Kayford is a Republican stronghold. About 21% of voters here vote Democratic and 79% Republican.
About 46% of adults in Kayford typically vote, below the U.S. average of about 62%. Among adults in Kayford, ~10% vote Democratic, ~36% Republican, and ~54% don't vote. The map below shows estimated turnout by block group.
How Kayford compares
Among cities within 25 miles, Kayford leans more Republican than 88 of 173 neighbors.
Kayford runs about 17 points more Republican than West Virginia as a whole.
Why Kayford 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 Kayford, not a ranked or complete list of what matters most.
Rural areas vote Republican. About 4% of residents in Kayford live in densely developed areas, about 8 points below the West Virginia average of 12%.
Developed land and Republican lean
Places with a rural land-use pattern tend to lean Republican; Kayford, WV sits in the bottom quarter nationally on this measure. Developed land does not change how people vote; it mostly reflects how urban a place is.
Why turnout in Kayford looks the way it does
Areas with high food insecurity turn out at lower rates. About 24% of adults in Kayford report food insecurity, about 8 points above the U.S. average of 16%. Low high-school completion lines up with lower turnout, and about 74% of adults in Kayford have completed high school, below 96% of cities. High-crime urban areas turn out at lower rates, and Kayford sits in the top 15% on a violent-crime measure. Learn more about the findings and methodology on the political spectrum map.
Nearby Cities
- Burnwell, WV R+54
- Dorothy, WV R+71
- Colcord, WV R+72
- Eskdale, WV R+56
- Leevale, WV R+70
- Whitesville, WV R+68
- Sylvester, WV R+64
- Orgas, WV R+65
- Maxine, WV R+64
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.