Penobscot County leans slightly Republican by roughly 8 points: about 46% of voters vote Democratic and 54% Republican. These figures are model estimates: Maine did not have precinct-level voting records available for training, so the numbers above come from demographic and health features rather than local ground truth.
About 75% of adults in Penobscot County typically vote, above the U.S. average of about 62%. Among adults in Penobscot County, ~35% vote Democratic, ~41% Republican, and ~24% don't vote. The map below shows estimated turnout by block group.
How Penobscot County compares
Among counties within 50 miles, Penobscot County leans more Republican than 1 of 4 neighbors.
Penobscot County runs about 14 points more Republican than Maine as a whole. Maine leans Democratic overall, while Penobscot County is one of the few Republican-leaning pockets.
Politics vary noticeably by city within Penobscot County. The south side runs the most Democratic (D+14) and the west side runs the most Republican (R+35), a spread of about 49 points.
Why Penobscot 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 Penobscot County, not a ranked or complete list of what matters most.
Penobscot County votes against the grain of Maine. Maine leans Democratic overall, while Penobscot County runs about 14 points more Republican.
High-school completion and voter turnout
Places with high-school-completion-heavy adults tend to turn out at a higher rate; Penobscot County, ME sits in the top tenth nationally on this measure.
Why turnout in Penobscot County looks the way it does
Areas with strong routine healthcare access turn out at higher rates. Penobscot 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 60%. High high-school completion lines up with higher turnout, and about 95% of adults in Penobscot County have completed high school, above 91% of counties. Learn more about the findings and methodology on the political spectrum map.
Nearby Counties
- Piscataquis County, ME R+34
- Waldo County, ME R+7
- Hancock County, ME D+5
- Somerset County, ME R+29
- Knox County, ME D+7
- Kennebec County, ME R+7
- Washington County, ME R+24
- Franklin County, ME R+18
- Lincoln County, ME Even
- Sagadahoc County, ME D+8
Counties with Similar Populations
- Kings County, CA R+10
- Johnson County, IA D+36
- Scott County, MN R+5
- Merrimack County, NH D+6
- Citrus County, FL R+43
- Cumberland County, NJ D+7
- Berrien County, MI Even
- Canadian County, OK R+37
- Washington County, MD R+18
- Monroe County, MI R+27
Sources and methodology
Precinct-level voting records used to fit the model come from Maine Secretary of State, Bureau of Corporations Elections and Commissions, 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. ME did not have precinct-level voting records available for training, so the figures here come from extrapolation across demographic, health, and land-use features rather than local ground truth. Full methodology and findings: political spectrum map.
Methodology reviewed by the BestNeighborhood data team. Last updated May 2026.