, WV R+66
- Sycamore, WV R+62
- Richardson, WV R+64
- Millstone, WV R+63
Cities with Similar Populations
- Mayfield, SD R+58
- Rotavele, CA R+27
- Picacho, NM R+51
- Lorenzo, IL R+38
- Galt, IL R+34
- Mound, LA R+73
- Thor, MN R+40
- Bristol Village, OH R+57
- Dog Town, PA R+59
- Eldred, MN R+54
Sources and methodology
Precinct-level voting records used to fit the model come from West Virginia 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.