Sanborn County is a Republican stronghold. About 20% of voters here vote Democratic and 80% Republican.
About 75% of adults in Sanborn County typically vote, above the U.S. average of about 62%. Among adults in Sanborn County, ~15% vote Democratic, ~60% Republican, and ~25% don't vote. The map below shows estimated turnout by block group.
How Sanborn County compares
Among counties within 50 miles, Sanborn County leans more Republican than 7 of 9 neighbors.
Sanborn County runs about 30 points more Republican than South Dakota as a whole.
Why Sanborn 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 Sanborn County, not a ranked or complete list of what matters most.
Rural areas with a high white share vote Republican. Sanborn County sits in the bottom quarter on density and about 90% of residents are non-Hispanic white, about 10 points above the South Dakota average of 81%.
Preventive-care access and voter turnout
Places with strong routine preventive-care access tend to turn out at a higher rate; Sanborn County, SD sits in the top tenth 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 Sanborn County looks the way it does
Areas with strong routine healthcare access turn out at higher rates. Sanborn 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 68%, about 8 points above the U.S. average of 60%. Learn more about the findings and methodology on the political spectrum map.
Nearby Counties
- Jerauld County, SD R+48
- Davison County, SD R+43
- Beadle County, SD R+46
- Aurora County, SD R+59
- Miner County, SD R+52
- Hanson County, SD R+72
- Kingsbury County, SD R+50
- Douglas County, SD R+68
- McCook County, SD R+54
- Hutchinson County, SD R+65
Counties with Similar Populations
- Dolores County, CO R+45
- Eddy County, ND R+46
- Webster County, GA R+16
- Griggs County, ND R+52
- Grant County, ND R+71
- Miner County, SD R+52
- Cimarron County, OK R+68
- Hoonah-Angoon Census Area, AK Even
- Garfield County, WA R+58
- Renville County, ND R+65
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Sources and methodology
Precinct-level voting records used to fit the model come from South Dakota 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.