Milton is a Republican stronghold. About 21% of voters here vote Democratic and 79% Republican.
About 61% of adults in Milton typically vote, near the U.S. average of about 62%. Among adults in Milton, ~13% vote Democratic, ~48% Republican, and ~39% don't vote. The map below shows estimated turnout by block group.
How Milton compares
Among cities within 25 miles, Milton leans more Republican than 22 of 44 neighbors.
Milton runs about 45 points more Republican than Iowa as a whole.
Why Milton 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 Milton, not a ranked or complete list of what matters most.
Areas with low college attainment vote Republican. About 5% of adults in Milton hold a bachelor's degree, about 19 points below the Iowa average of 24%.
Developed land and Republican lean
Places with a rural land-use pattern tend to lean Republican; Milton, IA sits below the national average on this measure. Developed land does not change how people vote; it mostly reflects how urban a place is.
Why turnout in Milton looks the way it does
Crowded housing lines up with lower turnout. About 8% of homes in Milton have more than one occupant per room, above 95% of cities. Low high-school completion lines up with lower turnout, and about 56% of adults in Milton have completed high school, in the bottom fraction of cities. Learn more about the findings and methodology on the political spectrum map.
Nearby Cities
- Cantril, IA R+56
- Troy, IA R+60
- Pulaski, IA R+63
- Pittsburg, IA R+55
- Leando, IA R+57
- Azen, MO R+72
- Stiles, IA R+63
- White Elm, IA R+61
- Lebanon, IA R+51
- Keosauqua, IA R+51
Cities with Similar Populations
- Alleyton, TX R+62
- Emma, CO D+28
- Benton Ridge, OH R+56
- Stuckey, SC D+35
- Hillrose, CO R+64
- Plummers Mill, KY R+66
- Beatty, NV R+42
- Locust, TX R+62
- Gloucester, NC R+49
- Lawrence, WA R+26
Sources and methodology
Precinct-level voting records used to fit the model come from Iowa 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.