Moody County leans heavily Republican by roughly 40 points: about 30% of voters vote Democratic and 70% Republican.
About 68% of adults in Moody County typically vote, above the U.S. average of about 62%. Among adults in Moody County, ~21% vote Democratic, ~48% Republican, and ~31% don't vote. The map below shows estimated turnout by block group.
How Moody County compares
Among counties within 50 miles, Moody County leans more Republican than 4 of 14 neighbors.
Moody County runs about 10 points more Republican than South Dakota as a whole.
Politics vary noticeably by city within Moody County. The northwest side is the most Republican-leaning (R+54) and the east side is the least Republican-leaning (R+28), a spread of about 26 points.
Why Moody 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 Moody County, not a ranked or complete list of what matters most.
Rural areas vote Republican. About 13% of residents in Moody County live in densely developed areas, about 24 points below the U.S. average of 36%. A high family-household share predicts Republican voting, and about 70% of households in Moody County are family households, above 80% of counties.
Park access and Republican lean
Places with low park coverage tend to lean Republican; Moody County, SD sits in the bottom tenth nationally on this measure. Park access does not change how people vote; it tends to track denser, higher-income areas.
Why turnout in Moody County looks the way it does
Areas with strong routine healthcare access turn out at higher rates. Moody 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 70%, about 10 points above the U.S. average of 60%. High high-school completion lines up with higher turnout, and about 95% of adults in Moody County have completed high school, above 93% of counties. Learn more about the findings and methodology on the political spectrum map.
Nearby Counties
- Pipestone County, MN R+48
- Brookings County, SD R+25
- Lake County, SD R+38
- Lincoln County, MN R+49
- Minnehaha County, SD R+10
- Rock County, MN R+45
- Lincoln County, SD R+29
- McCook County, SD R+54
- Miner County, SD R+52
- Kingsbury County, SD R+50
Counties with Similar Populations
- Spink County, SD R+50
- Lafayette County, AR R+32
- Saguache County, CO D+5
- Bear Lake County, ID R+71
- Ellsworth County, KS R+56
- Antelope County, NE R+71
- Bottineau County, ND R+50
- Henderson County, IL R+41
- Bland County, VA R+68
- Woodruff County, AR R+40
All Local Stats
Home Services
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.