McPherson County is a Republican stronghold. About 17% of voters here vote Democratic and 83% Republican.
About 70% of adults in McPherson County typically vote, above the U.S. average of about 62%. Among adults in McPherson County, ~12% vote Democratic, ~58% Republican, and ~30% don't vote. The map below shows estimated turnout by block group.
How McPherson County compares
Among counties within 50 miles, McPherson County leans more Republican than 5 of 6 neighbors.
McPherson County runs about 37 points more Republican than South Dakota as a whole.
Why McPherson 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 McPherson County, not a ranked or complete list of what matters most.
Rural areas with a high white share vote Republican. McPherson County sits in the bottom quarter on density and about 97% of residents are non-Hispanic white, about 16 points above the South Dakota average of 81%.
Population density and Republican lean
Places with low population density tend to lean Republican; McPherson County, SD sits in the bottom tenth nationally on this measure.
Why turnout in McPherson County looks the way it does
Areas with strong routine healthcare access turn out at higher rates. McPherson County 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 67%, about 7 points above the U.S. average of 60%. Homeowners vote more often than renters, and about 81% of households in McPherson County own their home, above 84% of counties. Learn more about the findings and methodology on the political spectrum map.
Nearby Counties
- Edmunds County, SD R+60
- McIntosh County, ND R+61
- Campbell County, SD R+66
- Brown County, SD R+35
- Faulk County, SD R+66
- Dickey County, ND R+55
- Logan County, ND R+75
- Walworth County, SD R+56
- LaMoure County, ND R+57
- Emmons County, ND R+70
Counties with Similar Populations
- Ziebach County, SD D+12
- Graham County, KS R+65
- Sedgwick County, CO R+50
- Kidder County, ND R+61
- Sheridan County, KS R+79
- Schleicher County, TX R+44
- Hoonah-Angoon Census Area, AK Even
- Kiowa County, KS R+71
- Niobrara County, WY R+90
- Potter County, SD R+62
Sources and methodology
Precinct-level voting records used to fit the model come from South Dakota 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.