Louisiana leans slightly Republican by roughly 12 points: about 44% of voters vote Democratic and 56% Republican.
About 66% of adults in Louisiana typically vote, near the U.S. average of about 62%. Among adults in Louisiana, ~29% vote Democratic, ~37% Republican, and ~34% don't vote. The map below shows estimated turnout by block group.
How Louisiana compares
Among states within 500 miles, Louisiana leans more Republican than 2 of 7 neighbors.
Politics vary noticeably by county within Louisiana. The southeast side runs the most Democratic (D+12) and the northeast side runs the most Republican (R+73), a spread of about 85 points.
Why Louisiana leans the way it does
This analysis examined 14,881 data points per state to find what predicts political lean and turnout. The items below are a few correlations that stood out for Louisiana, not a ranked or complete list of what matters most.
Car-dependent areas vote Republican. About 79% of residents in Louisiana drive to work alone, above 94% of states. Low college attainment predicts Republican voting, and Louisiana sits in the bottom quarter (about 27%, below 92% of states).
Paved land cover and Republican lean
Places with little paved surface tend to lean Republican; Louisiana sits below the national average 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 Louisiana looks the way it does
Turnout in Louisiana sits close to the national pattern. Routine healthcare access, homeownership, education, and food security all land near their national averages here. Learn more about the findings and methodology on the political spectrum map.
Nearby States
States with Similar Populations
Sources and methodology
Precinct-level voting records used to fit the model come from Louisiana 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.