La Plata is a Republican stronghold. About 22% of voters here vote Democratic and 78% Republican.
About 65% of adults in La Plata typically vote, near the U.S. average of about 62%. Among adults in La Plata, ~14% vote Democratic, ~51% Republican, and ~35% don't vote. The map below shows estimated turnout by block group.
How La Plata compares
Among cities within 25 miles, La Plata leans more Republican than 16 of 17 neighbors.
La Plata runs about 63 points more Republican than New Mexico as a whole. New Mexico leans Democratic overall, while La Plata is one of the few Republican-leaning pockets.
Why La Plata 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 La Plata, not a ranked or complete list of what matters most.
Rural areas vote Republican. Fewer than 1% of residents in La Plata live in densely developed areas, about 17 points below the New Mexico average of 18%. A high family-household share predicts Republican voting, and about 85% of households in La Plata are family households, above 96% of cities. La Plata runs against the grain of New Mexico, a Republican-leaning pocket in a Democratic-leaning state.
Paved land cover and Republican lean
Places with little paved surface tend to lean Republican; La Plata, NM sits in the bottom tenth 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 La Plata looks the way it does
Areas with high high-school completion turn out at higher rates. About 96% of adults in La Plata have completed high school, about 9 points above the New Mexico average of 87%. Learn more about the findings and methodology on the political spectrum map.
Nearby Cities
- Flora Vista, NM R+58
- Farmington, NM R+33
- DeSmet, NM R+33
- Aztec, NM R+47
- Redmesa, CO R+27
- Kirtland, NM R+18
- Cedar Hill, NM R+55
- Lee Acres, NM R+53
- Tinian, NM R+27
- Marvel, CO R+20
Cities with Similar Populations
- Lincolnville, SC D+19
- Triana, AL D+24
- Princeville, NC D+83
- Ludlow Center, MA R+16
- Manassa, CO R+28
- Kiona, WA R+54
- Beckemeyer, IL R+52
- Reelsville, IN R+61
- Shokan, NY D+24
- Johnson, WA D+18
All Local Stats
Home Services
Sources and methodology
Precinct-level voting records used to fit the model come from New Mexico Secretary of State, Bureau 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.