Paynesville is a Republican stronghold. About 19% of voters here vote Democratic and 81% Republican.
About 67% of adults in Paynesville typically vote, near the U.S. average of about 62%. Among adults in Paynesville, ~13% vote Democratic, ~54% Republican, and ~33% don't vote. The map below shows estimated turnout by block group.
How Paynesville compares
Among cities within 25 miles, Paynesville leans more Republican than 90 of 96 neighbors.
Paynesville runs about 43 points more Republican than Indiana as a whole.
Why Paynesville 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 Paynesville, not a ranked or complete list of what matters most.
Car-dependent areas vote Republican. About 91% of residents in Paynesville drive to work alone, about 17 points above the U.S. average of 74%. A high family-household share predicts Republican voting, and about 79% of households in Paynesville are family households, above 88% of cities.
Walkability and Republican lean
Places with a low walkability score tend to lean Republican; Paynesville, IN sits in the bottom tenth nationally on this measure. A walkable street grid does not change how people vote; it mostly reflects how urban a place is.
Why turnout in Paynesville looks the way it does
Turnout in Paynesville sits close to the national pattern. Routine healthcare access, homeownership, education, and food security all land near their national averages here. Learn more about the findings and methodology on the political spectrum map.
Nearby Cities
- Otto, IN R+60
- Saluda, IN R+62
- Nabb, IN R+59
- New Washington, IN R+59
- Chelsea, IN R+62
- Marysville, IN R+58
- Wises Landing, KY R+55
- Hanover, IN R+40
- Mount Pleasant, KY R+54
- Lexington, IN R+60
Cities with Similar Populations
- Mount Carmel, ND R+51
- Kemper, SC R+22
- Regina, NM R+2
- Nimshew, CA R+20
- Wildwood, CA R+8
- Karnak, ND R+52
- Sizerville, PA R+55
- Glendale, MN R+26
- Klondyke, AZ R+55
- Dickert, AL R+51
Sources and methodology
Precinct-level voting records used to fit the model come from Indiana 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.