Perkins County is a Republican stronghold. About 12% of voters here vote Democratic and 88% Republican.
About 73% of adults in Perkins County typically vote, above the U.S. average of about 62%. Among adults in Perkins County, ~9% vote Democratic, ~64% Republican, and ~27% don't vote. The map below shows estimated turnout by block group.
How Perkins County compares
Among counties within 50 miles, Perkins County leans more Republican than 6 of 7 neighbors.
Perkins County runs about 56 points more Republican than Nebraska as a whole.
Politics vary noticeably by city within Perkins County. The southeast side is the most Republican-leaning (R+82) and the west side is the least Republican-leaning (R+71), a spread of about 11 points.
Why Perkins 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 Perkins County, not a ranked or complete list of what matters most.
Rural areas with a high white share vote Republican. Perkins County sits in the bottom quarter on density and about 91% of residents are non-Hispanic white, about 18 points above the U.S. average of 72%.
Paved land cover and Republican lean
Places with little paved surface tend to lean Republican; Perkins County, NE sits in the bottom tenth nationally on this measure. Paved ground does not change how people vote; it mostly reflects how urban and built-up a place is.
Why turnout in Perkins County looks the way it does
Turnout in Perkins County 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 Counties
- Keith County, NE R+60
- Chase County, NE R+71
- Sedgwick County, CO R+50
- Deuel County, NE R+71
- Hayes County, NE R+87
- Phillips County, CO R+53
- Lincoln County, NE R+46
- Arthur County, NE R+59
- Dundy County, NE R+67
- Garden County, NE R+70
Counties with Similar Populations
- Clay County, GA D+18
- Baker County, GA R+16
- Douglas County, SD R+68
- Perkins County, SD R+68
- Glascock County, GA R+80
- Franklin County, NE R+69
- Hall County, TX R+63
- Brown County, NE R+74
- Edwards County, KS R+65
- Trego County, KS R+67
Sources and methodology
Precinct-level voting records used to fit the model come from Nebraska 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.