Okaton is a Republican stronghold. About 24% of voters here vote Democratic and 76% Republican.
About 46% of adults in Okaton typically vote, below the U.S. average of about 62%. Among adults in Okaton, ~11% vote Democratic, ~35% Republican, and ~54% don't vote. The map below shows estimated turnout by block group.
How Okaton compares
Among cities within 25 miles, Okaton leans more Republican than 3 of 8 neighbors.
Okaton runs about 24 points more Republican than South Dakota as a whole.
Politics vary noticeably by neighborhood within Okaton. The northeast side is the most Republican-leaning (R+72) and the south side is the least Republican-leaning (R+12), a spread of about 61 points.
Why Okaton 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 Okaton, not a ranked or complete list of what matters most.
Rural areas vote Republican. About 2% of residents in Okaton live in densely developed areas, about 8 points below the South Dakota average of 9%.
Population density and Republican lean
Places with low population density tend to lean Republican; Okaton, SD sits in the bottom tenth nationally on this measure.
Why turnout in Okaton looks the way it does
High-crime urban areas turn out at lower rates, mostly because the housing stress common in those areas makes voting harder. Okaton sits in the top 15% nationally on a violent-crime measure. See CrimeGrade for more details. Renters vote less often than owners, and about 30% of households in Okaton rent, above 84% of cities. Learn more about the findings and methodology on the political spectrum map.
Nearby Cities
- Murdo, SD R+72
- Westover, SD R+33
- Midland, SD R+73
- Belvidere, SD R+31
- Nowlin, SD R+73
- Capa, SD R+68
- Draper, SD R+72
- White River, SD R+27
- Kadoka, SD R+57
- Norris, SD R+4
Cities with Similar Populations
- Adna, WA R+44
- Hallowell, KS R+68
- Hallock, IL R+59
- Armour, NC D+18
- Mooresville, AL Even
- Rexburg, MS R+26
- Reighmoor, WI R+29
- Fletchers Landing, ME R+25
- Red Rock, MN D+28
- Lodi, IN R+61
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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.