Rio Arriba County leans Democratic by roughly 20 points: about 60% of voters vote Democratic and 40% Republican.
About 61% of adults in Rio Arriba County typically vote, near the U.S. average of about 62%. Among adults in Rio Arriba County, ~37% vote Democratic, ~24% Republican, and ~39% don't vote. The map below shows estimated turnout by block group.
How Rio Arriba County compares
Among counties within 50 miles, Rio Arriba County is the least Democratic-leaning.
Rio Arriba County runs about 14 points more Democratic than New Mexico as a whole.
Politics vary noticeably by city within Rio Arriba County. The northwest side runs the most Democratic (D+35) and the north side runs the most Republican (Even), a spread of about 36 points.
Why Rio Arriba 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 Rio Arriba County, not a ranked or complete list of what matters most.
Areas with many never-married adults vote Democratic. About 38% of adults in Rio Arriba County have never been married, modestly above similar-sized counties (around 27%).
Cancer-screening access and voter turnout
Places with low colon-cancer-screening access tend to turn out at a lower rate; Rio Arriba County, NM sits in the bottom tenth nationally on this measure. Cancer screening does not drive turnout; it reflects income, insurance, and healthcare access.
Why turnout in Rio Arriba County looks the way it does
Areas with limited routine healthcare access turn out at lower rates. Rio Arriba County is in the bottom quarter nationally for routine-care measures such as insurance coverage, preventive screenings, and dental visits. High food insecurity lines up with lower turnout, and about 26% of adults in Rio Arriba County report food insecurity, above 91% of counties. Learn more about the findings and methodology on the political spectrum map.
Nearby Counties
- Los Alamos County, NM D+27
- Taos County, NM D+42
- Santa Fe County, NM D+45
- Mora County, NM D+18
- Sandoval County, NM D+4
- San Miguel County, NM D+24
- Conejos County, CO R+25
- Bernalillo County, NM D+21
- Costilla County, CO D+19
- Archuleta County, CO R+14
Counties with Similar Populations
- Ottawa County, OH R+30
- Orleans County, NY R+32
- Delaware County, OK R+58
- Pike County, MS D+8
- Tazewell County, VA R+58
- McKean County, PA R+43
- LaGrange County, IN R+63
- Amador County, CA R+35
- Fayette County, WV R+46
- Wyoming County, NY R+39
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Sources and methodology
Precinct-level voting records used to fit the model come from New Mexico Secretary of State, Bureau of 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.