Rusk leans heavily Republican by roughly 38 points: about 31% of voters vote Democratic and 69% Republican.
About 53% of adults in Rusk typically vote, below the U.S. average of about 62%. Among adults in Rusk, ~16% vote Democratic, ~36% Republican, and ~48% don't vote. The map below shows estimated turnout by block group.
How Rusk compares
Among cities within 25 miles, Rusk leans more Republican than 1 of 41 neighbors.
Rusk runs about 25 points more Republican than Texas as a whole.
Politics vary noticeably by neighborhood within Rusk. The southeast side is the most Republican-leaning (R+67) and the northwest side is the least Republican-leaning (R+4), a spread of about 63 points.
Why Rusk 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 Rusk, not a ranked or complete list of what matters most.
Rusk votes Republican even though it is densely developed (about 27%, modestly below the Texas average of 35%). State and regional patterns outweigh the Democratic lean that density usually predicts here. A high family-household share predicts Republican voting, and about 77% of households in Rusk are family households, above 82% of cities.
Preventive-care access and voter turnout
Places with limited routine preventive-care access tend to turn out at a lower rate; Rusk, TX sits in the bottom quarter nationally on this measure. Dental visits do not drive turnout; the rate reflects income, insurance, and healthcare access, which line up with who votes.
Why turnout in Rusk looks the way it does
Areas with limited routine healthcare access turn out at lower rates. Rusk is in the bottom quarter nationally for routine-care measures such as insurance coverage, preventive screenings, and dental visits. The dental-visit rate here is about 50%, about 10 points below the U.S. average of 60%. Low high-school completion lines up with lower turnout, and about 80% of adults in Rusk have completed high school, below 90% of cities. Learn more about the findings and methodology on the political spectrum map.
Nearby Cities
- Oakland, TX R+75
- Gallatin, TX R+66
- Dialville, TX R+69
- Circle, TX R+66
- Turney, TX R+75
- Craft, TX R+66
- Maydelle, TX R+75
- Reklaw, TX R+64
- Alto, TX R+48
- Weeping Mary, TX R+54
Cities with Similar Populations
- Berne, IN R+63
- Calhoun, LA R+80
- Lauderdale-by-the-Sea, FL R+14
- Brookville, IN R+61
- Fircrest, WA D+34
- Jasper, FL R+12
- Nitro, WV R+27
- Edna, TX R+52
- Idabel, OK R+22
- Seabrook, NH R+6
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Sources and methodology
Precinct-level voting records used to fit the model come from Texas Secretary of State, Elections Division, 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.