Knoxville leans Republican by roughly 20 points: about 40% of voters vote Democratic and 60% Republican.
About 93% of adults in Knoxville typically vote, above the U.S. average of about 62%. Among adults in Knoxville, ~37% vote Democratic, ~56% Republican, and ~7% don't vote. The map below shows estimated turnout by block group.
How Knoxville compares
Among cities within 25 miles, Knoxville leans more Republican than 66 of 110 neighbors.
Knoxville runs about 48 points more Republican than Maryland as a whole. Maryland leans Democratic overall, while Knoxville is one of the few Republican-leaning pockets.
Politics vary noticeably by neighborhood within Knoxville. The southeast side runs the most Democratic (Even) and the northwest side runs the most Republican (R+41), a spread of about 42 points.
Why Knoxville 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 Knoxville, not a ranked or complete list of what matters most.
Knoxville votes against the grain of Maryland. Maryland leans Democratic overall, while Knoxville runs about 48 points more Republican.
Cancer-screening access and voter turnout
Places with high colon-cancer-screening access tend to turn out at a higher rate; Knoxville, MD sits in the top quarter nationally on this measure. Cancer screening does not drive turnout; it reflects income, insurance, and healthcare access.
Why turnout in Knoxville looks the way it does
Areas with strong routine healthcare access turn out at higher rates. Knoxville 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 69%, about 9 points above the U.S. average of 60%. High high-school completion lines up with higher turnout, and about 96% of adults in Knoxville have completed high school, above 85% of cities. Learn more about the findings and methodology on the political spectrum map.
Nearby Cities
- Rosemont, MD Even
- Brunswick, MD D+3
- Brownsville, MD R+38
- Burkittsville, MD R+18
- Olive, MD Even
- Bolivar, WV D+26
- Lovettsville, VA R+5
- Rohrersville, MD R+36
Cities with Similar Populations
- Choudrant, LA R+73
- Shelby, MT R+33
- Monroe, UT R+70
- Fife Lake, MI R+40
- Mcadoo, PA R+37
- Union City, OH R+59
- Springfield, NE R+38
- California, KY R+54
- Beach City, TX R+68
- Wesleyville, PA R+6
Sources and methodology
Precinct-level voting records used to fit the model come from Maryland State Board of 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.