Madison County leans heavily Republican by roughly 34 points: about 33% of voters vote Democratic and 67% Republican.
About 79% of adults in Madison County typically vote, above the U.S. average of about 62%. Among adults in Madison County, ~26% vote Democratic, ~53% Republican, and ~21% don't vote. The map below shows estimated turnout by block group.
How Madison County compares
Among counties within 50 miles, Madison County leans more Republican than 6 of 19 neighbors.
Madison County runs about 31 points more Republican than North Carolina as a whole.
Politics vary noticeably by city within Madison County. The west side is the most Republican-leaning (R+41) and the east side is the least Republican-leaning (R+27), a spread of about 14 points.
Why Madison County leans the way it does
This analysis examined 14,881 data points per county to find what predicts political lean and turnout. The items below are a few correlations that stood out for Madison County, not a ranked or complete list of what matters most.
Rural areas with a high white share vote Republican. Madison County sits in the bottom quarter on density and about 92% of residents are non-Hispanic white, about 25 points above the North Carolina average of 66%.
Paved land cover and Republican lean
Places with little paved surface tend to lean Republican; Madison County, NC 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 Madison County looks the way it does
Turnout in Madison County sits close to the national pattern. Learn more about the findings and methodology on the political spectrum map.
Nearby Counties
- Buncombe County, NC D+18
- Yancey County, NC R+43
- Unicoi County, TN R+57
- Greene County, TN R+62
- Haywood County, NC R+33
- Mitchell County, NC R+56
- Cocke County, TN R+65
- Washington County, TN R+37
- Henderson County, NC R+16
- McDowell County, NC R+50
Counties with Similar Populations
- Clinton County, MO R+48
- Gray County, TX R+59
- Fillmore County, MN R+32
- Nodaway County, MO R+38
- Jackson County, WI R+21
- Llano County, TX R+56
- Logan County, AR R+63
- Leake County, MS R+12
- Union Parish, LA R+49
- Newton County, MS R+34
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Sources and methodology
Precinct-level voting records used to fit the model come from North Carolina 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.