McKinley County leans Democratic by roughly 28 points: about 64% of voters vote Democratic and 36% Republican.
About 60% of adults in McKinley County typically vote, near the U.S. average of about 62%. Among adults in McKinley County, ~39% vote Democratic, ~22% Republican, and ~39% don't vote. The map below shows estimated turnout by block group.
How McKinley County compares
McKinley County runs about 21 points more Democratic than New Mexico as a whole.
Politics vary noticeably by city within McKinley County. The northwest side is the most Democratic-leaning (D+45) and the south side is the least Democratic-leaning (D+17), a spread of about 28 points.
Why McKinley 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 McKinley County, not a ranked or complete list of what matters most.
Areas with many never-married adults vote Democratic. About 54% of adults in McKinley County have never been married, well above similar-sized counties (around 33%).
Preventive-care access and voter turnout
Places with limited routine preventive-care access tend to turn out at a lower rate; McKinley County, NM sits in the bottom tenth nationally on this measure. Dental visits do not drive turnout; the rate reflects income, insurance, and healthcare access, which line up with who votes.
Why turnout in McKinley County looks the way it does
Areas with limited routine healthcare access turn out at lower rates. McKinley County is in the bottom quarter nationally for routine-care measures such as insurance coverage, preventive screenings, and dental visits. The dental-visit rate here is about 46%, about 11 points below the New Mexico average of 58%. High food insecurity lines up with lower turnout, and about 43% of adults in McKinley County report food insecurity, in the top fraction of counties. Low high-school completion lines up with lower turnout, and about 82% of adults in McKinley County have completed high school, below 91% of counties. Learn more about the findings and methodology on the political spectrum map.
Nearby Counties
- Apache County, AZ D+30
- Cibola County, NM D+10
- San Juan County, NM R+26
- Navajo County, AZ R+3
- Catron County, NM R+36
- Sandoval County, NM D+4
- Bernalillo County, NM D+21
- Valencia County, NM R+13
- Montezuma County, CO R+24
- La Plata County, CO D+13
Counties with Similar Populations
- Fauquier County, VA R+19
- Lauderdale County, MS R+5
- Robertson County, TN R+46
- Christian County, KY R+21
- Tooele County, UT R+45
- Grand Forks County, ND R+8
- Kauai County, HI D+20
- Putnam County, FL R+42
- Pottawatomie County, OK R+49
- Riley County, KS D+4
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.