Powder River County is a Republican stronghold. About 14% of voters here vote Democratic and 86% Republican.
About 73% of adults in Powder River County typically vote, above the U.S. average of about 62%. Among adults in Powder River County, ~10% vote Democratic, ~63% Republican, and ~27% don't vote. The map below shows estimated turnout by block group.
How Powder River County compares
Powder River County runs about 52 points more Republican than Montana as a whole.
Why Powder River 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 Powder River County, not a ranked or complete list of what matters most.
Rural areas vote Republican. About 2% of residents in Powder River County live in densely developed areas, about 11 points below the Montana average of 13%.
Walkability and Republican lean
Places with a low walkability score tend to lean Republican; Powder River County, MT sits in the bottom quarter 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 Powder River County looks the way it does
Turnout in Powder River County sits close to the national pattern. Learn more about the findings and methodology on the political spectrum map.
Nearby Counties
- Carter County, MT R+78
- Rosebud County, MT R+20
- Custer County, MT R+43
- Campbell County, WY R+65
- Crook County, WY R+78
- Sheridan County, WY R+47
- Fallon County, MT R+71
- Big Horn County, MT Even
- Prairie County, MT R+68
- Johnson County, WY R+60
Counties with Similar Populations
- De Baca County, NM R+35
- Comanche County, KS R+73
- Hodgeman County, KS R+77
- Jerauld County, SD R+48
- Daniels County, MT R+66
- McCone County, MT R+72
- Dundy County, NE R+67
- Golden Valley County, ND R+69
- Cheyenne County, CO R+72
- Oldham County, TX R+80
Sources and methodology
Precinct-level voting records used to fit the model come from Montana 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.